PInow.com Investigation News

Phone Spying Case Settled After More Than a Decade

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:27:10 +0000

MILAN, ITALY – A phone spying case which involved the hacking of top Italian celebrities has finally been settled after dragging on since 1997. That’s the year that Telecom Italia was accused of playing a role in illegally accessing telephone records of private customers. The company was eventually controlled by tire company Pirelli but the scandal continued. Now, the two companies have agreed to pay $10.4 million for their role in the scandal.

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PI Takes Out Restraining Order on Hollywood Couple

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:10:10 +0000

LOS ANGELES, CA – PI Becky Altringer was hired by Randy and Evi Quaid, but since then the professional relationship has become unpleasant. Now, Altringer is seeking a restraining order against the couple, alleging that the couple has contacted her and have made abusive and threatening comments to her. Altringer wants to prevent the Quaids from contacting her in any form. The PI had previously sought a restraining order against Evi Quaid but was denied the request after a judge deemed that there was not enough evidence to create a restraining order.

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Judge Deems Surveillance “Legitimate” in Divorce Cases

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:57:34 +0000

ORANGE COUNTY, NY – A man was accused by his wife of stalking her after he hired a PI to conduct surveillance work and uncovered that the wife was having an affair. Family Court Judge Debra J. Kiedaisch, however, sided with the man and deemed that surveillance and PI work can be a legitimate part of a divorce case. In this case, the judge ruled hiring a PI is for a “proper and legitimate purpose.”

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Under New Missouri Law All PIs Must be Licensed

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:51:28 +0000

JEFFERSON CITY, MO - As of February 1, 2010, the Missouri Division of Professional Registration will begin accepting applications for licensing. Chairman of the State Board of Private Investigator Examiners Dwight McNiel notes, “Until now, becoming a private investigator in Missouri required little more than a business license fee and a place to hang a shingle.” The new licensing requirements can be found through the Missouri Revised Statutes. Applications are also now available from the board’s website.

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PIs To Look Into School Procedures

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:23:44 +0000

WEST MIFFLIN, PA – The West Mifflin school board has hired PI company Gentile-Meinert and Associates Inc. For an estimated $5,000 budget the PI firm will be expected to investigate district procedures and operations, as well as issues with school personnel. The board has been tight-lipped about the duration of the investigation as well as the motives behind it, but some have speculated that there is some concern about wrongdoing within the board, although this has not been confirmed.

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Fraud Means Business for PIs

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:05:39 +0000

LONDON, ENGLAND – Thanks to the bad economy, fraud is on the rise in the UK and is now costing that economy $30 billion a year. For PIs, this has meant good news as more clients work to track down fraudsters and recover lost assets. According to experts, much fraud takes place in the private sector, where businesses are increasingly willing to pay for PIs in order to crack down on those who attack their businesses financially through theft and fraud.

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Spoofing Targets Popular Phone Service

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:43:07 +0000

CONCORD, NH – While many customers pay extra for Caller ID, ID Spoofing – once the stuff of PI companies only — may make this technology outdated. Anyone can spoof IDs today with simple gadgets that are available to anyone and are quite legal. While PIs and other businesses use ID Spoofing for legitimate purposes – such as to keep private numbers private – authorities are worried fraudsters will use the technology to target seniors and other groups with scams.

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PIs Face Challenges When Tracking Financial Fraudsters

PInow.com Staff — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:58:27 +0000

TORONTO, CANADA - Ponzi scams have deprived investors of billions of dollars, but investigators note that tracking assets and wrongdoers is so difficult that many victims may not recover lost funds. In Ponzi schemes, investors get money because other investors pay in. No profits are ever made, so an economic downturn or a slowing of new investors mean people lose money. Forensic investigation specialists note that with the economy now doing poorly, many such schemes are falling apart. Forensic investigators say that class-action lawsuits and PIs are often the only ways to track down victim’s money, but in many cases this is very challenging since there is little actual profit in these schemes. In many cases, leaders of Ponzi schemes spend money on a lavish lifestyle, so there is no money for victims to track and recover. Ponzi fraudsters also often hide money in tax shelters and through families, making money hard to trace.

