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CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION TRAINING BUREAU

INTERNATIONAL POLICE OFFICER

CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION TRAINING

MANUAL

www.intlpolice.com

By Brian N. Cox

Copyright date: March 4, 2011 Copyright Registration Number: 1084991

Copying this manual, or any part therein, is prohibited except with the express written permission by the author.

http://intlpolice.com/http://intlpolice.com/

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CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION TRAINING BUREAU

INTERNATIONAL POLICE OFFICER

CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION TRAINING MANUAL

TABLE OF CONTENTS

UNIT ONE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION PROCEDURES.....Page 1

This Unit explains the basis step by step procedures recommended when investigating acriminal offense. Two hypothetical cases are used as training tools. Investigations mustalways be objective so that the evidence leads the investigator to the guilty party.When an investigation is subjective or non-objective, innocent persons may beconvicted of crimes they did not commit.

UNIT TWO CRIME SCENE MANAGEMENT.....Page 15

Most criminal offenses involve a crime scene and the crime scene will be the startingpoint in conducting a successful investigation. This Unit will explain how to properlyprotect and record a crime scene, how to preserve & collect forensic evidence and howproper crime scene management is vital in solving criminal offenses.

UNIT THREE INTERVIEWING VICTIMS AND WITNESSES.....Page 30

This Unit provides valuable strategies for obtaining maximum information from victims

of crime and witnesses who can aid an investigation. It will also provide tips on how todeal with people who are reluctant to cooperate with an investigator.

UNIT FOUR INTERROGATING SUSPECTS.....Page 43

Obtaining confessions from guilty persons is an important skill for the successfulinvestigator. This must be accomplished without any form of intimidation, threat orpromise of favor to be acceptable in most courts. Also, a good investigator must realizethat innocent persons often confess to crimes they did not commit, and this must beavoided at all costs. This Unit will also provide tips on how to detect when a person isnot being truthful.

UNIT FIVE INVESTIGATING BURGLARIES (BREAK & ENTERS).....Page 60

If a burglary is investigated in a logical, step-by-step manner, there is a reasonable chancethat it can be solved, even though the average burglary is not solved by police.Burglaries of homes and businesses require different strategies.

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UNIT SIX INVESTIGATING CASES OF ARMED ROBBERY.....Page 68

It is important that investigators are successful in solving robbery cases since theperpetrators are generally dangerous individuals who should be removed from society forthe safety of the general public. This Unit will provide investigation procedures andtactics which can lead to a successful conclusion.

UNIT SEVEN FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS.....Page 75

Although fraud investigations can be complex, investigators should not be intimidated asthe majority of fraud cases are not complex and the perpetrators have not taken thenecessary steps to avoid detection. This Unit includes the basic legal definitions that aninvestigator must know in order to investigate cases related to fraud plus basic step-by-step procedures.

UNIT EIGHT ORGANIZED CRIME & CRIMINAL INTELLIGENCE....Page 79

This Unit will provide the investigator with information on gangs and organized crimeand methods by which uniform officers and investigators can contribute to theintelligence gathering function. It is also important for the police officer to understandorganized crime tactics in attempting to corrupt police and government officials.

UNIT NINE CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANTS.....Page 86

This Unit will explain the importance of confidential informants, what motivates them,methods by which they can be recruited and their proper handling. Many confidentialinformants are manipulative and the police officer must know how protect themselvesfrom this while maximizing the informants utility.

UNIT TEN TRACKING FUGITIVES AND MISSING PERSON.....Page 93

Success in locating people who do not want to be found is usually the result ofunconventional and imaginative strategies employed by the investigator. Learningstrategies and tactics for pretexts, ruses and undercover interviews will usually be moresuccessful than the standard methodology for tracking fugitives used by policeinvestigators.

UNIT ELEVEN POLICE COMMUNITY RELATIONS &COMMUNITY POLICING.....Page 101

Since a criminal offense can seldom be solved without relying on the cooperation ofpersons who can provide information regarding the offense, this Unit explains how toearn the respect and support of the citizens. Without the cooperation of witnesses, thebest investigator will be unable to bring most cases to trial.

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UNIT TWELVE FORENSIC SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.....Page 111

Much, if not most, of the technology and forensic science now being used by policeagencies around the world was invented or developed in Canada. Furthermore, theCanadian Police have worked to gain the support of the general population and areamongst the five most trusted professions.

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INTERNATIONAL POLICE OFFICERS

CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION MANUAL

Table of Contents Expanded Version

INTRODUCTION & AUTHORS BACKGROUND

UNIT ONE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION PROCEDURES

Introduction

Hypothetical Murder Case as Training Exercise

Step-by-step Procedures

The Process of Criminal Investigation

Goals of the Investigation

Investigation Procedures Twenty-one Steps

Test Your Knowledge

Investigating a Bank Safebreaking Hypothetical Case

Twelve Steps

Further Important Information to Aid in Solving Crimes

1) Modus Operandi

2) Continuity of Evidence

3) Withhold Certain Details of the Crime

4) Locating Unknown Witnesses5) Letters Written by Criminals in Jail

6) Photo Line-ups

7) Dont Reveal Your Suspicions

UNIT TWO CRIME SCENE MANAGEMENT

Introduction

Crime Scene Security

Step 1: Protecting the Crime Scene

Step 2: Establishing a Path of Contamination

Step 3: Recording the Crime Scene

Step 4: Further Duties

Minor Crime Scenes

Processing the Crime Scene

Equipment Requirements

Lifting of Fingerprints

A. Observations

B. Organized Approach

C. Collection of Evidence

Types of EvidenceD. Continuity of Evidence

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E. Identifying Exact Location

F. Outside the Perimeter

G. Major Crimes

H. Termination

Recap of Important Points

UNIT THREE: INTERVIEWING VICTIMS AND WITNESSES

Introduction

What is an Interview?

