A container leaves port sealed and arrives sealed, but half the cartons inside are full of sand. A new haulier wins a contract with sharp pricing, collects three truckloads of electronics and disappears, along with its phone numbers and its registered office. A warehouse's stock counts are always slightly off, never enough to trigger an alarm, always adding up by year end.
Logistics businesses move other people's valuable goods through long chains of carriers, warehouses, agents and ports. Every handover is an opportunity for theft or fraud. Our logistics fraud investigation services help freight forwarders, shipping lines, 3PLs, warehouse operators, cargo owners and their insurers find out what happened, who is responsible and how to stop it happening again. As an international investigation firm headquartered in Dubai, one of the world's great logistics hubs, and backed by the 30+ years of GREVESGROUP®, we investigate across more than 100 countries.
Investigation Challenges in Logistics
- Cargo theft in transit, at ports and from warehouses, often with insider help
- Freight fraud by fictitious carriers, identity theft of genuine hauliers and double brokering
- Document fraud, including false bills of lading, invoices and certificates of origin
- Short delivery and substitution of goods inside sealed containers
- Marine and cargo claims that need independent verification across jurisdictions
- Customs and trade compliance risk, including misdeclaration and sanctions evasion by customers
- Counterfeit goods moving through transshipment hubs and free zones
Our Investigation Services for Logistics
Claim Investigation
Our marine cargo claim investigations verify loading, stowage, transit, discharge and delivery, and investigate theft, shortage, damage and fraudulent documentation. We work for cargo insurers, P&I interests, forwarders and cargo owners, gathering evidence from ports, surveyors, carriers, warehouses and local sources.
Corporate Investigation
Our cargo theft investigations and warehouse theft investigations examine how goods left the chain: which handovers failed, which staff or subcontractors were involved and where the goods went. We analyse tracking data, documents and staff links, and conduct discreet enquiries and interviews.
Due Diligence
Carrier due diligence and freight forwarder due diligence verify that subcontracted hauliers, agents and partners are genuine, properly registered, insured and owned by who they claim. We also investigate customers whose shipments raise sanctions, dual-use or misdeclaration concerns.
Background Check
We screen drivers, warehouse supervisors, dispatch staff and managers with access to high-value cargo or shipment data, verifying identity, employment history and relevant records where lawful.
Private Investigation
When cargo disappears, our investigators trace stolen goods through local markets, identify receivers and locate absconding carriers and their assets. Lawful commercial surveillance supports investigations into repeated losses.
Brand Protection
Because counterfeit goods use the same routes as legitimate trade, logistics firms and brand owners work with us to identify suspect consignments, consignees and routes, supporting customs and enforcement action.
IP Investigation
Freight and shipping brands are impersonated by fake booking sites, phoney tracking pages and scam "customs clearance" demands. We identify the operators behind them and support legal action.
Process Service
Cargo disputes, recovery actions and claims against carriers often involve parties in several countries. We serve claims and judgments internationally by personal service or through the Hague Convention with court-ready proof.
Freight Fraud and Fictitious Carriers
Freight fraud has become one of the fastest-growing risks in road transport. Criminals set up convincing carrier profiles, clone the identity of real hauliers or re-broker loads to unknown operators, then steal the cargo. By the time anyone notices, the trucks, phones and emails have vanished. Our investigators trace these networks through registration data, communication records obtainable lawfully, payment trails, vehicle information and field enquiries, and help clients tighten carrier vetting so the same scheme does not succeed twice.
Investigating Across Ports, Free Zones and Borders
Goods moving through transshipment hubs can change hands, paperwork and even contents several times. Investigating a loss often means gathering evidence in the loading country, the transshipment port and the destination. From our Dubai headquarters we coordinate in-country investigators along the route, so the trail does not go cold at a border.
Trade Compliance and Customer Risk
Logistics providers are increasingly expected to know who they are moving goods for. Shipments routed through third countries, consignees with no trading history and cargo descriptions that do not match declared values can all indicate sanctions evasion, trade-based money laundering or smuggling of restricted goods. A forwarder that moves such cargo can face penalties, loss of licences and reputational damage, even when it was deceived. Our investigators check the customers and consignees behind higher-risk shipments, their owners and their real business activity, so compliance teams can decide on evidence rather than suspicion.
Organisations We Support
Freight forwarders, shipping lines and NVOCCs, road hauliers, 3PL and warehouse operators, port and terminal operators, courier and last-mile companies, cargo owners and shippers, cargo and marine insurers, and law firms handling transport disputes.
Typical Engagements
The scenarios below are illustrative examples of the kind of work we carry out in this sector.
Container shortage
A consignment of phones arrives with a third of the cartons replaced by weighted boxes. Investigation at the origin warehouse identifies the stage where the substitution happened and the staff involved.
Fictitious carrier
A forwarder loses a truckload of pharmaceuticals to a carrier that booked the load using a real haulier's identity. We trace the phone and payment details to a group that has done the same to other forwarders.
Cargo claim verification
An insurer receives a large claim for goods reportedly stolen in transit. Our enquiries show the goods were never loaded, and the claim is withdrawn.
Partner vetting
A 3PL expanding into a new region asks us to vet ten subcontracted hauliers before contracts are signed. Two are found to be unregistered and are excluded.
Repeat pilferage
A courier company notices high-value parcels going missing on one route. Analysis of scan data and staff rosters narrows the losses to a single sorting shift, and lawful surveillance confirms the individuals involved.
What You Receive
Reports reconstructing the chain of custody, identifying where losses occurred, profiling responsible parties and attaching supporting documents, photographs and statements, with recommendations to close gaps.
How We Work with Logistics Clients
We work with security, claims, operations, compliance and legal teams. Losses are often time-critical, so we act quickly to secure evidence and start field enquiries. Ongoing clients use us for partner vetting and periodic reviews as well as incident response.
Why Logistics Companies Choose Risk Investigators
Hub-based
Headquartered in Dubai, at the centre of global trade routes.
End-to-end enquiries
Investigators at origin, transit and destination points.
Claims and theft expertise
Experience in both insurance verification and criminal loss investigation.
Group experience
GREVESGROUP® has conducted investigations for more than 30 years.
Speed
Losses need fast action to preserve evidence and trace goods, and we mobilise quickly across jurisdictions.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you investigate cargo theft?
We reconstruct the chain of custody from documents, tracking data and handovers, identify where the loss occurred and investigate the people and companies involved, tracing stolen goods where possible.
What is freight fraud?
Freight fraud is theft or deception by fake or impersonated carriers and brokers who take bookings, collect cargo or payments and then disappear.
Can you verify a carrier before we use them?
Yes. Carrier due diligence checks registration, ownership, insurance, operating history, reputation and signs of identity fraud.
Do you investigate marine cargo claims?
Yes. We verify loading, transit, discharge and delivery, and investigate theft, shortage, damage and document fraud for insurers and cargo interests.
Can you trace stolen goods?
Where possible, yes. We conduct market enquiries and source work to identify receivers and locations of stolen cargo, supporting recovery and police action.
Do you investigate warehouse stock losses?
Yes. We investigate recurring shrinkage, insider theft and collusion with drivers or subcontractors.
Can you help check customers for sanctions and misdeclaration risk?
Yes. We investigate customers and consignees whose shipments raise sanctions, dual-use or misdeclaration concerns, supporting your trade compliance decisions.
Do you investigate losses in last-mile delivery?
Yes. We analyse scan data, rosters and route information, and use discreet enquiries and lawful surveillance to identify where parcels are lost and who is responsible.