Complaint Review: Security Consultants Inc.

I am more than disappointed with the services/certification/promises Security Consultants, Inc. provided.  First of, I feel completely scammed.  I responded to a craigslist posting soliciting for employment within the private investigation field.  I responded to this ad posing numerous questions and also offering that I did not already have certification.  That is when I was told certification opportunity would be made available prior to employment.  This whole process was just a sell, so I would hand over my $400, cash.  I was also told there would be ways, upon completion of the certification, to be reimbursed this tuition fee.  Before the course even started I was told by the interviewing instructor he would do his best to hold my spot in the class.  First day of class there proved to be only two of us when I was told capacity was 6 students. At the end of the class I was hit with another $75 fee for the issuing of my certification card from DCJS. 
 
I was skeptical that I would be able to learn all I needed to know about being a PI in one weeks time; I should have trusted my instincts.  The class encouraged a lot of independent learning by going out and speaking to several professionals (that we sought out) and observation of court proceedings.  I think the concept of going around and interviewing lawyers, judges, etc is a sounds one, however, I did not realize these contacts were to serve as my potential employers there was no work waiting to be provided by the school as indicated in the original job posting.  Also, a guest speaker, an experienced and employed PI told me and my classmate Flat-Out that we would not be able to go out and work as PIs after this course alone; we would need additional certification unless we worked under someone in a brokerage type of arrangement.
 
When I called up to the school to speak with my former instructor about potential job opportunities using this new certification, he was unavailable.  One of the other two instructors of the school was rude in telling me I had interrupted and that he was in the middle of teaching a class.  The following day I received a phone call from my former instructor stating he had a lead from one of his buddies requesting a highly trained female operative.  I called and left a message with this contact; he never contacted me back.  I then followed up with a message to my instructor inquiring about this opportunity; no response.  This whole situation was sadly fishy. 
 
On top of everything, in speaking with my former classmate I found out after he did and after the conclusion of the class that he is ineligible for certification through DCJS due to a charge on his record.  He informed our instructor of this conviction before the beginning of the certification class (week long course), and I remember our instructor telling him that they had looked into it and that he would be fine.  My classmate and I were simply sold and scammed.  Thats it; plain and simple.  This is an extremely grimy way of doing business.  It is also a poor way of acquiring students, especially because it is under blurred and false pretences.  They need to represent themselves as a certification school, solely, and not offer promise of future employment all of their craigslist postings do.  They may advertise on other forums as well.
 
In sum, I was sure I would be quickly dismissed, but I requested my original $400 tuition fee back.  I thought this was the lease they could do being that the aid indicated in providing work as a PI was not provided.  As anticipated I was blown off.  Hindsight is always 20/20; lesson learned. 

I have been employed by Security Consultants Inc. for the last 9 months. At no time have I ever had any problems with my pay check or deductions issues. Owners and staff have always treated me and others in nothing but a professional, team oriented manner.

 I appreciate the "family" style of managing. They care about the well being of everyone of their employees and provide the necessary tools to be successful with training and equipment usage. They have a wealth of knowledge and personal experiences to draw from. I am confident that if ANY issue ever surfaced, they would handle it as professional as I know them to be.

 I would highly recommend this company for contractual hire, DCJS training and security officer employment.

The original report filed with Ripoffreport.com was filed by an obviously disgruntled former employee.  The administrative staff at Security Consultants, Inc. is saddened and honestly a bit confused that this employee didn't go through the proper channels to rectify this problem.
 
Nevertheless, these allegations have prompted an internal audit of employee files, pay records and payroll deductions to determine if there is, in fact, any credibility to this report.  During the course of the investigation, some minor mistakes were found and the owners are in the process of correcting the problems as soon as possible.  It should be noted, however, that these mistakes would have actually benefitted the employee.

Security Consultants, Inc. / Stoneman's Detective Agency is, and has always been, a family oriented company that holds the needs of its employees to the highest of importance.  Unfortunately, there is often little that can be done in these difficult times to ease the pain of the economy. We are all feeling it.  We welcome any employee to come forward and speak with a
member of management if they feel they are not being paid properly or if there is some other issue.  We have always done everything in our power to help employees as much as possible.