Difference Between an Interview and an Interrogation

Categories of Witnesses

Three Types of Interviews

1) Unplanned

2) Planned

3) Pretext

Determining a Witnesss Ability to Recall Events

1) Matching Conditions

2) Misleading Post Event Information

3) Repressed Memory

Poor Interviewing Practices by Police

The Interview Process

On-Scene or Field Interview

Planning an Interview

Preceding the InterviewThe Actual Interview Nine Steps

The Cognitive Interview

The Uncooperative Witness

The Reluctant Witness

The Fearful Witness

The Hostile Witness

People Like to Talk

Fact Finding Perspectives

Tips for Successful Interviewing Thirteen Points

Know What Questions to Ask

Murder at an Apartment Block Hypothetical Case

The Successful Investigator

UNIT FOUR INTERROGATING SUSPECTS & ACCUSED PERSONS

Introduction

Definitions

Importance of Interrogation

The Goal of Interrogation

The Skills of the Successful InterrogatorTypes of Interrogations

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Two Investigators

Methods A, B and C

Advantages & Disadvantages of Each

One Investigator Video and Audio Recordings

The Confession StatementThe Interrogation Process

Environment (Interrogation Location)

Preparation

Legal Requirements

Planning the Interrogation

The Problems

Human Nature

Goals of the Interrogator

Interrogation Strategies

The Beginning Stage

Step One The Introduction

Step Two Charge & Caution

Step Three Announcement

Step Four Proceeding\

The Three Basic Strategies

Strategic Goals

The Interrogators Persona

\ A. The Authority Figure

B. The Naive IncompetentC. Friendly & Understanding\

Conducting the Interrogation

Strategy AWe know you are guilty

Strategy BGuilt is uncertain

Strategy CThe offense was of little consequence (rationalizing)

General Advice

Some Final Advice

Detecting Deceit

Statement Analysis

When You Want the Suspect to Lie

Caution: False Confessions

When an Accused Recants a Confession

Conclusion

Legal Note

UNIT FIVE SOLVING CASES OF BURGLARY

Introduction

Preliminary Steps

Crime SceneInterviews

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Determine Method of Operation (Modus Operandi)

Further Investigative Steps

Fifteen Steps

Related Criminal Offenses

Commercial BurglariesTwelve Steps

Recap of Step-by-Step Investigation Procedures

Revisiting the Crime from the Criminals Perspective

UNIT SIX SOLVING CASES OF ARMED ROBBERY

Introduction

Preliminary Steps

Four Steps

Follow-up Steps

The Importance of Modus Operandi in Armed Robbery Investigations

Twenty-three Investigative Steps

Recap of Step-by-Step Investigation Procedures

UNIT SEVEN FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS

Introduction

Definitions

Fraud

False Pretenses

EmbezzlementForgery

The Three Basic Steps for Fraud Investigations

Interviewing the Complainant

Examining the Documentary Evidence

Determining if a Criminal Offense Took Place

The Investigation Continues

Five Steps

UNIT EIGHT ORGANIZED CRIME AND CRIMINAL INTELLIGENCE

Organized Crime and Criminal Gangs

Three Distinct Types of Organized Crime

Overt Criminal Groups

Specialized Activity Groups

Covert Criminal Groups

Organized Crime Illegal Activities

Where is Organized Crime Located?

Organized Crime Modus Operandi: Corruption of Police & Government

Officials

Gathering Criminal IntelligenceWhat is Criminal Intelligence?

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Criminal Intelligence Operations: Techniques & Strategies for Gathering

Intelligence

General Goals of Intelligence Operations

How Can the Uniform Police Officer and Investigator Assist

in the Collecting of Criminal Intelligence?Collection of Intelligence by Uniform Officers and Investigators

What is the Difference Between Investigation and Intelligence Gathering?

UNIT NINE CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANTS

Why is the Confidential Informant Important?

Definitions:

Confidential Informant

Contact

Agent

The Requirement of Well Developed Social Skills

Six Rules for Recruiting Confidential Informants

The Approach

What Motivates the Confidential Informant?

The Eleven Most Common Motivations

Handling the Confidential Informant

Nine Rules

Legal Note

Confidential Informants and Criminal Intelligence

UNIT TEN TRACKING FUGITIVES AND MISSING PERSONS

Introduction

Names Changes

Imagination Plus Logic Often Equals Success

Think Outside the Box

Definitions Types of Missing Persons

Investigation Procedures

Compile a Target Fact Sheet

Commencing Your Investigation

Recap

Pretext or Undercover Interviews

Other Pretext Inquiries

Tracking Skills

UNIT ELEVEN POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS

AND COMMUNITY POLICING

Introduction

Improving the Image of the Police Officer

1) Appearance & Deportment2) Interaction with the General Public

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3) Be Perceived as a Helper, not an Oppressor

4) Rapport with Children and Teenagers

5) Image in Public Places

Community Policing

Police-Citizen MeetingsCitizens for Crime Awareness

Safe Haven for Children

Community Patrol

Police-Community Volunteers

Police School Visits

Conclusion

Police Presence in the Community

Relations with News Media

Recap of Important Points to Remember

Improving the Image of the Police Officer

Community Policing

Candidates for Police Employment

Community Programs

Police Presence in the Community

Relations with New Media

UNIT TWELVE FORENSIC SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Technologies, forensic science and strategies develop by the police in Canada

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INTERNATIONAL POLICE OFFICER

CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONMANUAL

INTRODUCTION

This manual was compiled to provide criminal investigation instruction and guidance topolice officers in all countries regardless of the criminal justice system in which they areemployed. Even in the most modern, well-equipped law enforcement agencies, officerscalled upon to investigate crime may not have the modern technology and specializedsupport squads available to them; they are virtually on their own to make key decisionsthat hopefully will result in the arrest of a perpetrator. For example, a police officer in a

large provincial or state agency may be hundreds of miles/kilometers away from thetechnology and support staff he or she would like to have to assist them. In a policeagency that is either understaffed or located in a high crime area, the detectives may betoo busy to investigate a particular crime so the job may be assigned to a uniform officer.In some smaller town or county police and sheriffs departments, there may be nodetective division and crimes may be routinely investigated by general duty officers.

