Private investigator looking into possible Cesar Chavez football violations

A private investigator is helping the Arizona Interscholastic Association determine if Laveen Cesar Chavez's football program recruited players, the AIA confirmed on Monday.

The AIA relies on schools to self-report violations, but this is the first time the association has hired an investigator to look into one of its 274 schools. The AIA is trying to verify if Cesar Chavez coach Jim Rattay and the parent of a former Cesar Chavez player recruited players to go to that school.

Chuck Schmidt, the AIA Chief Operations Officer, declined to say who or what the investigator was looking into.

"That's not our decision," said Schmidt when asked if the AIA wants Rattay to step down. "The (AIA executive) board is trying to gather the facts as best as it can. Staffing decisions are strictly up to the schools and district. The board's concern is to uphold the AIA bylaws."

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Snooping by Detective 'Legitimate' Part of Divorce Process, Judge Finds

A man who hired a detective to trail his wife to a motel where she was having an affair with a local priest was not stalking her, an Orange County, N.Y., judge has ruled.

Forced to resign after her husband turned over a recording of her and the priest to officials at the church where she worked, the wife accused her husband of violating an order of protection requiring him to stay away from her home and place of employment.

But Family Court Judge Debra J. Kiedaisch, who was sitting in the Supreme Court's integrated domestic violence part, held that the husband, who only handed over the tape at the urging of church officials, had the right to gather evidence to defend himself in a divorce proceeding.

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'Private detective' fleeced missing Madeleine McCann fund of £300,000

A 'Walter Mitty' private investigator who claimed to be an experienced secret agent was allegedly paid £300,000 from the funds raised to try to find Madeleine McCann.

Thousands of members of the public donated money to Gerry and Kate McCann's fund after their three-year-old daughter went missing during a holiday in Portugal in May 2007.

Now it has emerged that a sizeable portion of that money was paid to self-proclaimed security consultant Kevin Halligen, 50, a Briton who boasted that secret service contacts in Washington DC could provide satellite images of Portugal from the night Madeleine disappeared.

In fact, it is claimed, the only satellite picture he produced came from the publicly available Google Earth website - and late last year he disappeared from Washington after the U.S. Department of Justice issued a warrant for his arrest over an alleged £1million fraud.

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School Mistakes Private Detectives as Police

JEFFERSON COUNTY - Sheriff's deputies say private investigators wearing discount store hats reading "CSI" had school staff convinced they were dealing with actual law enforcement officers.

The investigators-for-hire were looking for a missing child involved in a civil custody case. They say Shaffer Elementary School principal Gina Rivas was eager to help and never asked for identification.
"We told them right up front we were private investigators," said private eye John Sampson. "We never said we were police."

A custom-made badge on his belt and his CSI hat seemed to satisfy the principal, said Sampson, who owns CSI Consulting and Investigations.

Over the next few hours, Rivas would volunteer the name of a student she felt resembled the one on Sampson's missing child flyer, provide information about the girl and her family, and interview the girl about the custody case, said Sampson.

The student, 8-year-old Lilly Findley, had no connection to the missing child case. Sampson said the school did not call sheriff's deputies or the girl's parents until he insisted law enforcement get involved in the discussion.

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Private Spies

Think private detective and what springs to mind? The worldweary, chain-smoking Philip Marlowe? Sherlock Holmes solving another crime with his sidekick Watson? Even Magnum P.I. and his impressive moustache jaunting around Hawaii in a flashy sports car? And really, who could blame you?

Over the last century, few professions have been infused with as much daring, glamour and intrigue as that of the private detective. As a trip to the crime section of any book shop will reveal, authors have always been fascinated with private investigators, while Hollywood and television annually churn out yet more films and shows on detectives, the vast majority of which only add further mystique to the sleuth. Still, one thing holds true: as you might expect, private detectives are a suspicious bunch and none of those I spoke to would allow me to use their full names or have their photographs taken.

"Sad to report, but for the most part, the reality of being a private detective is not like it has been depicted in television, films or books," says Ron, a private detective with Dublin firm Eye Spy. "No two days are the same but it's not international espionage or fortunes-at-stake stuff. I've yet to see a private investigator driving a Ferrari, although there are a couple who wear sunglasses day and night -- but that wouldn't be my idea of blending in."

Private Eye Sues Google Over 'Unwanted Ads'

Lawyers acting for an American private detective claim hundreds of thousands of companies that signed up to advertise on Google might have been deceived into paying for adverts they did not want.

The private detective has launched a legal action against the search engine, and his attorneys want the lawsuit to become a class action, which could cost the company millions of dollars if he is successful.

Investigator Chosen for Gomsi Case

An attorney and private investigator who recently retired as an Irvine police lieutenant will conduct the investigation into alleged misconduct by the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District's top manager.

Sales Clerk Found Her True Talent as Private Detective

An interesting sideline developed from Jeanne B. Thorsen's part-time job as a sales clerk at a clothing store: She became a private detective.

Her road to becoming a private investigator started in a small boutique called Ruth Miller's, located in the former Arlington Market shopping center in Arlington Heights.