Notes for Private Detectives
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PREFACE
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency in Botswana, Africa somehow obtained a copy of the fascinating book, The Principles of Private Detection by Clovis Andersen. They used it on a daily basis to successfully conduct their business of assisting fellow citizens in the solving of some of their problems.
One day, by chance, the author, Clovis Andersen, an American visitor, happened to be driving by, saw their sign, and decided to pay a courtesy call on the ladies. He was pleased and amazed that they relied so heavily on his book.
While there, he assisted them with several successful cases.
They were honored to have a world famous detective visit them. Before he left, however, he told them the truth. He had been unable to obtain a publisher, so he had 200 copies printed privately. Thirty (30) copies were sold, and many were given away (90). The remainder (80 copies) were still at home in his garage. He was not nearly as famous as they thought, he told them, but they still insisted that his book was most important.
Years later, a budding American private detective, desperate to obtain a copy of this book, goes to Muncie, Indiana, looking for Clovis Andersen, only to find out that the noted detective had passed away a decade earlier, and, since there were no heirs, the books in the garage had been carted away to the dump, along with many other belongings. Muncie Investigations was no more.
The budding detective also looked online. Amazon was just beginning, so he was unable to find a copy there. He decided to try Googling a phrase from the book that he had heard. To his great surprise, up came a list of phrases from the book. Apparently the ladies had written down statements from the great book, as they applied them to cases. This list had lain around the home of the founder until her adopted son, Puso, had become computer-literate. It was he who had transcribed the list onto the Internet, and the rest is history.
This brief manual is the result.
Notes from THE PRINCIPLES OF PRIVATE DETECTION
? ? ? by Clovis Andersen
Both lady detectives are clear that this book, The Principles of Private Detection, as well as being a practical manual, is a whole eduction in itself.
The founder of the No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Mma Ramotswe’s philosophy of detection has always been simple; moulded, in part, by the sage and level-headed advice of Clovis Andersen, and in part by common sense.
Experience and common sense. There are so many jobs that are just a matter of common sense. Most jobs, in fact.
They look complicated, but when you look closely you’ll see that all you really need is common sense.
This book is all about observation and conclusions based on the evidence of ones eyes. It is not about unfounded suspicion.
Those who become private detectives to find a more exciting life are gravely mistaken as to the nature of the work. Our job is to help people in need to resolve the unresolved questions in their lives. There is very little drama in our calling; rather a process of patient observation, deduction, and analysis. We are sophisticated watchmen, watching and reporting; there is nothing romantic in our job, and those who are looking for romance should lay down this manual at this point and do something else.
Chapter - BEHAVING PROPERLY
The basis of professional ethics.
Professional confidence
Strict rules of confidentiality…
You would not leap on to the first bus or train that comes along without knowing its destination, would you? Find out the evidence first, examine the possibilities, and then see if you have grounds to draw a conclusion.
Try to tell the truth. The truth always makes you strong.
Do Not Lie
Do not lie; but it is permissible to make an indirect statement.
Be confident. Everything can be found out in time.
There are very few circumstances in which the true facts are waiting to be tripped over.
And never, ever reach a decision before you start.
Remember that Intelligence and judgment are two different things.
One should never use threats or violence. It might be tempting to lean on a recalcitrant source or a witness, but you never do that, because leaning on somebody can very quickly become pushing somebody, or even twisting somebody’s arm behind his back. That would not do because evidence obtained in that way is forever tainted. “Out, out, damned spot!”
The use of deception may be regrettable, but necessary in a world that is far from perfect.
You may not use deception - except when you have to!
Small deceptions are permissible provided that the ends justify the means.
The world can be an unjust place and you have to get your hands dirty from time to time if you are to do anything about it. It is dirty hands that clear things up.
Do not act for friends, if you can possibly avoid it. The reason for this? Experience has taught me that if you act for a friend you will take the friend’s perspective on things. You will see things that the friend wants you to see because you are emotionally involved in the case.
Remember when to say no to a case. Better to lose a fee than to lose a friend.
Never allow your personal feelings to cloud the issue. You may be seething with anger over something, but do not - and I repeat, not - do not allow it to overcome your professional judgment. Keep your calm. That is the most important thing.
And if you find it difficult, close your eyes and count to ten.
