From Wall Street boardrooms to Upper East Side townhouses, our Manhattan investigations cover the city's most demanding clients.
Manhattan is the financial and cultural heart of New York as well as where the heaviest concentration of New York Intelligence Agency's caseload lives. For more than thirty five years we have worked every neighborhood on the island, from Battery Park to Inwood. With regular engagements in Midtown corporate environments, Upper East Side residences, Tribeca lofts, Chelsea galleries, the theaters of the Garment District, and the financial firms of the Wall Street corridor downtown places that we are in often working. Our home office sits at 555 Fifth Avenue in Midtown, which puts our private investigators minutes from the courthouses, the financial district, and the residential neighborhoods where most of our surveillance happens.
Manhattan is not an easy borough to work in. It is the densest urban environment in the United States, and surveillance here demands a level of discipline and local knowledge that simply cannot be improvised on the spot by out of towners. They just get spotted instantly by the subject of their investigation usually. Private Detectives who do not know the territory or logistics can get burned in the first hour. We have spent decades learning the island block by block, and that experience is the single biggest reason our cases produce evidence that holds up rather than guesswork that falls apart. Relationships, built over those same decades with the local service staff, officials of all sorts and even local specific knowledge all bring a unique skill set to your disposal here in NYC.
Every Manhattan neighborhood presents its own surveillance challenges, and our private eye professionals know the geography very well.
Our Manhattan caseload spans the full range of private investigation. The most common matters we handle in the borough include:
New York County Supreme Court at 60 Centre Street is the primary venue for most civil and matrimonial cases that arise from our Manhattan work, with Family Court at 60 Lafayette Street and Civil Court at 111 Centre Street handling related matters. David Schassler has testified in these courthouses many times, and every report we produce is built from the start to survive cross examination and meet New York's evidentiary standards.
Most surveillance fails in the first hour because the investigator does not know the territory. Buildings have specific dynamics. Doorman buildings versus walk ups, single resident townhouses versus high rises, restaurants with discreet side exits, hotels with three or four entrances on different streets. An out of town operator stands on the wrong corner, drives the wrong vehicle, and gets made by a doorman before the subject ever leaves the lobby. Our Manhattan investigators have worked the borough for years. That experience is what separates surveillance that produces admissible results from surveillance that gets burned and tips off the subject. If you have a Manhattan case. Whatever the nature. Call David directly. First consultations are always free and completely confidential.
New York Intelligence Agency is headquartered at 555 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1401, New York, NY 10017, in the heart of Midtown between 45th and 46th Streets. The office is steps from Grand Central Terminal and a short walk from the New York County courthouses downtown. Consultations are by appointment only.
Each service below is available across all of Manhattan. Follow any link for full detail on how that investigation is conducted, what evidence it produces, and what it costs.
Discreet surveillance and evidence gathering for spouses who suspect cheating, with documentation built to hold up in New York County matrimonial court. We handle the Upper East Side townhouse and the Midtown hotel rendezvous with equal discretion.
Surveillance for custody disputes, eldercare concerns, nanny and caregiver verification, and household matters that need a careful, confidential eye on a Manhattan home.
Internal theft investigations, executive due diligence, competitive intelligence protection, and workplace misconduct inquiries for Midtown and Financial District firms.
Locating estranged family, runaways, debtors, witnesses, and people who do not want to be found. Using databases, fieldwork, and decades of skip tracing experience.
Technical surveillance countermeasures. Professional bug sweeps that detect hidden cameras, listening devices, and GPS trackers in Manhattan offices, boardrooms, vehicles, and homes.
Asset tracing, embezzlement inquiries, hidden income discovery, and forensic financial work for divorces, partnership disputes, and corporate matters across the borough.
Surveillance and documentation of suspect disability, workers'-compensation, and liability claims for carriers, employers, and defense counsel in New York City.
Complete criminal, civil, employment, and financial background screening for hiring, business partnerships, tenants, and personal relationships.