The purpose of this manual is to provide instruction and guidance to uniform officers andcriminal investigators, not only in the early stages of their career, but to use as a referencemanual as they gain more experience. It is specifically written to overcome thepeculiarities of the law within different jurisdictions, so that the manual will be valuableto all police officers regardless of the country in which they are employed. Although

there are numerous cultures throughout the world, quite different from one another,criminals are quite consistent and similar. A theft is a theft and a robbery is a robberyregardless of the country in which the crime took place. The contents of this manual are,for the most part, derived from the practices and techniques used by the police in Canadabut these techniques and tactics used in criminal investigation are applicable the worldover.

The criminal law of Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, in fact allcountries which were once part of the British Empire, have common roots based on theBritish criminal justice system. Nevertheless, great care is taken to ensure that themanual will benefit police officers in countries that have a judicial system not related to

the British system.

Many police officer manuals, particularly criminal investigation manuals, emphasize thelaws that apply within their jurisdiction, which is understandable, but these manuals oftendo not contain sufficient information about the practical aspects of criminal investigation,i.e., the actual solving of a crime. This manual has been designed specifically to providethe uniform officer and criminal investigator or detective a sound understanding of the

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basic fundamentals of criminal investigation regardless of the laws that apply within theirjurisdiction.

In most modern police agencies, the patrol officer is becoming a generalist, i.e., he orshe is no longer confined to patrolling and answering complaints or calls for service.They are often called upon to investigate cases whereby the detectives cannot or will notattend. In addition, the patrol officer will often commence an investigation of a majorcase until such time as it is turned over to the detective division. Patrol officers arealmost always the first on the scene of a criminal offense so they must be well versed onthe requirements of protecting and recording a crime scene.

Criminals are the common enemy of people, regardless of where they reside in the world.Organized crime can undermine the economy of a nation; terrorists kill innocent citizenswho have done them no harm; street criminals assault, rob, rape and steal with no regardfor anyone but themselves. It is vital, therefore, that the international brotherhood ofpolice exchange and share their knowledge and experiences to make the world a happier

and safer place in which to live and travel.

This manual is written in basic English in order to facilitate translation to otherlanguages.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brian N. Cox was a member of Canadas federal law enforcement agency, the RoyalCanadian Mounted Police (RCMP). During his service, he was a uniform patrol officer,a Race Track Anti-Fraud Unit officer, a Major Crime investigator, a Drug Section officerand a Drug Intelligence Coordinator. Based on this wide ranging experience, he was nexttransferred to the National Crime Intelligence Section as an organized crime intelligenceofficer, where he finished his career. Besides his employment in police operations, hewas an instructor at the Canadian Police College and the RCMP In-service TrainingBranch.

After leaving the RCMP, he and another RCMP member formed a private investigationand security company where Cox became President and General Manager. Despite thiscompany growing to become the largest of its kind in the province of Manitoba, Coxeventually decided to return to employment as an instructor. He was chief instructor in alaw enforcement course at a private college for several years when he was contacted bythe recently retired Chief of Police, Winnipeg, and asked to join him in the creation of anew law enforcement college, Northwest Law Enforcement Academy. Cox assumed the

duties of Managing Director for seven years after which he relocated overseas asInternational Project Manager. He has traveled to China and visited five Chinese Policecolleges and he now divides his time between China and Canada. Cox is on the AdvisoryBoard of the Center for Asian Crime Studies (CACS) and is also a member of theInternational Police Association.Besides the International Police Officer Criminal Investigation Manual, Cox is co-author of Safety Crusaders: Keep Your Children Safe, a child protection and safety

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manual. He also is the author of a spy-adventure-thriller novel entitled The ChineseWoman: The Barbados Conspiracy.

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UNIT NINE

CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANTS

WHY IS THE CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANT IMPORTANT?

The average young uniform police officer may or may not be a detective/investigator inthe future as he gains more experience. Nevertheless, whether he is a detective or auniform officer, one of the best ways he can combat crime is to recruit confidentialinformants. The confidential informant is the eyes and ears of the police officer withinthe criminal underworld. Without these informants, police officers will have little chanceof learning what is happening within their own territory. Techniques to recruitconfidential informants should be taught in basic police training so that each officerleaves the training college with the ability and the goal to develop their own informant

network.

It is a fact that of all the cases the police are called upon to solve, that involve offensescommitted by professional criminals or criminal gangs, confidential informants areutilized in the majority of cases that are brought to a successful conclusion. Theimportance and value of confidential informants in police investigations cannot beoveremphasized.

There is some confusion, even within law enforcement, as to who and what aConfidential Informant actually is. The media and the general public often speakdisparagingly about the use of informants or informers whereas they have no realknowledge of how they are recruited, handled and utilized. The infamous jailhouse

informant who testifies in court as to what he heard or was told when incarcerated withan accused person, is NOT a confidential informant.

Definition: A Confidential Informant, often referred to as a CI, is a person whoprovides information to law enforcement with the understanding and assurance thathis/her identity will never be revealed and that they will never be required to testify incourt in relation to information they provided to law enforcement.

