Chapter 300
“Shut up.”
The robber chided on the other end of the phone.
The hall was quiet once again, and the robber said into the phone, “Are you satisfied? Uh-huh.
The clock is ticking again from now on, and in half an hour, I’ll kill another person.
Again, I don’t need a negotiator, my word is my command.
No more phone calls until you have what I want!”
The phone was hung up once more.
“FUCK!”
Anthony pounded the car hard, “These fucking thugs!
Where’s the circuit specialist, bring him here immediately and immediately.”
“Sir, already on his way.” An FBI team member replied.
Anthony took a deep breath and said to Luke, who was on the sidelines, “Tell your men to get ready, we’ll make a strong attack in 30 minutes.”
With the FBI taking over the scene, then the FBI would have to take the main responsibility for the hostages being killed, Anthony’s pressure increased.
“No problem.” Luke also had some regrets, knowing that the suspect was killing people in the bank, with less than a hundred meters separating the two sides, he couldn’t do anything.
Luke called his team back and told them to gather their gear and get ready for a strong attack.
He himself also put on his bulletproof vest and brought his pistol, M4 rifle, concussion bombs, grenades, two pairs of handcuffs and other equipment.
When he was ready, Luke scanned around and there were more and more reporters from the TV station.
Anthony and a group of FBI team members were discussing something.
Luke was involved in the investigation of a bank robbery for the first time, with a certain learning mindset.
But he was better at analyzing the case than the action of a strong attack.
The robber wears a voice changer, kills with determination, and is most likely not a first-time offender.
The robber called himself Martin, although it might not be his real name, but since it was a clue, Luke felt the need to check it out.
Luke immediately called the vice squad and asked him to check if there was a man named Martin among the ex-convicts who robbed the bank.
Also, the robbers were demanding a ransom of $12.56 million, and what was the significance of that number?
“Boom!”
Suddenly, a popping sound came from inside the bank, deafening and smoky.
“Ah!” Another shriek came from the bank, but it quickly calmed down again.
Anthony came over with a tight frown as well, “The bastards blew up the vault? Could any hostages be hurt?”
Anthony was tempted to make a call to ask about the hostages’ well-being and if they needed medicine, but ultimately gave up.
One phone call and there was no chance that another person would die.
An FBI team member came over and said, “Sir, the experts from the circuit system are here.”
“Then what are you waiting for, hurry up and call it over.”
Soon, a middle-aged white man carrying a toolbox was called over.
Anthony asked, “I’m Anthony, the supervisor of the FBI, what’s your name?”
“Raul.”
“Raul, this is a floor plan of the bank, all the doors are bulletproof glass doors controlled by electronic systems, I need you to disconnect the bank’s electrical circuits, including the backup circuits.”
Raul put on his glasses and leaned over to view the nod, “I’ll need a little time to study it.”
Anthony glanced at his watch, “Time is short, I can only give you five minutes.” Turning to Luke, he said, “In ten minutes, you lead a strong attack from the back.”
“Keep in touch.” Luke responded and gathered his men to prepare to go around the east side of the bank to the back door.
As the men of the 1st Squadron walked to the east side of the bank, Luke stopped when he saw the cover of the sewer manhole on the east side of the bank lifting up.
The manhole cover was less than ten meters away from the wall on the east side of the bank, not too close and not too far.
Xiao Hei noticed Luke’s gaze, “It should be that the explosion just now was too powerful and shook the sewer manhole cover open.”
Xiao Hei’s explanation, at first listen to quite reasonable, just now the explosion power is indeed very large, but think carefully and think that something is not right.
If the explosion just now was to open the vault, there would definitely not be a sewer near the vault, the sewer should be in the toilet, the vault is usually not too close to the toilet, it would have exploded and would not have caused such a big impact.
Therefore, the explosion just now was most likely not to blow open the vault door.
The more Luke thought about it, the more he thought it made sense, the time the robbers entered the bank had been more than an hour, to blow up the vault could not have waited until now, and the bank manager should be able to open the vault, unless there are special circumstances, there is usually no need to blow up the vault.
