Philip Curlewis, private investigator Age: 35.
Career path: My father was English and my mother Chinese. I was born in Hong Kong and went to school here and in Britain. After school I joined the Royal Military Police, where I stayed for eight years, serving in Germany for two years, Britain for three, followed by a year in Belize and two here. Then postings started to shrink and I thought I could make some good money here. My elder brother introduced me to Fact Finders and I started working for them as a private investigator. I am now a director and have been with the company for eight years.
Philip's day: You need patience in this job and to be able to think on your feet: no situation can be rehearsed and you need to be able to tell major lies without batting an eyelid. There is more structure to my day now I am a director because administration and meetings take time each day, but I am still involved in hands-on investigations, which I really enjoy. I work from 8.30 am until any time at night; this is a seven-day-a-week occupation so I have no time for sport or hobbies. Fact Finders, now a multi-national company, has 80 staff in Hong Kong. We cover a wide range of investigations, covering everything from partner checking on partner to insurance claims, tracing individuals, surveillance and so on. There is nothing repetitious or boring about this job because each case is unique.
There are many counterfeit cases, which might begin when the client, say a high-profile jewellery company, approaches me with knowledge of a counterfeiting operation. After some investigation I will meet the counterfeiter posing as a potential overseas buyer and set up meetings. During discussions I set about getting hard evidence of the counterfeit product - a sample, video, invoice or something. Once we have evidence we hand it over to the client, who goes to the Customs and Excise Department. Some of the cases concerning fake watches are triad-related so they are dangerous, but we have never been caught out.
Over the years I have stalked many partners suspected of having affairs. Most cases are wrapped up in about two weeks, but we need proof so the sooner we can photograph the subjects going into a love hotel the better. Other cases are quite funny: some have involved people claiming insurance for work-related injuries and hobbling into doctors' offices. We have caught them dropping their crutches and running for the bus just around the corner. Then there are people appointed to executive positions whose CVs prove false. While this job is fascinating, seeing what people get up to has probably made me cynical and suspicious.
Salary: The money's good, upwards of $1 million each year.
Ambition: Make a lot of money and live comfortably.