Emotions have the same effect that a magnet has on a compass. The needle swings around in a confusing way and you lose direction.
Do not enter the ring with an opponent above your weight.? Mma Ramotswe
Having a high success rate depends on the ability to say no to hopeless cases.
A stale enquiry is unrewarding to all concerned. The client is given false hopes because a detective is working on the case, and the agent himself feels committed to coming up with something because of the client’s expectations. This means that the agent will probably spend more time on the case than the circumstances should warrant. At the end of the day, nothing is likely to be achieved and one is left wondering whether there is not a case for allowing the past to be buried with decency.
Let the past alone is sometimes the best advice that can be given.
However, if you decide to open a stale enquiry, start at the beginning.
Always be ready to admit that you have been wrong.
Be careful to always leave the worries of the working world where they belong - in the office - and do not take them home.
Chapter - WHAT THE INVESTIGATOR MUST ALWAYS HAVE BY HIS SIDE
a magnifying glass!
a camera!? While one cannot say that a camera never lies, it is hard to beat photographic evidence. Many is the time that I have personally confronted a malefactor with a photograph of himself engaged in something discreditable and said, “There, who’s that then? The Man in the Moon?”
Always carry a copious white handkerchief - to loan for tears.
Keep an open mind.
Chapter - BE COURTEOUS TO YOUR CLIENT
It is not for you to pick and choose your clients.
Humanity is made of crooked timber and you must accept that many who consult you will be imperfect. You must do your best for everybody who engages you, whether or not you like them.
That is what we call professionalism, and it is very important.
You must not pass judgment on your client’s behavior. If you do that, the client might wonder if you are really on his side.
You never argue with the client.
Never, ever lie to your client.
One has a duty to one’s client to carry out the enquiries requested.
One has a duty to warn - to warn someone of danger which they are courting.
One has a duty not to be paternalistic, and interfere in personal decisions.
Always keep your distance from your client; hugs and kisses never solved any cases,
and never paid any bills.
Do not promise the client anything that you cannot deliver. A disappointed client will not thank you for promising a result that you cannot achieve. Be realistic.
One should never seek to score a point at the expense of a client. The detective who tries to look smart at the expense of the client is really not smart at all - anything but.
Always remember the case is not about you. The case is about the client. The more invisible you are, the better. Keep a low profile.
Don’t tell the press anything you don’t need to tell them. Quietly does it - every time.
Never put anything in small print in a contract, and then spring it on the client. That breaks trust.
In hot conditions, people tend to behave themselves. Suspected unfaithfulness, the bread and butter of any private detective agency, is seasonal: the hot weather seems to inhibit it, while the cooler weather brings it on. Who could be bothered, in the heat, to flirt with anybody, let alone embark on something more serious? Of course, temptation can strike at any time, and in any circumstances, and there will always be a trickle of enquiries, no matter what the season is.
Most men are up to something, and it is our job to find out what it is.? Mma Makutsi
You will find what you will find. ? Mma Makutsi
Confidentiality lies at the heart of one’s relationship with the client, but you have to be able to talk to someone if your work is not to get you down. Doing so can also illuminate certain aspects of a case that might not otherwise be spotted.
Be gentle. Many of the people who will come to see you are injured in spirit. They need to talk about things that have hurt them, or about things they have done.
Do not sit in judgement on them, but listen. Just listen.
Scarcely a day has gone by at the ladies’ detective agency without her encountering some problem which people have brought upon themselves. These are difficulties that could have been avoided. If people were only more careful, or behaved themselves as they should, then they would not find themselves faced with problems of this sort. But of course people never behave themselves as they should. They are all human beings, and human beings cannot really help themselves. They cannot really help themselves from doing things that land them in all sorts of trouble.
Chapter - FOLLOWING SOMEONE
Following a person is the first thing a detective should learn to do. If you can follow somebody without being spotted, then you are on your way to achieving what every private investigator wants above all else - invisibility.
People being followed by a car with something as noticeable as a red stripe would probably notice the fact. Clovis would undoubtedly agree.
One should never crowd one’s subject.
“Keep a long rein, even if it means losing the subject from time to time. You can always pick up the trail later. And a few minutes of non-eye contact is better than an angry confrontation.”
