In the last decade, the primarily male populated world of private investigators has seen a big change, not only in technology but also in the faces of this career. In fact, females are flooding this career path. And they are taking it by storm.
A great example is Michelle Gomez, a private investigator who broke a case that two other investigators and even the FBI failed to solve. Wanted for $2 million in fraud, Ryan Eugene Mullen apparently had simply vanished off the face of the earth. No one could find him until Gomez, who specializes in tracking down missing items and missing people, was asked to help with the case.
Like the staff at , Gomez is also highly knowledgeable in digital engineering and social media investigations. She discovered that Mullen was moving around online and in different hiding places by creating numerous identities. After carefully examining FBI records, Gomez found enough of a trail to believe that there was an excellent chance Mullen could be tracked to New Orleans. Gomez also discovered that Mullen was very likely living on a 53-foot yacht in or around the Louisiana area.
She tracked down the previous owner of the yacht. And that person pointed her in the direction of a broker who was possibly involved in at least a few shady activities with Mullen.
Again acting exactly like the pros from , Gomez knew exactly when it was time to leave the computer and hit the street. She traveled to New Orleans and knocked on the broker’s front door. Her surprise visit jarred the guy’s confidence and he admitted that he knew where to find Mullen. When the FBI closed in to apprehend Mullen, he was completely caught off guard.
Perhaps it is the patience required to conduct online investigations that make women good at it. At , one of the female investigators specializes in online digital engineering. Her rate of success in identifying and finding people has made one of the top location firms in Indiana. She knows how to find missing persons.
The techniques are similar when doing a people search as when conducting a background check. Using investigative skills including social media and other platforms like chat rooms and forums, she is able to single out a subject from the thousands or millions of online users. The opportunity to retrieve photos from online sources can assist in identification as well.
While the Internet is an anonymous highway, it is possible to turn that super highway into a two-lane back road – if you are an experienced investigator and know how to navigate the path to find a person.
-Brenda McGinley, CEO, All in Investigations, All in Investigations
