Chapter 342

Black dragged Arness Snow to the car.

Porter also jumped down from the passenger side and pulled out his pistol on guard, “How is she?”

Blacky ripped off Arness Snow’s blouse to reveal her black body armor and patted her cheek, “How are you feeling?”

“My chest hurts …… feel like it’s a little hard to breathe.” A look of panic appeared on Arness Snow’s face as she spoke breathlessly.

“Lie still.”

Black took out his cell phone and dialed 911 for backup and an EMT.

Porter hid in the front of the car and looked out, “Didn’t hear any gunshots, it should be a long range sniper, can’t find any sign of the robber.”

Fortunately, it is also a long-distance sniping, if it is a close-range shooting, even if Yanis Snow wearing body armor may still be killed, the power of large-caliber bullets is much more powerful than an ordinary pistol.

Blackie said, “It must be that bastard who’s trying to kill someone, we need to find a way to determine his location.”

Porter asked, “What’s your best idea?”

“No, the moment you show your head now you could get shot in the head.” Black glanced at the female witness lying on the ground, as long as she wasn’t dead there was still a chance of catching the shooter.

Of course there was the possibility that the gunman had already escaped with one hit.

However, no one would be stupid enough to gamble with their own head.

A few minutes later, police patrol cars arrived at the scene one after another.

It was at this time that Blacky and Porter dared to step out from behind the car, observing the surroundings and looking for the gunman’s shooting spot.

Blacky walked over to the spot where Arness Snow had been shot and backtracked the shooter’s location based on the trajectory of the ballistics.

There was a five-story building in the direction of the southeast corner, five to six hundred meters away from the shooting location, and Xiao Hei felt that that location was suitable for an ambush: “Porter, you take care of Arness Snow, I’ll bring someone to catch the gunman.”

“Do you want me to go with you?”

“Keeping Arness Snow safe is more important.”

“Be careful.”

Black called up four patrolmen and ran toward the southeast corner of the building.

Turning to Arness Snow, Porter asked, “How did the shooter find you?”

Arness Snow opened her mouth and breathed heavily, “My chest hurts …… I feel like I can’t breathe …… Help me …… ”

“Relax, the ambulance will be here soon, you’ll be fine.” Seeing that the other party was not in a very good condition, Potter stopped asking questions.

After a while, the ambulance arrived, the EMTs carried Arness Snow to the car, and Porter also followed the car for protection.

Half an hour later, the vice squad also arrived at the scene.

Although the vice squad is old, but experienced in handling cases, Luke is not there, he can also fill in.

Melton Street.

Luke had been in contact with Blacky and the Vice Squad, and had also learned about the attack on Arness Snow by the gunman.

But it had already happened, and by the time he arrived at the scene the yellow flowers were cold.

Moreover, the Vice Squad had a lot of experience in scene investigation, and Luke was very relieved to have him there.

At the same time, he also learned about Yanis Snow’s situation from Porter, although Yanis Snow’s life was not in danger, she was now having difficulty breathing, and was temporarily unable to make a statement and forensic sketch.

Luke rushing over there now won’t help, it’s better to press on with the investigation.

Luke and Jackson drove to the east side of Melton Street, a stretch of street with several car dealerships dealing in a variety of used cars.

The car dealership owned by the two victims mainly sold sedans, and the name of the dealership was Salipo Motors.

Across the street from the Salipo dealership was the Collins dealership, which was the destination of Luke and Jackson’s trip, and according to the victim, Cassidy Torres, the Collins dealership also sold primarily used cars and had been in competition with their dealership.

Luke stepped out of the car and observed the two car dealerships, which were about the same size, with a few tit-for-tat slogans and service and prices.

Luke and Jackson then walked into the Collins dealership.

A plump Latin woman came over, her face was filled with a warm smile, “What kind of car do you two gentlemen want, I’ll take you around, and if you want to test drive it, you can do that too.”

Luke stared at the plump Latin woman, feeling as if the other woman was winking at him or hinting at something.

Jackson frowned and flashed his badge, “LAPD, we’re looking for Norbert Collins.”

The buxom Latina blushed slightly, “Can I help you?”