It could look just as odd to distance oneself unnaturally from the object of one’s attention as to come too close. Neither too near nor too far. That is what the ancients called the golden mean, and they were right - as always!
Learn to blend with the surroundings.
If you need to be discreet, don’t park in obvious places.
Where there does not appear to be any obvious way forward, the best thing to do is to follow the principal suspect. If you have no leads, watch your most likely suspect and that person will lead you to the leads.
There are many things you will miss if you are asleep.
Sleep is the enemy of vigilance, and vigilance is the enemy of sleep. Remember that.
It is just routine arm-work - Mma Ramotswe. Leg-work! He calls it leg-work. Mma Makutsi
If you find you are being followed, never take the tail to your original destination; that is exactly what he wants!
Go somewhere public. Stop. Get out of the car.
Chapter - IDENTIFYING INDIVIDUALS
It is most useful to have a description of the person you are interested in at the outset.
Mr JLB Matekoni
Wait until you have seen a person. Then form an opinion? - a tentative conclusion - not before.
Clothing provides more clues that virtually anything else (other than a pocket book or a wallet!). Look at the clothing. It talks.
When you meet someone for the first time, make sure that you note the essential particulars. That means those aspects of their appearance which might be relevant to the case. You can ignore incidentals - the fact that a shoelace is frayed at the end or that there is a
small stain on a jacket. That sort of thing is not an essential particular because a frayed shoelace or a stain on a piece of clothing tells us nothing about that person - they are things that can happen to anybody. But if a watch is worn on the right wrist rather than the left, if an item of clothing is particularly expensive or if fingernails are bitten down to the quick, that can tell us something about who that person is, about what that person is like.
There are many clues in what people wear. Our clothes reveal a great deal about us. They talk. A man who wears no tie does not dress that way because he has no tie - he probably has an appreciable number of ties in his wardrobe at home - he is wearing no tie because he has chosen to do so. That means that he wishes to appear casual.
Watch the body language. Be careful about judging people’s nervousness. Innocent people can be very nervous. A shaking hand may mean nothing.
Once again, the rule is: Don’t jump to conclusions!
Before describing people by what they are wearing, remember that they can always change their clothes.
The shirt a man wears is not always the shirt he wants to wear.
Never rely entirely on an identification. The human memory plays all sorts of tricks. You may think that you remember correctly, but you might not. Remember that people are very similar to one another - we all have arms and legs and noses, and those can look very, very alike.
When two or more people see something, you would be astonished at how many different versions of events you will get! This is not because people are lying; it is more because we see things differently. One person sees one thing, and another sees something altogether different. Both believe that they are telling the truth.
It is important to observe the little, apparently unimportant things.
like a woman brushing a piece of fluff off a man’s coat!
Closed fists are a sign of innocence.
You should never take account of those who may be suspected by others because that may lead you up the wrong track altogether.
Do not allow the profession of which you are a member to induce you to take a bleak view of humanity. You will encounter all sorts of bad behavior but do not judge everybody by the standards of the lowest. If you do that, you will misjudge humanity in general and that would be fatal to discerning judgement.
If everybody is a villain, then nobody is a villain.
If all else fails, you can trace people by asking them to step forward! Yes, believe it or not, that works. Place an ad in the press asking for - and here insert the name of the person
(you have, at least, to know that) - to reply to a box number about a possible legacy.
That may work.
Of course, there is the familiar ethical issue, but remember you are only talking about a possible legacy and it’s always possible that anybody will get a legacy one of these days.
Chapter - ESTABLISHING FACTS
You must have a working supposition. You must set out to prove or disprove something.
Look at the most likely possibilities first, because a cunning malefactor might assume, incorrectly, it is to be hoped, that an obvious solution is to be discounted in any search or inquiry.
That which is obvious frequently turns out to be false - except sometimes, of course.
If I were a thief, trying to conceal the things I had stolen, I would put them behind a door called Storeroom for Stolen Items. That would be the safest place as everyone would think that is far too obvious. People would look everywhere but behind that door. It is all a question of psychology.
Find the person who has the solution, and then you will find the solution.
Do not ask about anything in general terms, because the other person may give an answer that is more suited to a totally different question.
A focused question results in a focused answer.
If you want to find something out, give the other party the wrong information and wait until they correct you - with the right information. It works every time!
