Chapter 587
Luke followed up, “Are you familiar with Teddy Collin?”
“Not too bad, we both live in Mogaro Forest Park and occasionally sit down for a beer or share a free pizza.”
“Has Teddy Collin been anything unusual lately?”
Semir Peek thought for a moment, “He’s suddenly gotten rich lately, does that count?”
“Tell me exactly when?”
Semir Peek looked envious, “I remember on August 26th, he bought a lot of pizza, fried chicken and whiskey to treat all of us to, it cost him at least a few hundred dollars, and that was the first time he ever treated himself.
He also bought a new outfit the next day, and while I don’t know the exact price, it definitely wasn’t cheap.
Also, I’ve heard from others that he ate at nearby restaurants on those days and bought a lot of new items for the tent, which is unusual.”
Luke asked, “Do you know where he got the money?”
“No, we asked and he just laughed but wouldn’t say.
At the time, I thought he must have been chosen by Lady Luck, who knew that only a few days later there would be an accident.”
Luke felt that there was something suspicious about Teddy Collin’s situation and asked, “Has he been in contact with anyone special lately?”
“I don’t know, I care very little about other people and things, and stay in my tent most of the time.”
Luke asked, “Other than the name, do you know anything else that would identify him?”
“Uh ……” Semir Peek thought for a moment, “I think I have his cell phone number, let me look for it.”
Semir Peek started checking his cell phone and after a while said, “Yes, I have his cell phone number, 714 836 2526.”
Luke wrote down the cell phone number and handed the other man a business card, “Thank you for your assistance, feel free to contact me if you think of any other leads.”
“I will, it’s the only thing I can do for those two poor friends.”
Luke sent Semir Peek out of the office before giving the team their assignments.
“Lieutenant, you’re in charge of investigating Victim #3, Arian Osborn, contacting his family and lining up peripheral connections.”
The vice team nodded, “I got it.”
“Matthew, check the cell phone number of deceased Teddy Collin #2 and confirm his identity.”
“Jackson, investigate Teddy Collin’s cell phone communication history for recent suspicious contacts.”
“YES, Sir.”
The men split up.
At eleven o’clock in the morning, the police identified Victim #2.
Name, Teddy Colin.
Gender, male
Date of birth, March 2, 1979
Cell phone number, 714 836 2526
Social Security number, 623-52-7355.
Luke investigated Teddy Collin’s cell phone communications and found a suspicious contact, Annika Carmen.
Teddy Collin, who rarely made phone calls, had eight calls logged in a recent period, seven of which were with Annika Carmen.
The first time the two spoke was on August 25th and the calls were logged throughout the following days.
Luke also looked into Annika Carmen’s profile and found that Annika Carmen lived in the Mogaro Forest Park neighborhood.
Intuition told Luke that this Annika Carmen was probably related to the arson case or knew something inside.
The Wickhardt neighborhood.
This was a white middle-class neighborhood, although the location of the neighborhood was a bit remote, but because it was relatively close to the Mogaro Forest Park, the surrounding environment and greenery was very good.
Two cars were parked outside a blue two-story villa.
Luke stepped down from the co-pilot and looked at the blue villa on the right hand side, the architectural style of this villa was a bit peculiar, like a retro-style design.
Blackie also walked over, “This house is nice, the people who live here should be rich, why would they be associated with the homeless?”
Luke said, “Just go inside and ask.”
Blackie took two steps forward and pressed the visual doorbell.
“Woof woof ……”
A barking sound came faintly from the blue villa.
The visual doorbell then opened and a young white woman asked, “Who are you looking for?”
Blackie asked, “Is this Ms. Annika Carmen’s house?”
“Yes, I am Annika Carmen.
Who are you? I don’t seem to recognize you.”
Blacky flashed his badge, “I’m Detective Marcus of the Robbery and Murder Division, investigating arson in Mogaro Forest Park and would like to get some information from you.”
Annika Carmen declined, “I’m sorry, but I stayed home the day of the fire and don’t really know much about it.
I suggest you ask someone else instead.”
Blackie changed his tone, “Ms. Annika Carmen, please open the door, we need to talk to you.”
“I don’t think there’s anything to talk about between us, I’ve already told you that I don’t know anything about the Mogaro Woods Park arson case.”
“Then you know Teddy Colin?”
Annika Carmen was silent for a moment, “Yes, I knew him, what happened?”
“He’s dead.”
“Dead!” Annika Carmen looked a little surprised, “When did he die?”
“August 29th, he was killed in Mogaro Forest Park.”
“Oh my God, that’s horrible!”