If Luke guessed well, there is a sewer near the bank, the explosion just now may be to blow open the bank’s sewer, the suspect and other people escape from the sewer.
In this way, all the previous suspicions made sense.
The demands made by the kidnappers were merely to stall for time and attract the attention of the police.
The reason why they didn’t let the police take the initiative to call was because they were worried that they would be detected by the police after escaping.
Luke became more and more certain in his mind that the robbers had probably escaped from the bank.
However, the FBI had already taken over the scene, Luke could not make any unauthorized decisions and took out his walkie-talkie to tell Anthony about the speculation.
Now, it was Anthony’s turn to get tangled up, on the one hand, he felt that Luke had a point.
On the other hand, and do not dare to rush into the bank, the kidnappers had previously warned that once the FBI and the police close to the bank within thirty meters will kill a hostage.
Anthony hesitated again and again, finally made up his mind to prepare to give the robber a call, if the robber answered the phone, he lied that the cash, helicopter flights, school buses have been prepared, the robber can be used at any time.
At the same time, the power is cut off and strong attack.
If no one answers the phone, it means that the robbers really ran away, and directly rushed into the bank to rescue the hostages.
After weighing some, Anthony personally dialed the bank phone, ringing for a long time no one answered.
Anthony realized that he was screwed and Luke’s guess was correct.
“FUCK!”Anthony cursed under his breath and turned on the intercom, “Luke, no one answered the phone inside the bank, I’m going to use the door breaker to force my way in.”
“Copy that. We’ll force an attack at the back door as well.”
Five minutes later, the FBI and the police broke down the door at the same time.
“Bang bang bang!” Under the continuous impact of the door breaker, the door lock was broken open in just ten seconds.
And it was precisely these ten seconds that could determine the life and death of the hostages.
“Boom.” With a sound, the back of the bank was smashed open, and Luke rushed into the bank with his men.
“LAPD!”
“FBI!” at the same time, the FBI also rushed into the bank from the front.
Both sides searched at the same time, one in front of the other.
“Clear!”
“Clear.”
“Vault door was opened, no one inside.”
“Bound hostages found in the lobby.”
“Big hole blown in the toilet!”
The FBI and police finished searching the scene and no robbers were issued.
Luke and Anthony both walked over to the large hole, a sickening stench came out of it, which was connected to an underground sewer underneath.
“These damn guys figured out an escape route a long time ago.” Anthony scratched his hair and twisted his head to look aside at Luke.
Luke shook his head, “Don’t even think about it, I’m not going down there.”
Anthony had no choice but to send his men into the sewers in pursuit, although there was not much hope, this clue still had to be investigated, at least to figure out the suspect’s escape route.
Luke entered the lobby, the hostages were crouched by the counter, white hoods on their heads, their hands and feet bound.
The police were calming the hostages, helping them remove the hoods and handcuffs.
Luke barked, “Verify the identity of each hostage, and get statements from everyone ……”
As the words fell, Luke saw a familiar figure, “Mr. Arthur, what are you doing here?”
McKell Arthur twisted his wrist, “I’m getting ready to leave L.A. and came to the bank to pick up some traveling money.”
“Such a coincidence?”
“Yes, not much luck.”
“It’s hard to imagine you tying your hands.”
“There were five robbers, and they had plenty of firepower and were wearing body armor. Once they did it in the open hall, even if I could survive, more than half of the hostages at the scene would be dead or injured.
The most crucial thing is that they didn’t rob me.”
“Did you see what they looked like?”
“No. They wore skull masks and gloves, one was armed with an AK, one with an assault rifle, another with a shotgun, and two with pistols.”
Luke said, “They claimed to have killed a hostage, why didn’t I see the dead man.”
“Empty guns, they didn’t kill the hostage.”
Luke breathed a sigh of relief, “Did this group of robbers do anything out of the ordinary?”