Second hand information is hearsay.
Don’t think that you know all the answers: because you don’t.
Sometimes people give you an answer that is not really an answer.
How do people try to avoid answering a question?
One technique is to respond to a question of one’s own devising.
Another is to change the subject entirely, and to talk about some quite different matter - usually one that puts one in a positive light.
Another is to be so vague that no one is the wiser.
Do not bully people when questioning them. The person to whom you are talking will always be readier to help if you are polite and friendly. Never shine a light in somebody’s face.
Never use third degree methods. It does not get to the truth.
Never seem too keen to get a piece of information. That will alert people to your interest.
Hold back. Make it seem you are not all that interested in the answer.
There are many clever ways of finding facts. -? following people, looking at what they throw away in the bin, watching the people they mix with, are some examples.
It is the small details. At the time they may not seem important, but later on you may regret not writing them down. You never know what will be relevant at a later stage. Therefore, list everything -? all steps taken, all people interviewed - even the weather may be worth saying something about.
There is often a clue under your nose, right there.
There can be no doubt but that being able to read upside down is extremely useful, and is, in fact, a skill well worth mastering. It enables you to read a document that lies before the person on the other side of the desk from you. They may think that you cannot read it; they may think that they can tell you what is in the document without your being able to verify their version. But they reckon without your ability to read upside down!
And it also enables you to read papers lying about on a suspect’s desk. These are usually facing the wrong way, and you cannot turn them round. Nor will it do to turn your head.
Do not think that in any case where there are two competing arguments one of them has to be right: both can be wrong.
Never overstate what you see. Just report - don’t embellish.
If you see a husband you are observing holding the hand of a young woman, do not say that you saw him kissing her. It never helps a case to make it stronger with hyperbole.
If a person acts out of character, then there’s one thing you can be sure of:
there is something wrong. I have seen this so many times I have lost count.
If you suspect someone of doing something wrong, then one way of eliciting information is simply to suggest that you yourself were engaged in the same wrong. They will fill in all the details you need.
The best way of dealing with somebody who is investigating you is to go out and meet them.
Pre-emption is often the best defense.
Sometimes pre-emption is not only the best defense - it is the only one.
Whenever possible, make a pre-emptive call. Don’t let the other side start raising objections. Say your piece immediately. In this way, it is you, rather than the other person, who sets the agenda.
If you are facing a dreaded meeting, one of the best ways of dealing with it is to bring the encounter forward on your terms.
领英推荐
Gain the initiative by going forth to meet the person you dread.
For such a difficult meeting, arm yourself with a support person.
Say who you are, but not exactly who you are.
When confronting someone for information, it is important for the detective to have credible cover. There is no need to tell a direct lie in order to have credible cover.
Always have your cover story well-prepared. Never make things up on the hoof.
If you are using an assumed name, make sure you remember it!
I know at least one operative who was exposed because he had forgotten the false name he was intending to use.
If one is to pass oneself off as a potential client of a company, one should arrive in fitting style.
Common sense dictates it.
Keep your mouth shut. Keep your mouth shut at all times, but at the same time encourage others to do precisely the opposite.
Talk to as many people as possible, or rather, get them to talk to you. The more you listen, the more you learn.
Often the right thing to say is nothing!
Least said,? soonest ended.
Always ask somebody who knows. If you ask someone who doesn’t know anything, then you won’t get much of an answer.
Do not let your reactions show. Control your feelings. Do not look excessively surprised or dismayed.
Don’t ask one question after another - bang, bang, bang. People do not like to be subjected to a barrage of questions.
Don’t believe everything anybody tells you. There are people who will tell you lies because they take a secret pleasure in misleading you.
Never make any prior assumptions. Never decide in advance what’s what or who’s who. This may set you off on the wrong track altogether.
Is the witness independent?
If somebody works under somebody, then do not expect that person to tell the truth about the person above him. He may either lie to protect his superior, lie because he is afraid of him, or lie in order to get revenge for some insult or slight.
All cats are grey in the dark. So remember that how much you can see of a situation depends on how much light you can shine upon it.
There is no substitute for local knowledge. It cuts hours and days off an investigation. Local knowledge is like gold.
Every story has two sides. (One needs to obtain both sides.)
You do not know anything until you know why you know it.
