Chapter 207
In the June 28th Carbon Hill robbery and homicide, according to the victim Shirley’s description, there was a black sedan that drove by the side of the road during the crime.
Later, her son Terry also claimed that he paid $1,000 to hire four punks to go to the crime scene to make trouble, and the car driven by the four punks was the black Tesla sedan.
With the same car appearing at two different crime scenes, and the two cases having similar modus operandi, it’s likely that the same killer is responsible, and the suspicion of the car naturally rises.
Moreover, the owner of the car, even if not a suspect, is likely to be a witness.
Luke zoomed in on the partial image of the CarLog video to see the license plate number of the Tesla sedan, and based on the license plate number, he found out the owner’s identity.
Name, Brian Martinez.
Gender, male
Age, 44.
Cell phone number, 626 876 583*.
License plate number, 3Lb85*.
Residential address, 104 Naka Neighborhood.
Luke then led the team to the owner’s house.
After getting out of the car and observing the surroundings, the owner’s yard was a lawn on the left side and a garage on the right side, with an Audi sitting in front of the garage, and there was no sign of the black Tesla sedan.
Although the Tesla sedan twice appeared in different crime scenes, the owner has some suspicion.
However, there is no direct evidence that the other party is the suspect.
So, it’s still important to treat the car owner as an eyewitness.
Of course, this attitude refers to the superficial attitude, in reality, it is still necessary to prepare for the worst.
Luke and Blackie were in charge of calling the door.
Jenny and Jackson were on guard around the area, ready to back up.
After everything was ready, Blacky walked to the door and rang the doorbell.
It didn’t take long for the door to open from the inside, and a white middle-aged man stood in the doorway, looking at Blacky, then at Luke, “Can I help you? Who are you looking for?”
Blackie flashed his badge, “LAPD, I’m Detective Marcus and this is Lieutenant Luke.”
The white man was a little surprised and spread his hands, “Are you guys mistaken, I didn’t call the police.”
Luke asked, “What is your name, sir?”
“Brian Martinez.”
“Mr. Martinez, don’t you have a black Tesla sedan with license plate number 3lLb85＊ in your name?”
“Yes, what’s the problem?”
“Are you the one using that car?”
“No, it’s being used by my son, what’s this kid getting into? Did he speed again, or did he not pay his ticket on time?
I’ll teach this asshole a lesson when he gets back.”
Blackie bristled, “Hey, that’s none of our business, we’re from the Robbery and Murder Division, we’re investigating a criminal case where that black Tesla sedan was present at the scene.
We’re here to get information from witnesses.”
Brian Martinez frowned, “That would be a coincidence.”
Luke concurred, “Of course, we just wanted to come by and ask if the owner of the car noticed anything out of the ordinary when he passed by the crime scene, such as some characteristics of the suspect or other clues that would be important to the investigation of the case.”
Brian breathed a sigh of relief, “So that’s how it is.
I’m afraid I’ll have to wait for my son to return then, he’s been the one using that car lately.
I’ll give him a call.”
Luke said, “Can you give me your son’s contact information? Let me communicate with him directly so I can speak more clearly.”
Brian hesitated, “SORRY, my son is still underage now, it’s more appropriate for me to say it.
Don’t worry, I’ll get him back as soon as possible, it won’t take too much of your time.”
Brian stepped aside, “Lieutenant Luke, you guys please come in and wait a moment.”
“Thanks.”
Luke and Blackie both went into the living room while Brian walked to the dining room to make his call.
The living room’s decorations were simple and very, very clean, and there were quite a few oil paintings on the walls, mostly more realistic ones.
Among them, there was a picture of a naked woman taking a bath that attracted Black’s attention, “Luke, what do you think?”
Luke nodded and said in a serious manner, “It fits your style quite well.”
Brian walked out from the dining room and said to Xiao Hei, “You have a good eye, this painting is from a famous artist, a master of realistic ink paintings in the last century, and it is also the most expensive of all the oil paintings.”
Blackie gave a sarcastic laugh, what did he know about that?
Luke inquired, “Mr. Martinez, about when will your son be back?”
“He’s near home, he should be back soon.” Brian answered, revealing a concerned look, “I’d like to find out what case you’re investigating.”
If it was a normal case, Luke would not easily reveal the case to outsiders.
But Brian’s situation was different again, his son was not yet an adult, and Luke couldn’t get around him if he wanted to obtain his son’s statement.