Jackson asked rhetorically, “Are you Norbert Collins?”

The plump Latin woman asked back, “Are you gay?”

“What?” Jackson’s face drooped and he said coldly, “Are you out of your mind?”

“There’s no way a man could be that cold to me.” The plump Latina woman pointed at Luke, “Like this gentleman, who keeps looking at me with a smile on his face and a kind gaze.”

With that, the plump woman also smiled and squeezed her eyes at Luke.

Jackson said helplessly, “Ma’am, we’re here to see Norbert Collins, is he in?”

“Reminder, it’s Miss.” The buxom Latina corrected, turned and called out, “Boss, there are two LAPD officers here to see you.”

After a moment, a white man in his forties approached from a garage not far away, wiping his tanned hands on a towel, “Woo-oh, our dealership’s reputation has reached the LAPD? It’s an honor.

What kind of car do you two officers want? I can give you top discounts, just go back and spread the word for me.”

Luke sized up the white man, “You’re Norbert Collins.”

“YES, Sir.”

“What kind of car do you think would suit me?”

“That depends on your budget, can you say?”

“I want a gray BMW 740, do you have one here?”

“Uh ……” Norbert Collins froze for a moment, “I think the Salipo dealership across the street just took in a similar car, so what are you guys here for?”

“You seem to know the Salipo dealership well?”

“Our two dealerships aren’t too far apart, so it’s not hard to see, and the guy who sold the car came by our dealership, only his asking price was a little high.”

“How is your relationship with Bart Ramos?”

“Sir, I don’t want to be foul-mouthed, but he really is a no-nonsense asshole. He went to the police station to badmouth me or report my car dealership.”

“He’s dead.”

“What!” Norbert Collins gave a stunned look, “You’re not kidding, that guy was strong as a bear and had a date with me two days ago.”

Luke said, “Unfortunately, I’m afraid you won’t have the chance to have a date in the future, introduce yourself, Luke Lee, captain of Squadron One of the Robbery and Murder Division, I’m in charge of the investigation of Bart Ramos’ case.”

“This is so sudden, how did he die?”

“Shot to death.”

“So you guys came to my car dealership because you suspect I killed him?”

“It’s just a routine inquiry, you don’t have to be nervous.”

“I’m not nervous, but you’ve got the wrong guy, I’m not going to kill him, and I don’t have to.”

“But from what I understand, there’s a lot of business rivalry between you guys.”

“Exactly, and it’s because of that that I want him dead even less. By the way, how’s Casti Torres?”

“He’s injured as well, but it’s not life-threatening.”

“That’s the thing, if I’m going to kill someone because of a business rivalry, it’s going to be Casti Torres, not Bart Ramos.”

“Why?”

Norbert Collins pointed across the room and said, “There are two partners in the Salipo car dealership, one is Balt Ramos and the other is Casti Torres, they both have different personalities and specialize in different things, they can complement each other in their work but they are also prone to conflicts.

Casti Torres is a Mexican immigrant, and has been working in the garage since he was a child, he is good at repairing and evaluating cars, and the Salipo dealership could not have made it to where it is now without his efforts.

Bart Ramos is more like a businessman, the car purchase contract and loans are in charge of him, this guy is very good at drilling legal loopholes, a lot of people who buy cars unknowingly will be set up, and when the customer passes over to react to it is already too late, there is a bitter, but he did bring more profits to the car dealership.

Killing Bart Ramos may reduce the profit of the Salipo dealership, but it won’t affect the business of the dealership, and it won’t do our dealership any good.

If Casti Torres dies, it may not have much impact in a short period of time, but in the long run, the Salipo car dealership is definitely no match for our car dealership.

So, you guys are looking for the wrong person.”

Luke clasped his hands on his chest, “It seems like you know the Salipo car dealership well, so who do you think we should look for?”

“Isn’t Casti Torres still alive? You guys should ask him about it.”

“You think Casti Torres hired someone to kill Bart Ramos.”

“I don’t know, but the two of them did have a run-in recently, and I saw them have a big fight two days ago after work.”

“What was the fight about?”

