08 Sep Finding a Missing Person
Cambodia is a country that attracts people from all over the world, who have varied interests. In 2019, the Kingdom received 6.61 million tourists which brought in a whopping $5.31 Billion and accounted for 19.61% of the nation’s GNP. Source.
Private investigators in Cambodia have always come across cases that are closely linked with tourists. Inquiries vary- “I have had my bag snatched while on the side of the road!”, “I am three days over my visa- can I just wing it at the airport?”, “Someone has given me $700 worth of counterfeit cash!”, to the more serious: “I haven’t heard from my son for three days, he is in Siem Reap on Holiday, please find him!”, or “My son arrived in Cambodia two months ago, we had a fight and I have not heard from him. I received a phone call from a distraught women using his cellphone number, but she couldn’t speak English, please help me.” For a person on the other side of the world, the idea that a loved one may be in trouble in a country such as Cambodia is distressing, to say the least. Who can help? How do I contact the police? Where is my nearest embassy? Lead Investigations Cambodia is at the forefront of finding missing persons in the Kingdom. Our team has years of experience in finding missing people, assisting them, and making sure they get on their flight back home.
Why do tourists go missing? From our experience, most of the tourists who go off the radar are youngsters- aged around 20 to 30. There is one common denominator amongst almost all of them: Addiction. On the surface, Cambodia is a beautiful country with numerous historical, natural and cultural attractions. Locals are friendly, and before the Corona pandemic, bars, clubs and restaurants were plentiful. What is also abundant are drugs. From the friendly tuk-tuk driver offering you cocaine, opium or marijuana to the pharmacies which sell medications such as valium, dicodin, codeine, zolnox, clonazepam and alprazolam. Yes- these are also available in the West, however, here in Cambodia there are no requirements to produce any form of prescription from a doctor. Yes, it is as easy to buy these strong and addictive medicines as buying a beer from a mini-mart. As to be expected, if these readily available drugs are offered to a tourist who may already be fighting with their addictive personality, who have a history of substance abuse, or are easily pressured in to doing things by their peers, a disappearance of a loved one may follow.
How do Lead Investigations Cambodia find a missing person? What are the initial steps? What parties are involved?
Once the investigation has been initiated, as much information pertaining to the missing person is requested. Undoubtedly, their itinerary and last known location in Cambodia is of the utmost importance. Secondly, and especially if their plans for their stay in Cambodia are not known, the missing person’s habits, their likes and dislikes are taken in to account. What type of people do they enjoy being around? What type of places do they frequent? All these points are crucial in locating someone who is believed to be missing. Lead Investigations will leave no stone unturned when searching for your loved one. We deploy Agents to any part of the country in order to bring you peace of mind. Our experienced staff realise that not knowing where one’s loved one is, especially on the other side of the planet, is one of the most distressing things that someone may have to go through. A sense of urgency is used as one of our defining characteristics.
Lead Investigations Cambodia finds missing persons in Cambodia by using tried and tested techniques which utilises multiple authorities when needed. Additionally, our team are experts at extracting information from the missing person’s internet history/footprint, as well as conducting thorough on-the-ground investigative techniques.
Typically, once we have received details about the missing person from their loved ones, a report will be made with the Cambodian police. Our firm will then make contact (In conjunction with the family/concerned parties) with the relevant embassy, and then finally inquiries will be made with the Department of Immigration.
Check out our “finding missing person’s” service page here: Finding Missing Persons
For more information regarding locating a missing person in Cambodia, or for any other private investigative needs in the country, please contact us.