“We’re investigating a car robbery homicide.” Luke simply stated.
“Specializing in car robberies?”
“Yes.”
“Friggin’ horrible. Almost everyone has a car these days, and everyone could be a target for the killer.”
“You’re right, that’s why we have to catch the killer as soon as possible. And your son’s statement is important to us.”
Brian nodded, “Would you two officers like something to drink? Coffee or tea?”
“Thanks, we just had coffee in the car, we won’t need it for now.”
Luke would almost never eat at the home of an involved officer.
Once or twice might not be dangerous, but the officer involved could also be a hidden murderer, what if he was caught in the act?
After about twenty minutes, there was movement outside.
“Ka.”
The door to the room opened from the outside and a white teenager with long hair walked into the living room with a tattoo on his right arm, similar to the physical features of one of the punks Terry had described under his breath.
Brian pointed to the long haired teenager and introduced, “Lieutenant Luke, this is my son Achille Martinez.”
“Hello Achille, I’m Lieutenant Luke from the Robbery and Murder Division and I came by today to get some information from you.”
Achille sat down on the other side of the couch, crossed his legs and said, “I heard from Dad that you guys wanted to talk to me about a case, what is it?”
“On the night of June 28th, did you drive a black Tesla sedan to Mount Carbon?”
“Yes, what’s the problem?”
“There was a robbery-rape-murder on Mount Carbon that night, and according to the victim your car happened to be passing by at the time.”
“That’s right. We were driving up the hill and from a distance we saw a masked man and a woman clapping for love.
At first we thought they were playing a game, some kind of kinky love game.
One of my friends even thought about staying and learning.
The next thing we knew, we heard gunshots and the masked pervert opened fire.
We didn’t want any trouble, so we drove off.”
“Who else was in the car at the time besides you?”
“All my friends.”
“State their names.”
“Domette James, Bobby Rael, Galica Udo, just the four of us.”
“Who was driving at the time?”
“It was me.”
“Describe the details of the crime as you saw it.”
“It was dark and the car was still moving, so it was impossible to see too well.
And there were gunshots ringing out again, and I was so scared that my hands were shaking, and I’m not sure how much I remember.”
Luke pressed, “How many people did you see at the crime scene?”
“Three men.”
“Tell us the physical description of the three people and details of the crime.”
“There was a woman slumped in the front door of the car, no clothes, couldn’t see what she looked like, but a white man.
There was a masked man behind her applauding for love, supposedly wearing a black top and naked underneath.
In addition to these two, there should be another man in the back of the car.
He poked his head out to call for help as our car approached, and seemed to be gagged and could only make whimpering noises ……
After that the man in the mask fired and killed the man in the back of the car, and the woman took the opportunity to run away, probably.”
“Did you return to the scene of the crime after that?”
“No. The other man had a gun and I didn’t want any trouble, so I left the other way.”
“Why were you at the scene of the crime, was it by chance, or some other reason?”
“It was a kid in a white Volvo who approached us and paid us a thousand dollars to find the Mercedes and mess with the people in it.
We were thinking it would be fun, get paid and watch the show, so we agreed.
Who knew that we almost got shot at, if I ever see that kid again, I’m going to demand a sum of money for moral damages from him.”
“Why didn’t you call the police if you witnessed the shooting?”
“We didn’t want any trouble, and to be honest, the cops I’ve encountered before weren’t exactly friendly.” Achille gave a you-know-what look.
Achille’s description roughly matched what Sherry and Terry had described.
Luke turned the tables and asked about another case, “Did you drive a black Tesla sedan to Santa Monica Beach between nine and eleven last night?”
“No, I hadn’t been there.”
“But according to our investigation, this car of yours traveled with the victim’s car for an extended period of time, which is why we’re here to see you.”
“Uh, actually, I’m going to call the police if you guys don’t come today, my car was stolen.”
Luke didn’t say anything, and aside Brian frowned, “What did you say? The car was stolen.
When did this happen? How come I don’t know?”
Achille showed a nervous look, “Yesterday, I went to the bar with my friends to drink, and I accidentally got drunk and couldn’t drive, so I took a taxi home.
The car was parked on the side of the road, and this morning I went to look for the car and realized it was gone.
I’m guessing it might have been stolen.”
Brian cursed, “FUCK! Are you an idiot? Why didn’t you tell me when the car was lost?”
