ASIS CPP - Investigations P2 Flashcards
An activity, capability or resource that enhances the effectiveness or sufficiency of the investigative function
Force Multiplier
3 Important force multipliers in investigations
- Liaison
- Online information sources
- Intelligence information
Liaison
- Primarily a proactive medium
- Joint Task Forces (JTF’s) represent a highly-structured form of liaison
Sources - Types of Evidence
Interviewees or witnesses
Subject-matter experts
Physical evidence
Electronic evidence
Public records
Surveillance results
Open sources
In the corporate environment, most credible information on losses, sexual harassment and other reportable incidents comes from employee tips
Sources
Which are among the least accurate forms of investigative information?
Eyewitness Accounts
Information obtained in undercover operations come from three sources?
- The operative
- Employee (subject( interviews
- Witness interviews
2 Types of witnesses
Fact witness
Opinion witness
Investigative objectives tend to be _____ to the short-term expectations of the project?
Tactical
Specific
Relative to the timeliness of an investigation it is important to
- Open an investigation as soon as possible
- Complete an investigation as quickly as possible
- Avoid closing an investigation prematurely
The most important reasons for beginning an investigation as quickly as possible following the report of an incident or allegation are:
- The value of physical or electronic evidence diminishes rapidly
- Witnesses provide the best information when the incident is fresh in their memory
Formal documentation is among the first things to be neglected when caseloads increase
Management Responsibilities
Management should consider the purpose of the investigation at the:
- Case Level: sets the context within which the investigation will be conducted & helps keep focused
- Strategic level: Dictates the necessary planning, organizing equipping staffing & preparation
What is the main objective of Investigator Responsibilities?
For any preliminary investigation is to determine what crime or violation exists
Objective
Obtain information & evidence to be presented in a factual, final report to senior management can take appropriate action
Legal matters in investigations must be considered for two reasons:
- Protect the company against liability
- Ensure an appropriate conclusion if the case goes to court or another legal forum
The objective of the Report
Enable the reader to readily understand what the investigator did, why, & what resulted
5 basic steps of report writing
- Gather facts
- Record the facts immediately
- Organize the facts
- Write the report
- Evaluate & edit the report if necessary
Types of Investigative Reports
- Initial report (soon after the case is opened)
- Progress report (normally every 30 days)
- Special report (focused on unusual action may be supplemental to the progress report
- Final report (most important)
Who is the primary collector of relevant evidence
The Investigator
What is critical to the credibility of the investigator
Preparing for a court appearance or deposition
Surveillance can be broken down into three broad categories
- Physical (i.e. human observation or tracking)
- Psychological (i.e. behavioral analysis)
- Data (e.g. technical or electronic)
The interview is a process of gathering information
- “information interview” (non-accusatory) (Deming) or “general interview” (POA)
- “Administrative interview” (simple, unstructured, all interviews other than the subject) (Ferrara)
- Investigative & behavior - provoking questions to develop information
- When the interviewees become a subject target or the accused person in the interview it becomes on interrogation
An interrogation is the questioning of an accused or suspect person
- “Confrontational interview” (accusatory, highly-structured) (Deming & POA)
- “Investigatory interview” (complex, structured process focused on the subject (Ferrara)
- A monologue by investigator offering psychological justification) for the wrongful behavior
Hostages form an emotional bond with their captors
Stockholm Syndrome
A persistently-held belief in another person such that the belief becomes reality
Pygmalion Effect
Experienced interviewers frequently finish introducing other persons present by inviting them to spend a few minutes with the interviewee
Yes Conditioning
“Floating Point” Strategy
- Continuously re-evaluating a hypothesis as information is obtained allows an investigation to adjust questions accordingly
- Inexperienced investigators often neglect the skill of listening when interviewing suspects
- Active listening includes attentiveness, concentration acceptance, detachment and patience
- Interviewers must be able to assess facts previously established in the light of information provided by the interviewee
What is the most prized talent of an investigator?
The ability to obtain information through questioning
Skilled interviewers must be:
Patient
Persistent
Prepared
What is the most important factor of a successful interview?
The ability of the interviewer to establish a favorable rapport with the interviewee
What sets the tone of the interview?
Demeanor
A negative attitude translates into negative results
The value of each interview or interrogation is based on…
The investigator’s knowledge, skills in eliciting information, and ability to evaluate the veracity of the information obtained
Investigations that include searches must comply with what?
