How to retain a private investigator to track down phone number?

May 6, 2011 8:59 AM

My dad's car was stolen last night with his phone inside. I have a record of messages and calls made from the phone after it was lost. Police report was filed, but can a private detective help? Recommendation for one in Oakland, CA? Cost and prior experience in retaining one appreciated.

My parents parked their car in a sketchy neighborhood of Oakland; and it was stolen. The car was old, KBB value about $3-4k; but the fact that this happened before irks me. Inside was my dad's cellphone, which share the same account with mine. I called T-mobile to see if they can use E911 GPS on the phone to trace its location; they claimed they can't. I then downloaded a record of text-messages and incoming/outgoing call made on the phone since last night. These numbers are not familiar; they stand out because my dad very rarely use his phone, and he doesn't text. I've send him the information, and hopefully he will update the police on it.

So, my questions are: is it helpful to retain a private investigator in this situation? Can a PI locate the people whose number I have, then drive by those addresses for a brief look, and if possible, call the police (maybe 4-8hrs worth of work)? How to retain one, and how much does their services cost? I know that Oakland police probably have higher priority tasks on their hand; and living far away from my parents, I'm feel more anxious and disadvantaged in aiding my parents; but I do try to help as best I can.

Thank you for your advice.

posted by anonymous to law & government (3 answers total)

Presumably he had insurance which will cover the cost of the car which means he has nothing really to gain by hiring a PI. I'd say let the police handle it and be careful in the future.
posted by JJ86 at 9:12 AM on May 6, 2011

First, I'm glad to hear that your parents are safe. Your impulse to help your parents from afar is admirable, but the cost of 4-8 hours of private investigator time is likely to be several hundreds of dollars.

Yes, someone with the right resources could do reverse lookups on the phone numbers and hit the pavement to collect information. In the right set of circumstances, leads might even be obtained but it's a long shot. But even if someone handed the police a set of leads, it is quite possible that they don't have the resources to follow up.

So even if you spend the money on the PI, there are long odds that the PI would be able to get actionable information. And even with actionable information, long odds that the police would do something about it.

For a chance on a chance, you're spending money and forcing your parents to keep thinking about this intrusion into their lives. It is frustrating that it's hard to do "something" to prevent crime or address victims, but my own sense is that spending the money you might otherwise spend on the PI to do something nice for your parents to take their mind off the theft, or to donate to a community organization that helps reduce crime in the area, would be better for everyone involved.
posted by QuantumMeruit at 9:20 AM on May 6, 2011

Did something happen with the cell phone that is causing you to take it to this extent? Even with your own investigator, the cops may not be likely to put someone on to the case to dig into who stole the car or why, they may even take it as a slight that you think they can't do their jobs.


It's a sketchy neighborhood of Oakland. No one was physically hurt. Count your blessings. I am not quite sure trying to exact a pound of flesh over what most police officers would consider a minor case, would accomplish here.

Be glad no one was hurt. Practice more care in the future. Never leave anything of value (IDs, electronics, whatever) in any unattended vehicles.
posted by jerseygirl at 10:44 AM on May 6, 2011