Chapter 696
March 7, morning.
Robbery and Murder Division, 1st Squadron office.
All heads were up, all watching the overhead television.
The TV was showing the news about the Rebecca Mozelle robbery.
Because Rebecca Mozelle was a public figure, the case was already more influential, and when the police arrested Rebecca Mozelle’s agent, Wendell Dumas, it caused a lot of speculation and discussion from the media and the public.
The vice squad spat, “Why do I feel like all the TV stations are broadcasting this news?”
Jenny laughed, “The people involved in the previous cases were strangers to the public, but the victims in this case are celebrities they are familiar with, and a lot of people I know are talking about this case.”
Blackie teased, “Including my mom and wife, who have been asking me about the case since dinner yesterday. They were both a little incredulous when they heard that it was Wendell Dumas who ordered the robbery of Rebecca Mozelle.”
The Vice Squad said, “I would say that’s normal, Wendell Duma’s aim was to mold Rebecca Mozelle into a news topic through the robbery, and judging from the results so far, he did succeed. Rebecca Mozelle’s heat and attention is back. With all the mess in the entertainment industry, this is nothing.”
Matthew asked, “Why did Wendell Dumas kill the suspect, Kabineh Bess, if he was the one who directed him to rob the place?”
The lieutenant replied, “The reason is simple. Wendell Dumas simply told Kabineh Bess to rob Rebecca Mozelle to create a news sensation. But not only did Kabine Bess rob Rebecca Mozelle, he also raped Rebecca.
This shows that Kabineh Bess is out of control, and whether out of anger, or his own safety, Wendell Dumas is justified in killing Kabineh Bess. As long as Kabineh Bess doesn’t die, he could potentially threaten Wendell Dumas with this incident.
It’s a ticking time bomb. If it were me, I’d choose to take him out too.”
“Hey guys, I suddenly saw a breaking news on the police department intranet!” Matthew’s voice suddenly rang out.
Blackie snickered, “Did the city decide to give us a raise?”
“No, it’s that Chief Coleman has been reassigned. Chief Reed replaced him and became the acting chief of the detective bureau!”
Upon hearing the news, the crowd gathered around.
The lieutenant was surprised, “Reed got promoted again!”
Blackie laughed, “That’s great news, we’ll have to get Chief Reed to buy us a drink tonight.”
Jackson said, “Chief Reed was also the Director of the Robbery and Murder Division before, now that he’s the Director, won’t he be running the Robbery and Murder Division on the side?”
The lieutenant grunted, “No wonder Deputy Director Magna Mette has been so active these days, I guess she knew about this for a long time.”
Luke wasn’t too surprised, since he’d heard Reed talk about it last year.
March 15th.
Reed hosted his first media conference inside the Detective Bureau, with Los Angeles Directorate Deputy Chief Vinoco Reynolds, Directorate Chief Superintendent of Public Information Gilvie Urso, and other police department executives in attendance.
Reed’s promotion from deputy chief to chief comes with a partial transfer of positions within the detective bureau.
Economic Crimes Division Chief Gennady Morris was promoted to Deputy Chief of the Detectives Bureau.
Magna Mette, formerly Deputy Director of the Robbery-Murder Division, was promoted to Director of the Robbery-Murder Division.
Outside the Robbery-Murder Division Director’s office on March 25th.
“Knock, knock ……” Luke knocked on the office door.
“Come in.”
Luke pushed the door open and walked in to see a white woman in her forties sitting behind the office work, she was medium, slim and had a somewhat serious face.
“Director Mette.”
“Captain Lee is here, have a seat.” Magna Mette stood up and squeezed out a smile on her cheeks, “What would you like to drink? How about a cup of coffee?”
“Okay.” Luke nodded.
Although both of them worked in the Robbery and Murder Division, Magna Mette was mainly in charge of the Third and Fourth Squadrons before, so the two of them didn’t have much direct contact.
Magna Mett poured two cups of coffee, handed Luke a cup, and said, “Previously, the work of the First and Second Squadrons was personally handled by Director Reed, and now that I’m taking over the work of the Robbery and Murder Division, there will be no changes in the general direction. If you guys have any ideas, you can also communicate with me in time.”
“I will.”
Previously, after Reed was promoted to Director, he specifically looked for Luke to talk to him once, and Luke was psychologically prepared for the general arrangement of the Robbery Murder Division.
Seeing Luke’s muted reaction, Magna Mett also felt a bit uninterested, Reed was no longer in charge of the Robbery-Murder Division, but he wasn’t transferred, he was promoted to Director of the Bureau of Detectives, and his influence in the Robbery-Murder Division was still there.
Magna Mate put down her coffee cup and turned her words around, saying, “I called you over today because I’ve come across a difficult case. Squadron One has the highest crime solving rate in the entire Robbery-Murder Division, so this is a case I would like to hand over to your Squadron One.”
