De Speurneus Klaas Postma knows no stopping. He fell under the spell of criminal work and pulls it on for a while. With its own private investigation agency, the 65-year-old Beilenaar is on a new site.
From the National Police to the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee: In the meantime, Postma does know his Pappenheimers. With Inquirens he writes to a new chapter. According to him, the company, based in Assen, is rare in the Northern Netherlands.
“There is certainly a market for it,” says Postma in the Radio Drenthe program Cassata About the demand for private investigation. “I hadn’t started yet or I already received the first messages. Asking if I could just write a license plate. But we don’t do that. That is for the police.”
What Postma, part of a team with four investigators, focuses on? “We have three pillars: private individuals, entrepreneurs and the government.” They secretly carry out assignments for them. For example, Inquirens can receive a request to possibly investigate adultery.
“The package is wider for entrepreneurs,” Postma continues. “We do pre-screening of staff. We look at whether diplomas are correct and check for social media whether someone is honest. And for the government we can be asked to follow and observe someone. We collect all kinds of facts from such a person and that goes to the AIVD, for example.”
If the investigators come across any criminal offense, they will report this to the police. “They can also call in our help,” Postma adds. “But I doubt whether that ever happens.”
The romantic image of a detective, hidden behind a tree and sucking on a pipe à la Sherlock Holmes, no longer seems. Postma agrees. In the 21st century more is asked than ‘peeping at the neighbors’.
Given the current situation, Postma does not fear a quick pension. “The investigation agencies that are there are busy and are in the east, west and south of the Netherlands. Not actually in the north. And those there are not such a wide package as we offer.”
Moreover, the detective does not want to stop working at all. “What should I do with all this time? I still feel fit and have blue blood. You don’t lose that.”