Be Your Own Detective

Showing posts with label background investigation. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Free Public Records Search Links - No Catch!

Posted by Barry 4 comments

I have made a free public records links page, that I have been working on for some time. I am still not happy with the layout - but this page is more about information than fluff. I will leave the link up - right underneath my feedburner subscribe link.

Speaking of feedburner, I didn't even realize that I have 11 subscribers! Wow, for a guy that has been averaging about 30 visits a day - wow, I know big woop - I say sarcastically, I have a pretty good loyal following. Now for my readers, I am not dissing you guys. I have worked hard at getting listed in directories, etc (more than 200) for exposure. Maybe it just takes time, but it does get a bit frustrating when I work hard at this blog, and my other blog gets all the ratings, credit and "google love." Ok, my pathetic numbers are probably gonna drive off a few of my faithful stopper-byers, but hey, I am honest.

Maybe I should be like 'Chell and start calling Google the anti-christ or something. All I know is my N/A-ed-ness at Google tends to annoy me. I know page rank isn't everything, but you would thing a search on stuff would point to this blog instead of the other one!

I guess I should take what I can get.

If the Super Duper free links page doesn't help you in your search, maybe you could try my net detective link above or the searchbox on the blog. Yeah they cost, but they are cheaper than a real live private eye.

Friday, May 30, 2008

New Not So Secret Driver's License Search

Posted by Barry 6 comments

Sshhhhh!! Don't tell anyone about this absolutely free site!

You know what is great about me having my own "Be Your Own Detective" site? Well, my mom sent me this really cool driver's license lookup site in my email.

It is not a complete background check or instant background search or anything like that, but you will see an electronic display of your driver's license (if you run your own) It touts itself like this:

National Motor Vehicle License Organization web site - offering a free searchable database of over 121 million U.S. driver's license photos. Search using the box below.

It is totally free! I suggest you check it out immediately! This is one of those sites you will want to pass to all of your friends for sure!

And yes, I do have a sense of humor :))

Friday, May 16, 2008

He Should Have Checked Her Background Before He Dated Her

Posted by Barry 4 comments

Here is another example that you may want to be your own detective and check out the person you are dating with a background check. This is from an April 17th Story.

A 52-year-old career thief and mother of six was convicted yesterday of secretly stealing thousands of dollars from her boyfriend and stabbing him to death before his body was found burning along an Anne Arundel County road.
Two weeks before her trial was to begin, Cynthia J. McKay entered a guilty plea to charges of second-degree murder and felony theft, ducking a possible life sentence in a crime that ensnared two of her sons. She now faces a maximum penalty of 30 years.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys involved in the case said piecing together not just the death of Anthony Fertitta, whose body was found ablaze not far from McKay's Millersville townhouse in February 2006, but McKay's past made the case one of the most complicated they had ever handled.McKay's previous husband died in a Christmas Day fire in 2002, and she pleaded guilty in 2003 to stealing more than $200,000 from a Catholic seminary in Baltimore.
With her plea yesterday, she has been convicted a dozen times, spanning more than 20 years and several counties.Released from prison in July 2005 after stealing from an elderly Delaware woman, McKay moved to Millersville and began dating Fertitta in the fall.
The 50-year-old UPS driver and warehouse worker did not know he was dating a convicted con artist, prosecutors said.

You can find the rest of the story here. Remember to Stay Safe!

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Some People are so Stupid - No Need for Background Checks

Posted by Barry 0 comments

There are those in this world, that you do not even need to use a background check, or background investigation to see that they are criminals. I found this story here. I thought you would enjoy it. :))

BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhuanet) -- A Vietnamese man in Norway who believed that mixing cash with a special liquid could double its value suffered in fact a loss of 35,000 U.S. dollars, according to media reports Monday.
This unidentified man was told by a 32-year-old Frenchman that if he mixed the real cash with blank bills and then marinate them in a special liquid for one night, he would have double the amount of the cash. The gullible Vietnamese believed the Frenchman's story and gave him 180,000 kroner (35, 000 U.S. dollars). But when he prepared to collect his money the next morning, both the cash and the Frenchman disappeared.
"He has given a statement that leads us to believe that he really believed this was possible. But we are of course having a hard time understanding how someone could actually believe such a tall tale," police officer Ragnar Ingberg said. Early on March, the Frenchman was arrested while trying to leave Norway. He is set to stand trial in a lower court near Oslo next week. But his lawyer claimed that his clinet is extremely surprised to be charged with something that was so incredible.

