Private Investigators Featured on Mediacorp Channel 8: 星期二特写 on 30 December 2025

Watch Full Episode Here

Private Investigators Are Not Simple: From Infidelity to Fraud

In films, private investigators are often portrayed as tailing targets to expose affairs. But is this true in reality?

Ivan Tan, 32, from Asia Top Investigation, has been a private investigator for seven years. He openly acknowledges that many cases involve marital infidelity. For example, wives may notice their husbands behaving strangely—coming home late frequently or dressing up carefully before going out—prompting them to hire a private investigator.

However, Ivan explains that investigations are not like movies where investigators follow targets continuously. Their main objective is to obtain evidence. If a target enters a hotel, investigators wait outside. If the target later emerges with another person displaying intimate behaviour, such as hugging, that becomes critical evidence and must be photographed immediately.

Investigations are usually conducted in teams of two or three. Female investigators are relatively rare, making up only about 20% of the field. Huang Zi Xuan is one of them.

A Female Private Investigator’s Perspective

Zi Xuan has worked as a private investigator for about a year and a half. She chose this profession after seeing a friend successfully hire a private investigator to uncover the truth in a relationship matter, which she found fascinating.

As a female investigator, she believes she attracts less suspicion during investigations and can more easily follow female targets into places such as restrooms or shopping malls. However, the job is equally demanding. Sometimes she must wait over ten hours for a target to appear, remaining alert the entire time. Missing even a single second could mean losing a crucial opportunity.

Private investigators may wait outside hotels for targets to appear and photograph them as important evidence.

Not Every Case Involves a Third Party

Since becoming a private investigator, Ivan has handled over a thousand marital-related cases, with approximately 70% ending in divorce. However, not every case involves a third party.

He recalls one case where a client asked him to investigate her husband, who had been coming home late. After tracking his movements, Ivan discovered that after work, the husband would go alone to a café, quietly folding paper stars for one to two hours before returning home. No other individuals were involved.

Ivan later informed the client of his findings and suggested that her husband might be under stress and simply needed personal space.

Several months later, the client contacted him again to explain her husband’s situation and thanked him deeply. Without this clarification, a family might have been destroyed by misunderstanding. Ivan found this outcome deeply fulfilling.

Beyond Marital Matters: Commercial and Fraud Investigations

In addition to relationship cases, Ivan also handles commercial and corporate investigations, as well as fraud cases. In recent years, online scams and romance scams have become increasingly common. Many victims only turn to private investigators when they feel helpless.

One case that left a deep impression involved a combined romance and investment scam. The victim lost more than 30 million RMB and completely lost contact with the scammer. Ivan was tasked with locating the individual.

Initially, there were very few leads—only a fake name, a phone number, and an overseas office address. Ivan and his partners spent eight to nine months navigating immense difficulties, travelling across multiple countries to trace the suspect. Eventually, they located the individual in China and even arranged for the victim to fly there to meet them.

Being able to successfully help clients brings Ivan immense satisfaction and meaning in his work.

This article accompanies a featured video highlighting the real-world work of Asia Top Investigation professionals.

Need Professional Guidance?

Whether you’re seeking clarity in a personal matter or need discreet, professional investigative support, choosing the right private investigator makes all the difference.

📞 Call us at +65 8820 0007

📧 Email us at vt@asiatopinvestigation.com

🌐 Visit www.asiatopinvestigation.com

Your concerns deserve to be handled with care, discretion, and integrity — from the very first conversation.