“When it comes to what drives me to do what I do, it’s all about finding answers. Whether those answers turn out to be bad or good, I know I am always helping someone.”
Jennifer Knight is a private investigator and owner of the Las Vegas-based PI firm, True Investigations. She launched the agency in 2014 but has been in the field for nearly 15 years.
“I actually kind of fell into this career,” said Knight. “During my senior year at UNLV, I missed my deadline to apply for an internship with the FBI. I wanted to do surveillance. So, when that happened, I called around to a number of private investigation firms, and I eventually found one that hired me.”
The owner of that firm ended up being a mentor for Knight and encouraged her to start her own business. Knight said she still finds people can be surprised to learn what she does for a living.
“They would say you look nothing like a PI, and I would ask what you think a PI looks like?” said Knight. “Now that I don’t do a lot of my own surveillance and I have people helping me with that, it’s not about anonymity for me anymore. I actually stand out as a private investigator who goes out there in the community network. I want people to know what I do, and I am really creative in getting my name out there.”
Over the years, “True Investigations” has become one of the top PI firms in Southern Nevada. Knight said three of the biggest reasons people seek her out are for surveillance, background investigation, and locating services.
“One of our more memorable assignments was with this older gentleman who contacted me because he wanted to track down his high school girlfriend,” said Knight. “He didn’t want to rekindle a relationship or anything. He just wanted to see her again. Well, we did find her way across the country. She’s married with a family, but she was actually excited and wanted to reconnect with him as well. That made us happy.”
Knight admits that happy news isn’t always what she serves up for her clients, especially those asking her to track their spouses or significant others traveling to work in Las Vegas.
“We are a tourist and a convention town, and unfortunately, we do a lot of surveillance for spouses,” said Knight.
But Knight says Las Vegas is also a city where love can play a starring role in her line of work. One of her recent cases involved a couple who had come to town to renew their wedding vows and ended up losing a prized possession. That was until Knight and her team stepped in to help.
“The wife ended up losing a couple of carats of diamond that fell off a vintage ring she had inherited from her grandmother. The couple looked everywhere and couldn't find it," said Knight. “They ended up leaving town but called me a few weeks later to get our help. And within a week, we were able to track down that diamond that had fallen out when they were out seeing a show. An employee at that show had picked it up, thinking it was part of a costume. It just took us walking the streets and talking to people, and we were able to help this family.”
Knight says her own love story also grew here in this town. She has been married to the person she calls the “love of her life” for the last nine years. He was her high school sweetheart. They found their way back to each other after being in different relationships. We asked Knight what her husband thinks and how he reacts to her line of work.
“He is actually honest to a fault and extremely transparent about stuff that, a lot of times, I don’t really need to know about,” laughed Knight. “He would say I don’t want you finding out anything that I may not have told you. He does love what I do and is extremely supportive.”
Today, with True Investigations about to enter its ninth year in operation, Knight says she hopes to continue being the source of support for her community.
“By the time someone gets the courage to pick up the phone and make that phone call, they are trusting us to do whatever we can to help them. I take that job very seriously because whatever we find can change their entire life. I love what I do. I am empathetic, and I feel my clients have always picked up on that.”
“By the time someone gets the courage to pick up the phone and make that phone call, they are trusting us to do whatever we can to help them. I take that job very seriously because whatever we find can change their entire life. I love what I do. I am empathetic, and I feel my clients have always picked up on that.”