“That’s why I didn’t tell you, if you knew you would have yelled at me and I didn’t want to get beat up.
Besides, I was drunk last night and I couldn’t remember for sure if I had parked the car on the side of the road or if a friend had taken it.
I called and asked my friends today and none of them had seen my car before I was sure it was stolen.
I was about to call the police when I got your call and I rushed back.”
Luke stared at his expression and asked, “When was your car stolen?”
“I don’t know, I was drunk yesterday.”
“When was the last time you saw the car?”
“We went to the bar for a drink around seven yesterday evening and I haven’t seen it since.”
“How old are you? How did you go to the bar for a drink?”
“I’m sixteen, I got a fake driver’s license, a lot of my classmates have them, it’s no big deal. You’re not going to arrest me for that, are you?”
“What bar were you drinking at yesterday?”
“Beau Marie’s, it’s about a couple of blocks from my house, that bar is nicely decorated, makes good drinks, and often has pretty girls.”
“You parked outside Beau Marie’s?”
“Yes.”
Luke reconfirmed, “You’re sure your car was stolen and it wasn’t not with you for some other reason?”
“Yes, I’m sure.”
Lying.
“Do you now know the whereabouts of the car?”
“I don’t know.”
Lie.
“Did you hide the car?”
“I did not.” Achille sounded certain.
Luke watched his expression, and this time it wasn’t a lie.
The car hadn’t been stolen, and he hadn’t hidden it, so it was probably on loan.
“Did you lend the car to someone else?”
“No.”
Lying.
Luke squared his shoulders, “Achille, you may not realize the importance of this.
We’re investigating a robbery-rape-murder case, which is a felony, a very serious crime.
Even if you are a minor, once you are implicated, you will be tried as an adult.
The fact that your car was at the scene of the crime twice is hard to explain by coincidence.
You are the actual user of the Tesla car and will likely have to testify in court. If you dare to lie in court, you could be convicted of perjury.
It’s a very serious offense, and if you’re convicted, your life is over.
Mr. Martinez, I think you need to remind your son.
You, as his father, should know the importance of this matter.”
Brian looked a little annoyed, “Lieutenant Luke, can we have a private father-son talk?”
“Sure.”
Brian then dragged his son into the bedroom.
Luke could faintly hear a reprimand.
After a while, Brian brought his son out, “SORRY, this kid drank too much yesterday and his brain is a bit bad, I helped him remember.
Can you redo his statement.”
Luke took a look, Achille’s eyes were red and his cheeks were puffed out, 80% he was beaten up, smiled, “No problem.”
In the United States there is severe beating and child abuse will lose custody.
But hitting children is still relatively common.
A child’s temper tantrum can make an adult angry and cry, a few slaps directly on the buttocks is normal, parents all over the world are the same.
Not to mention Achille being so old.
Luke inquired again, “Achille, did you lose your car?”
“Nope. I lent my car to a friend.”
“Which friend?”
Achille hesitated for a moment, “Domette James.”
“Then why did you lie before?
Don’t use excuses like being drunk. As long as you tell the truth now, the police can let you off the hook for lying earlier.”
Achille glanced at his dad, who nodded slightly.
“Yesterday afternoon, Dommett approached me about borrowing a car, and when I asked him what he was doing, he said he was going out for a ride.
I didn’t want to borrow it, but I was too embarrassed to say no, so I agreed to let him have it.
Then he called me again this morning and said that something had happened last night and that if any of the police asked me about the car, to say that it had been stolen.
I was in a hurry and asked him why. He wouldn’t say.” Achille sighed softly, showing a helpless look.
Luke questioned, “You actually lied to the police for your so-called friend, don’t you know the consequences of this?”
Achille revealed a helpless look, “I didn’t want to, but you guys don’t know him.
Dormit James is not to be messed with, he is a madman who can do anything.
I don’t dare to provoke him, I can only do what he says.”
“The Tesla sedan is still in Domit’s possession?”
“Yes.”
“Can I take your word for it?”
“I swear to God I’m telling the truth this time.”
Brian chimed in, “Lieutenant Luke, don’t worry, if he lies again, I’ll throw him out of this house immediately.”
If what Achille said was true, then there must be something wrong with his so-called friend Domet, otherwise, he wouldn’t have let him deceive the police.
“Where is Domet’s house?”