Private investigations
Threat Assessment & Stalking Response
When someone is following, watching, messaging or threatening you, your family or your staff, we assess how serious it is, document it properly and put practical protection in place. The work supports police and the courts. It does not replace them.
When you need a threat assessment
Threat assessment is a structured process for deciding whether a person who has threatened someone, or is behaving in a worrying way, is moving toward harm, and what to do about it. Stalking response is the practical side of that work for a specific victim: documenting the pattern, finding the hidden channels the stalker uses, and building protection around home, work and travel. The approach follows the behavioral threat assessment model the U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center promotes: identify concerning behavior, gather information and assess risk, then manage the situation with a plan.
If you are in immediate danger, call 911. Everything below is for the days and weeks around that call.
Clients usually reach us when:
- An ex-partner keeps turning up, calling from new numbers or contacting friends and family.
- An anonymous account is harassing someone online and seems to know where they go.
- A former employee made threats on the way out and staff are uneasy.
- A public figure, executive or family is receiving fixated letters or messages.
- Someone suspects their phone, car or home is being monitored.
- A protective order has been granted, and the client wants help making it work in daily life.
What we deliver
Threat assessment
A written assessment of the person of concern, built from the communications, incident history and lawful background research. It covers the behavior seen so far, warning signs, and recommended steps by priority.
Stalking case documentation
An organized incident log, preserved messages and posts, and identity research on anonymous accounts using lawful open-source methods. Online content is captured through our evidence preservation process so it holds up later.
Device and tracker checks
Phones, computers and accounts checked for monitoring apps through spyware and stalkerware detection, plus physical checks of vehicles the client owns for hidden trackers.
Protection and safety planning
Executive protection staffed in-house in Arizona for high-risk periods such as court dates or moves, plus a home and routine review through our residential security team.
For employers, threats tied to a workplace are handled through our workplace violence service, which covers termination meetings, officer coverage and site hardening alongside the assessment.
How it works
- Confidential intake. We learn what has happened, who is involved and what the client fears most. Urgent risks are flagged immediately.
- Immediate safety steps. Before the full assessment, we recommend what to change today: routes, account settings, who knows the schedule.
- Gather information. Communications, police reports, prior orders, public records and open-source research on the person of concern.
- Assess. We look at behavior, not stereotypes: fixation, escalation, threats, approach behavior, grievances and access to weapons.
- Manage. A written plan covering protection, technical checks, documentation and how to coordinate with police, an attorney or a victim advocate.
- Review. Risk changes. We reassess after key events such as service of an order, a court date or a release from custody.
Arizona law: stalking and protective orders
- Stalking is a felony. Under A.R.S. 13-2923, stalking is a class 5 felony when the conduct causes emotional distress or reasonable fear of physical injury or property damage, and a class 3 felony when it causes reasonable fear of death. The “course of conduct” definition includes using an electronic, digital or GPS device to surveil someone without authorization for twelve hours or more continuously or on two or more occasions.
- Order of protection (A.R.S. 13-3602). For people in a domestic relationship defined in A.R.S. 13-3601, such as a spouse or former spouse, someone you live or lived with, the other parent of your child, certain relatives, or a current or former romantic or sexual partner. It takes effect when served on the defendant and lasts two years from service. An order not served within one year of issuance expires. There is no fee to file or to serve, and the court may bar a defendant who poses a credible threat from having firearms.
- Injunction against harassment (A.R.S. 12-1809). Available to any person, with no relationship required. Harassment means a series of acts directed at a specific person that would seriously alarm, annoy or harass a reasonable person and serve no legitimate purpose, or one or more acts of sexual violence. It lasts one year from service.
- Injunction against workplace harassment (A.R.S. 12-1810). Filed by an employer or its authorized agent to protect the business, its employees and anyone on its property or doing official work. A single threat or act of physical harm can be enough. It lasts one year from service.
