Chapter 468
Luke laughed, “Ms. Winter, don’t you think it’s a little late to call the police?”
Pansy Winter said helplessly, “I also have you guys to thank for the fact that I don’t live here now. If it wasn’t for you guys, I’m afraid I wouldn’t even know my car was stolen now.
Can you guys help me catch the thief? I’d appreciate it a million times over.”
Luke stared at her for a moment and asked, “When was the last time you saw that car?”
“Uh …… honestly, I can’t remember. It must have been at least a month.”
“Does anyone other than you drive that car?”
Pansy Winter shook her head, “No, I’m the only one who drives this car.”
Luke walked over to the roll up door to check it out, the lock did show signs of being picked and the entire cylinder had been damaged to the point of being broken.
He believed Pansy Winter’s words a few times too.
Of course, he didn’t believe it completely, who knew if Pansy Winter had intentionally destroyed the door lock because she had been traced.
Luke carefully inspected the garage, which was stacked with a lot of miscellaneous items and a concrete floor, and found no obvious traces left by the suspect.
Luke stood up and asked, “Are there any obvious markings on that white Honda of yours?”
Pansy Winter thought for a moment, “No. I’m a careful driver, basically no cuts or scrapes, and the seat covers in the car are gray and more resistant to dirt.
I used to put an ornament in the front of the car, but have since removed it.”
Luke continued, “Is there a locator device in the car?”
“No.”
Luke stepped out of the garage and looked to the side of the house, “Ms. Winter, if your car was stolen by a burglar, the burglar would have stepped in ahead of time and known that your home was probably empty.
The odds are that he would have entered the house to burglarize it as well.
I would like to enter the house and investigate.”
Pansy Winter frowned slightly, “I don’t think that’s necessary, I’ve just looked at the locks of the house’s doors and there’s no sign of vandalism.”
Jackson also advised, “If only the door locks are damaged in order to enter the house, then this kind of burglar is too unprofessional.”
Pansy Winter spread her hands, “Captain Lee, I don’t really like outsiders entering my house.
Why don’t I enter the house first to take a look, and if something is missing, I will call the police and ask you to enter the house house to check it out.”
“OK, that’s your right.” Luke didn’t dwell on the issue and called a few of his men over to arrange the task.
Because Pansy Winter hadn’t been around for a month, it was impossible to determine the exact time when the car was stolen, so a lot of investigative methods couldn’t be used, and some clues and evidence disappeared.
The police could only resort to visiting and investigating and collecting surveillance.
Luke finished assigning tasks to his men, he walked alone to the front and back doors of the house to observe, the locks of the doors indeed did not have traces of being pried, and the windows did not have traces of being vandalized or recently repaired.
Pansy Winter came out from the house and said, “Captain Lee, I just checked, there are no items missing from the house, and since I don’t live over here, I didn’t put anything valuable.
That car would have been the most valuable.”
Luke asked, “Are there any signs of a break-in in the house?”
“No.”
“I see.” Luke responded, two possibilities seemed most likely to him in this situation.
The first possibility, the car wasn’t stolen by an outsider, it was likely that Pansy Winter herself drove the car to commit the crime, that’s why she didn’t enter the house to steal it.
As for the lock on the garage door, she had broken it herself.
Of course, this was all speculation on Luke’s part, and there was no proof.
The second possibility, the burglar’s purpose was clearly to steal the car.
More accurately said that they were looking for a means of transportation to commit the crime, stealing an unrelated vehicle to commit the crime, even if the police tracked down the owner of the car, they could not track down the real perpetrator of the crime.
As for which is the case, it depends on the specific clues and evidence that will be investigated next.
Soon, the people Luke sent to visit and investigate returned one after another.
According to the reaction of the surrounding neighbors, Pansy Winter really does not live in this community, the house is also vacant for a long time, and they have not seen Pansy Winter driving that white Honda for a long time.
Pansy Winter’s account was basically the same as that of the surrounding neighbors. Coupled with the fact that her boyfriend provided an alibi for her, her suspicion of committing the crime could be ruled out for the time being.
The tech team then arrived at the scene and carefully surveyed the interior of the garage, but the stolen vehicle had already been driven away and the suspect hadn’t left many clues.
Luke took out a photo of William Moses Jr. and asked, “Ms. Winter, do you recognize this man?”
Pansy Winter took the photo and examined it, “You suspect him of stealing my car?”
“No, he was the gunshot victim, shot once in the shoulder and once in the face.”
“Pity, he would have been a handsome young man.” Pansy Winter handed the picture back to Luke, “I don’t know him.”
Luke handed him another business card, “You can bring it to me directly if you think of any new clues.”