Tracing the source of identity theft, documenting fraud for law enforcement and creditors, and helping victims rebuild their digital and financial footprint.
International asset searches, due diligence, and locate work for Manhattan clients whose matters cross borders, run through our global investigator network.
Professionally administered polygraph examinations for personal, employment, and legal matters, conducted in a controlled and confidential Manhattan setting.
The questions we hear most often from Manhattan clients, answered plainly. If yours isn't here, call David directly.
Yes. Hiring a licensed private investigator is completely legal in New York. Our agency holds NYS DOS License #11000169770. A licensed PI can lawfully conduct surveillance in public, perform background research, trace assets, and gather evidence. All within the bounds of state and federal law.
Fees depend on the type and complexity of the case. Most investigations are quoted at an hourly surveillance rate plus expenses, or as a flat project fee for defined work like a background check. We give you a clear estimate before any work begins, and the first consultation is always free.
Yes. Every consultation and every case is strictly confidential. We do not disclose the existence of an engagement, the identity of a client, or any findings to anyone but you and the parties you authorize.
Yes, when it is gathered lawfully and documented properly. We build every case to survive cross examination, and David Schassler has testified as an expert in New York County Supreme Court many times.
It varies. Some matrimonial cases produce results in a single day. Others need several sessions to set up a pattern. We will recommend a realistic scope after reviewing the facts so you are not paying for unnecessary hours.
This is one of our most common cases. We conduct discreet surveillance, document movements and meetings, and deliver photo and video evidence with a detailed report. Built for use in matrimonial proceedings if needed.
Yes. We investigate internal theft, fraud, executive misconduct, and conduct due diligence for Manhattan businesses, especially in the Midtown and Financial District corridors. See our corporate surveillance page.
TSCM stands for technical surveillance countermeasures. A professional sweep that detects hidden cameras, microphones, and GPS trackers. Executives, public figures, and parties in contentious disputes often request them. Details on our TSCM & debugging page.
Yes. We locate estranged relatives, witnesses, debtors, and people actively avoiding contact, using a combination of database research and field work. Learn more on our missing persons page.
Yes. Hidden asset and hidden income discovery is a core part of our matrimonial and financial fraud work, especially in high net worth Wall Street and Upper East Side divorces.
No. Intercepting someone's live communications or accessing their phone without authorization is illegal. A licensed investigator works only within the law. Public surveillance, lawful record searches, and properly got evidence.
Yes. We administer professional polygraph examinations for personal, employment, and legal matters in a controlled setting. See our polygraph & lie detection page.
In urgent matters we can often deploy within 24 hours. Call David directly and we will tell you honestly how fast we can mobilize for your specific situation.
Not if it is done correctly. Discretion is the entire point. Our investigators know Manhattan well enough to conduct surveillance without being detected. Which is exactly why local experience matters so much here.
Constantly. We support matrimonial, civil, criminal defense, and corporate counsel with surveillance, locates, service of process, and evidence packages built to their litigation needs.
All of it. From the Financial District and Wall Street downtown, through Tribeca, SoHo, the Village, Chelsea, and Midtown, up through the Upper East and West Sides, Harlem, Washington Heights, and Inwood.
Yes. We give complete criminal, civil, employment, and financial screening for hiring, partnerships, tenants, and personal relationships. See our background checks page.
Yes. We trace the source of the fraud, document it for law enforcement and creditors, and help you secure your accounts and identity. Details on our identity theft page.
Yes. Through our global network we handle international locates, asset searches, and due diligence for Manhattan clients with cross border matters. See our overseas investigations page.
Call David directly at (646) 461-4650 or text the office at (646) 465-2006 for a free, confidential consultation. We will review the facts, explain your options, and give you a clear plan and estimate before any work begins.
County level figures for New York County (Manhattan). Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2024 (1-year estimates).
A licensed private investigator working in Manhattan, on call when you need us. Live weather data via Open-Meteo.