This is a story about how two members of World Association of Detectives cooperate to find a fugitive on the other side of the globe. Pro bono to help the police and make justice happen.
The Norwegian organization Neighbor Alert contacted WAD member Thomas Mathiesen and his company Etterforsker1 to find a wanted fugitive who has fled Norway before serving his sentence. The private investigators in Etterforsker1 cooperate with their international partners and find the convicted person within two days.
Convicted and wanted
80-year-old Ulf Ernst Gøran Maxhall is a former doctor in central Norway and was convicted in November 2022 of possessing 500 videos and 3,500 images showing gross sexual abuse of children.
The American organization National Center for Missing and Exploited Children notified Norwegian authorities of the IP address of the doctor in Namsos. The address belonged to the doctor’s residence and computer equipment was seized at Maxhall’s home.
The police found that the doctor had been downloading gross child pornography for eight years. He also downloaded this material when he worked as a doctor at the Namsos Health Center. Some of the material was downloaded during working hours at the Namsos Health Center.
Maxhall is sentenced to 14 months in prison, but does not have to serve time in custody until his sentence. The judge is not afraid that the old man will escape.
Maxhall and his Thai wife leave their house in Namsos and travel to Thailand. Nils
Christian Sudbø Brandtzæg at Bjerkan Stav law firm
Maxhall did not appear for his sentence because he states that he is innocent and not fit to serve (because he has a heart condition).
The police are looking for Maxhall.
Nabovarsel asks Etterforsker1 for assistance
Aron Jahnsen in the organization Nabovarsel contacts Etterforsker1 Gruppen for assistance. Aron and his organization are working to open a registry for convicted sex offenders. Naborvarsel has a particular focus on those convicted of child abuse or possession of child pornography.
Managing director of Etterforsker1 Gruppen and private investigator, Thomas Mathiesen, offers Nabovarsel to take the case pro bono. We at Etterforsker1 want to give something back to society. We do this through pro bono work.
This case is so hair-raising that the private investigation agency takes the case to the day.
Private investigator searches for the convicted person
Mathiesen and his private detectives are not idle and contact their good colleague, Rusty, in Bangkok.
Rusty, whose real name is Russell Lerner, and Thomas Mathiesen have previously worked together and are both members of the international organization for private investigators, the World Association of Detectives. Rusty is a detective and the general manager of the private investigation agency Verisec Ltd.
Together, the two detectives work to find out if Maxhall is in Thailand. Within a few hours, they find information that confirms that Maxhall has traveled to Thailand and that he is in the country.
Rusty needs a working day to find locations. Private detective Mathiesen sends him photos that Maxhall has posted on his Facebook pages. The two identify the location together. Some photos are new and some are a little older. But they are often taken in the same place.
The private detectives find an address
Rusty and Mathiesen find out that the wife owns a house in southern Thailand. Some photos come from there and the location is confirmed through meta-data.
The detectives see that the man is often in a city south of Surat Thani. We decide to send a scout to the address to see if the wanted doctor is there.
On day one, we identify the wife of the wanted doctor. She goes in and out of their house a lot. But there is no sign of Maxhall. They live in a quiet street with large villas. This is a place where rich people live.
But where is the convicted and wanted doctor, Ulf Maxhall?
The private detectives meet in an online meeting to plan the race further. They have to plan. What if Maxhall is staying somewhere else?
Rusty and Mathiesen agree to conduct another scouting day. This time a little later in the afternoon.
The plan is to call Maxhall to ask something.
We find the convicted person
The next day, the detective parks in the neighborhood. He keeps an eye on the house, but there is little movement. An old man with Thai appearance goes in and out of the gate a few times.
The detective decides to call when the old man with Thai appearance has left the house.
Bingo! Ulf Maxhall comes to the gate and helps our detective find his way.
We have found the fugitive!
Rusty sends the evidence to Thomas Mathiesen in Norway. The private investigation agency Etterforsker1 makes a report and sends video, photos and documentation to Aron Jahnsen at Nabovarsel (Neighbor Watch).
It has been less than two days since we received the assignment and through international cooperation we have found a wanted criminal.
Nabovarsel informs the police
Aron Jahnsen takes the material to the police. There he is questioned, but understands that the Norwegian police will not do much in the case.
The man who was convicted of possession of gross child pornography is walking freely in Thailand today.
We at the Investigator1 Group believe that this is a challenge to the legal certainty of children around the world. The police should cooperate better and at least ask the Thai authorities to extradite the convicts.
National TV station in Norway, TV2, presents the case in their main news.
About the author
Private investigator and handwriting expert Thomas Mathiesen. Mathiesen is the CEO of the Norwegian private investigation agency, Etterforsker1 Gruppen AS, and board member of World Association of Detectives. Mathiesen’s background is from IT security. Mathiesen helps clients within investigation, child custody cases and handwriting forensics. |
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