Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Anonymized documentation from a production facility theft investigation
Declassified case

Organized theft inside a production facility

A German vehicle parts manufacturer was losing rented plastic pallets. We exposed the weekend theft method, identified involved persons and helped prepare the detention of perpetrators.

How the case unfolded

Missing plastic pallets

Stock checks showed repeated losses of rented pallets and significant damage to the client.

Rented assets

Each missing pallet represented a direct replacement cost charged by the rental provider.

Several possible scenarios

We checked production, storage, returns, transport contractors and internal persons.

Suspicion involving transport

The client did not exclude that pallets were disappearing during transport or return delivery.

Undercover investigator

An investigator was deployed inside the production facility to collect information directly on site.

Weekend operation

The thefts took place mainly on weekends, when production operated in a limited mode.

Older van

We documented the vehicle repeatedly used to remove plastic pallets.

Purchasing site

The van moved toward a location where similar plastic pallets were being bought.

First perpetrators

An active employee and a former employee were identified as involved in the removal.

Wider group

Several months of surveillance showed the involvement of another five employees.

Security failure

A private security worker responsible for protecting the facility was also involved in the scheme.

Criminal police

After confirming the scheme, we coordinated the case with criminal police.

Detention after theft

Perpetrators were detained shortly after a theft and further involved persons were secured.

Damage calculation

The material helped calculate the damage caused during the full period of criminal activity.

Organized theft inside a production facility

A German client manufacturing vehicle parts for the European market contacted us after stock checks repeatedly showed missing plastic pallets. The pallets were not owned by the client; they were rented assets, and each lost pallet meant direct financial damage for the client.

Over several years, this caused a significant loss. The matter was sensitive because it was not clear whether the pallets were disappearing inside the production site, during transport, during return delivery, or through cooperation between several persons. The client also suspected a contracted transport company responsible for moving products and returning empty pallets.

Checking multiple scenarios

At the start of the case, we checked several possible ways the losses could have occurred. We focused on the movement of pallets between production, storage, the carrier and return routes. The goal was to separate ordinary inventory differences from systematic theft.

The work also included verification of the internal environment. An undercover investigator was deployed inside the production facility to gather information about pallet movement, employee habits, weekend operations and whether workers mentioned illegal removal of material.

Weekend thefts outside normal operations

Operational work showed that the thefts occurred mainly during weekends, when regular production staff were not present and the facility operated in a limited mode. During these periods, suspicious persons were able to reach the plastic pallets without immediately attracting attention.

We documented the movement of two persons using an older van. They entered the facility and shortly afterward drove toward a site on the opposite side of town. Further verification showed that the site purchased similar plastic pallets.

Identification of involved persons

During surveillance, we established the identity of persons directly involved in the thefts. In the first phase, this included one active employee and one former employee. Their movements, contacts and repeated use of the same vehicle suggested that the activity was not limited to two individuals.

Several months of monitoring the vehicle, suspicious persons and their connections revealed a broader scheme. According to the findings, another five employees were involved, together with a private security worker whose role was to protect the facility. This was especially important for the client because it revealed not only an internal failure, but also a failure of the security layer.

Cooperation with criminal police

Once the documentation confirmed the repeated method, involved persons, vehicle and the place where the pallets ended up, we began cooperating with criminal police. The goal was to preserve evidential continuity and prepare the situation so that the perpetrators could be detained without compromising further procedural steps.

The cooperation resulted in the detention of perpetrators shortly after a theft. Further persons involved in the scheme were then secured as well. After detention, procedural steps followed and the damage caused during the entire period of criminal activity was gradually calculated.

Result of the case

The client received a detailed investigative report, timeline, photographic documentation, identification of persons, description of the vehicle, purchasing site and the method by which pallets were disappearing from the facility. The findings helped expose not only direct perpetrators, but also a wider network of people involved in the thefts.

The case allowed the client to stop continuing losses, calculate damages and introduce further security measures in production, weekend operations, work with contractors and supervision of the private security service.

Is property disappearing from your production or warehouse?

We can check internal theft, contractors, weekend operations and weak points in security supervision, then prepare an evidence report for the next steps.

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