Investment fraud — a nationwide Ponzi ring
Investigated an ongoing investment fraud operation, identified more than fifteen victims nationwide, recovered in excess of $19 million in assets and assisted the FBI in the matter.
LPD, LAC, PPS, CIS, CII
John C.
Frycek
CEO & President · SSL INV
John C. Frycek is a 35-year-plus practitioner in professional private investigations, personal protection services and electronic security services — having served Illinois and the nation with 100% dedication and professionalism.
35+Years in practiceSpecial Solutions founded 1991
500+Missing persons locatedOver the course of his career
$120M+In assets recoveredFraudulent and lost assets
200+Investigators trainedState-registered trainees
Thirty-five years in the field
Investigation, protection and electronic security.
He founded Special Solutions, Ltd. in 1991 and has led it ever since. What began as one licensed detective has become a full-service investigative and protective firm working for attorneys, corporations, insurers and private individuals across Chicagoland, throughout the United States and abroad.
His work spans three disciplines that most firms treat separately: investigation, protection and electronic security. He holds current Illinois licences in two of them and has built a second company around the third. That combination is unusual, and it is the reason a single engagement here can move from a surveillance operation to a threat assessment to a camera system without ever leaving the firm.
“Pressure, time deadlines, stressful itineraries and high client exposure is my specialty.”John C. Frycek
Representative work
What that record actually looks like.
Insurance fraud at scale
Ran a surveillance operation serving seven major workers' compensation insurance firms, directing fourteen field surveillance operatives investigating and uncovering fraudulent claims.
Missing persons
Has located over 500 missing persons across a career spanning three and a half decades — among the work he regards as the most consequential the firm does.
Complex criminal and civil investigation
Murder investigations, covert undercover operations, marital matters, product infringement, adoption enquiries, grand theft and comprehensive surveillance, for private clients and counsel alike.
Over three decades he has provided personal and close protective services to executives, public figures and entertainers across America — including detail work for a former Vice President of the United States, a former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, championship-era Chicago Bulls players, and figures from film, television and music.
Career
Where he has done it.
1991 — present
President, Special Solutions, Ltd.
Founded and leads a full-service private investigation firm headquartered in Chicagoland, providing investigative and protective services with global reach. Illinois Detective Agency Licence #117-00691.
2001 — present
President, Total Security Group, Inc.
Designs, installs and consults on physical security applications, covert video technology and CCTV digital camera systems for commercial and private clients.
2010 — present
Director of Training, The Investigative Training Institute
Directs private-investigation training, having trained over 205 state-registered private investigator trainees and supervised eleven Illinois-licensed private investigators.
1998 — 2001
Cooperating Witness & Investigative Contractor, Chicago FBI
Conducted private surveillance and special operations in support of federal organised-crime investigations.
2001
FAA Federal Security Management, Des Plaines, Illinois
Managed federal aviation security operations for three weeks in the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks.
Licences & certifications
Credentials, in full.
Every licence and certification below is held by John C. Frycek personally.
Illinois State licences
- Illinois State Licensed Private Detective (LPD) #115-001002 — Illinois Department of Professional Regulation, 1991
- Illinois State Licensed Alarm Contractor (LAC) #124-002032 — State of Illinois, 2018
- Illinois Detective Agency Licence #117-00691 — Special Solutions, Ltd.
- Illinois Concealed Carry Firearm Instructor — State of Illinois, 2013
Protection & investigation
- Certified Personal Protection Specialist (PPS) — Executive Protection Institute, Berryville, Virginia, 1991
- Certified International Investigator (CII) — Council of International Investigators, 2024
- Certified Counter-Intelligence Specialist (CIS) — Professional Protective Services, Ltd., 1992
- Certified in Interview & Interrogation, 1996
- Physical Security CCTV Specialist, 2006
- Counter-Terrorism Studies, 2002
Instructor certifications
- Certified Police Trainer — International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA), 2004
- Code Red Active Shooter Advanced Instructor Program, 2017
- NRA Certified Pistol Instructor — National Rifle Association, 2011
- Monadnock Police Defensive Tactics Instructor (MEB, PR-24 and Straight Baton), 2000
- Police Aerosol Oleoresin Capsicum Instructor, 2000
- ASP Tactical Baton Instructor, 1996
- De-escalation & Defensive Confrontation Verbal Training Instructor, 2020
- Illinois Police Reserves, Internal Affairs Division Trainer, 2003
Tactical & defensive training
- Second Degree Black Belt, Tae Kwon Do, 1985
- Gun & Special Weapons Combat Defensive Training, Phoenix, Arizona, 1995
- Close Combat & Defensive Tactics, Rockford, Illinois, 1995
- AR-15 Police Rifle Tactical Training, Indiana, 2012
- Controlled Force Police Defensive Training Studies, 2001
Association & board service
Standing in the profession.
- Illinois Department of Financial & Professional Regulation (IDFPR)Board Member · 2025
- Associated Detectives & Security Agencies of Illinois (ADSAI)Board Member · 2025
- Council of International InvestigatorsCertified International Investigator · 2024
- Illinois Security Professionals AssociationMember · 2017
- International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers AssociationCertified Police Trainer · 2004
In the press
Outside coverage.
- Chicago MagazineFeatured in “The Hidden City”, March 2018, on the work of Chicago's people-finders.
- ABC 7 ChicagoInterviewed as a subject-matter expert on investigative and security matters.
John also maintains a personal professional site at johnfrycek.com.
Speak to John directly
Talk it through, in confidence.
The first conversation costs nothing and goes no further. If the matter warrants it, John takes the call himself.