Since the Confidential Informant or CI provides information relating to criminal activity,in many cases they are criminals themselves, or have a close relationship with thecriminal element. There are other persons who provide information to the police that are

not classified as informants. These people are often referred to as Contacts.

Definition: A Contact is a person who provides general information to assist thepolice, but is usually not a criminal and may have no contact with criminals. Theinformation they have access to, that may be of value to the police, may be as a result oftheir employment, for example, employees at a motor vehicle department, telephonecompany, bank, etc.

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Many experienced police investigators throughout the world can discover who committednumerous crimes without ever leaving their office. They merely contact their informantnetwork and learn who is responsible for committing the crimes they are investigating.Once they know who committed the crime, they then must gather evidence to prove it ina court of law. Of course police informants may not know who committed every crime,but you will be pleasantly surprised at how many crimes can be solved with their

assistance.

The Agent: In some jurisdictions, a Confidential Informant may be classified, forlegal purposes, as an Agent. A definition or description of an Agent will appear laterin this Unit.

THE REQUIREMENT OF WELL DEVELOPED SOCIAL SKILLS

Many police officers, unfortunately, tend to become officious, aggressive and unfriendlyand use their authority unwisely. This may partially be a result of possessing the powerand authority that has been granted them but more likely relates to the negativity found inpolice work. The average officer on the street is constantly in contact with the worstelements of society, people they neither respect nor can tolerate. Even the traffic officer,although his contact with criminals is limited, if often harassed, berated and demonizedby the citizens to whom he issues traffic tickets.

It is essential that police officers do not fall into this well of despair. In most countries,despite an officers negative experiences, the police are, for the most part, supported andrespected. Even if they are not, an individual officer can earn the admiration andrespect of the public and take pride in performing his/her duties to the best of his/herability.

In order to recruit Confidential Informants, an officer must develop his/her social skills.The officer must be friendly, non-judgmental and respectful ofeveryone they encounter,whether or not they deserve it. A casual encounter with a person can often result in thatperson becoming a Confidential Informant years later, if the first encounter was a positiveone for that person. Almost anyone connected to the criminal element can become aninformant if they have been treated and handled properly.

Authors note: When employed as a Drug Squad officer many years ago, I had aninformant who was well placed in an organized crime group. He was a killer, an armedrobber and a heroin trafficker; moreover, he hated the police. The only exception to thishatred was me. This informant was instrumental in bringing down an entire criminalorganization that had been in operation for over twenty years. Due to this mansreputation and animosity towards the police, police investigators never tried to recruit thisman as a confidential informant. The moral of this story is that no one should beoverlooked as a potential informant.

It is essential that you never, ever refer to informants in derogatory terms. This is thesign of an amateur police officer who will never develop an informant network.Confidential Informants are NOT snitches, rats or stoolies; they are CIs orSources. If you want them to assist you in doing your job, they must perceive you as

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someone who likes them and respects them. If you show them disrespect, yourrelationship with them will soon end. TV cops always refer to informants inderogatory terms, but remember, you are a real cop. Dont be influenced by televisionwriters who know nothing of the real world of law enforcement.

SIX RULES FOR RECRUITING CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANTS

Legitimate literature on the art of recruiting, developing and handling confidentialinformants is not readily available and most experienced investigators have developedthis art solely through experience. However, in order for a young police officer to startdeveloping their own personal informant network, here are some proven strategies forrecruiting informants.

1) Every person you talk to that lives or works in an environment wherebythey may observe, overhear or have access to information of criminalactivity is a prospective informant. Therefore, you should constantlybe attempting to recruit these people. Always carry business cards anddont hesitate to hand them out.

2) Create the image and environment whereby you will be perceived asapproachable and receptive by prospective informants. They shouldperceive you as friendly, sympathetic, sincere, honest, competent, andabove all, a person who keeps their promises.

3) Learn how to develop rapport with prospective informants. They areunlikely to provide information, or show loyalty to someone theydislike, or whom they feel dislikes them.

4) Never, ever use derogatory expressions in describing informants.Unskilled, poorly trained officers often do this. Dont make thatmistake. Most professional police organizations use the term sourceor CI. You will lose the assistance and loyalty of a valuableinformant if you accidentally use derogatory terms to describe them orother CIs. Obviously, no person likes to be insulted or belittled.

5) Talk to all criminals and criminal associates on every occasion you can.Dont be afraid to be seen talking to these people. This not only createsrecruiting opportunities, but it reduces the risk of exposing aninformant should you be seen talking to him.

6) Always try to assess the motives of a prospective informant. It willassist you in deciding how to approach them, how best to develop themand how to handle them.

7) If you follow the six steps above, an informant may approach youwithout actually being recruited. When you read what motivates aninformant later in this lesson, you will understand why. If there is a

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particular person you want to recruit as an informant, and they have notapproached you, you can approach them for information, as follows.

The Approach: Before actually asking an informant for information, you will wantto lay the groundwork. Dont pass up an opportunity to talk to the prospect aboutanything.yesterdays football game, current events, tell a jokeit doesnt matter.

Be sure these encounters involve smiling and laughter if possible. When you feel youare developing rapport, and he/she often initiates conversation, the time isapproaching when he/she may be asked for information. The first request forinformation should ideally be about a crime that your potential informant willprobably find reprehensible. You could tell them you are upset by what happenedand ask them if they have heard any rumors about who did it. If they dont have anyinformation, you could ask them to contact you if they hear anything, and give themyour card. They may not necessarily have information about this particular crime,butyou have put it in their mind that you are seeking information. At some point intime, after thinking over their own motivations, they may contact you withinformation. It may be as early as the same day or it may be weeks later. Be sure, ofcourse, that this conversation is carried on in private.