“What case?”
“Yesterday morning, a police officer named Ossie Perkins was involved in an automobile accident, and the man died before he could get to the hospital.
Afterward, the police examined the car and found that someone had tampered with the transmission and brakes. The accident was most likely not an accident, it was murder.”
Luke asked, “Which department is in charge of this case now?”
“The Southern Division.”
“Was the officer who was killed also from the Southern Division?”
“It was a patrolman from the Southern Division.” Magna Mate took out a business card and handed it to Luke, “The specific person in charge of the case is Superintendent Manu Murillo of the Southern Division, you can contact him.”
“Understood, I’ll bring someone to investigate.”
Half an hour later, Luke arrived at the Southern Division with his men.
Luke stepped out of the car and saw a Mexican-American man in a police uniform walking towards him.
“You’re Captain Lee from the Robbery and Murder Division, aren’t you, I’ve seen you on TV.”
Luke had just spoken to the other man on the phone and recognized his voice, “Hello, Superintendent Manu Murillo.”
“Not so good to be honest, we just lost one of our best police officers.”
Luke sighed, “I’m sorry to hear about this as well. We’ll do everything we can to investigate the truth about the murder of Constable Ossie Perkins.”
“Thank you, I know you guys are the best when it comes to investigating cases, if you need any assistance, just ask.”
“I would now like to learn as much as I can about the murder of Ossie Perkins.”
“No problem, let’s talk in the conference room.”
Manu Murillo took Luke and the others to the second-floor conference room, where two young police officers brought Luke and the others coffee.
Manu Murillo took out a piece of information and put it on the projector and said, “Ossie is an excellent patrolman, serious, responsible, very righteous, and gets along very well with his colleagues.
Yesterday morning, I suddenly received news that he was involved in a car accident on Highway 105, and his injuries were so serious that he passed away on the way to the hospital. I then rushed to the scene with my men.”
Manu Murillo showed some photos on the projector, “Here are the photos taken at the scene. The car as a whole was turned on its side, the car’s chassis was facing upwards and the car’s glass was shattered.
According to eyewitness accounts, the car was traveling very fast, over one hundred miles per hour. The road ahead was blocked and the car was impassable, but Ossie still did not slow down and drove the car off the highway hitting a nearby rock, causing the car to overturn. After the crash, the wheels of the car were still spinning at a high speed.
This phenomenon was very abnormal. Subsequently, we transported the car back to the police station for a detailed examination. It was found that the car’s gearbox and brakes had been tampered with.
Ossie didn’t intentionally not slow down, but the car was out of control and he couldn’t slow down at all. It was murder.”
“Was he on vacation yesterday?”
“Yes.”
“His girlfriend was returning from out of town and he drove to LAX to pick her up.”
“He was the only one in the car at the time?”
“Yes.”
“Was he driving his own car?”
“He bought it last year, a beautiful silver gray Lexus.”
“Has there been anything unusual about Ossie Perkins lately?”
“Not that I know of.”
Luke said, “I’d like to talk to his partner.”
“Sure. I’ll get him in.” Manu Murillo walked out of the conference room and not long after, walked in with a man in his twenties of Mexican descent.
Manu Murillo introduced, “His name is Tex Werner, Ossie’s partner. This is Captain Lee, who is now in charge of investigating Ossie’s car accident.”
“Captain Lee, hello.”
“Hello.” Luke sized up the other man and asked, “How long have you and Ossie Perkins been partners?”
“Almost a year.”
“What do you think of him?”
“He’s a good guy, very responsible, hard working, and genuine with people, but just a little short-tempered at times.”
“Do you have any thoughts on the car accident he was in?”
Tex Werner licked his lips, “Ossie’s car was tampered with, and it was obviously a murder.”
“Has there been anything unusual about Ossie Perkins in recent times?”
Tex Werner thought for a moment and shook his head, “I don’t see it, we rarely talk about personal matters.”
“Do you have a suspect for the car accident that Ossie Perkins was involved in?”
Tex Werner took a deep breath and said, “Yes, I have a suspect. His name is Mario Branagh, and he was arrested by Ossie and I for stealing a car some time ago. The kid let it slip at the time that when he got out, he would definitely seek revenge on us.”
Luke pursued, “How are Mario Branagh’s car stealing skills?”
This car accident was simple to say, but it was very difficult to operate, if Ossie Perkins had discovered the abnormality in advance, there was a complete possibility of escape when the car wasn’t traveling at a high speed.
Only if the car lost control of the car at a high speed would the driver be killed.
Tex Werner said, “He used to work in a car repair shop, not only can he steal cars, he can also repair them, he is very famous in that area.”
Luke raised an eyebrow, this man fit the profile of the suspect and continued, “Where is Mario Brana now?”
Manu Murillo replied, “That I know, he was just released on bail three days ago.”