Workplace Theft Investigation When You Do Not Know Who Is Taking It
Tools vanish from a jobsite, product disappears between deliveries, or an office is lighter every Monday, and nobody on staff fits the pattern. Birds Eye works out who has access you have not accounted for, then documents who is actually responsible.
- Vendors, visitors, contractors and after-hours entry
- Access mapping before surveillance
- Offices, stores, jobsites and warehouses
Where are the losses?
Pick the closest match and we will point you to the right next step.
How do you investigate theft at work when there is no suspect?
Start by listing every route into the space: employees, vendors, cleaners, delivery drivers, contractors, visitors and anyone with an old key or code. A PI agency matches loss dates to those access routes, reviews existing video and records, and uses targeted lawful surveillance to identify who is taking property and how.
Everyone Who Can Get In, Not Just Who Works There
Most businesses underestimate how many people can reach their property. A cleaning service may rotate crews without telling you. A former manager may still know the alarm code. Delivery drivers prop doors open. A subcontractor's helper on a jobsite may be someone no one ever met. The first job in a workplace theft investigation is building that full roster.
We gather key and fob issuance records, alarm arm and disarm logs, visitor sign-ins, vendor schedules and any contracts that allow outside crews on site. Gaps are often the answer: codes never changed after turnover, a vendor with unsupervised access, or a fence line with a well-worn path.
- Cleaning and janitorial crews
- Delivery and route drivers
- Subcontractors and their day labor
- Former employees with unchanged codes
- Neighboring tenants sharing doors or docks
What Loss Timing Tells You
When losses happen tells you a great deal about who is involved. Weekend losses in an office with a Friday night cleaning crew point one way. Losses that appear only after a particular supplier's delivery point another. Jobsite materials that disappear the night before a pour suggest someone who knows the schedule.
We turn your inventory counts, purchase records and incident notes into a simple calendar and overlay it with the access roster. Even when records are imperfect, the overlap usually narrows the likely window to specific days and hours, which makes any surveillance far more efficient.
Walking the Site the Way a Thief Would
A PI visit to the property looks at it as an outsider would: where cameras actually point versus where people assume they point, which doors are out of sight, where a vehicle can sit without being noticed, and how goods could leave without passing a checkpoint. Many owners are surprised by what they see on that walk.
We note these observations for the report because they guide the investigation and the fix. Birds Eye does not sell security equipment, so recommendations are practical and unbiased. For a formal evaluation of controls and plans, a separate risk audit may fit better.
Talk it through with a licensed PI
Tell us what is happening. We will explain what the work involves and put scope, timeline and cost in writing before anything starts.
Targeted Surveillance in the Likely Window
With the window narrowed, our PIs set up lawful observation from public places or areas you control, during the hours losses are most likely. The goal is to see who comes and goes, what they carry, and where it ends up. Following a vehicle to a scrapyard, pawn shop or another jobsite often closes the case.
Surveillance on your own premises is planned with you so authorized staff know only what they must. We do not enter neighboring property without permission and do not record audio of conversations we are not part of.
When a Vendor or Contractor Is Involved
If evidence points to a vendor's employee, the situation has a second business relationship inside it. Your contract may require notice, allow you to demand removal of a worker, or include indemnity terms. Your attorney can advise on those options, and our report gives them the facts to apply.
Sometimes the pattern suggests the vendor company itself is shorting deliveries or billing for goods never delivered. That shifts the matter toward collusion or fraud, and the corporate collusion page explains how those cases differ.
Reporting and Recovering Property
Once the person is identified, police are usually the right next call for recovery and charges. A report that lists serial numbers, photos, loss dates and observed conduct helps officers act. Your insurer may need the same information, and some commercial policies set short notice deadlines.
Keep serial numbers, photos and purchase records for tools and equipment going forward. They make identification and return far more likely if items surface at a pawn shop or online.
What the Work Can Cover
Access roster
A full list of everyone with keys, codes, contracts or routine entry.
Loss calendar
Loss dates mapped against schedules, deliveries and alarm logs.
Site vulnerability walk
A PI walks the property to find blind spots and exit routes.
Video review
Existing footage checked against the narrowed loss window.
Lawful surveillance
Observation during likely hours, including following property off site.
Recovery packet
Serial numbers, photos and findings organized for police and insurers.
How We Work a Workplace Theft Case
Loss and access intake
We collect what is missing, when, and every known way into the space.
Written scope
Scope, timeline and cost are put in writing before work starts.
Narrow, then watch
Records narrow the window, and surveillance covers the likely hours.
Identify and report
You receive findings and a packet ready for police or your insurer.
Theft settings, the access clue to check, and a practical investigative step
| Setting | Access clue to check first | Practical investigative step |
|---|---|---|
| Office or clinic | Cleaning contract and alarm disarm times | Match disarm codes to losses, then observe after hours |
| Retail backroom | Delivery schedule and back door use | Review dock video around each delivery |
| Construction jobsite | Subcontractor crews and gate access | Overnight observation before high-value deliveries |
| Warehouse | Shared docks with neighboring tenants | Reconcile counts by shift and watch shared areas |
| Farm or equipment yard | Fence gaps and road access | Site walk, then follow vehicles leaving at odd hours |
Checklist for Owners and Site Managers
Do these before the next loss if you can.
Statewide coverage from Nashville
Birds Eye investigates workplace theft across all 95 Tennessee counties, from office parks in Brentwood and Nashville to industrial sites around Chattanooga and Knoxville, distribution centers near Memphis, and construction and farm sites in rural Middle and West Tennessee. Rural and jobsite cases often need longer observation distances and more planning, which we account for when setting scope.
All service areasNashvilleMemphisKnoxvilleChattanoogaProcess serving
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a PI agency find out who is stealing from my office at night?
Often, yes. Night losses usually trace back to a limited set of people with keys, codes or a cleaning contract. Records narrow the list, and lawful surveillance during the likely hours shows who is entering and what leaves with them. The result is a factual account you can take to police or your insurer.
Should I install more cameras first or call a PI agency?
Cameras help, but new ones can tip off whoever is responsible and still miss the real exit route. Talking with a PI agency first helps you place any new equipment where it matters and keeps the investigation from being exposed. Cameras installed in the wrong places also create a false sense of safety.
What if the theft is from a construction jobsite with many subcontractors?
Jobsites are common targets because crews change and sites are open. We map which subcontractors and deliveries line up with losses, then observe during the nights or weekends before high-value materials arrive, which is when thefts tend to happen. Gate logs and delivery tickets from general contractors are often the most useful starting records.
Can I hold the cleaning company responsible?
That depends on your contract and what the evidence shows about who took the property. Some agreements include indemnity or bonding terms. Our report gives your attorney the facts needed to evaluate a claim against the vendor. Keep the vendor out of the loop until the facts are clear, so records are not altered.
Do you recover stolen property yourselves?
No. PIs have no police powers and do not seize property. We locate and document where it is and give that information to law enforcement, who handle recovery. For a specific stolen machine, the stolen equipment page explains that process. We also help prepare the serial numbers and photos officers need.
Can you watch the business next door if I think they are involved?
We can observe from public places and your own premises, but we do not enter neighboring property without permission or record conversations we are not part of. Shared docks and hallways are handled with care and planned with you. If a neighbor appears involved, police are usually the right next step once the facts are documented.
Related pages
Find Out Who Is Getting In
Call or text (629) 310-8667 or email contact@delatorgroup.com to describe your losses and plan a quiet investigation.
Photography: Michael Förtsch (Unsplash License). Last reviewed . General information, not legal advice.