Whenever a crime is committed, there is usually someone, other than the perpetrator,who has some knowledge of the incident. The police officers job is to locate thesepeople and convince them to impart their knowledge. When a police organization hasa well established network of confidential informants, acting as their eyes and earsin the criminal sub-culture, then it becomes very difficult for criminals to operatewithout being arrested and brought to justice.

WHAT MOTIVATES THE CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANT?

You may be surprised to learn that the great majority of confidential informants do

not want nor expect money in return for their information. Some informants aremotivated by money, but they are probably in the minority.

Here are just a few of the major motivations often seen in Confidential Informants:

1) Revenge: Retaliation for being treated unfairly by other criminals or a criminalorganization.

2) Elimination of Competitor: If a drug dealer can have a competitor convicted andincarcerated, his territory may now be available to the informant.

3) Connection to the Police: The perception that he/she has many friends andcontacts within the police is perceived as enhancing their importance.

4) Jealousy: The person he/she informs on has stolen his spouse orgirlfriend/boyfriend.

5) Fear: He has been threatened by violent or dangerous persons.

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6) Secret Agent Complex: Many persons are attracted to the idea of being a spyor police agent. The idea of the danger, the challenge and the quasi-authorityappeals to some people. Note: These people can be nuisances and borderlinementally unbalanced, but some in this category turn out to the best informants as theyactively seek information rather than remaining passive collectors.

7) Building Favor Bank: This person expects or hopes the police will do himfavors in the future in return for his assistance.

8) Pest or Nuisance: Usually provides useless or trivial information. Seeksconstant contact with the police, usually with valueless information, and wastes thetime of the police officer. They are usually motivated by feeling they are an insiderand have close contact with persons in authority.

9) Bond with Police Officer: This person has developed a bond, real or imagined,with the police officer he/she provides information to. This connection may even be,or be perceived to be, romantic in nature.

10) Moral Indignation: The person genuinely feels that certain criminal activitiesare unacceptable and these criminals should be incarcerated. Note: Not all criminalsapprove of all crime. A burglar or fraud artist may consider trafficking in hard drugsto be reprehensible. Furthermore, most criminals are glad to see violent dangerousthugs taken off the street.

11) Money: Although a cash reward is by no means the most common motivation ofa Confidential Informant, there are some persons whereby this is their mainmotivation.

12) Unknown Motive: There are some persons who provide the police with

information, even on an ongoing basis, whereby their motive is unknown and maynever be known.

HANDLING THE CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANT

Once you have recruited a Confidential Informant, it is very important that youhandle them carefully so they remain loyal to you and become a ready source ofinformation on an ongoing basis. The following guidelines will help you to do this:

1) Always maintain a friendly relationship with the Confidential Informant. Besure you dont change your personality as time progresses.

2) Show respect for the Confidential Informant, and be sure that they retainrespect for you. Contrary to what many people think, criminals donot respectdishonest police officers or officers with questionable morals or integrity.

3) It is most important that you are perceived as a Man/woman of your word,in other words, when you make a promise, it is the same as an oath that you willnever break. Dont tell a Confidential Informant that you will never reveal his/heridentity, and then tell your departments CI coordinator. If you are required to

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notify a CI coordinator of the existence of a CI, then tell the CI in advance whatyou are required to do. In most agencies, this revealing of a CIs identity is onlyrequired if the CI is going to be paid money. Obviously your police agency is notgoing to hand you several hundred dollars to give to some unknown, and possiblyimaginary, informant without obtaining details.

4) Ensure that the CI understands that you are in charge. Many CIs areaggressive, worldly criminals who are used to being in charge. Many a young,inexperienced police officer has been manipulated by a CI causing much grief tothemselves, their career and their police agency.

5) Never break the law; never allow or encourage your CI to break the law. Thiscould bring discredit to you or your police agency in the future and even cost youyour employment. Furthermore, you have no control over who the CI may tellabout this and you may actually be blackmailed into doing the CIs bidding.

6) If you are meeting with a CI with a request to take some action to ascertaininformation, have a plan ready to ensure some measure of success.

7) Never let the CI know exactly what your goals are or too many details aboutthe case you are working on. They should only be apprised of enoughinformation to accomplish their task. If the CI has contacted you to give youinformation, then collect that information and do not give information to the CI.Remember, collecting intelligence is a one-way street.

8) When submitting a report on information received from a CI, you willprobably be required to assess the informants reliability. Does the CIsinformation usually prove to be accurate? Are there indications that the CI ismanipulating you in an effort to gain some advantage, while providing trivial or

false information? Does the CI have a motive to provide you with falseinformation?

9) Be aware of your own safety. If you work with a regular, trustworthy partner,ask the CI if you can introduce them to your partner. In this way, if you are sick,on holidays or transferred away, they will still have a contact in the police. If youare dealing with a dangerous, untrustworthy or volatile CI, it is always safer to beaccompanied by your police partner. You should select the meeting place, notyour CI. If you think there may be some risk, however small, meet in a place thatis outside the area where either of you normally frequent but is in a public place.If seen, the meeting could be viewed as a chance encounter. Another option is tomeet quite openly. If you are known to always stop and converse with thecriminal element, this may not seem unusual. If you meet a potentially dangerousCI by yourself, be sure to advise your trusted partner of the details.

9) Be aware of your CIs safety. The security of secret meetings is as much foryour CIs safety as it is for you own. Furthermore, many CIs become verycareless about their own security and protecting their identity. Make sure youdont allow this to happen.

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Legal Note: In some jurisdictions, i.e., Canada, there are strict limitations on protectingthe identity of a confidential informant. If a police officer directs a CI to do anything orin anyway controls the activities of the CI in gathering information, the CI may bedeclared to be an Agent of the police. Furthermore, if the information received by a CIis used to obtain an arrest or search warrant, the CI will be classified as an Agent. Theidentity of an Agent cannot be protected in any subsequent legal proceedings, and in the

case of organized crime or cases involving violent criminals, the Agents life is obviouslyput at risk by this law.

