While new technology brings forth exciting gadgets that can aid private investigators, sometimes the most valuable investigation technique is keeping it simple. For current and aspiring private investigators, the following case exemplifies just how important it is to rely on old fashioned investigative work. Read on to learn how the Diligence International Group, LLC (DI Group) unraveled the truth about a man insurance companies had believed to be dead.
THE DEAD MAN
If you search around, you can still find old news articles lamenting the death of Jose Lantigua, a Florida business owner who had reportedly died on April 17, 2013 while on a business trip in Venezuela. His body was cremated there, and a memorial service was planned in Jacksonville, Florida. News reports announcing the death quoted Lantigua’s grieving son as stating, “Our family is working hard to deal with the loss of a true father, friend, and mentor. We were truly blessed to have him in our lives; he will be missed by all of us as well as by this community.”
Shortly thereafter, the Jacksonville furniture store that Lantigua owned, Circle K Furniture, shuttered its doors, and Lantigua’s family set out to collect on seven life insurance policies, totaling over a million dollars. Two of the policies had been paid out before suspicion grew.