The Arizona courts offer a free online tool, AZPOINT, that walks petitioners through each of these forms. We do not give legal advice or choose the order for you. What we provide is the documentation a judge needs to see, and help confirming where the defendant can be found so service can happen.
Arizona realities matter. Long commutes on I-10 and I-8 make routes predictable. Rural Pinal County and desert properties can sit a long way from the nearest deputy. Monsoon storms and summer heat change when people are outside and when they are home. A safety plan has to fit the actual life the client lives here.
What not to do
- Do not engage or retaliate. Replies, threats back or public call-outs often escalate a fixated person and can complicate a court case.
- Do not delete anything. Block if you must, but preserve messages, voicemails and posts first.
- Do not track the stalker. Putting a GPS device on a vehicle you do not own or have consent for is itself restricted under A.R.S. 13-2923. We do not do it either.
- Do not hack back. Logging in to the other person’s accounts can be a crime and can undo your case. We use lawful methods only.
- Do not assume a protective order ends the risk. Service of an order can be a high-tension moment. Plan for it.
- Do not keep it secret from everyone. Tell your workplace, school or building security what they need to know.
Stalking is widely underreported. The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimated that 3.4 million people aged 16 or older were stalking victims in 2019, and fewer than a third of them reported it to police.
Who this is for
- Individuals being stalked or harassed
- Families worried about a fixated ex-partner
- Employers facing threats from a current or former worker
- Executives, public figures and their staff
- Attorneys representing victims or petitioners
- Schools, churches and property managers with a person of concern
How it is priced
We do not publish prices. Cost depends on how urgent the risk is, how much research and technical checking is needed, and whether protective coverage is required. We quote in writing before any work starts.
| Included | Quoted separately |
|---|---|
| Confidential intake and immediate safety guidance | Executive protection or officer coverage |
| Written threat assessment and management plan | Forensic examination of phones and computers |
| Incident log structure and preservation guidance | Vehicle and home sweeps for trackers or devices |
| Open-source research on the person of concern | Surveillance to document violations |
| One reassessment after a key event | Testimony at a protective order hearing |
Frequently asked questions
Should I call the police or you?
Call 911 for any immediate threat. Report stalking and harassment to police as well. We work alongside that report, adding documentation, technical checks and protection that police often do not have time to provide.
Which protective order do I need?
It depends on your relationship with the person. An order of protection is for qualifying domestic relationships, an injunction against harassment is for anyone else, and employers can seek an injunction against workplace harassment. An attorney or the court’s self-help resources can confirm the right one.
Can you find out who runs an anonymous account?
Sometimes, through lawful open-source research such as reused usernames, photos and writing patterns. We do not hack accounts or trick platforms into giving up data. When identity requires platform records, your attorney can seek them through legal process.
How do I know if my phone or car is being tracked?
Signs include a stalker knowing where you have been, battery drain or unfamiliar apps. Our team checks your devices and vehicles you own, and documents anything found before it is removed.
Can you protect us outside Arizona?
Protection is staffed in-house in Arizona and delivered in other states through vetted, locally licensed partner agencies under our coordination. Research and assessment work can be done for clients anywhere in the US.
Related services
- Counter-surveillance
- TSCM bug sweeps
- Open-source intelligence (OSINT)
- Surveillance services
- Process serving
Related guides
- Stalking threat assessment and response
- Threat assessment for terminated employees
- Living in fear: professional intervention for stalking victims
Sources: A.R.S. 13-3602, order of protection, A.R.S. 12-1809, injunction against harassment, A.R.S. 12-1810, injunction against workplace harassment, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Stalking Victimization, 2019, U.S. Secret Service NTAC, behavioral threat assessment units guide.
Request this service
Tell us what you need in a few lines. Your request goes straight to the right team, and you get a written quote before any work starts.
Take back control of your safety
Tell us what is happening through the online request form and it goes to the investigations and protection team. If the threat is active today, call 911 first, then use our urgent intake form.