Employee Misconduct Investigations in Coconut Grove, FL
Theft, time fraud, FMLA abuse, and the manager who is running a side business on your payroll. We document it before you act.
Confidential. Your staff will not know we were there.
Fire Someone Without Proof and You Buy a Lawsuit
An owner who suspects an employee is stealing has two bad options: confront with nothing and watch the evidence vanish, or fire on a hunch and get a wrongful termination or discrimination claim. Wasser Investigations has given Coconut Grove businesses a third option since 1985. We document the conduct, lawfully and quietly, so that when you act, HR and your employment attorney have a file behind the decision.
Travis Wasser handles the work himself. He knows the Grove’s employers, from the restaurants and bars around CocoWalk and Commodore Plaza to the marinas, the medical offices near Mercy Hospital, the private schools, and the family offices along Bayshore, and he knows how to work around a small staff that notices new faces.
Owners, HR, and Employment Counsel
You Suspect Something and Need to Know
Cash drawer shortages, inventory that walks out the back of a restaurant on Grand Avenue, a bookkeeper whose lifestyle does not match the salary, an employee on leave who is working somewhere else. We confirm or rule it out.
Evidence for Termination, Defense, and Recovery
Independent documentation that supports a termination decision, defends against a wrongful termination or retaliation claim, or backs a civil recovery or criminal referral.
Misconduct We Document
Theft and embezzlement
Cash skimming, inventory theft, vendor kickbacks, and bookkeeper fraud. Surveillance, records analysis, and coordination with your accountant.
FMLA and leave abuse
Surveillance of employees on FMLA, disability, or workers’ comp leave who are working a second job or doing things their medical restrictions rule out. In the Grove, that often means cash work on boats or at a bar.
Time and attendance fraud
Buddy punching, phantom hours, and remote employees who are not where they say they are.
Moonlighting and competing businesses
Employees diverting customers, running a side company with your client list, or working for a competitor while on your payroll.
Substance abuse on the job
Documented use or impairment during work hours, particularly for roles involving driving, boats, or client safety.
Harassment and hostile-environment complaints
Independent witness interviews and fact-finding so the company’s response is defensible under Florida and federal law.
Pre-termination and post-termination surveillance
Documenting conduct before a termination, and after one when a former employee is violating a non-compete or non-solicitation agreement.
Small Staff, Small Neighborhood, No Room for Error
A Grove restaurant has 25 employees who all know each other. A family office has eight. If word gets out that the owner hired an investigator, the subject cleans up, coworkers close ranks, and the company faces a morale problem on top of the original one.
We work from outside the business wherever possible. Surveillance of the employee’s activity off-premises, records work, and interviews structured so the subject is not identified. When on-site work is required, we plan it with you and only the people who need to know.
The Investigation File
- Timestamped video and photographs of the documented conduct
- A written report with a dated timeline and sourced findings
- Witness statements from coworkers, vendors, or customers where applicable
- Chain-of-custody records for all evidence
- Background on the subject, including undisclosed employment or business interests
- Investigator testimony for unemployment hearings, civil suits, or criminal prosecution
Questions From Employers
Is it legal to have an employee followed?
Yes, in public places, without trespass, harassment, or audio recording. Off-duty surveillance of an employee on leave or suspected of moonlighting is lawful and routine.
Can you monitor an employee's personal phone or social media?
We capture what is public. We do not access private accounts, personal devices, or messages, and we advise employers against it. Public posts, with dates and URLs, are often enough.
An employee on FMLA is working somewhere else. What can you prove?
We document the second job on video with dates and times and identify the employer. Whether that violates the leave depends on the certification and your policy, which is a question for your employment attorney. We give them the facts.
Will this hold up if the employee sues after termination?
That is the point of doing it this way. Documented, lawfully gathered evidence with a clean chain of custody is what defense counsel needs to answer a wrongful termination or retaliation claim.
How quickly can you start?
Within days. Our office is on Ponce de Leon Boulevard in Coral Gables, ten minutes from the Grove.
Get the Facts Before You Make the Call
Tell us what you suspect. We will tell you what can be documented, how long it takes, and what it costs.
Get a Free Consultation