Early in 1992, the Russian government passed a law entitled On Private Detectives and Security Operations. At that time, it seemed to be a victory for free enterprise. Now though, just a little more than two years later, it appears that such activities as debt collection, recovering stolen property and cars are usually handled by "firms" that have quietly sprung up under the protection of the Interior Ministry itself.


There does not seem to be much demand for individual private detectives, although some continue to make a living largely by investigating unfaithful spouses. Individual detectives can only work in Russia today if they have some corrupt official body backing them up. "Justice will prevail," but only for a price.


The main provision of the 1992 law is to establish licenses "to collect information concerning civil cases." Naturally, this includes such matters as debt collection or following spouses. In addition, the law allows elementary economic espionage -- "studying the market and collecting information related to business negotiations." It also allows individuals "to search for missing people and property."


However the provision that legalizes "the collection of information concerning criminal cases only with the agreement of participants in the case" is a more complex matter. Private detectives have no status with official law-enforcement organizations. They are not allowed to undertake any searches or other operations that are the domain of the police. Further, they are not allowed to conceal any information they may uncover from the police; they are not allowed to impersonate law-enforcement officers; they cannot collect information concerning the private life or the political or religious convictions of suspects; they cannot make audio or video recordings without written permission. Naturally, they are not allowed to threaten anyone's life, health, virtue or property or to make personal use of the information they gather. They cannot violate the confidentiality of telephone or telegraph communications. Also, private detectives are strictly forbidden from holding any official posts.


This last point is far the most interesting. Is it really possible to expect that some average person from the street -- especially in these crazy times -- can competently carry out this kind of work? Of course, not. This stuff is hard enough for the professionals. But what if someone, say, retires from the police force in order to become a private detective? Of course, he maintains all of his old connections and, what is more, his former colleagues all know that he is getting pretty good money for his private work. As a result, specialists say, private detective agencies are just becoming buffers between the public and the police. That is, a few guys quit their jobs and get licenses. Then they sit at home and take calls from clients that they just pass on to their friends in the ordinary law-enforcement bodies.


"The police have been working on a commercial basis for a long time now," a friend who works as a police investigator told me. "Say the computers and equipment are stolen from some office. For half their value, you can really get the police moving. The operations group of the local department will, for a good friend and a lot of money, make up some excuse about an operation to find a murderer or some drug dealer and set out in full battle gear with automatic weapons. They'll conduct a search, collect any material evidence, etc. If necessary, for a small rental fee, they'll hold the 'witnesses' in a cell for a few hours, interrogate them and get them to reveal any required information."


Most often, people offering their services as private detectives -- either with or without a license -- are former employees of the criminal police force. They have excellent connections with workers in the City Criminal Police, the Main Directorate Against Economic Crime and other subdivisions of the Interior Ministry. They also have access to weapons and impressive-looking identification cards and documents. They charge 300,000 to 400,000 rubles a day -- 50 percent up front -- and provide daily written reports of their activity. Clients are free at any time to end the arrangement when they feel they have enough information to act on their own.


Thanks to their contacts, these detectives are usually able to gather information about the suspect's passport, residency permit, relatives, place of employment, license plate number, etc. within two or three days. These detectives almost always "get their man."


One of these private detectives -- a former member of the Moscow Criminal Police -- told me that he can return any stolen car if it was not stolen by itinerant thieves and if the theft is reported to him within 24 hours. "Moscow has several bands that only do car thefts. We know their phone numbers and within a few days every stolen car comes into their hands. After that, they are either sent off to the Caucasus or stripped for parts which are sold to regular clients. It is a real conveyer belt. But if we give them a call, tell them the license number and say 'you got the wrong car,' they'll give it back. They don't want any trouble from the police," he said.


In contrast, the few truly private detective agencies charge $100 just for a consultation and between 300,000 and 500,000 ruble payment five to ten days in advance. And clients must sign an agreement saying that the agency is not responsible if an operation fails to produce results. Most of these agencies really do little more than security.


This is the current situation regarding private detectives. What about firearms? The law only allows private detectives to rent them from the Interior Ministry: A standard-issue police pistol costs $700 per year. Naturally, only those agencies with good connections can get them. After all, they say, can just any average guy off the street competently handle this kind of work? Well, maybe for an additional fee ...





Dmitry Ukhin is a reporter for Moskovskiye Novosti. He contributed this comment to The Moscow Times.