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stigative entry information like who the client is, case theory, objectives, contracts and fees and timing. From there the investigator can start to drill down into the details. The video continues to walk through each of the elements of an investigation. A. the commission of crime, B. determine the predicate fact, C. suspicions that arise, D. how and when discovery occurs and what is admissible in trial, E. ascertain the damage, typically by an expert, F. concept of evidence, G. suspects, and this leads to H. the investigation. (Kridel, 2020)

Especially interesting for me was the part about evidence and that there are burdens of proof in every country, jurisdiction and states. (Kridel, 2020). In most jurisdictions, the government has the burden of proof. The burden of proof can depend on whether it is a case in criminal, civil or administrative. In criminal cases the burden of proof is the evidence one party must present to prove the element of a cause of action. Normally an accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty and the government has the burden of proof. Theoretically, the accused does not have to present any evidence. In most common law systems, the burden is phrased as ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ and the verdict must be based on assurance beyond a reasonable doubt. The standard in criminal cases entails making an assured judgment based on the evidence as presented. (ACFE, 2022)

The courts require from the investigation to be able to accumulate reliable evidence that will help the court to understand what the truth is and what are the consequences of the action or even the inaction that caused the damage, what is the extent of the damages, duration of the damage and what can be recovered as well as sentencing guidelines. In the Black’s Law Dictionary under the word evidence, there are hundreds of types of evidence defined. The basic definition of evidence is something, including testimony, documents and tangible objects that tends to prove or disprove the existence of a fact in issue. (Kridel, 2020) The most important principles of evidence for investigators are relevance and weight. This means that evidence needs to be relevant and admissible, irrelevant evidence is not. Fraud investigators need the relevant elements of proof of the suspected offenses and the type of evidence relevant to prove them, direct or circumstantial. There are several factors they affect the weight of the evidence. A. The source of evidence is important, for example, does the witness have the direct personal knowledge or does the witness suppose or think what might happened. A direct personal knowledge witness is preferred and weightier as evidence. Also, important a weight fact for evidence is, B., to be direct circumstances. Direct evidence is evidence that tends to prove the fact directly and is considered the strongest proof, but circumstantial evidence could be strong evidence too if it is used properly. C. The witness needs credibility. Factors of credibility of a witness is plausibility, consistency, self-promotion, reputation of truthfulness and willingness to be identified, sign a statement of give testimony. (IACRC, 2022)

The information provided in the video about burden of proof and evidence was very informative and I feel like I have a kind of foundation that I can build on when I will be asked in the future to do an investigation.