So anyways, I guess there are times when you do not need anyspecial service - like with the Vietnamese guy there.

Be Safe!

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Instant Background Checks - What No One Really Wants to Know

Posted by Barry 0 comments

What no one really wants to know, is that the new really nice guy they just let move in to the complex, is really a convicted felon. Or maybe you don't really want to know that the receptionist you just hired is on probation for theft by check. She seems nice enough and she is pretty, and visitors seem to like to interact with her.

The reason you do not want to know these things is simple. It is too late! You already like the guy that moved in to the complex. You like the new receptionist and the customers like her too. So why did you wait to run a background check? Did you procrastinate? Were you too cheap? Are you too cheap to prevent theft from your own business? I know it wasn't time. Remember, the title of this post is about INSTANT background checks. If you are reading this, you have no excuse to not conduct one. All you have to do is fill out the box on the right and start. It really is not that hard to do.

Maybe you do not like the way that one works, well then click the Net Detective link above. They both have a quality product and are easy to use.

But wait! I know that I cannot refuse to hire someone just based on a background check! That is not really the case, you can simply ask and confirm the information in the background check in the job interview.

Anyways, it is your money, your security. If you trust your gut, that is fine with me, but why not take out a little insurance (so to speak). It will be the best 30 bucks you spent this year. :)

Stay Safe!

Thursday, April 24, 2008

The Basics Of Building a Case File

Posted by Barry 0 comments

What do you need to do to build your case file? The basics are not that hard to grasp. When you start to build a case file – it either focuses on an event (like a crime) or a subject (person). Many investigators have two sets of files they keep. One is by the event – which for most police departments IS the case file. Then they keep a person file or subject file – many places have different names, but the names are not important - how to keep the file, and what to put in it is important.

Make a document that is you “report.” First – you need a brief summary of the event. It may only be a paragraph, but it documents the known events without all of the details. Here is an example:

Internal Theft: On April 2nd at about 3PM, Fred Johnson appeared to have placed some money from the cash register of the Mini-Mart #6 into his own right front pants pocket. On that same day the cash drawer was short $57. The event was recorded on the video surveillance system for the store.

There are more details to cover – but look at what is covered in the one paragraph:

We covered when, who, what, where, and how. The same stuff you need for any kind of report.

Your report will grow as you gather information, facts and evidence. The simplest way to document this is by time and date. I usually do this, but I re-organize my final report by categories:

Summary:
Details of Events:
Subjects Involved:
Vehicles Involved: (if there are any)
Evidence: (I will expand on this later)
Conclusion: (this is where I put my assessment of what happened and recommendations)

So, as you work on the case – you document what you do, what people tell you (possibly in the form of statements), what evidence you find, and possibly you next steps (this is mostly a reminder for yourself)

For all the subjects in your report, you should conduct a background check. You can do that at Be Your Own Detective or use The Net Detective. Either or these services should get you started.

So get those case files started – and make a folder on your computer labeling the case – put all of your digital information in that folder for safe keeping – more to follow.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

My Super Duper Free Links Page

Posted by Barry 0 comments

On this page - you will find a really good connection of links - most I believe are free for conducting different kinds of investigations. If the free sources do not help, then try Net Detective or my search box on the sidebar. (those cost, but they are a LOT cheaper than hiring a private eye)

Of course, one more disclaimer here: I will probably list a link more than once, I have tried to NOT do such a thing, but it does happen, so forgive any repeated links. I decided to post these in blogger instead of using a page as it is easier to search them. Any suggestions for more links or maybe a different way to give you these is greatly appreciated.