Identification and Apprehension of Con Artists

In many cases, the assignment of our private detectives in Kiel and Schleswig-Holstein involves infidelity in relationships, custody and maintenance matters, threats, coercion, and similar issues. However, our experienced and IHK-certified private investigators at Kurtz Detective Agency Kiel are also your competent contacts for identifying, locating, and bringing (con) artists to justice: +49 431 3057 0053.

Grandparent Scam? Not Only That. Trick Fraud Can Affect Anyone

When one hears the term "trick fraud", the mind automatically goes to the frequently reported “grandparent scam”. Media reports also suggest that older individuals fall victim to fraud more often than younger people, giving younger and middle-aged citizens a false sense of security. Our Kiel detectives’ case study proves that this is not the case:

Party Accident in Heikendorf: Actually an Ordinary Insurance Case

The Backhaus couple amassed considerable wealth during their marriage. Mr Backhaus is the CEO of a nationwide company and can provide his wife with a carefree life. Both are in their mid-forties and live in a small villa in the prestigious Kitzeberg district of Heikendorf near Kiel, furnished with fine furniture and expensive accessories. Among other things, the couple owns several very valuable Persian rugs, which are sent annually to a local rug dealer for cleaning. A magnificent, very costly Esfahan Gol from Tabriz, Iran, is to be cleaned, as well as a Tabbaz Nain runner, also from Iran. The rug dealer’s employee comes, as countless times before, to collect the rugs. A week later, they are returned as usual. The very next day, Mrs Backhaus transfers the cleaning costs to the company.

Just three weeks later, the couple celebrates their 15th wedding anniversary, attended by invited friends. What happens is what liability insurers record hundreds of times annually as claims: One of the guests accidentally bumps the table edge, the wine bottle wobbles and falls. Red wine pours over the tablecloth, the dress of a friend of the hostess, and one of the freshly cleaned Persian rugs. No big problem, as the liability insurance of the clumsy guest will of course cover it.

Appraisal Accuses the Victims of Insurance Fraud

The following Monday, the relevant liability insurance is informed of the damage. They state that an appraiser wishes to inspect the damage and that the items should not be cleaned yet. When the appraiser arrives two weeks later to examine the rug more closely, he immediately suspects the Backhaus couple of insurance fraud. The couple is naturally horrified that someone could make such an accusation, but the appraiser claims that the rug is worth no more than a hundred euros and can be purchased at any discount furniture store. The couple are perplexed and assure the appraiser that they purchased the rug legally with a certificate of authenticity from a large rug retailer sourcing directly from Iran. They show the appraiser the purchase receipt as well as the invoice for the recent cleaning.

On the same day, the Backhaus couple contacts two rug retailers to obtain independent appraisals of the rug’s value. Both retailers reach the same conclusion as the insurance appraiser: The rug is not genuine but a cheap machine-made product. Mr and Mrs Backhaus are at a loss. What has happened to their valuable Tabbaz Nain? Mr Backhaus calls Kurtz Detective Agency Kiel and Schleswig-Holstein: +49 431 3057 0053.

Fraud with Cheap Copies from the Far East

Two of our investigators begin their inquiries in Heikendorf, researching discreetly with the rug dealer and also contacting various clients of the dealer who had their rugs cleaned. During the investigation, it emerges that in two other cases, genuine oriental rugs were swapped for inferior products. The Kiel detectives decide to set a trap for the rug dealer. They furnish an investigator’s house with two genuine, extremely expensive rugs and arrange their cleaning with the dealer in question. On the day of their return, two independent appraisers are asked to assess the rugs. It turns out that both had been replaced with cheap imitations. The detectives inform the Backhaus couple of the findings and accompany them to confront the suspicious dealer. The dealer appears stunned and clearly unaware.

While the couple, the dealer, and the detectives discuss the case in Heikendorf, the employee who had collected and returned the rugs to customers drives into the parking lot. One of the detectives suspects that this employee may be behind the fraud. He addresses him and asks to inspect the truck bed. The employee vehemently refuses. Only when the dealer himself insists on inspecting the truck does the employee comply, opening the rear doors. Around fifteen rugs are found, identifiable by the visible price tags as cheap imports, yet surprisingly similar in pattern and colour to genuine oriental rugs. The employee admits to selling or intending to sell the genuine rugs online. Ultimately, the perpetrator, exposed by our Schleswig-Holstein detectives, is held criminally accountable for multiple embezzlements and fraud, and civilly liable to his employer for damaging their business reputation.

Note

To preserve discretion and the personal rights of clients and subjects, all names and locations in this case report have been completely anonymised.

Investigations by Our Kiel Detectives in Cases of Fraud

If you have fallen victim to a fraudster in any form, do not only inform the police but contact our qualified detectives in Kiel as soon as possible. We act promptly to recover your property quickly and intact. If necessary, you may send us an email at kontakt@kurtz-detektei-kiel.de or contact us by phone, without obligation, at +49 431 3057 0053.