Steve Fischer is one of the most experienced missing persons investigators in the United States. Licensed in 6 states, NASAR SARTECH certified, FAA commercial pilot, EMT, and responsible for locating 33+ missing persons since 2023. Here he answers the questions families ask most.
The critical first steps every family needs to know.
Call 911 immediately. I cannot stress this enough — there is NO 24-hour waiting period, despite what you may have heard. File the report, get a case number, and then call me at 877-619-9890. The first hours are everything. While you're waiting, gather the most recent photo you have, their phone number, what they were wearing, their vehicle information, and any medications they take. Don't clean their room or log into their accounts — that could destroy evidence.
Do both. Never choose one over the other. But here's the reality — your detective may be juggling 80 other cases. Your case is important to them, but it's ONE of eighty. When you hire us, your case is the only thing we're working on. We can deploy drones, K9 teams, and digital forensics within hours. Police welcome the help — we work with them, not against them.
That is the most dangerous myth in missing persons cases, and it's completely false. No state has a 24-hour waiting period. Not one. Every hour you wait is an hour the trail gets colder. I've seen cases where the family waited because someone told them this, and it cost them dearly. If someone you love is missing and it's out of character, call 911 right now. Then call me.
What to expect when you hire a missing persons investigator.
Our primary tool is the DJI Matrice M30T thermal imaging drone. It detects body heat through trees, in darkness, across vast terrain — it can cover in hours what a ground team covers in days. We also use cell tower analysis to trace last known locations, K9 teams for ground searches, digital forensics for social media and financial trail analysis, and specialized databases that the public doesn't have access to. Each case gets a custom technology deployment based on the circumstances.
Yes, and we do it regularly. Some of our most meaningful cases are the ones where law enforcement closed the file. Fresh eyes, different technology, and a singular focus make an enormous difference. I've found people who were missing for months after police said there was nothing more they could do. I'll never promise a specific outcome, but I will promise that we'll exhaust every possible avenue.
If the person is an adult and not in danger, we respect their autonomy. We'll confirm they're alive and safe, and we'll communicate that to the family — but we won't force contact. That said, most of the people we search for are in some form of crisis — mental health, addiction, exploitation — and when we find them, they're often relieved. For minors, the legal framework is different and we work within those guidelines to ensure their safety.
Expert guidance for different missing persons scenarios.
Runaways follow patterns. Most stay within 50 miles of home initially — friends' houses, shelters, parks, transit stations. We trace their digital footprint — social media, Venmo transactions, cell data — and combine it with street-level canvassing. The key is moving fast before they get pulled into dangerous situations. We also approach recovery with compassion — there's usually a reason they ran. Understanding that reason is part of bringing them home safely.
This is custodial interference, and it's a crime in every state. We handle these cases frequently. We work with your attorney and law enforcement to locate the children, gather court-admissible evidence, and coordinate recovery. If they've crossed state lines, we can pursue — we're licensed in six states with reciprocity in others. Time matters in these cases because the longer someone has the children, the harder recovery becomes legally.
Call 911 immediately and request a Silver Alert. Then call us. Dementia wandering cases are extremely time-sensitive — exposure, dehydration, and traffic are immediate threats. Our thermal drones are particularly effective here because we can scan large areas rapidly and detect body heat in areas that would take ground teams days to cover. We also have specialized training in Alzheimer's behavior patterns — they tend to follow specific paths and are drawn to certain types of terrain.
Transparent answers about hiring an investigator.
$175 per hour with a 30-hour minimum. I know that's a significant investment, and I'm transparent about it because I respect families in crisis. That rate includes access to our full technology suite — thermal drones, K9 teams, digital forensics — and my personal involvement on your case. I also work with families on payment arrangements when possible. But I'll be honest with you upfront about what I think your case requires.
Search and rescue operations don't require a PI license — we can deploy SAR teams anywhere in the country. For investigative work (surveillance, interviews, evidence gathering), we're licensed in California, Florida, Arizona, Tennessee, Alabama, and Texas, with reciprocity in additional states. If your case requires us to go somewhere, we go. We've deployed within hours to states across the country.
Call me at 877-619-9890 and I'll walk you through it. But in general: the most recent photo of the person, their full name, date of birth, physical description, last known location and time, cell phone number, vehicle information, any medical conditions or medications, and the names of people they're close to. The more you can give me, the faster I can work. But even if you have very little information, call me — I've worked cases with almost nothing to start with.
Steve is available for a free, confidential consultation. Our team is standing by 24/7.
877-619-9890