“I didn’t hear about it, but by my reckoning it might have had something to do with opening a branch. Bart Ramos wanted to finance the opening of a drive-through branch in Long Beach, but Casti Torres felt it was too risky and wouldn’t do it.

I don’t know much about the specifics, but that’s about it.

If Bart Ramos dies, the store is what Casti Torres says it is, and there’s no need to open another branch in Long Beach.”

Luke sized up the other man and asked, “So you had nothing to do with Bart Ramos’ death?”

“Of course, I wouldn’t do such a damaging thing.”

“Thanks.” Luke dropped his words and prepared to leave with Jackson.

“Sir, you guys can come to me if you want to buy or sell cars, top discounts are always in effect.”

Luke waved and got in his car and left.

Jackson started the car and asked, “Captain, where are we going now?”

Luke checked his cell phone messages, “Back to the police station, Bart Ramos’ family went to identify the body, find them and find out what happened.”

Luke learned from Norbert Collins about the conflict between Balt Ramos and Kasdy Torres, but it didn’t mean that Kasdy Torres was the murderer of Balt Ramos, and Luke had already given a statement to Kasdy Torres before, and didn’t find any abnormalities, of course, it could be that Luke hadn’t targeted his questioning.

Luke wanted to give a statement to Bart Ramos’s family to side-step the relationship between him and Casti Torres.

Detective Bureau, Robbery-Murder Division.

Luke had just walked into the office when he saw a white woman sitting together sobbing.

Jenny came over and whispered, “Captain, she’s Bart Ramos’ wife.”

“Identified the body?”

“Yes.”

Jenny walked over to the white woman and introduced herself, “Mrs. Ramos, let me introduce you, this is Captain Lee from our First Squadron.”

The woman looked up and asked, “Who killed my husband?”

“Mrs. Ramos, I’m sorry for what happened to your husband, the case is still under investigation, I would like to ask you a few questions related to the case.” Luke made a gesture of invitation and invited the other woman into the lounge to talk.

Soon, Mrs. Ramos was brought into the lounge and Luke and Jackson were in charge of taking her statement.

“Mrs. Ramos, when was the last time you saw your husband?”

“It was early this morning, he left the house early to meet up with Kasdy Torres for a research trip to the city of Long Beach.”

“Research for what?”

“My husband wants to expand the dealership and open a branch in Long Beach.”

“What is the relationship between your husband and Castey Torres?”

“They partnered to run the Salipo car dealership.”

“How was their relationship?”

“Work-wise they’re best mates, but they have different personalities and can only be considered coworkers, not friends.” Mrs. Ramos said after a slight hesitation.

“And, recently, the two of them had a bit of a disagreement over the opening of a branch of the car dealership.”

“What were their differences?”

“My husband wants to expand the dealership and open more outlets, using the Salipo dealership as a blueprint, and he’s already got the investment, and he’s worked out the program and the plan, as long as Kasdi Torres agrees, but Kasdi Torres is a little stubborn and only wants to hold on to the one Salipo dealership.

Casti Torres felt that this one car dealership would generate enough revenue for the family and there was no need to take the risk of opening a branch.

But he didn’t understand business, and business was always a no-win situation.

If we don’t expand the dealership, sooner or later other dealerships will swallow up the car market that we already have, and my husband has been trying to convince him of that.”

Luke asked, “Why did Custy Torres follow your husband to Long Beach to do research if he didn’t agree to open a branch?”

Mrs. Ramos sighed, “Casti Torres was originally just a car mechanic, apart from his skills, he knows nothing about business, and the car dealership’s current size and revenue is entirely dependent on my husband’s operation.

So it’s still my husband’s call on the car dealership.”

“What would happen to the car dealership if your husband died?”

“I don’t know …… I’m a full-time housewife who doesn’t know anything about running a car dealership, so I’d probably sell my shares in the dealership.”

“Sell it to who?”

“According to the contract, the partners have the right of first refusal, so I should sell to Casti Torres if he wants to buy it.”

Luke made a note in his book that from what was available Casti Torres and Bart Ramos did have some conflict of interest.

Just whether that conflict of interest could rise to the level of a motive for murder was yet to be seen.

“Mrs. Ramos, was there anything unusual about your husband during this time?”