“I don’t know, they put a hood over my head and couldn’t see exactly what they were doing.”
“How did they open the vault?”
“You should ask the bank manager, not me.”
“Thanks for the tip, any ideas where to go?”
“I’m going to take a random walk, America is so big and I’ve been to a lot of places, but rarely have I had time to stop and seriously appreciate them.
It’s about time I enjoyed my retirement.”
“Good idea, have a safe trip.”
“Thanks.”
Luke’s eyes scanned the hostages, “Which one is the bank manager?”
“I am.” A white man in a suit replied.
“I’m Luke, Squadron Leader One of the Heist and Murder Division, what’s your name?”
“Potobay Frick.”
“Mr. Frick, I’d like to take your statement.”
“No problem.”
Luke led him to a desk and asked, “You run this bank?”
“Yes.”
“How many robbers robbed the bank today?”
“Five, all armed robbers, wearing skull masks and bulletproof vests, and their voices sounded weird, like they were using voice changers.”
“What time did they enter the bank?”
“Around nine-thirty.”
“Did you notice anything unusual before that?”
“No.”
“Did you recognize any of the men in the robbery?”
“They all wore masks, I couldn’t tell at all.”
“There was communication between you and them?”
“Yes. They ordered me to open and close the doors of the bank, and they also told me to open the door of the vault ……
They were threatening with a gun and I had to comply.”
“I can understand that, you did the right thing.” Luke reassured and continued, “What all did they take from the bank vault?”
“I don’t know, they ordered me to open the vault door and put a mask on me, I didn’t dare ask any more questions.”
“How many vaults are there in the bank?”
“Two, one vault is used by the bank to store cash and the other vault is used by customers to store their valuables.”
“Both vault doors are open?”
“Yes.”
“How much cash was in the vaults?”
“About fifteen million dollars.”
“Where’s the bank surveillance?”
“It’s in the security room, but as soon as the robbers came in they broke the cameras with their guns, and one of the robbers went into the surveillance room after that. I’m not sure what happened after that.”
“Anything else about the robbers?”
“By the way, one of the robbers had a tattoo on his neck.”
“What kind of tattoo?”
“It’s hard to describe, I only saw part of it.”
“Jenny, get him a pen and paper and have him draw it.”
“YES, Sir.”
Luke got up and went to the vaults, which was the suspect’s real target.
The first vault was the one used by the bank to deposit money, at the moment it was strewn all over the place, the iron shelves were empty instead, it was obvious that most of the cash had been taken by the robbers.
Luke touched the heavy vault door, if the bank manager did not open it, it is estimated that even if the use of explosives will be difficult to break open.
Luke then entered the second vault, this vault was different from the previous one, the vault was filled with rows of lockers, most of them were damaged and the contents were gone.
Anthony came over and said, “These lockers are for private storage of items, the bank manager couldn’t open them either, and to be able to open so many lockers in a short period of time, there must be an expert who specializes in locksmithing among the robbers.”
Luke said, “In that case, we need to find an expert as well.”
Anthony said, “There’s no need to look for one, I can answer this question.
I’ve handled quite a few bank robberies and have specialized in all kinds of safes.
Bank lockers are all small safes, this one is a CV8 electronic safe from Adari, the advantage of this small electronic safe is that it is easy to manage, if you continuously enter the wrong secret it will trigger an alarm, and the door of the safe has a thickened steel plate, making it difficult to pry open.
This kind of electronic safe usually has two locks, one is the main lock, one is the secondary lock, the main lock is usually held on behalf of the bank, the secondary lock in the hands of customers.
Normally you need the main lock, the secondary lock and the password to open the safe.
Under special circumstances, the electronic safe after a power failure, as long as the key inserted into the main lock, with a screwdriver to force the emergency lock, you can successfully open the safe.
This kind of electronic safe will also trigger an alarm once the power is cut off, but it doesn’t matter to the robbers anymore.” Anthony walked over to the wall, where a hole had broken through and the wires buried in the wall had been disconnected.
