How Does a Private Detective Work? Patrick Kurtz in an Interview with the Berlin Radio Station Star FM

Patrick Kurtz, owner of Kurtz Investigations Potsdam and Brandenburg, was heard last week in an interview on T-Bone’s Breakfast Club on the Berlin rock station Star FM. Below you will find a transcript of the conversation:

"What does the work of a private detective really look like?"

Presenter T-Bone: "Bianca is currently happy to blame her tiredness on the change to daylight saving time, but in truth she once again watched half the night of Elementary."

 

Presenter Bianca: "Yes, or read a crime novel. I have to admit, I find that kind of thing fascinating; complicated cases that need to be solved, you puzzle along a bit and it is exciting. You often cannot stop."

 

Presenter Christian: "But what does the work of a private detective actually look like in reality?"

 

T-Bone: "Probably mind-numbingly boring."

 

Christian: "Is it like in the films?"

 

T-Bone: "I do not think so ..."

 

Bianca: "I can tell you. I spoke to Patrick Kurtz. He runs a detective agency in Potsdam. And as expected, it is not quite like in the films, even though there are many parallels. It mainly involves surveillance, but it can also be pretty unpleasant ..."

Surveillance: 17 hours in the car in sweltering heat

Detective Patrick Kurtz: "My longest surveillance lasted 17 hours and during that time almost nothing happened. The target person went out twice to walk the dog. That day it was also really, really hot, around 33 °C. Air conditioning would have been quite nice, but that does not last long in a parked car."

 

T-Bone: "That surprises me. The first surprise is already that he is called Patrick and not Emil."

 

Bianca: "But just think about it: 17 hours sitting in a car in sweltering heat waiting for the target person! And how does he stay awake? With audiobooks!"

 

T-Bone (laughs): "That has exactly the opposite effect on me."

 

Bianca: "Yes, that was my thought too. But it definitely keeps him awake, probably because he listens to exciting things. And that is also one of the basic prerequisites to becoming a detective at all: you always have to stay mentally alert. Not only to identify connections during research, but especially during these endlessly long surveillance operations you have to stay sharp."

Physical and Mental Requirements for Detectives

Patrick Kurtz: "During surveillance you have to be able to anticipate: how does a target person behave, which routes might they take, and so on. Research also requires mental fitness, because you have to recognise connections. Physical fitness is not a bad thing either. You should also possess the basic equipment, that is, a suitable camera, a decent car that does not attract attention but still has the necessary performance to follow faster vehicles, and so forth."

 

Bianca: "But that does not mean that it is about uncovering violent crimes like in the films; in most cases it is fraud. Affairs, expense fraud or cases where people are officially on sick leave but then do who knows what."

 

Christian: "Do you actually need training for that?"

 

Patrick Kurtz: "Unfortunately, in Germany you do not need any specific training, but I would still advise anyone planning to become a detective to complete such training. Most colleagues working in our industry have a prior career with the police or other investigative authorities such as customs, sometimes also intelligence services. Accordingly, they can demonstrate the specialist expertise needed to investigate successfully in this profession. For career changers, training is strongly recommended, because otherwise you would not even have mastered the legal fundamentals."

 

Bianca: "Exactly, if you go charging in somewhere with a lock pick like Matula – I do not think that is allowed."

On the Problematic Media Image of Detectives

Bianca: "What I also found very exciting: yes, detectives do also use those pin boards like you always see in films, where all the photos, newspaper articles and so on are pinned up."

 

Patrick Kurtz: "When we have complex situations that need to be researched, it does sometimes happen that we set up such boards. It is different, of course, when we talk about detective series, especially from Germany, such as Die Trovatosor Privatdetektive im Einsatz – what is shown there is simply complete nonsense. That is also rather sad, because people who see it naturally absorb it and then call us with a distorted set of expectations. They think that we also have 'raid situations', that we threaten or beat people to obtain information, or that we eavesdrop on target persons with directional microphones and all sorts of other nonsense, which in practice is firstly prohibited and secondly not at all effective."

 

T-Bone: "Bianca, you can start saving: I have just googled what such a detective training course costs: just under 6,000 euros at the Berlin Security Academy."

Kurtz Investigations Potsdam and Brandenburg

Gregor-Mendel-Straße 15

D-14469 Potsdam

Tel.: +49 331 2785 0052

E-Mail: kontakt@kurtz-detektei-potsdam.de

Web: https://www.kurtz-detektei-potsdam.de/en

Google: https://g.page/kurtz-detektei-potsdam