In 2012, Jerome Cahuzac, the then Budget Minister of France, was forced to leave the French cabinet after it was exposed that he had hidden assets in the form of millions that were stashed away in secret bank accounts in Switzerland and Singapore. It has recently been reported by many publications, including the Daily Mail, that Cahuzac’s wife, who is seeking a divorce, has accused her husband of stashing away millions more on the Isle of Man.
There is a large amount of hypocrisy that surrounds the situation. Cahuzac’s role in the Hollande administration in France was to stiffen regulations against wealthy tax avoiders. Now, he is actually a prime example of tax fraud and corruption.
This problem goes well beyond France
While France does have high tax rates that motivate the wealthy to open offshore accounts and to hide assets, French millionaires are certainly not the only people participating in these tactics. In 2012, Forbes Magazine quotes a report that estimated the super rich were hiding 21 trillion dollars in offshore bank accounts.
We can certainly attest to the fact that Cahuzac is not alone in this practice. We have helped many of our clients to expose hidden assets. These assets are often hidden by people going through divorces, declaring bankruptcy, evading taxes, embezzling corporate funds, or avoiding creditors.
Offshore accounts are not the only way to hide assets
There are many different methods that can be used to shield these assets. We have uncovered evidence of individuals who have hidden assets by:
- Putting assets under the names of family members
- Hiding businesses under illegal names
- Purchasing large items like cars, boats, or even planes
- Purchasing small items like diamonds which area easily hidden and transported
- Storing cash in safety deposit boxes
- Giving gifts to family members or friends
Thanks to evolving technologies and the increasing number of loopholes available, people and corporations are now able to get really creative in the ways that they are able to hide away their assets.
Beware of online asset search websites
If you are thinking that your significant other, your employee, or anyone else, has been hiding assets, you might be tempted to use asset search services that you find online. It is important to understand that these services are often not capable of finding well-hidden assets.
There are forms of data that are available to the public, which can help you to determine if someone has accounts or other forms of assets that you do not know about. These search services compile databases of this information, and they will sell you the information at a low price.
Remember, however, that you get what you pay for. These services do not come with actual private investigators who will explore the many diverse avenues that can be taken to secret away assets. Not only will these databases likely be missing important information, the information that is available may not be admissible in court.
Hire an experienced private investigator
Martin Investigative Services utilizes a proprietary database to find hidden assets. The difference is that our database is one of the largest in the world, and all work is supervised and completed by former federal agents from the FBI, DEA, IRS and Secret Service. We have the experience necessary to scrutinize the results and investigate information to identify hidden accounts and other secret assets. We are also fully compliant with the GLB Bill and the Fair Credit Report Act, two areas you should Google and become familiar with. If the potential investigator does not mention these two items, do not hire them.
Finally, there are three searches that we perform. They are not inexpensive. The basic asset search cost $950.00. The bank, savings and checking account searches along with stock bonds and securities are done by State or Nationwide. You can call our toll-free number to see if you qualify for us to take on your case. Most of these searches costs between $4,000.00 to $5,000.00. Beware of information brokers or so-called investigators who do these searches for $500.00 or less. That is simply a fairy-tale and assets are very rarely ever found by them.
You can email us and request more information about our asset search services (the three searches, timeframe and cost) and we’ll email the information to you.
