Deb and Fran met more than 20 years ago while working for rival news organisations, covering a murder trial in Wellington’s High Court. They share a common interest in investigative journalism, crime and, of course, solving mysteries.
Shortly after, they ended up working in the same newsroom and found their skills complemented each other, working together to write in-depth stories about people. For the past five years they have taken on the tracing of lost family members and beneficiaries of wills and estates, so far, and proudly, with an almost 100 percent success rate. During the Covid19 lockdown, they decided to formalise their passion for solving mysteries and tracing people, by turning it into a business that could help others.
Among those they have found are:
- A father missing from Brisbane, Australia since 1975
- The beneficiaries of an insurance policy of a woman killed in a car accident in the 1980s
- Identified the grandfather of a man whose father was adopted (by deciphering his DNA results)
- Identified and located the father of a woman whose mother refused to disclose his identity (through piecing together the family through DNA results)
- Found the living relatives for a will by tracking back to common ancestors in the 1880s.
We are members of the New Zealand Society of Genealogists.
Meet Our Team
Deb Morris
Director |
Dr Fran Tyler
Director |
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Deb grew up in Hawke’s Bay and began writing stories as soon as she could write. After moving to Wellington she joined The Evening Post. In 1996 she became a specialist court reporter covering some of the most high profile cases in New Zealand. She has also taught court journalism and co-wrote, with Fran, the chapter on police and court reporting in a textbook still in use today. She is also a skilled public speaker. Deb never wanted to be anything other than a journalist - until she discovered a passion for genealogy.
[email protected] |
Fran has lived in Wellington for most of her life. She has been involved in genealogy research for more than 20 years and has traced some branches of her family back to the 1600s. She is also a trained primary school teacher and worked as a journalist for both community and national news organisations. She has completed a PhD involving research into historical New Zealand crime and also a Master of Journalism. Fran also taught journalism at Massey University until leaving to run Genealogy Investigations fulltime. She is married and has a grown-up son.
[email protected] |