Blackie said again, “Ms. Annika Carmen, we’d like to get some information from you about Teddy Collin.”
After a moment, Annika Carmen relented, “OK, you guys come in.”
“Ding dong ……” the courtyard door opened.
The two Luke’s walked down the concrete path towards the entrance of the villa.
As the two approached, the door to the villa opened and Annika Carmen gathered her hair in her hands, “Officers, please come in.”
The two entered the villa’s living room and sat on the couch, across from them on the coffee table was a picture of Annika Carmen with a black Rottweiler.
Luke asked, “You have a dog at home?”
“Yes, his name is Coco.
I was worried about him barking, so I brought him into the bedroom.” Annika Carmen shrugged her shoulders and asked, “Would you guys like coffee or tea?”
“No need.” Luke waved his hand, “Let’s talk about Teddy Collin.
What’s the relationship between you two?”
“Friends.”
“When did you meet?”
“We haven’t known each other long, he’s kind of a new friend of mine.”
“Do you know what he does for a living?”
“He doesn’t seem to have a job, he’s a bum.”
“I’m kind of curious as to why you guys are friends.”
“Actually, it’s not just you, I didn’t think I’d become friends with a bum either.” Annika Carmen looked in the direction of her bedroom, “A few days ago, I took Coco for a walk in the Mogaro Forest Park, and he was so naughty that he accidentally ran away and got lost.
I was so anxious and searched everywhere, but I could never find it.
It was like a member of my family and I couldn’t live without it.
Later, it was Teddy Colin who helped me find Coco, and I was so grateful to him, and Coco loved him.
And we became friends.”
Luke asked, “When was that?”
“I think it was August 24th.”
“Have you been in regular contact since then?”
“Yes.”
“Can I ask what you’ve talked about?”
“Everything, some nonsense, and I’m usually so busy that sometimes Coco gets bored.
I asked him if he could watch Coco for me once in a while and take him to play in Mogaro Forest Park.
Teddy Colin was very nice and agreed readily.”
“Was there any financial dealings between you?”
“He helped me get Coco back, and I did give him some money, which he didn’t want at first, but then I said I wanted to ask him to help take care of Coco, and he took it.
He was a really nice guy.
I am sorry to hear about his murder.
I’m sure Coco will be sad too.”
“When was the last time you guys saw each other?”
“I think it was August 28th, yes, the evening before the fire at Mogaro Forest Park.
I was walking Coco and ran into him, and we talked for a while.”
“Was there anything unusual about him at the time?”
Annika Carmen thought for a moment and shook her head, “I didn’t see anything.”
“Do you have a suspect for his murder?”
“No. He was nice, but we knew each other for a short time.
Technically, I didn’t know him very well.”
“How much money did you give Teddy Colin in all?”
“A thousand dollars.”
“How did you give it to him?”
“Cash.” Annika Carmen finished and frowned, “Hey, you guys don’t suspect I had anything to do with his death, do you? I have absolutely no reason to do such a thing.”
“We don’t suspect you, we’re just making routine inquiries of people in the vicinity of the deceased.” Luke responded and pressed, “Where were you the day of the fire, August 29th?”
“I was at home and had just finished giving Coco a bath. Then the Mogaro Forest Park caught fire, there was a lot of commotion, and I was so scared that I didn’t sleep all night because I was worried that the fire might come through.”
“Had you been to Mogaro Forest Park that day?”
“No, I was going to give Coco a bath that day, it’s a big job and I get tired every time I give her a bath, so I didn’t go.” Annika Carmen sighed, “If, I mean if, we had gone to Mogaro Forest Park that night and met Teddy Colin, it might have changed his fate.
Maybe, he wouldn’t have died in the fire.”
Black nodded, “Ms. Carmen, you are a kind girl.”
Luke handed the other party a business card, “Miss Carmen, you can contact me anytime you remember a new clue.”
Annika Carmen accepted the business card with both hands, “I will.”
Afterwards, Luke and Blackie left Annika Carmen’s house.
After getting into the car, Blackie glanced in the direction of the villa and asked, “Captain, do you think Annika Carmen has a problem?”
Luke smiled, “What problem do you see?”
Black thought for a moment, “What she said doesn’t seem to be a problem.
But they met on August 24th, and Teddy Collin was killed on August 29th, but it’s only been five short days, and yet they have seven recorded phone calls, and each of them is not short.
That doesn’t sound like the normal friendship Annika Carmen described, and I think it’s likely she’s hiding something.”
Luke was a little impressed with Black and gave a thumbs up, “That’s good, I also think she’s hiding something about Teddy Collin, maybe even lying about it.”