“No, I didn’t feel it, he was a very energetic and confident person, envisioning the business landscape after the car dealership expanded, we even made plans to travel to Europe for Christmas ……

Everything was perfect, but I didn’t expect ……

God, why did you take my husband ……

Why?”

“Has your husband ever been in danger or threatened before?”

Mrs. Ramos thought for a moment, “I …… I’m not sure that incident is related.

A few days ago, our family dog was killed, his name was Porto, he was a 3 year old husky, very sweet, my family and I loved him and had made him part of the family.”

“How did it die?”

“It was shot with a crossbow.”

“Tell us exactly when.”

“I think it was November 12th, I went to the grocery store to do some shopping, and when I came back I found the dog dead in the yard with a crossbow arrow stuck in its neck, and blood was flowing everywhere.

By the time I picked it up the body was cold.

It was still barking at me that morning, and I even hesitated to take it with me to the grocery store; I should have taken it with me, then it wouldn’t have died.”

“You feel that the killing of the dog is somehow related to the murder of your husband?”

“Yes, our dog was very well behaved, everyone in the neighborhood loved him, and no one would have hurt him if it wasn’t out of revenge.

By God, if we had been alert enough, my husband might not have died.”

“Did you call the police after the dog was killed?”

“Yes, but the police didn’t find anything, no, they didn’t investigate with any care, they didn’t care about the death of my dog.

They were the ones who killed my husband, if they had caught that man earlier, he wouldn’t have killed my husband.”

“Does the dog killing suspect have any other clues besides the use of a crossbow?”

“A neighbor who was passing by saw a Latino man wearing a gray baseball cap hanging around my yard, and although he didn’t see the other man shoot the dog, the man was suspicious.”

“What time did he see the man?”

“November 12th around ten-thirty in the morning.”

Luke noted the time and confirmed, “The neighbor is sure the man was a Latino male?”

“Yes.”

“Were there any other characteristics of the man?”

Mrs. Ramos thought for a moment and shook her head, “The neighbor wasn’t too concerned at the time.”

Black and Porter had asked the female eyewitness about the shooter’s appearance after meeting her, and according to the female eyewitness, Arness Snow, the shooter was a Latino man.

But if the other man’s intention was to kill Bart Ramos, why did he use a crossbow to kill the dog?

Was it a warning?

Or was it for some other purpose?

“Mrs. Ramos, do you remember the police number of the officer in charge of investigating the dog’s killing?”

“Yes, I remember.” Mrs. Ramos took out her cell phone and gave the police number of one of the officers.

Jackson took the police number and left the lounge, leaving Jenny in charge of contacting the other officer to obtain the file on the dog killing case.

Luke asked a few more questions, but Mrs. Ramos was, after all, just a housewife who knew little about what was going on at Bart Ramos’s work, and she wasn’t sure if Bart Ramos had a grudge against anyone.

Luke then escorted her out of the office.

Jenny took a printed document and said, “Captain, I contacted the patrol officer who took the dog killing case, and the other officer also investigated the case after receiving the call, and by visiting the surrounding neighbors, he found that the suspect might be a Latino man wearing a gray baseball cap.

The murder weapon was a crossbow and the dog’s time of death was around 10:30 on November 12th.

They pulled up surveillance of the surrounding neighborhood and found a black Chevy sedan, the driver of the car was wearing a gray baseball cap, entered the neighborhood at ten a.m., and left around ten-fifty a.m., which matches the time the dog was killed.”

Jackson asked, “If the suspect vehicle has been located, why hasn’t the case been closed?”

Jenny handed Luke the information, “The license plate number is fake and the trail is broken.

It was only a dog that was killed, they couldn’t have expended too many police resources.”

Jackson asked, “Captain, it’s the 15th today, only three days have passed since Enough was killed, the security footage along the route is still retained, should we keep checking the surveillance?”

“It’s too slow to be efficient.”

Luke thought for a moment, “Jackson, Jenny, you guys go to Melton Street and pull out the recent records of cars collected and sold from Salibo Car Dealership and Collins Car Dealership, see if there are cars of the same model and color as the suspect vehicle.”

“YES, Sir.”