Private Investigator serving California

Kelsay Investigations
Making connections through information
Professional investigation services supporting law offices, small businesses, and individuals.
We are a private investigation firm committed to using verified databases and a catalogue of skill-sets to bring intelligence to businesses and private citizens. Our tactics include an objective, unbiased approach towards gathering hard-to-find information.
Kelsay Investigations is headquartered in San Diego County and is licensed through the Bureau of Security & Investigative Services to provide private investigation services within the State of California (CA License No. 8889; CA License No. 27209)
5k+
Cases completed
40+
Years of experience
800+
Return clients
Investigation Services
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Statewide Services

Background Checks
Kelsay Investigations has access to verified information and the experience to put that information into context. Knowing where to look and how to get there in varying situations yields different results than automated services found online. Before hiring, establishing a new partnership, or investing, thorough background diligence is recommended to help combat fraud and misrepresentations.
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Asset Search
Various legal situations require identification of an individual’s assets. A comprehensive asset location investigation can help uncover real assets and interests in preparation for litigation, debt collection, and divorce settlement.
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Trace and Locate Search
There are dozens of reasons why locating someone is necessary — debtors, legal process service, missing persons, etc. Every client request to locate an individual is reviewed for legitimacy, and then executed with professional discretion yielding a very high success rate.
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Local Services
Surveillance
Surveillance is a common investigative service that has proven to be beneficial for obtaining hard evidence that supports and strengthens a wide variety of cases. Insurance fraud, worker’s compensation claim exaggeration, employee theft, infidelity, and child custody investigations are all common cases that can significantly benefit by appropriate use of surveillance.
Judges, juries and opposing counsel find photographic and videotaped evidence more compelling and convincing than any other type of evidence. We place the highest priority on setting and maintaining a standard of excellence in our presentation of such testimony, through meticulously prepared videotape evidence, accompanied by a detailed report of all observed activities.
Kelsay Investigations often provides surveillance from a security standpoint as well. Monitoring individuals or groups who pose a potential threat of harm or violence is a subtle, proactive approach to avoid and diffuse dangerous situations before they arise. Workplace violence and hostile terminations are the most common reasons that necessitate this type of surveillance. Violence in the workplace can be addressed through the use of a guard or guards strategically placed within the area around the individual in question. Surveillance of individuals who have been recently terminated should usually start at the workplace at the time of their notification of termination and carry on until the company/organization is satisfied that the individual will no longer react.
Witness Interviews
Interviewing witnesses to workplace incidents, automobile accidents, physical altercations, etc, is among the most common services rendered by Kelsay Investigations. Obtaining statements in a timely manner is critical to help maintain optimal presentation of facts and cooperation from witnesses.
Once a witness has given a sworn statement, evidence has been obtained that should help guide legal decisions towards a truthful and fair outcome. Legal cases are often greatly dependent on the presentation of facts displayed by Kelsay Investigations both in written report, and through live testimony in a court of law.
Reference Checks
Often performed in conjuction with a background check, reference checks are the verification of information provided by an individual where references are provided. Situtations where reference checks are required include: verification of employment history and re-hire eligibility for new-hires; prospective tenants for rental properties; investment track record; etc.
Kelsay Investigations provides reference checks for clients throughout the State of California when in-person verification is not required — San Diego County only when in-person verification is required.
About
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Since our founding in 1980, Kelsay Investigations has consistently provided the highest quality of service for a variety of investigative and legal matters. Serving San Diego, Imperial, Riverside, and Orange counties, we are appropriately sized to professionally handle all types of cases while maintaining optimal communication with our clients.
We are experts in supporting general civil litigation and in uncovering insurance fraud. In fact, our fraud-disclosure services have proven themselves a core competency and foundation of our business. However, as a full service investigative agency, we do cater to a wide variety of cases and clients outside of the insurance industry including domestic and business cases.
Clients of our agency that regularly retain our services include large national and statewide insurance companies, law firms, and local area self-insured organizations. Those clients are comprised of or represent families and individuals, small-business owners, major commercial retailers, and a wide range of public organizations.
Marshall Kelsay – Founder
Bio
Marshall Kelsay joined the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department in 1969, serving as a Deputy Sheriff in the patrol, traffic, civil and canine divisions. In 1974 he was assigned as an investigator to the Office of Special Investigations where he worked in an undercover capacity in the areas of organized crime, homicide, major fraud, terrorists and subversive organizations; and, extraditions of major felons throughout the United States.
He graduated from National University in 1978 with a Bachelor of Public Administration degree in Criminal Justice and a Master of Public Administration degree in 1979. In 1980 he was assigned to the personnel unit of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, wherein his duties included background and pre-trial investigations.
Marshall became licensed by the State of California as a private investigator on May 23, 1980 and founded Kelsay Investigations. He was honorably retired from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department on December 31, 1981 and became the in-house investigator for the prestigious law firm of McInnis, Fitzgerald, Rees, Sharkey & McIntyre, where he was in charge of all pre-trial investigations involving general civil litigation matters until April 1985. Since that time, he has owned and managed Kelsay Investigations.