Chapter 551
“Well done, Detective!” Luke praised with a thumbs up.
Xiao Hei spread his hands and said in disbelief, “It’s just a small scene. Even if you guys didn’t arrive in time, I can still subdue them.”
Saying that, Blackie patted Ronnie Prada’s cheek, “Man, which one is more majestic, me in person or my ID photo?”
Ronnie Prada glared at Blacky, “Why are you arresting me?”
Blacky laughs, “Because you’re good looking, haha ……”
Ronnie Prada “……”
Luke didn’t bullshit him and asked, “Do you own a black Chevy sedan?”
“Yes.”
“What’s the license plate number?”
“2Huy377.”
Luke pulled out a picture of the dead man, Roher Horn, “Do you recognize him?”
“No.”
Luke pointed to his eyes, “Look at me, we didn’t come here to hear you lie, understand?
I’m going to ask you again, do you recognize him?”
Ronnie Prada hesitated for a moment, “Yes.”
“What’s your relationship with him?”
“He …… borrowed money from me.”
“How much?”
“Fifty thousand dollars.”
“A loan shark?”
“Yes.”
“Has that money been recovered?”
“He didn’t borrow the fifty thousand dollars all at once, it’s been partially repaid.”
“He couldn’t pay back the rest, so you killed him.”
“No, he hadn’t paid me back yet, I couldn’t have killed him.
If I killed him, I wouldn’t get my money back.” Ronnie Prada seemed to realize something and asked back, “He’s dead?”
“Yes.”
Ronnie Prada waved his hands, “This has nothing to do with me, I swear, I didn’t kill him.”
“Where were you on the afternoon of July 10th, between two and six?”
Ronnie Prada thought hard, “I would have been in this apartment at that …… time.”
“We checked the surveillance and you drove the black Chevy sedan to the Tarpon neighborhood where the victim was killed.”
Ronnie Prada’s mouth dropped open, “No No No, there’s been a misunderstanding, that black Chevy is indeed mine, but I haven’t been driving that car lately.
I’m driving a black Mercedes right now, right downstairs in the parking lot, and they can all testify to that.
I’ve never even been in the neighborhood you’re talking about, I swear to God.”
“Then tell me who was driving that black Chevy on the two days of July 10th and July 11th?”
Ronnie Prada blurted out, “Walda Baker, that’s right, that’s the guy.
He drove that black Chevy of mine the whole time.” Ronnie Prada pointed to the two minions, “They both can testify.”
The two minions nodded in a hurry, “That’s right, Walda Baker has been driving that car.”
Luke looked at the three men who didn’t look like they were lying and asked, “Where is Walda Baker?”
“Yesterday, the guy said that his mom wasn’t feeling well and that he was going to Arizona to see his mom and wouldn’t be back until a few days later.”
Luke pressed, “Has he had any contact with Roher Horn?”
“Yes. He’s usually the one in charge of contacting Roher Horn and getting money from Roher Horn.”
Luke used the tablet to check the road surveillance video, the black Chevrolet sedan is certainly no problem, but the driver’s is wearing a duck hat, while covered with a visor, the road surveillance can not be photographed to a clear appearance, the police can not determine the identity of the driver, can only be used to find people with the car.
Luke clicked on a clearer screenshot, and although he couldn’t see the face, he could see part of the body, “Is this your Chevrolet sedan?”
Ronnie Prada took a look at the tablet, “Yes.”
“Who’s driving it?”
Ronnie Prada took a closer look, “Looks like Walda Baker.”
Luke asked two more of his minions to identify it, and they too thought the driver looked a lot like Walda Baker.
Luke also compares the surveillance video with Ronnie Prada, and it really doesn’t look like the same person.
Luke tried, “You think Walda Baker killed Rohrer Horn?”
“I don’t.
I can’t think of any reason for him to do it?”
Luke continued to test the waters, “Is it possible that Roher Horn refused to pay back the money, so you told Walda Baker to teach Roher Horn a lesson and the other man accidentally killed him.”
“No No No, Roher Horn has already paid back the money within the agreed time, I didn’t ask Walda Baker to go after him, I don’t even know that Walda Baker went after him.”
“So why do you think Walda Baker killed Roher Horn?”
“I really don’t know why that asshole did that?” Ronnie Prada finished and asked rhetorically, “Can you be sure that Walda Baker killed Rohrer Horn?”
Luke pointed at the other man, “Now am I asking you, or are you asking me?”
“Do you know about Kalman Pharmaceuticals?”
“Never heard of it.”
“Do you know how to find Walda Baker?”
“No. He just told me to go to Arizona to see his old mom, and I don’t know where he is now.”
“Where is he staying?”
“Right here in this apartment in room 209.”
“Do you have a key to the room?”
“Yes.”
“Can I get into the apartment to check it out?”
Ronnie Prada looked at Luke and nodded slowly, “Of course, I rent that apartment, so feel free to search it.”
“Thanks.”
Ronnie Prada said, “I have a clear conscience because I had nothing to do with Rohrer Horn’s death and I’m not afraid of you searching it.”
“Very well.”
With Ronnie Prada’s assistance, the police opened the door to the room in apartment 209.
Raymond led a search of the room to make sure it was safe before Luke entered the room for a closer inspection.
The apartment room was small, just a large open room and a toilet, and was very messy, with a lot of clutter on the table and floor.
Luke walked over to the table and saw a single layer of white flour scattered on the tabletop, wiped his fingers on it and put it under his nose to smell it, it looked like drugs.
Porter put away his pistol and said, “Captain, the closet doors are open and all the clothes inside are gone, Walda Baker most likely ran away and looked like she left in a hurry.”
Luke nodded.
