Here at Valkyrie, we have recently concluded an interesting surveillance investigation that has been ongoing for several weeks. It involved an individual who was believed to be passing on sensitive information to a business competitor. It is fair to say the task was complicated and involved multiple elements, including forensic investigations, OSINT and surveillance.
As the investigation progressed, it became clear that the individual was meeting up with another person to pass over information; intel also indicated that the meetings were taking place on particular days every week and, although the individual wasn’t overly security conscious, he did employ a degree of caution to how he conducted his meetings. The meetings always took place at different times in the morning. They utilised different meeting points, which were always cafes/restaurants located a short walk from various stations located on the Elizabeth line.
As the surveillance investigation progressed, and we gathered evidence on what the individual was up to, the client requested we surveil the individual to gain information and imagery of his meeting and the data transfer.
It was a multi-layered task concluded successfully and is now in the hands of our client’s legal team to progress further.
This type of operation – where confirmation of activity, additional evidence and heightened security are required – has many layers that need to be approached strategically and simultaneously, and so can be difficult for clients to know what to ask for. Our approach covers the following:
- After hearing our client’s concern, we provide a full analysis and report, making sure you know what can be achieved, any potential problems, estimated time and the number of operators required.
- Our team of surveillance operators then familiarise themselves with the area of operation – in this case, busy train stations and platforms with a target that was moving dynamically to an unknown meeting location via the underground and rail network.
- We plan our operation in as much detail as possible with the available intel but remain flexible so we can react and adapt quickly as situations dictate and as new information comes to light.
- We keep our clients updated regularly throughout the operation – with both positive and negative information to avoid any misunderstanding and allow the client to brief upwards as needed.
- We always think about the evidence chain, making sure that any information we discover through surveillance can be used with confidence in any subsequent legal cases.