If you listen hard enough, people will give themselves away. They will always mention the things that are preying on their mind, the things that they have done wrong. All you have to do is listen: it always comes out.
When in doubt, ask somebody; it is as simple as that!
Mma Ramotswe had found this practice to be the strongest weapon in the private detective’s armory.
Nowhere in the great book does the author recommend this practice.
Do not forget that although a possible explanation may seem likely, there may be an entirely different cause operating in the background. If Mr Green votes for Mr Brown, you may think that is because Mr Green approves of Mr Brown’s politics, but the real reason may be because Mr Brown is Mr Green’s brother-in-law!
Make a list of what you know, what you don’t know, and what you’d like to know.
Make a list of possible outcomes. Choose the outcome you think is best, then go for that!
Corroboration is evidence that points in the same direction as other evidence.
Always remember that things are where they are because somebody has put them there. So if there is a kennel in a yard it is there because the owner of the yard put it there, and that means that he has a dog. If there is a boat in the yard, then you may conclude that he likes fishing. Things are always there for a reason.
I learned this lesson myself from Mrs Andersen, who always accuses me of moving things that she needs!
You should always ask who has an interest in something. Find out who has a stake in it.
There are some cases where everybody tells lies. In these cases you will never know the truth. The more you try to find out what happened, the more lies you uncover.
My advice is: do not lose sleep over such matters. Move on, ladies and gentlemen: move on.
People often conceal the real reasons for their actions.
Chapter - GETTING TO THE TRUTH
All the best clues are very obvious.
The obvious is often very obvious - not just a little bit obvious, but glaringly obvious. Yet we fail to notice it and, when we do, we are astonished that we did not see it much earlier…
Be very careful of anything that looks too good to be true.? Because if it looks too good to be true, that’s probably because that’s exactly what it is!
Subtlety is the best aid to the understanding of human complexity.
You should not expect a resolution of everything because some details in any picture were simply not there, and never would be.
Don’t think you can explain everything, because you can’t.
The best way of not answering a question is to ask it in the first place.
Don’t believe something because you want it to be true.
Nor should you believe everything you read or are told by other people. Ask them for the evidence and if they cannot produce it, then politely say, “I am unconvinced” and leave it at that.
Many people read into things the meaning they want to find.
That is why it is so important to read everything twice, not just once, or not at all.
It is the first few minutes of any encounter that can be most revealing; it is what people do before they have the chance to work out what they should be doing.
Where there is smoke, there’s fire! But you must be very careful to decide where the smoke is coming from. Smoke can drift.
If possible, conceal your surprise whenever you hear something exciting or revealing.
It is kindness and concern that changes people within, that can soften the hardest of hearts, that can turn harsh words into words of love. Never underestimate the power of a kind word to change a scowling or suspicious countenance.
Never go for the excessively complicated solution. Always assume that the simplest explanation is the most likely one. Nine times out of ten, you will be right.
The way to get people to see things from your point of view is to share their anxieties.
Find out what they are worried about, and then talk about that.
Don’t make any false assumptions. Don’t jump to conclusions. Explore every possibility.
Look for the irregular pattern…
Do not disregard a hunch. Hunches are another form of knowledge.
If you listen to what people say about what they do not want to say, then you can work out what’s what.
Let somebody think you know what you don’t know. Then it will all come out.
Use circumspection and find information by indirect means.
To find out a fact, ask them to their faces -Mma Ramotswe
Some people cannot resist the opportunity to talk about things that have nothing to do with the case. They wander off in all sorts of directions and lose sight of the subject in hand. Don’t fall into the trap of letting them distract you.
Remember, that of all the possibilities that you may address, the truth may lie in the simplest explanation. So if you are looking for something that is stolen, always remember that it may not have been stolen at all, but mislaid.
Similarly, if you are investigating a homicide, it is always possible that the victim died a natural death. Do not exclude this possibility even where the death seems very suspicious. I knew a man who stabbed himself to death. Everybody thought? that he had been murdered, and they found plenty of suspects - he was one heck of an unpopular guy -? but then they discovered a note in which he said that he was going to do this in order to make things look bad for his principal enemy. He even used his enemy’s knife to do it!
Be politely skeptical. Do not trust everything that a person tells you, even if you like the person.
Friends can be good liars.
