Wife wondered why cop husband's 36-hour 'extra shifts' never showed in his paycheck. So a PI followed him to a lake, a boat — and a 911 dispatcher
Bellatrix noticed the suspicious extra shifts because of medical bills that were due
There are certain careers where people expect professionals to lead with integrity, honesty, and accountability, and being a police officer is one of them. However, on September 17, 2026, Austin Slate (@austinthepi) took to Instagram to share one of his cases, where a woman he called 'Bellatrix' reached out because she suspected her husband was cheating. He started taking three extra shifts at work, but his paycheck remained the same. When Slate began digging, he discovered where the officer had been spending his three extra shifts. The video received 18,400 views, 1,546 likes, and 45 comments.
36 hours missing on paycheck
Bellatrix and her husband had been married for seven years and had two kids. When she reached out to Slate, she explained that she usually wouldn't have noticed or suspected him of cheating. But she had a medical bill due the previous month. She did not want to dip into their savings, but then remembered, "Oh yeah, he picked up some extra shifts, so that should be like 36 hours' worth of money coming in, but when the paycheck came in, there wasn't any extra money."
It made her wonder where he was when he claimed to be 'working.' Slate decided to set up surveillance on both days – a normal working day and another day where he had an extra shift. Bellatrix's husband started his normal day super early. He wore his kit, drove to the Sheriff's office, put on his body cam and all other necessities, then headed to a school. He was there for three to four hours, monitoring people's speed, nothing unusual or suspicious.
Christmas work party
On the extra shift day, Slate began his morning the same way. He left early, wore his kit, but instead of going to the Sheriff's office, he drove to a house and was welcomed by a woman. They hung out at the house, and later, hitched a boat to his truck and spent the entire day on the lake. They were fishing and tubing, and Slate caught everything with his long-range camera. He even snapped photos of them kissing.
The following day, Slate reached out to Bellatrix and sent her the photos. The moment she saw the woman, she went, "This is one of the dispatchers at the 911 call center that routes the calls for the sheriff's office, police department, all of them. He knows her from dispatch, and the reason I know her is because I saw her at the company Christmas party this year." Slate ended the video saying that Bellatrix got the information she needed, and did not explain what she did next.
Workplace romance and affairs
Sadly, workplace affairs are more common than people realize. A 2026 Forbes Advisor survey found that the main reason people have workplace romances is because of 'comfortability' (65%). However, some of these workplace romances come at the cost of other people's relationships. 40% admitted that they had cheated on their current partner with a colleague. A survey by LiveCareer, cited by CNBC, found that 3 in 4 employees have had a romantic relationship with a colleague. Similar to Bellatrix's case, her husband met his mistress at work. She was his department's dispatcher.
'Chick magnet'
Netizens criticized Bellatrix's husband, and especially the 911 dispatcher, for continuing the relationship despite knowing he was married. @jilly_wickles commented, "Clever use of 'show me the money' clip. Side note, I used to be married to a cop (past tense). He called the uniform a 'chick magnet." @katthhryyn shared, "As a former partner of a deputy sheriff, dispatchers are for the streets. Get that OT and 401K in the divorce."
You can follow Austin Slate (@austinthepi) on Instagram for more PI content.
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