CONFIDENTIAL INFORMANTS AND CRIMINAL INTELLIGENCE

You already know, from the Unit Organized Crime and Criminal Intelligence theimportant part that a Confidential Informant can play in gathering intelligence onorganized crime and serial offenders. Furthermore, the CI can be instrumental in leadinginvestigators to evidence in the development of a case, including cases of conspiracy.

Organized Crime Units and Criminal Intelligence officers often use a CI to introduce anundercover police officer into a criminal organization. Some organizations areimpossible to penetrate to facilitate a police officer working undercover, or at least it maytake many months to accomplish. The CI, if he or she is well placed and well respectedcan often accomplish this delicate and important task. It is very important, however, tohave a good plan for this purpose. Once the undercover officer is taken out of cover oris exposed, the CIs life could be at risk if people recall that the undercover officer wasintroduced by the Confidential Informant.

For general intelligence gathering purposes, however, the CI can be as valuable as

eyewitness surveillance by police officers as he/she can often go to places and insideplaces the police surveillance team cannot gain access to.

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UNIT TEN

TRACKING FUGITIVES AND MISSINGPERSONS

There are standard techniques used by police agencies to locate missing persons andfugitives which generally involve checking government and private databases andfollowing paper trails. It is quite probable that your police agency will already havepolicy to guide you on how to proceed with such an investigation. We will call thefugitive or missing person the target for purposes of clarity. This investigation willusually involve:

1) Checking databases, i.e., phone directories, motor vehicle licensing, voter lists,welfare records, credit card purchases, etc. There are numerous government and privatedatabases upon which almost every person is recorded.

2) Compiling a list of a relatives, friends and acquaintances that may have knowledge asto the targets whereabouts.

3) Checking all clubs, associations, magazine subscriptions, etc. which may have anaddress for the target.

4) Checking social insurance records or national employment records to see where thetarget is or has been employed.

5) Checking telephone records of the fugitive, friends and family.

6) Using cell phone GPS or triangulation to locate a fugitive if he is carrying a cellphone.

Name Changes

While the whereabouts of some people may be unknown to some friends and relatives,these missing persons may have made no attempt to hide; they may have just moved toanother city and failed to notify anyone. At the other extreme, those who are more intentnot to be found, may have changed their names so that their new name does not appear ingovernment records and databases. Aside from legal names changes, there are generallytwo methods of changing ones name:a) Obtaining false identification from criminal forgers who specialize in false

documents.b) Going to newspaper archives to obtain the names of deceased people of

approximately the same age or born within a few years before or after the target. Thisis done by visiting cemeteries or newspaper archives for people who died as infantsand then visiting government offices to replace a lost birth certificate. Once this isin their possession, all other identification can be obtained to build a new identity.

When a target decides to change their name, they often leave their first name the same to

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avoid confusion when someone calls their name and they dont respond. Targets withforeign names will often anglicize them when living in English speaking countries.Authors Note: When attempting to locate a Russian national who had moved to Canadawhose name was similar to Stanislas Pendowsky, I was unable to locate him throughthe usual databases so I guessed how he would anglicize his name. On the third nameguess, I located him under the name Stanley Bender. He had changed his year of birth

by one year but left the month and day the same. It turned out he was a former KGBagent who had fled to Canada and both Canadian counter-espionage authorities and theKGB had been trying to find him for two years but neither had succeeded.

The problem with the normal techniques for tracking a target is that they seldom workfor locating persons wanted by the police as fugitives, suspects or hostile witnesses. Arunaway teenager is usually too young to be included in the various databases and afugitive, wanted by the police, will be careful to avoid leaving a database or paper trailthat the police can follow. Fortunately, many criminals are not overly intelligent andeven the intelligent ones can make a mistake.

An even greater problem is the law relating to powers of the police in the country or state

in which you are employed as a police officer. In some countries, the police may searchany database, public or private without a warrant from a judge. Citizens may be requiredto identify themselves with photo identification upon demand by a police officer.Business, government and citizens may be required by law to cooperate with the police.In jurisdictions of this nature, tracking a fugitive or missing person will be much easierthan in a country such as Canada where the police have very little power. In Canada, thepolice have to be very highly trained in psychology in order to get people to cooperatewith their investigation when there is no legal obligation for them to cooperate.Furthermore, search warrants must be obtained for searches of non-law enforcementdatabases in most instances.

To be successful in locating a fugitive requires inventiveness, innovation andimagination, instead of hours of painstaking footwork and weeks or months of followingup leads. When you become skilled at thinking outside the box and approaching everytracking investigation with an open mind and an innovative thought process, you canoften find fugitives in a few days, rather than a few months or never.

Remember the following formula. This not only applies to tracking missing persons butfor all investigations that require you to ascertain who committed a particular crime.

IMAGINATION PLUS LOGIC OFTEN EQUALS SUCCESS

THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX

You will probably have received instructions on how fugitives and missing persons aretracked down and located from your Departments policy, directives, guidelines ormanuals. Before resorting to any techniques whereby there is a risk that a fugitive willbe warned of your investigation, it is better to approach the problem from a differentangle. You must remember that you are trying to locate a person who is not just missing,

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they are actively trying to avoid being located.

DEFINITIONS

Missing Person: Any person whose whereabouts is unknown

Now lets look at the specific missing persons who definitely do not want to be found:

Fugitives: This person has either committed a crime and a warrant has been issued, orthey are suspected of having committed a crime and are wanted by the police forquestioning. In some cases they may be escapees from a prison where they had beenincarcerated.

