How To Tell If The Police Are Investigating You

Published August 30, 2021

If you’ve never committed a crime, you probably thought that the police has no reason to investigate you. Unfortunately, that’s not always true. Sometimes, a false accusation or an anonymous tip is enough to set the police at your heels.

But the worst thing about police investigations is they aren’t always upfront. If you’ve watched enough police movies and tv shows, then you’ll know that the police have various ways of carrying out an investigation. Most of the time, they use stealthy methods to avoid alerting a potential suspect and compromising the case. 

So what if the police are investigating you? You’ve done nothing wrong, so there’s no need to worry, right? Wrong.

It’s not unheard of for the police to twist testimonies and evidence in their favor. In fact, it’s estimated that 2 to 5% of all US prisoners are innocent. Some of them ended up there due to mishandled investigations and gross misconduct on the part of the police.

This is why it’s perfectly normal to feel worried if you think you are the subject of a police inquiry. But if the police are doing it in secret, how can you tell if the police are investigating you?

They might be discreet about it but there are several signs that suggest you’re being investigated.

Signs That You Are Under Investigation

If you want to know whether you’re being investigated or not, here are some tell-tale signs to watch out for:

1. Strange cars are parked outside your home for days.

Just like in the movies, police officers on the hunt for evidence tend to stake out a potential suspect’s house. Depending on the circumstances, they may use a marked or unmarked vehicle.

Regardless, if you see a strange vehicle lurking outside or near your home but haven’t seen someone getting in or out of it, then that can be a sign that you’re being investigated.

But before you come to any conclusions, make sure that it really is a police car and they’re indeed after you. Maybe they’re staking out someone else. Or maybe they’re just ordinary people with a perfectly normal reason for parking their car in there.

2. You receive odd phone calls and messages.

Sometimes, the police would pretend to be someone from the bank or the insurance company. They’d call you or send you a message to ask for any information that might be useful for them. Sometimes, they’d even tell you that you won something so you’ll be more open to revealing certain information. But if you didn’t join a contest and you find their questions rather odd, then it’s probably a sign that you’re under investigation.

Police or not, it’s not a good idea to give out vital information to strangers over the phone. The next time you receive these kinds of phone calls, thread with caution.

3. Someone is asking your friends, family, and neighbors about you.

In certain cases, you’ll hear from your neighbors, family, or friends that someone is asking them about you. That someone could be a police officer trying to get evidence against you.

4. You see strange persons constantly hanging out near your home.

Police officers will not always use a car to stake out a potential suspect’s home. Sometimes, they’ll just discreetly hang out near your home and observe the comings and goings therein.

5. Police officers are asking you questions.

One of the surefire signs that you are being investigated is when a police officer suddenly shows up at your front door and starts asking you questions. When this happens, don’t panic. Just keep your cool and calmly answer their questions.