Who We Are | TM Eye Ltd - UK's Eye on the Street

TM Eye is one of the UK’s most active private investigation companies.

At the forefront of carrying out criminal investigations culminating in private criminal prosecutions for those who deal in illicit goods.

TM Eye is one of the UK’s most active private investigation companies and at the forefront when carrying out criminal investigations culminating in private criminal prosecutions for those who deal in illicit goods. TM Eye has six dedicated investigation teams proactively tackling illicit luxury goods, illicit pharmaceuticals, illicit tobacco, design rights and prolific crimes. The Prolific Crimes team investigates and prosecutes theft shoplifting and theft person offences where the police / CPS will not do so. TM Eye also has a highly experienced Murder and Serious Crime Review team that undertakes investigations of murder and serious crime case where a miscarriage of justice is apparent.

At the heart of our business is our intelligence and online investigations Hub. Using the Criminal Justice Secure Messaging System our team continually shares intelligence with the IPO, Police and other criminal enforcement agencies. Our expert team conducts numerous online investigations across the Open and Dark Web, harvesting actionable intelligence. TM Eye has successfully removed countless domain addresses used to sell fake goods. Our personnel are all highly experienced detectives, having honed their investigative skills within Police, HMRC or Trading Standard specialist units. They are supported by a full conventional and technical surveillance capability and TM Eye has the only dedicated Covert Undercover Unit outside of law enforcement, deploying highly experienced undercover operatives across the UK and globally.

Meet some of the senior TM Eye team members.

For security reasons not all team members or details are disclosed including details of operatives from the Undercover Unit or Surveillance Team.

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David McKelvey

Managing Director

Barry Walker

Operations Manager

Steve Hobbs

Senior Investigator

Rob Murray

Team Leader Illicit Pharmaceutical Team

Gary Staples

Team Leader Illicit Tobacco Team

Rebecca Shelley

Online Investigations Manager

Chris Adams

Senior Internet Investigator

Kevin John

Senior Investigator (India Team)

TM Eye operates across the globe carrying out both large and small scale investigations, including undercover and covert operations.

TM Eye stands apart from other investigative companies in that we act as a private prosecutor on behalf of our clients, minimising their exposure as a result of any enforcement activity. TM Eye detectives gather evidence and prepare case papers; they engage with our dedicated specialist solicitors and barristers, all of whom are experts in their field, to ensure the highest standard of proof is provided to the courts. I’m proud to say that to date, TM Eye has a 100% conviction rate in over 800 criminal cases put before the courts by us as private prosecutions, of which 13% of those convicted received custodial sentences. TM Eye now operates across the globe carrying out both large and small scale investigations, including undercover and covert operations. Our activity has led to significant results and seizures of fake goods worldwide, with investigations occurring in India, the USA and Canada, Singapore, Russia, Germany, China, Romania and across Eastern Europe.

TM Eye’s investigative capabilities and expertise recently targeting the Strangeways area of Manchester known as ‘counterfeit street’ resulting in over 125 criminal convictions, the closure of over 100 premises and the seizure of fake goods valued in the millions of pounds in a single operation. Recent operational activity by The City of London Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) resulting in over 200 tonnes of fake goods was the result of information and intelligence supplied by TM Eye via the IPO. TM Eye has forged partnerships with the UK Intellectual Property Office Intelligence Hub, various Police agencies, Trading Standards, UKBA, HMRC and other industry partners. We have obtained formal information sharing agreements with many organisations that go towards our success. All of our team leaders are vetted annually by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and all of our intelligence systems, IT infra structure, process and system have been robustly checked by GMP. The Association of Chief Police Officer Criminal Records Office (ACRO) carries out annual checks and allows access to the police national computer (PNC) for TM Eye in bringing its private criminal prosecutions.