The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution
An admission obtained by a private citizen who conducts an interrogation in violation of due process but otherwise follows constitutionally prescribed conduct may be admissible
The court recognized union employees’ rights to representation at investigatory interviews that the employee reasonably believes might result in discipline
The Weingarten Rule
In 2000, the NLRB expanded Weingarten & held that the right to representation at investigatory interviews applies equally to union & nonunion employees
but then…
In 2004, the NLRB ruled that non-unionized employees are not entitled under Sect. 7 of the NLRA to have a coworker accompany them to an interview with their employer, even if the employee reasonably believes that the interview might result in discipline
Interview Planning & Preparation
The most critical preparatory action before an interview is to become thoroughly familiar with the case information
Key factors in Interview Planning
Location
Time factors
Questioning order
Questions to ask
Persons present
The choice of interview site depends on
- Nature & phase of the investigation
- The apparent involvement of the interviewee
- The issue of interviewee confidentiality
- The desired level of formality
Where should uncooperative witnesses be interviewed?
In the security office or interview room
Interview Environment
- The subject should face the interviewer an witness should be seated to the side
- The interview should not be conducted at a desk or table
- The distance between the subject and the investigator should be about five feet
- The subject should always have a clear path to the room’s exit
- Interview only one subject at a time
- Interviews should be conducted quickly after an event, to capture fresh recollections
Priority of Interviews (in order)
- Persons not likely to be available later
- Persons believed to have the most pertinent information
- Persons likely to be hostile
- The offender or offending group
Documenting the Interview
Prepared notes are acceptable if the interviewer does not refer to them regularly during the interview
In interviews, the two types of questions generally asked are open & closed
- To put an interviewee at ease, the beginning of the interview should contain “closed” questions
- In the primary’s phase of an interview a narrative type of questioning should occur (“open”
What kind of question allow for an unlimited response from the witness in his or her own words, thereby generating a greater amount of unsolicited information
Open-ended
The interviewer should avoid making any promise or guarantee explicit or implied that:
- Is illegal
- Cannot be confirmed by the client or senior management
- Cannot be fulfilled
What may invalidate confessions or statements and may call for civil or criminal action
Coercion
Duress
Psychological constraint
Verbal abuse
Threats
Intimidation
What must be understood by the interviewee?
That they are free to leave the interview location
Most cases are solved with information developed during interviews and the subsequent efforts to corroborate or disprove interview findings
Four formats of a written confession
- A statement was written by the suspect
- A statement authored by the interrogator but read & signed by the suspect
- The statement took down by a secretary or stenographer & transcribed into a typed document for the suspect to read and sign
- Recorded statement (studio video) by the suspect
What must be done for a written statement or confession to be credible & admissible in US Court?
It must be given voluntarily be trustworthy. and include the following essential information
What is the best closing strategy for an interview?
Asking if there is anything to add & if he or she be called again
Reid Technique - 4 objectives of the interview
- Obtain valuable facts
- Eliminate the innocent
- Identify the guilty
- Obtain a confession
Verbal responses include both spoken words & gestures that serve as word substitutes other verbal cues are
Tone
Pitch
Speed
Clarity
Non-verbal Responses Include
Body movements
Position changes
Gestures
Facial expressions
Eye contact
What is responsible for more than half of the information & meaning of a message communicated ina conversation
Non-verbal Behavior
The Truthful Person
- Makes general sweeping denials
- Offers unqualified, direct, & spontaneous answers
- Exhibits a reasonable memory
- Responds to questions in a rational manner & a clear tone of voice
Deceptive Person
- Offers very specific denials
- Avoids realistic words
- Makes seemingly irrelevant comments
- Gives delayed, evasive, or vague answers
- Exhibits an unusually poor, selective, or remarkable memory
- Qualifies answers or uses religion or oaths to support statements
- Speaks in an irrational fragmented mumbled or subdued manner
A Truthful Person
- Sits upright but not rigid
- Positions himself or herself in front of the questioner
- Leans towards the questioner when making a point
- Appears relaxed & casual
A Deceptive Person
- Slouches or leans back in the chair
- Sits unnaturally stiffy
- Sits off to the side, not directly in front of the questioner
- Pulls elbows close to side arms folded & locked in front with legs crossed
- Exhibits rapid & erratic posture changes
Nonverbal behavior accompanies a deceptive response in an attempt by the guilty suspects to relieve anxiety
- Distraction behavior
- Displacement behavior
Shifts in body posture, bringing a hand to the face, crossing the arms, etc…
Distraction Behavior
Picking the lint off clothing, pacing, repetitious fast movement, etc…
Displacement Behavior
No single word or nonverbal behavior automatically means a person is lying or telling the truth
Activities suggesting deception
- Significant posture change
- Grooming gestures & cosmetic adjustments
- Supportive gestures
Which are a primary source of information & most critical aspect of an investigation?
