Investigative Services

In today’s litigious society, companies and individuals are increasingly finding themselves embroiled in litigation. The loss of even one legal case can result in disaster. Many times, these cases will hinge on the attorneys’ fact-gathering capabilities. Experienced attorneys know the value of having trained fact-finding investigators at their disposal.

There are many types of legal issues that require investigative expertise. The process of requesting documents, composing interrogatories and taking depositions is made more effective by gleaning as many facts as possible beforehand. A professional investigator can greatly assist the attorney during the process of trial preparation and discovery.

USSC, Inc. principals have extensive experience assisting attorneys in complex litigation matters. Our unique ability to create a network of experienced investigators, combined with our background conducting in-depth research, analysis and interviews, adds value to the efforts of inside or outside counsel.

In addition, USSC, Inc. investigators can provide expert testimony during hearings and depositions.

USSC, Inc. can help with investigations for personal, internal, retail, industrial and corporate clients. Our experienced team of professional investigators can assist you with:

• Undercover operatives
• Covert video
• Internal theft investigations
• Missing persons investigations
• Computer monitoring
• Embezzlement
• Skip tracing
• Employment and tenant screening
• Asset location
• Bank account location
• Workers comp investigations
• Insurance Investigations

Whether you are a small retail establishment in need of an employee theft investigation, a large industrial complex in need of short- or long-term undercover operatives, or a corporation in need of pre-employment checks, you can count on us.

Expert Testimony
Our experienced investigators will testify in court concerning any of our services related to your case.

We have proven our skills with years of experience helping hundreds of clients solve their security problems. We pride ourselves on providing quality, cost-effective investigative services.

Losses from fraud, corporate espionage, identity theft and other financial crimes are estimated to be in excess of $100 billion per year, and are rising for U.S. businesses and investors.

Schemes to defraud, embezzle and illegally divert funds have been developed and perfected over many years and, with the addition of the Internet, have become a nightmare. Fraud schemes typically fall into several general categories:

• Corruption involving governmental authorities, such as bribery, kickbacks, illegal gratuities, bid rigging, conflicts of interest and breach of fiduciary duty
• Asset misappropriations (embezzlement of cash or inventory)
• Unlawful disclosure of business, trade and research secrets
• Fraudulent statements (financial and non-financial) including fictitious revenue statements, concealed expenditures, false asset valuations or failure to disclose material facts
• Ponzi schemes, reinvented time and again, most recently with the aid of the Internet and offshore financial centers, have become the biggest single threat confronting global investors

These activities are seldom detected or solved by traditional internal or independent audits. Even if detected, auditors rarely have the investigative experience to unravel the fraud – particularly the ability to pursue leads outside of the victim’s company. That is simply not what auditors do, but it is what we do with efficiency and success.

In today’s ever-changing business world, corporations continuously find themselves involved in complex transactions, including mergers/divestitures, joint ventures, lending arrangements, corporate financial restructurings and hiring of key executives. These situations require the disclosure and verification of information by one or more parties. To the extent that such disclosures are false, misleading, inadequate or incomplete, the transaction could suffer, which could lead to embarrassment, financial hardship, criminal sanctions or loss of license.

Corporate intelligence is necessary for sound business decisions and to comply with requirements imposed by government regulators. Corporate decision makers require timely and comprehensive investigations to verify the “facts” given to them by individuals, companies and lending sources.

In complex transactions, the due diligence process can involve a team of lawyers and accountants to conduct financial and transactional reviews, and USSC, Inc. investigators to confirm the integrity, reputation and professional background of individuals, companies and purported facts.

In the Information Age, knowledge is power. And reliable, accurate, timely information is an invaluable asset and a marketable commodity.

A company with “new information” has an advantage over its competition. That’s why competitors are increasingly trying to level the playing field by obtaining this vital data by any means. Care must be taken to obtain useful information by legal means and not to engage in illegal or unethical techniques that can cause damage a company’s reputation or subject it to criminal or civil penalties.

Useful intelligence on competitors can be obtained from the adept exploitation of open source material held by commercial and government sources. Knowledgeable sources can be located and interviewed, and patterns of information can be developed for further analysis. Collecting data in this manner is just part of the craft of competitive intelligence. Data must undergo analysis and testing to evolve into a product from which useful decisions can be made.

USSC, Inc. specializes in using investigative collection and analytical skills to create intelligence from which sound business decisions can be made. This expertise becomes critical for clients who are subject to takeover attempts. In these situations, USSC, Inc. can assist with expert investigations designed to determine the backgrounds, intentions and capabilities of those engaged in the transaction as part of an overall defensive strategy.