Jackson picked up a shirt on the floor, “Captain, I’ve got something on my side.
This shirt has burn marks on the cuffs.” Jackson held the shirt under his nose and sniffed it, “The smell of smoke and suspected accelerant lingers on the shirt.”
Black guessed, “Maybe Walda Baker was involved in the Kalman Pharmaceuticals arson on the night of July 11th and was wearing this shirt.
It wasn’t taken because the sleeves were burned.”
Luke also picked up the burned shirt and scrutinized it, it was very similar to the clothes of the driver of the suspect black Chevrolet vehicle, it was probably the same shirt.
All the clues and evidence pointed to Walda Baker.
Luke then began assigning tasks to investigate Walda Baker’s whereabouts.
Apartment parking lot car surveillance showed that Walda Baker returned to the apartment at 1:00 a.m. on July 12, drove away around 2:00 a.m., and, after that, never returned.
Twenty hours had passed since Walda Baker fled.
The police then tried to locate Walda Baker’s cell phone number, but all of his cell phone numbers were out of contact and could not be located.
At this point, it was already more than ten o’clock in the evening, and with no trace of Walda Baker’s whereabouts, the police could only temporarily call it a day.
The next morning.
After Luke arrived at the police station, he called a meeting with the crowd to discuss the plan to capture Walda Baker.
Luke swept his eyes over the crowd and asked, “Guys, tell us, how can we catch that guy?”
Jackson said, “Walda Baker left the apartment in a black Chevy sedan, we can continue to track down the car.”
Blackie bristled, “Come on, the guy isn’t stupid, he must have abandoned the car already.”
Jackson said, “You’re right, and I know the odds are that he’ll abandon the car, but that car is also important evidence, and besides, we can continue to trace the car from where he abandoned it.”
Porter said, “Could Walda Baker have fled back home to Arizona?
I know it sounds a little silly, but a lot of suspects hide and hide around their old homes when they are wanted.
These people are definitely not stupid, on the contrary, they are smart.
There’s a big advantage to hiding in a familiar place, and friends and family can help cover for them.”
“Porter is right, we are unfamiliar with the situation in Arizona, even if we go to the local area, it is difficult to start an investigation, we can only ask the local police to help assist in the investigation, but the investigation is strong …… ” The vice squad spread their hands, showing an expression that everyone understands.
Xiao Hei bristled: “Committed a crime and hid in his hometown? How long can he hide? A wanted notice is always in effect, I don’t think that’s very likely.”
The lieutenant asked back, “OK, Detective Marcus, what’s your best idea then.”
Marcus thought for a moment and said, “Actually, we could get Ronnie Prada to assist us in finding Walda Baker.
Ronnie Prada is Walda Baker’s boss, and the two share the same criminal experience and connections.
Ronnie Prada may know Walda Baker’s escape route better than we do.
It’s possible to give Ronnie Prada a chance to take credit.”
“This is a good idea, we can communicate with Ronnie Prada, and if he can assist us in catching Walda Baker, we can give him a favorable plea deal and even consider not prosecuting him.” Luke affirmed Black’s suggestion, and at the same time, he had been thinking about why Walda Baker did what he did.
What were his motives?
What role did he play in both cases?
“Knock knock ……”
There was a knock on the door from outside.
Reed pushed his way in, “Good morning guys.”
The lieutenant greeted, “Chief, you’re just in time, we’re discussing the arrest options for Walda Baker and were looking for your opinion.”
Reed said, “I don’t have an opinion, just call me directly when you discuss the program.”
The lieutenant shrugged, “So direct?”
Reed pointed to the lieutenant and then to the others, “I trust you, and you guys.
Luke, I’d like to talk to you alone.”
“No problem.” Luke led Reed into the captain’s office, “Would you like something to drink?”
“No, I’ll just say a few words and then leave.” Reed sat down in his chair and leaned toward his desk, “How’s the capture of Walda Baker going?”
“No word from him yet.”
Reed pressed, “Do you think he’s involved in the arson case?”
“Yes. We found a burned shirt in his home with an accelerant detected on it.
Both cases have Walda Baker in them.”
Reed nodded and continued, “This morning, Fred Kramer, the head of research and development at Kalman Pharmaceuticals, approached me about you taking over the arson investigation.”
Luke was a bit surprised, “Why?”
“This arson case has cost Kalman Pharmaceuticals a lot of money, they don’t trust the precinct police, they feel that the precinct police will have a hard time finding the arson suspects in a short period of time, and they can’t wait for you to take over the investigation of the case.
Fred Kramer is very impressed with you.”
Luke laughed, “How did I not see that at the time.”
“Maybe he figured it out after the fact, he was very attached to the newly developed antihypertensive drug and the arson hit him hard.”
Luke asked, “You agree?”
“Kalman Pharmaceuticals is willing to give the Detective Bureau a donation for equipment replacement at no cost, plus a million dollar reward for the arson suspect.
Interested?”
“If our First Squadron takes over the case and catches the arson suspect, the reward is ours.”
“Yes.”
“Sounds good.”
Luke wasn’t short of money right now, but his team members were short of money, and it was nice to be able to bring his men to earn some bonus money.
Moreover, Walda Baker, whom he had just found out, was not only a suspect in the murder of Roher Horn, but probably also a suspect in the arson case, and the two cases themselves were somehow related.
This is the difference between taking the initiative to take a case on and someone begging you to take a case.
If you take the initiative to solicit a case, people may not appreciate it and may think you are greedy for credit.
Now that the other party is actively begging Luke to take over the case, then he has to show some sincerity.
Of course, the premise is that there is enough ability and extremely high detection rate.
Otherwise, the executives of other pharmaceutical companies are not stupid, why give you the money.