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PIs Gearing Up for Seasonal Rush

PInow.com Staff — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:58:21 +0000

ORANGE COUNTY, CA – Many PIs across California and across the nation are getting ready for a seasonal spike in surveillance and cheating spouse cases. According to many PIs and experts, the time leading up to Valentine’s Day is a busy time for most PIs as suspicious spouses look for answers. This year, some experts claim the high-profile cheating scandal involving Tiger Woods may mean even more business for PIs. PI Tom Martin of Martin Investigative Services notes that he gets up to 15 new clients a week, but in the weeks leading up to Valentine’s day, he might get 25 calls a day. PIs like Martin may need to take on additional employees and surveillance equipment to accommodate increased demand at this time of year.

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PInow.com is Proud to Announce Their Newest Team Members!

PInow.com Staff — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:44:23 +0000

Spotlight on New Employees

ServeNow.com, ProcessServers.com & PInow.com are proud to announce Kimberley Conner, Pam McDonough and Mindy Naumer as our newest Marketing Consultants and Amanda de Bock as the new Client Concierge. Each of these women brings a diverse background to the team, but all are here are here for the same reason: to help the process servers and investigators we work with to be more successful.

Meet the team:

Nora Sneberger, Senior Marketing Consultant

As a former prosecutor and public defender and attorney with extensive experience with civil and criminal litigation, Nora brings a strong legal background to the company. As Senior Marketing Consultant, she will be heading up business development for ServeNow.com, ProcessServers.com and PInow.com as well as working closely with the team to grow and promote the brands within the legal industry.

Prior to her work with FindLaw, Nora was the managing director at Special Counsel, a legal recruiting company, where she worked closely with the legal industry. In her spare time, Nora enjoys hanging out with her kids,husband and dog, and spending time in the mountains.

Nora will be overseeing the marketing efforts of Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Alaska and Hawaii.

Kimberley Conner, Marketing Consultant
Kimberley is a southern gal, born and raised in Texas. After leaving Texas, she spent time in Florida before settling in Colorado. She brings a strong background in sales and training in the commercial audio and video manufacturing industry. In her free time she hangs out with her two cats, plays Texas Hold ‘Em and hikes in the beautiful Rocky Mountains.

Kimberley will be overseeing the marketing efforts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin and Illinois.

Pam McDonough, Marketing Consultant
Pam, from the midwest was born and raised in small town Iowa. She recently moved to Denver from Minneapolis, where she worked for Thomson Reuters. During her time at Thomson she worked in both the West-Inside Sales and Findlaw Account Management departments, focusing on client services and online legal marketing. Pam’s hobbies include hanging out with her husband, going to concerts, fantasy football, shopping, hanging out with friends, and exploring Colorado.

Pam will be overseeing the marketing efforts of Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.

Mindy Naumer, Marketing Consultant
Mindy was born and raised in small town southern Illinois. She attended DePauw Universiy where she received her Bachelors degree in economics. She started her career at Merrill Lynch in Chicago where she completed her series 7 before moving on to work at Holly Hunt, an interior design firm. Mindy moved to Colorado fourteen years ago and has since owned and run her own businesses. In her free time she does pilates, spends time in the outdoors hiking, biking and skiing.

Mindy will be overseeing the marketing efforts of Vermont, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maine, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Washington D.C., Maryland, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Connecticut

Amanda de Bock, Client Concierge
Amanda grew up in Pennsylvania and attended the University of Pennsylvania where she studied interdisciplinary fine arts. She spent time in Washington D.C and San Francisco working with Family Supportive Housing before moving to Colorado to be near her sister. Amanda’s hobbies include spending time with her dog, baking and going to the movies.

Amanda will be overseeing the client care and customer service of ServeNow.com, ProcessServers.com & PInow.com on a nationwide level.