One should have an open mind, and not jump to conclusions.
Never try to reach a conclusion before you reach the conclusion.
You should not make up your mind until you have looked at everything that needs to be looked at - until you have reached the conclusion of the enquiry.
Sometimes an answer jumps out at you. Do not trust it!
If an answer jumps, then you must not jump yourself.
Never make the mistake of thinking that things are what they seem to be - often they are not.
Do not think that in any case where there are two competing arguments one of them has to be right: both can be wrong.
The more that people are in the wrong, the louder their protestations on being brought to book.
Chapter - INTUITION
An intuition tells us things that we know deep inside, but which we cannot find the words for.
Trust your feelings. If the back of your neck tells you that you’re being watched, listen to it!
There are circumstances in which feelings are a useful pointer to certain information that cannot be obtained through proper investigation.
It is not a bad idea to follow your nose, even when you nose has not bothered to tell you why it is pointing in a particular direction.
Do not be ashamed to act on impulse: beneath the impulse there may be a very good idea waiting to get out.
Chapter - SEEING THE WOOD FROM THE TREES
Follow the Money
Chapter - WATCHING AND WAITING
You should always try to be typical. If you are typical, then nobody will notice you.
It is useful to go to the source of a problem. Find out where a problem originates, and go directly there.
Then ask the question, Why is he doing this?
While you’re talking to him, watch him. In my experience, people give themselves away.
Even if he does not say anything, he’ll tell us.
Things that seem easy sometimes are not easy when you get up close to them.
On unusual occurrences - The fact that something happens once does not mean that it will happen again, and remember that some events are pure one-offs. They are freaks. They are coincidences. Don’t base a whole theory on them.
Chapter - THE IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING YOUR EYES OPEN
When looking for someone in a crowd, move your gaze systematically.
There are many things to be seen in this life. All you have to do is keep your eyes open.
If you do not look, you do not see. There are some people who have their eyes open and are looking, but do not see anything because they are looking for something that is not there.
That is not to say there’s nothing there. There may be something there, but because nobody’s looking for it, it won’t be seen.
So we should always ask ourselves: are we looking for the right thing?
Always remember that life is never what we think it will be. There are always red herrings and their job is to mislead you. Never forget that!
The person with the most obvious motive by no means always acts upon it.
Chapter - PAPER TRAIL
People often leave a paper trail. It is the undoing of so many malefactors - so many.
Chapter - GETTING INFORMATION FROM SMALL BOYS
Always be very cautious when getting evidence from children. Never let the child think that you want a particular answer, because, if you do that, the child will make something up in order to oblige. I have been involved in many cases where apparently valuable information from children has proved to be misleading because the child was trying to be helpful. Children, in general, do not have a clear idea of the distinction between what the world is and what we want it to be.
Chapter - HOW TO INVESTIGATE A POTENTIAL MARRIAGE PARTNER
The best source of information is the maid.
If you are looking for someone who hates your client, then first of all look under the client’s own roof.? ? ? ? Mma Ramotswe
You will discover things about people and their domestic arrangements that you would never have guessed from the outside and that only become apparent when you probe behind the facade that people present to the world.
Chapter - SPECIAL SITUATIONS
If estimates from builders for a building are not too far apart, it means that the builders want this job. If you get one that’s much higher, then it usually means that the builder who put it in didn’t really want the job but would take it if his excessive price got it.
If a contract is not awarded to the lowest bidder, which sometimes happens, there may be some reason why a more expensive contractor is preferred. For example, he may do better quality work. Or he may be a relative. Or the contractor may be paying a kickback to the person awarding the contract. There are many possible reasons.
If you find a trail of flour, you can be reasonably sure that somebody has been making their way into or out of a kitchen.
There is no smell without a reason for a smell. That is basic. Rotten smell, rotten situation.
Chapter - CLOSING A CASE
Clovis calls it the denouement. It is when you reveal who is responsible for whatever it is you’re investigating.
Never point out the obvious - just let it sink in.
It is important to realize that when a good result is achieved, it might not matter how that good result came about.
The important thing, when all is said and done, is that a happy outcome ensued.
A case is not closed until it’s closed.
This manual consists of brief excerpts from the
23 books of fiction by Alexander McCall Smith.
It is most delightful to read these books in the
following chronological order: