Helix Investigations (Helix) was established in 2022 when Alex Kersjes and Neil Hallett identified a shortage of high-quality private investigators in New Zealand. Since its establishment, Helix has provided quality and timely service to a wide range of clients. They have done this by using their own skills and subject matter experts, who all pride themselves on untangling the ‘bowl of spaghetti’ that clients bring to them.

Before opening any investigation, Helix staff meet with clients to determine a clear direction, adhering to the principle of "Start with the end in mind." This ensures that both parties share a common understanding of the aims of the investigation.

With a decade-long career in criminal intelligence, Neil understands the importance of intelligence-guided investigations. "In practically every case, we begin with open-source intelligence searches on the involved parties." This approach, combined with commencing a timeline of events, assists in preparing their comprehensive investigation plans.

Since its inception, Helix has been involved in a wide variety of investigations. “There certainly appears to be no shortage of people needing our services,” Neil said.

Often, when people come to us through our website, they are unsure of the outcome they want; however, after discussions with Helix staff, the client has a clear outline and a commitment from us to do our very best for them.

Helix has tackled diverse investigations, from assisting defence lawyers in case preparation to helping individuals whose complaints have not been investigated by the police or the police investigation is found wanting. Each case presents its challenges, and over the coming weeks, we will highlight some of the intriguing issues we've encountered and successfully resolved.

When assisting defence lawyers, Helix’s primary role is to interview potential witnesses. It doesn’t stop there though. Helix will also gather exhibits, arrange for their forensic examination, and use Neil’s experience as a 35-year police veteran to examine and summarise possible defences, or gaps in the prosecution case.

In addition to assisting with defence case preparation, Helix extends its support to individuals who have been convicted, aiding in mitigation pleadings before sentencing or gathering evidence for possible appeals.

New Zealand and overseas policing agencies have limited resources and a need to prioritise cases. This can result in some critical matters not meeting their investigation thresholds. Helix explores various approaches in such cases, sometimes presenting nearly completed files to the police for swift action. In other instances where police duties are perceived as lacking, Helix assists clients in preparing complaints to be forwarded to the Independent Police Conduct Authority.

In our next article, we will delve into strategies for finding individuals, exploring what can be done and the limitations of what we can do in cases where somebody is seeking to reconnect with someone they've lost contact with.