Child Abductors: This term is usually used to describe a non-custodial parent orrelative who has taken a child away from the lawful parent or guardian. They generallyare not intent upon harming the child. Very often, this term has been used by the mediato describe a pedophile who has kidnapped a child.

Kidnappers: This person has taken a child or adult, often by force, for criminalpurposes. They may be holding the victim for ransom, as a hostage, or to commitperverted sexual acts upon the person. The victim of a kidnapper, more often than not,will eventually be killed by the kidnapper unless found quickly.

Runaways: These are usually children who have left their home of their own volition, orunder the influence of another person. They may be naive and in great danger in theirnew, unfamiliar environment. They may have left loving parents because of somedispute, or they may have left home to escape violent or abusive parents.

INVESTIGATION PROCEDURES

The key to the success of any investigation is being well organized. This includes thecollection and recording ofall facts and information relevant to the case. Once all thefacts and information has been accumulated, you are then ready to proceed.

COMPILE A TARGET FACT SHEET

This should include:

a) Full name and aliasesb) Age and birth date

c) Police and/or prison numberd) Last known address and all previous addressese) Vehicles owned, used or has access tof) All known associates, male and female, with addresses, occupations and vehiclesg) Photos of target and associates plus descriptions, including marks, scars and tattoosh) Occupation(s) and previous places of employmenti) All contacts and/or places visited outside your jurisdictionk) Hobbies, sports, pastimes including particular skills

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l) Magazine subscriptions and preferencesm) Associations, clubs, groups belonged ton) Hangoutso) Details of all relativesp) Perversions, fetishes and peculiaritiesq) Daily and weekly routines followed

You will probably have to research many records and interview several people to obtainall this information, but it is absolutely essential to know everything about the target.Initially, you will not interview anyone who may warn the target of your investigation.You are strongly advised to create a questionnaire or check-off sheet to ensure that noimportant information or avenue of investigation is overlooked.

COMMENCING YOUR INVESTIGATION

Upon reviewing all the facts and information collected, you first decide upon where youwill commence the investigation. You always start, with very few exceptions, pursuingthe lead that has the highest percentage chance of success in the fastest time. In

tracking (the term we give to locating wanted and missing persons), you start with theperson or persons who may know, or probably know, the whereabouts of the person youare attempting to locate (the target). Remember, a person may be missing to youand your police agency, but they maynot be missing to their friends and relatives.

Before making your inquiries, you have to determine if the source of information youwill be contacting will be sympathetic and co-operative or hostile and/or uncooperative.Most people will willingly assist you in locating an abducted child, for example, but therelatives and friends of the person who abducted the child may protect the abductor, evenif they disapprove of what he or she did.

Do not approach relatives, friends or people who may be sympathetic to the target at thecommencement of a tracking investigation. Once you start making inquiries, everyonewill be on their guard to avoid you or give you false information. They will also warn thefugitive of your investigation. The target, hearing of your inquiries, will usually leaveyour jurisdiction or go into deep hiding. Always commence the investigation with a ruse,i.e., a pretext or undercover approach.

When tracking a person who does not want to be found, you will generally be makingpretext or undercover telephone interviews with relatives (usually parents) or friendswho may know their whereabouts. If the pretext is believable, and you are convincing,quite often you can obtain a phone number or an address of the target, either one of whichshould result in a quick discovery of the targets whereabouts.

If you are going to use the pretext/undercover method to track someone, it is veryimportant to ensure that this avenue of investigation is pursued before the normalmethods of investigation are used. It must be emphasized that pretext/undercoverinquiries are likely to fail if the heat is on and the persons you are attempting to obtaininformation from are on their guard.

Always use the simplest, easiest and fastest method of locating a missing person (which

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will usually be the cheapest also). Many investigators put in hours of foot work andsurveillance, when a three minute phone call could have achieved even better results.

If you cant obtain the actual address of the target (or a telephone number, which is justas good), you may be able to obtain other information, i.e., their occupation andeventually their employer, the names of clubs, societies and associations they belong to,

magazines they subscribe to, identity and addresses of associates, the bank they use, adescription of the vehicle they drive, bars or restaurants they frequent, etc. All of thisinformation will assist you in eventually achieving your goal of locating the target.Dont neglect details. Your sources of information may not know what is and is notimportant, so youll have to extract these small details from them during the interviewprocess. You were advised previously to create a questionnaire or check-off sheet. Makesure you do this; dont rely on your memory or instincts, as you do not want to riskoverlooking any details that could be helpful.

The goal in tracking is to narrow down your search. Your first objective is to ascertainwhat state or province the target is living in. From there, you narrow it down to the cityor town, and eventually to the house or apartment. You may be lucky and discover the

actual address or phone number on your first or second enquiry, or it may take manyweeks of chasing dead-end leads.

PRETEXT OR UNDERCOVER INTERVIEWS

Pretext interviews, or ruses, are actually undercover interviews whereby theinvestigator is posing as someone whom he or she believes the interviewee will cooperatewith. Although they are sometimes conducted in person, very often the pretext interviewis conducted by telephone.

The following are examples of pretext or undercover telephone interviews that can bemade to the targets relatives (usually parents) who would be uncooperative with aninvestigator.

1) Pose as a courier company with a parcel to deliver to the target. You say that thetargets phone is disconnected but the parents phone number was provided by the senderas an alternative. The parcel is registered so it must be signed by the target. If you cantobtain the targets address or phone number, ask to have the target phone yourcompany [See 2) following] and give them a business card.

2) Pose as an old friend of the target calling long distance with a job opportunity for thetarget. The relatives probably wont tell you the targets phone number so you ask them

to have the target phone you (collect, if its long distance). If the target phones, it mayshow up on your Caller ID or on telephone company records. Collect calls will appearon your phone bill. Even if the target phones from a pay phone, records will show thecity or town the call was made from.