- Interviews with victim
- Witnesses
- Informants
- Confidential informants
A person who has been involved in a physically debilitating situation should be interviewed briefly on the event’s crucial aspects before being allowed to rest
A person who is physically debilitated or psychologically stressed should not be subjected to a lengthy interview
Who should be questioned as to alcoholic beverages consumed within the last 24 hrs & 95 to any medication taken
The Interviewee
The interviewer should begin with broad; general questions & then become more specific
Witness Interviews
Several principles underlie the interviewing of a cooperative witness
- Maintain or reestablish rapport
- Personalize the interview by treating the witness as an individual
- State expectations
- Ask open-ended questions
- Avoid interruptions
- Allow pauses
Preparation begins long before litigation with an accurate & timely capture of facts & impressions of the incident in a report or notes
The testimonial evidence the security professional will be presenting in court is called “parol” or “spoken word” and the attorney will want to make sure it supports the case
Produce all tangible evidence
Duces Tectum
The legal process, where attorneys and/or judge ask questions to determine candidates’ sustainability to be on the jury
Voir dire
Theft and Fraud
- Most frequent & costly forms of dishonesty
- the most common motivation for an individual to commit an internal theft is one of economics or profit
- Employees may be an organization’s greatest threat second only to competition
- 30% of business failures result from employee theft with over one half of them failing in the first 3 years of their existence
Theft & Fraud
- Occupational fraud is a growing industry in which most perpetrators are first-time offenders
- US organizations lose to 6% of their annual revenues to fraud
- Small businesses suffer disproportionately larger losses than large businesses
- More than 2 million shoplifter apprehensions are made every year
- They are only a fraction of the estimated 200 million annual shoplifting incidents
Theft & Fraud (cntd…)
- Various studies estimate employees steal over a billion dollars a week from their employees
- Some employees will steel to “the extent the organization will allow”
- In the retail industry, up to 70% of losses are perpetrated by employees
- For every dollar lost to shoplifting, employees, steel another $15
Theft & Fraud (cntd..)
- In the foodservice industry, employee theft imposes a 4% tax an every customer dollar spent
- A serious form of embezzlement in the workplace is fraudulent cash disbursements
- Employees also steal time
Employee Theft & Fraud
Theft on the job is not necessarily correlated to external factors or influences; employees who are satisfied with their jobs are less likely to steel
What significantly affects individual employee attitudes toward theft
Peer Pressure & Attitude
Theft is usually perpetrated by what kind of employees
Those with Access
The greater opportunity for theft the greater the chance it will occur; the greater the chance of detection, the less likely employees will steel
Employees who steel…
are frequently involved in another counterproductive workplace activities
Red Flags of Employee Theft
- Secretive relationships
- Missing documents
- Indicators of substance abuse
- Irregular hours of operation or building entry
Primary Contributors to Employee Theft
- Lack of supervision
- Lack of effective processes
Bi-modal Distribution
- A small number of employees take large amounts of property
- The vast majority of those who steel take only small amounts
Two methods of theft committed by managers
- Embezzlement
- Defalcation
The fraudulent appropriation of property by a person to whom it is entrusted
Embezzlement
Misappropriation of trust funds or money held in a fiduciary capacity
Defalcation
Joseph Wells motivations for Fraud
- Financial pressures (gambling, drugs, living beyond one’s means, unexpected medical bills)
- A desire to be (or appear to be) successful
- Greed (predominant factor)
How is the opportunity for fraud created?
Through the absence or weakness of internal controls
Employees involved in theft have usually been involved in other misconduct
What is not an insurance against theft?
Tenure
Virtually every employee who steals has rationalized his or her dishonesty
No theft regardless how minor should be tolerated or ignored
Virtually every theft or fraud could have been prevented by better management
What are the most common form of workplace embezzlement?
Cash Disbursements
Four characteristic principles involved in internal thefts include
- Diversion: when the money stops being spent in one area of business or on a product; & starts being spent on another
- Conversion: when someone gives away or sells property that does not belong to them
- Disguise
- Divergence
The relevant facts or elements of most economic crimes are?
Motive
Opportunity
Ability (rationalization)
Most common rationalizations/myths by employers?
- Only the needy & greedy steal
- Good policies & procedures will catch most wrongdoers
- Audits identify most irregularities
- Prosecution is an effective deterrent
Most fraudsters are influenced by an opportunity to profit & a clear correlation exists between theft & opportunity
Opportunity
Employees displeased with their overall employment experience are most often those who engage in theft & other antisocial behavior at work
Job dissatisfaction
Employees are greatly influenced by the informal social controls of co-workers such as peer-group gossip, ridicule & ostracism
Social Control