Private investigator

CASE CLOSED

As a private investigator, former Dio girl Julia Robson (2000) has busted an organised crime gang in Malaysia, reunited separated family members, conducted surveillance on cheating spouses, and done background checks on reality show applicants. She tells us more about her fascinating career.

How did you become a private investigator?

After school, I did a gap year in the UK and when I returned to New Zealand, I wanted to study criminology, but it wasn’t offered at the University of Auckland, so I joined the NZ Police. Even though I was still young, I wanted to become a detective. My senior sergeant at the time told me to take two years’ leave without pay to get some more life experience. I returned to the UK and ended up getting a job as a corporate investigator.

I’d never had any interactions with private investigators before and I really didn’t know what they did. The company I worked for mainly investigated trademark infringement, but the cases were incredibly interesting and not the type of thing I could have worked on in New Zealand. Their clients were major fashion brands and I had to travel around fashion fairs throughout Europe to gather information and evidence about counterfeit products and brand protection using covert methods. This could be as simple as looking for fake Disney toys, right up to posing as a fashion buyer to prove backdoor stock was being sold in Italy for unethical distribution within the UK.

With my two years’ leave from the NZ Police nearly up, I was planning to go back to my police job in Auckland, but I did a detour to Melbourne on the way back. That was in 2007 and I’m still here! So yeah … things didn’t quite go as planned.

How did you set up your own investigation business?

My first job in Australia was working for a private investigation firm that did all the stuff most people think investigators do: cheating spouses, locating debtors, serving divorce papers etc. I hate that line of work as it’s very hard to get satisfaction from people’s misery.

Around 2008, some of my friends started online dating. It was quite a taboo thing back in the day, so most people didn’t admit they were on there. My friends, and other clients, started asking me in confidence to tell them more about the dates they were meeting online.

As a young, computer-savvy female, I was completely different to most other private investigators who were all mainly retired male ex-cops who barely knew how to switch a computer on! I realised I had quite a niche in my industry and so I started my own company, Online Investigations, in 2012. I work with an ex-undercover cop fulltime, but I have subcontractors all around the world who specialise in different areas. I call on them, depending on what the job requires.

“These days it’s not so much the job that fascinates me, it’s more the client I’m working for. I’m fortunate to have met some very interesting people in my line of work.”

What sort of cases do you get involved with?

My main focus is identifying the anonymous online – they could be anonymous social media profiles, organised crimes operating online, owners of a website selling counterfeit goods etc. But I offer my services to anyone who has a problem.

Sometimes I’ll take on a client dealing with a criminal matter who has been turned away by the police due to lack of evidence or resources, or unfortunately the police might not recognise the criminal offence due to lack of education around computer-based crimes such as theft and cyberbullying or trolling. As an investigator I play an important role in gathering all the evidence, preparing a file and presenting it in a completed format that increases the likelihood of a criminal charge being laid by the police.

There can be periods where it’s noticeably quiet, or you can be inundated with jobs. I’ll usually have 10 to 15 files a month. Sometimes less if the jobs are more complex. I love the work I do, so I am often doing something work related on the computer.

Are there any jobs you find particularly fascinating?

These days it’s not so much the job that fascinates me, it’s more the client I’m working for. I’m fortunate to have met some very interesting people in my line of work. I’ve learnt that just because someone may be incredibly intelligent and financially successful, when it comes to matters of the heart, they can find themselves in incredibly vulnerable, and sometimes risky, situations. I used to have a segment on a popular Melbourne breakfast radio show where listeners would provide me with a case to solve. The radio show would cover all the costs, provided it was played out on air. I solved over 20 cases and it helped make the breakfast show number one in the ratings.

What’s been your career highlight to date?

In 2010 there was an organised crime gang preying on Australian and New Zealand women online. I was fortunate to travel to Malaysia and be involved in a bust of this group with the assistance of Malaysian Police and a TV crew. It was a great opportunity to work with some different organisations and gave me a real insight into how international police forces work.

Of course, the work undertaken in the Chasing Charlie podcast was a personal highlight of mine, but it was also quite lonely work for me.

Has your work ever put you in danger personally?

The very nature of investigation work means not everyone is going to be happy with you. There are always risks with this type of work, but it’s about ensuring you carry out work lawfully, conduct necessary risk assessment, and do your best to diffuse certain situations.

Is it expensive hiring a private investigator?

Using an investigation firm can be significantly cheaper than the alternatives, like trying to get court orders/subpoenas for the same information, or ‘hoping for the best’ rather than paying for a background check, or spending your life with the wrong person rather than paying upfront for surveillance. I do take on pro bono cases, as they give me an opportunity to help some wonderful people who I wouldn’t otherwise be able to work with.

Do people come to you for help, then ignore your warnings?

Absolutely. Several times I’ve been accused of photoshopping or making up overwhelming evidence after they confront their cheating spouse with the evidence and that person refuses to admit the truth. Most people know the term ‘gaslighting’ and it’s a very common behaviour. Family members will come to me asking for background checks on their loved one’s new partner. Financial scams and elder abuse are tricky as my job is to gather the evidence and present it in a matter-offact way. Unfortunately, you can’t be responsible for what people choose to do with that information.

What’s the biggest sum of money any of your clients has ever been swindled out of?

A woman sold her $1.2 million home so she could send the money to her lover who claimed to be an American soldier stranded in Afghanistan. Of course, it was all a scam. She lost her home, her children lost their inheritance, and it reached the point where she could only afford to eat toast for every meal – an incredibly heart-breaking situation.

Do you have any advice on protecting yourself from scammers?

Any requests for money should always be treated as a business transaction and appropriate due diligence should take place. These days, everyone has some kind of digital footprint and if they don’t, then you should be very cautious. Trust your gut instinct! It’s surprising how accurate women’s intuition is.

Julia recently released a podcast called Chasing Charlie that chronicles her success in bringing down notorious New Zealand conman Paul Bryan Gill after a seven-year search. Note: Due to the nature of the content, Chasing Charlie is only suitable for a mature audience.