“OK, I will.”
After the technical team finished investigating the scene, Luke led the team out of Pansy Winter’s house.
Although the owner was found, the car was not found.
The clue would have to be continued to be investigated.
“Jingle Bells ……”
The next morning, Luke was awakened by a cell phone ringing.
He fumbled around his bed for a while, found his cell phone, and pressed the answer button, “Hello.”
“Luke, it’s born, my wife is in labor.” Blackie’s surprised voice came from the cell phone.
Luke also sobered up, “Congratulations, is it a boy, or a girl?”
“It’s a little princess, she’s super cute.
Oh God, this feels so amazing.
I can’t believe it now, I’m actually having a baby.
When I picked up that little person, I realized what it feels like to be a dad, she’s my whole world ……”
Luke shook his fist, “Yay, I won.”
“What? What did you just say?” Blacky didn’t hear clearly.
Luke said perfunctorily, “I said fantastic, I can’t wait to meet her.”
“Oh, look at my memory, I can’t believe I forgot to share the picture with you, I’m sending it to you now.” Black hung up his cell phone and sent Luke a picture.
Luke looked at it, “It’s ugly.”
However, the call made Luke sleepy enough to get up, make breakfast for dinner, and go to work at the police station.
Luke exited the parking lot just in time to see David and waved hello, “Good morning.”
David yawned and asked, “Any progress on the case of Harry’s murder?”
Luke shook his head, “Not yet.”
David patted him on the shoulder, “Don’t worry, wait for my news.”
“What news, you got a lead on your end?”
David said, “We’ve tracked down a group of people who are selling a new type of drug, there’s a problem with where their supply is coming from, it’s likely that they’ve robbed Harry’s shipment.”
Luke reminded, “Then you need to hold on tight, don’t let this group get away. If you need backup, feel free to contact me.”
“I will.”
Luke suddenly remembered something and laughed, “By the way, Marcus’s wife gave birth, did you know?”
“No, I haven’t gotten the news yet, is it a boy or a girl?”
“Girl.”
“Wow.” David exclaimed, “Marcus actually has a daughter, it’s unbelievable.”
“That’s the way the real world works, there’s no logic to it.” The two chatted for a few moments and Luke returned to the Robbery and Murder Division.
He gathered the men together for a meeting, and before he could speak, the lieutenant took the initiative, “Did you get that news?”
“What news?”
“Marcus’ wife has given birth.” The lieutenant scanned the crowd, “Did you know?”
Some of the crowd showed curiosity, some were silent.
“Yes, Marcus’ wife gave birth to a daughter.” Luke laughed and reached out, “Actually, I was going to say, pay up.
Come on, willing to bet.”
There was a hush from the crowd, but the losers were still self-conscious enough to pay up.
Jenny was in a good mood after winning the money, “Is Marcus’ daughter pretty?”
“Yes, a very lovely girl.” Luke said against his will, holding out the photo for the crowd to see.
Jenny took the picture and with a start, said, “Wow wow, what a cute little angel.”
The lieutenant bristled, clearly disagreeing with her.
However, the old man, even with his low emotional quotient, was not in a good position to tell the truth at this time.
The crowd chatted about Marcus’ daughter for a while, and the office was filled with a joyful atmosphere.
Luke clapped his hands, “Everyone, let’s talk about Marcus’ treat later, let’s talk about the case first.
Who’s got a new lead on the case?”
“Captain, I’ve got a new lead on my end.” Jackson walked over to the projector and played a surveillance video.
It was a road cam shot of a white sedan flashing by, and Jackson rewound it before Luke could see it was a white Honda.
Jackson lowered the speed of the playback, and the driver in the cab looked like a woman, wearing a white baseball cap and a blue mask that made it impossible to see her face.
Jackson pointed to the projector and described, “This is what we shot near Pansy Winter’s house, a little after 10:00 p.m. on February 15, as the white Honda sedan drove off the community highway.
It was impossible to get a good look at the driver’s physical description because it was dark and the driver was intentionally obscured.
The lieutenant rubbed his chin and said, “It looks like a female by her physical appearance.
And according to the statement of the shooting victim, William Moses Jr, the shooter was also a female.
So could this driver be the shooter?”
Luke thought it was a possibility and asked, “Have you traced the car yet?”
“Not yet.
The car drove into a remote suburban alley, there was no surveillance in that neighborhood and the car trail was lost.”
Luke said, “Keep tracking it.”
“Okay.”
Luke took the surveillance video from Jackson and scrutinized it, but because of the darkness and the deliberate disguise of the female driver, Luke couldn’t identify the other party.
But just because he couldn’t recognize it didn’t mean that others couldn’t.
