Interviewing, Documentation, and Report Writing
Interviews
Witness interviews precede the subject interview, which is the last step, after documents are secured. Plan: know the facts and the person, prepare exhibits, choose a private setting, record with consent. Open questions and free narrative come first (cognitive interview: context reinstatement, recall in a different order), then funnel down to closed and confirmatory questions. The accusatory or admission-seeking phase follows only when you hold corroborating evidence; present it gradually and let the subject explain.
Traps and limits. Leading questions contaminate testimony. Demeanour is unreliable - no reliable behavioural tell for deception exists, so never build a case on nervousness. Do not promise leniency or confidentiality you cannot deliver, threaten, or detain anyone without authority; improper admissions are often inadmissible and create liability. Document the statement contemporaneously and obtain a signed, dated version.
Reports and workpapers
A report states authority and scope, background, methodology, findings of fact, evidence references, quantified impact and recommendations - clear, neutral, free of jargon and of legal conclusions. Every finding must trace to a workpaper and an exhibit.
Rule of thumb. Write each paragraph so a reader with no fraud background can answer: who did what, when, how, what it cost, and how we know - and flag any unresolved issue as an open item rather than guessing.