3) Pose as an old friend of the target who is going to be arriving in town in a few daysand you want to get in touch with him to arrange to meet.

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4) Pose as a long distance operator on a person-to-person call from an old friend ofthe target. When the operator (you or a female officer) finds the target does not live withthe parents, you ask for the new phone number.

5) Pose as an old friend of the target calling from a party or airport with appropriategenuine background noise (which you have recorded for such a purpose) and you ask for

the targets phone number.

6) Pose as a paramedic calling URGENTLY from the scene of an accidentrequesting the targets phone number quickly as there has been a terrible accidentinvolving a friend of the target and the target must be contacted immediately.

These and more of these undercover or pretext inquiries are discussed later in this lesson.

Note 1You must have a phone not registered to the police agency where you areemployed and there must be no risk of background noise that would indicate the phone islocated in a law enforcement agency office. In the RCMP, these were always calledHello phones for obvious reasons.

Note 2Tape appropriate background noises that you will play on a recorder whenmaking these various pretext calls in order for them to appear genuine. This is extremelyimportant.

Note 3Always use a pretext FIRST because the direct approach will tip off the personyou are an investigator. If they are sympathetic to the target, or want to protect them forsome reason, you may have destroyed your chances of success, or at least set yourselfback by several weeks or months.

Note 4Always have your cover story well planned and rehearsed so that you can

answer any questions that are put to you by the uncooperative or suspicious relative orfriend, and sound perfectly natural and convincing. Practice your pretext interviews overand over until they become 100% convincing and second nature. You can generally usemost pretext scenarios over and overYou dont have to invent new ones for each case.

Note 5If a pretext interview is conducted in person, ensure that you are dressedappropriately so that your pretext is believable, i.e., courier uniform, etc.

OTHER PRETEXT inquiries

Very often, there will be other avenues of undercover investigation you can pursue. Letus say, for example, that a confidential informant told you the target subscribed to a

particular magazine. Depending upon the jurisdiction in which you work, the magazinecompany may or may not provide you with the information without a warrant.Alternatively, you may call their circulation office, posing as the target, to ascertain ifthey had been contacted about an address change. You may say, my wife (or husband)said they would change it before they left for New Haven to visit their mother. What isthe address you have on there now? If the circulation office asks you what your addressis, you give them an address and tell them that it is just a temporary residence until yournew house is ready.

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Another example might be that your target belongs to a professional association. Lets usassume he is an accountant. You phone the accountant association he belongs to posingas an employer to whom the target has applied for a job a month or so ago. You give thename, birth date and address (the old address). You ask if he is a current member in goodstanding. You verify the spelling of the name, the birth date and the address. If the

address is different, in all likelihood they will provide you with the new address, sincethey are in the business of assisting their members. You could provide a birth date that isaccurate except there is one year difference. You give the name, incorrect birth date andthe address. The discussion between you and them then centers on whether this is theright person. You compare the addresses.

Another ruse is to contact the targets parents posing as an old friend advising them youowe the target some money and where should you send the check to. They may give youthe address or they may tell you to send the check to them and they will see that the targetgets it. If the latter, you send them a check made out in the name of the target andendorsed on the back For Deposit Only. When the check is returned to you, it willhave the name of the bank the target uses which is a valuable lead.

If the various ruses described above do not work, you can approach the parents or a closefriend of the target in an official capacity asking the whereabouts of the target. Theyprobably wont tell you, of course, but they probably will phone the target after youleave, a record of which will appear on telephone records and their phone bill. If youcant get access to those records, a later search of their discarded garbage may revealdiscarded phone bills with the numbers they phoned after your visit. You may even belucky enough to discover a letter from the target or other documents revealing his/herwhereabouts. Obviously this search must be conducted in the middle of the night.

TRACKING SKILLS

The particular skills required of the Investigator who is successful in tracking are:

1. The three Is..Innovative, Inventive, Imaginative

2. Acting skills

3. Persistence

The Investigator who can think of believable ruses, and has the ability to act out the part

he/she is required to play, will usually be able to locate most missing persons in the leastamount of time with the least amount of work.

Even when pretext calls dont bring the desired results of locating the target, there aremany other things you can do, some of which have already been discussed, for example:

a) If you can arrange to have a target phone you long distance collect (you are an oldfriend or a prospective employer), their phone number will show up on phone records

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and your phone bill..

b) Send the target a check, with an appropriate cover letter, c/o the parents. If thetarget cashes it, when the check is returned to you, it will be stamped with the cityand the bank the target is using. The checks must be endorsed For Deposit Only.

c) A search of the garbage of people who know the targets whereabouts may revealletters, envelopes and phone bills leading you to the target.

d) If the parents, for example, routinely discard their phone bills, you could make anofficial investigation visit to the parents to alarm them. They, in turn, mayimmediately call the target to warn them of the renewed investigative interest. Youlater retrieve their phone records from the telephone company or from the garbage.

You are now well equipped with the knowledge required to track and locate missingpersons. The more imaginative you are, the more success you will enjoy. Likeeverything, the more practice you get and the more experience you accumulate, the more

successful you will be.

RECAP

1) Collect and record all facts and information.

2) Review the facts and information and determine which lead should be pursued first,i.e., interview someone who may know the targets whereabouts and will probably bewilling to tell you.

3) Use pretext or undercover interviews when dealing with potentially hostile or

uncooperative persons.

4) Always use the simplest, easiest and fastest method to locate the target.

5) Accumulate as much information as possible in order to narrow the search. Dontneglect or overlook small details.

6) If pretext calls and investigative ruses do not achieve results, it is time to proceed inthe normal manner, i.e., checking databases and interviewing people who may impartinformation, etc.

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