And then, Luke called and contacted Pansy Winter, asking her to come to the police station to assist in the identification.
An hour later, Pansy Winter arrived at the police station, this time she came by herself and did not let her boyfriend accompany her.
Luke invited her into the conference room and Jackson poured her a cup of coffee.
She nodded politely, “Thanks.”
Luke took out his tablet and clicked on the road surveillance video of the suspect vehicle, “Ms. Winter, can you see if this is your car?”
Pansy Winter put down her coffee cup, carefully watched the video on the tablet, and said, “Yes, it’s my car, the license plate number, the model of the car, and the color are all the same.”
Luke pressed the pause button and pointed at the driver and asked, “Do you recognize this man driving the car?”
Pansy Winter stared at the plate for a while, frowned and shook her head, “I …… don’t recognize him.”
Luke stared at the other side: “Look more closely.”
Pansy Winter shook her head again, “I really don’t recognize it.”
Luke obviously felt the other party’s abnormality and seemed to be hiding something, however, he didn’t poke the other party immediately and asked, “Why didn’t your boyfriend come?”
“He has his own job and went to work.”
Luke tried, “Have you gotten into any trouble lately?”
“No.”
“Do you have a suspect for the car thief?”
“Can’t think of any at all. But that neighborhood isn’t very well policed, which is why I moved away.”
“And has there ever been a burglary at your house before?”
“No.”
“OK, thanks for your assistance.”
Pansy Winter stood up, hesitated for a moment, and asked, “Have you found my car yet?”
“Not yet, I’ll let you know as soon as I find the car.”
“Thanks.” Pansy Winter glanced at Luke before turning to leave.
Luke walked her to the office door, lit a cigarette, and smoked it.
Jackson asked, “Captain, what’s the problem?”
Luke exhaled a puff of smoke, “I have a feeling this woman is hiding something.
She obviously had some abnormalities after seeing the surveillance video, and most likely knows this driver.”
As he spoke, Luke also cleared his thoughts and said to Matthew, “Check Pansy Winter’s friends and family, especially female relatives, I want their details.
Remember, details.”
“Okay.” Matthew answered and began to operate on the computer.
After a while, Matthew said, “Pansy Winter has a sister and a daughter.
Her sister lives in New York, and her daughter lives right here in Los Angeles.
I pulled up their information.
Pansy Winter’s sister is a college teacher and has no criminal record.
Pansy Winter’s daughter is eighteen years old, named Danielle Winter, and was jailed last year for dangerous driving.”
Luke frowned slightly, “I’ve seen her daughter’s profile before, why is there no criminal record written on it?”
“Because his daughter was underage at the time, the criminal record was sealed and it took some means to find out.” Matthew said, pulling up a more detailed case file, “The crime occurred in July 2022, Danielle Winter hit and killed a woman on the highway at high speed.
He was sentenced to ten months in prison for dangerous driving.
At the time, there was another passenger in his car – William Moses Jr.”
Luke said thoughtfully, “Pansy Winter’s daughter and William Moses Jr. have known each other for a long time.
Danielle Winter stole her mother’s automobile after her early release from prison.
If it was really Danielle Winter who shot and attacked William Moses Jr, it means that last year’s car accident might have been something else.
Otherwise, Danielle Winter wouldn’t have rushed to retaliate as soon as she got out of prison.
It looks like we’re going to have to talk to William Moses Jr. again.”
Luke rushed to the Gang and Narcotics Division with his men.
Captain Jones had a cup of coffee in his hand and was saying something to Agent Henry when he saw Luke and laughed, “Hey Luke, I heard Marcus had a baby.”
“Marcus isn’t going to give birth, it’s his wife who has a cute little princess.” Luke finished and the crowd laughed.
Jones said, “Luke, you didn’t come here specifically to tell me that news, did you?”
“I don’t have that kind of time. I want to re-arraign William Moses Jr. and question him about something.”
Jones shrugged, “You’re late, he was released on bail yesterday.”
“Why was it granted without notifying me, when did you guys become so efficient?”
“I didn’t want to. But he’s got a gunshot wound on him, so there’s no way to stop it, whether we approve it or not.” Jones wore a you-know-what expression.
Luke was also a bit helpless, “What time exactly was he released on bail?”
“Yesterday morning after ten.”
“Okay.” Luke finished and left the office.
David followed suit, “Luke, what’s the problem with William Moses Jr.?”
“I’ve tracked down the shooter who attacked him and need his assistance in identifying him.”
“Go straight to the hospital, the guy is there recovering from his injuries, I’ll send you the address.”
Luke nodded, “That’ll have to do, see you later.”