Luke sighed softly and looked at the messy vault, “Looks like the robbers got a full haul this time.”
Anthony looked at the opened lockers, “This group of robbers must have stepped on points before.
The stepping I’m talking about isn’t just skulking around the bank lobby, but they’ve come to this locker vault. An ordinary customer couldn’t have gotten here, he would have been a customer of a private locker, and there’s a locker in here that should belong to him.”
Luke said, “There are over a hundred lockers here, it’s going to be hard to line up.”
“Do you have any other good ideas?”
“You’re more experienced than I am in handling bank robberies, so you’re in charge.” It was also hard for Luke to come up with a good direction for the investigation in a short period of time.
The suspect was wearing a mask, gloves, a voice changer, and had destroyed the surveillance, so even if the tech team scraped the ground, it would be hard to find valuable clues.
“OK, then let’s seal off the scene, I’m going out for some air.” After Anthony finished speaking, he turned around and headed out, walking to the vault door and asked, “Luke, do you want to come with me?”
“Go for what? It’s full of reporters out there.”
“That’s right, just talk to the reporters.”
“Come on, it’s too late to hide from them, what’s there to talk about.”
“Luke, you’re wrong to think like that, even if you avoid them and don’t say anything, they’ll report it all the same, and report what they want to report.
A lot of unethical reporters will chuck in some negative news about law enforcement agencies for ratings.
Instead of that, it’s better to directly disclose some news to them, news that’s favorable to us, the media’s orientation can influence the public’s heart, it can and does influence people’s attitudes towards the law enforcement agencies, and indirectly determines how tolerant the higher authorities will be and how much they’ll fund you.”
“Looks like you’re very experienced.”
“Come on, let me teach you.” Anthony greeted, then strutted out of the bank.
Luke followed him out as well, only a little farther away.
Anthony stepped out of the cordon and was quickly surrounded by reporters with ‘long shots’ of dislike.
Numerous reporters were asking questions, all from various TV stations, the scene was chaotic.
Anthony waved his hand, “Hey, don’t be chaotic, I can’t hear anything with you guys like this, one by one.”
A black female reporter was the first to ask, “Agent Anthony, may I ask if this bank robbery was investigated by your FBI?”
“The FBI is the main one to be exact, and the LAPD will also assist us.”
Another white male reporter asked, “I heard that the robbers also took hostages, have the hostages been rescued?”
“Yes, we have rescued the hostages, there is nothing more important to us than rescuing the hostages.”
“Was anyone injured or killed?”
“No, not a single one, we kept the hostages safe, it was difficult but we did it.”
A white female reporter pressed, “Did you catch the robbers? How many in all?”
“There were five robbers in total, considering the safety of the hostages, we didn’t carry out the arrests inside the bank, but we have figured out their modus operandi and tracked down their whereabouts.”
Anthony balled his hand into a fist, “Everything is under control.”
“Do you think they’ll do it again?”
“Most likely, but the FBI will do their best to apprehend them before the next offense.” Anthony glanced at his watch, “OK, that’s enough talk for today, any more and I’d be breaking confidentiality.”
Anthony said hello to the reporters and went back inside the cordon, the reporters wanted to follow up but were stopped outside the cordon.
Anthony walked over to Luke and whispered with a laugh, “Man, what did you think of what I just said?”
Luke a thumbs up, “Very good, I really should learn from you.”
He said this from the bottom of his heart, sometimes doing a good job is not as good as saying it.
Take this bank robbery for example, the FBI had actually been led by the nose, not coming up with effective sanctions against the robbers, and in the end, could only watch them escape.
But to Anthony’s mouth has become another matter, focusing on exaggerating the rescue of hostages, put the focus of the news on the rescue of hostages, although the insiders know that the robbers have no intention of harming the hostages, but the media do not know, the public even less know, they thought it was the FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department’s credit.
Listening to Anthony’s words just now, Luke almost thought of himself as a hero for rescuing the hostages.
It was a bit shameless, but it paid off.