Scavenger Hunt Ch. 05

The Chief then said "Chief Deputy Ross, fill us innnn."

"Yes sir." said Cindy. "First of all, I am very happy to report that there were no fatalities as a direct result of the explosion. The Farmer's Market Restaurant had closed, and was evacuated when the train stopped. The Bypass was shut down when the train stopped, as well."

Cindy: "The Fire Department is reporting that the fire is almost out. The HAZMAT Team sampling the air says that the substances in the air are gasoline-based, and that they are getting indications that the explosive was napalm."

"Napalm?!" said Gary Weller. "How in the world did they get napalm in a train tank car?"

"May I ask whooo yooo arrrre?" drawled the Chief.

I said "He's Gary Weller, with the NTSB, Chief. He investigated the airplane incident involving Phyllis Troy and Clarissa Belvedere last February."

"Sorry, I should've introduced myself." said Weller. "Yes, I've been put in charge of the investigation of this incident for the NTSB."

"O-kayyyy." said the Chief. "Welcome to TCPD Headquarters, Agent Weller. Mr. Crowbarrrr, as our former military Officer with a Chemistry dee-greeee, what can you tell us about all that?"

I said "When I was in the Army, we learned how to take a 55-gallon drum and other containers, fill them with gasoline or diesel fuel, and put in some crystals of... no, I'm not going to tell you that... which made the gasoline become the gel colloquially known as 'napalm'.

Weller: "Yes, but a train car loaded with something that potentially dangerous would have to be marked, and the manifest flagged."

Me: "I'll go you one further: these tanker cars were supposed to be ethanol only, so for someone to put gasoline or diesel in them in the first place shows purpose and intent for mischief. And the manifest was all empties, but this particular tank car was filled. My analysis is that someone was able to add that tanker car... and in a specific place along the length of the train. And if it was found ahead of time, it'd only have gasoline in it, so nobody gets all upset."

Me: "I think someone, or a couple of someones, were either stealing a ride on that train, or were waiting nearby for the train to stop. When it did, they went and put the secret sauce in the tanker, maybe even had something to stir it, then affixed a remote control detonator to the lid and beat feet out of there. And when the time came... boom."

"Sir, wouldn't they have been seen?" Theo asked.

"They probably were." I replied. "But there were other people milling about, too, so maybe they counted on not being noticed. And even if they were, who is going to think that they're making napalm on the spot?"

Weller said "That brings up something I wanted to ask... in fact, it's the reason I came here in the first place. Commander Troy, I know you were called and asked to come to the scene, so why didn't you come?"

"Why should I have?" I replied, peering hard at the Federal Agent.

"You're presence would have helped." Weller said.

"How?" I said. I let the question hang, and the silence became awkward. I said again "I'm asking seriously, Mr. Weller. Just how would my presence have changed a thing our Fire Department or HAZMAT Team did?"

"You are the most well-known person in this County, Commander Troy." Weller said. "And greatly respected by most of the people that live here. Your presence would have reassured them that everything was okay, or was going to be."

"Ahhh." I said. "Mr. Rudistan, he thinks I'm an important man."

"We all do, sir." Rudistan said with the merest hint of joviality.

"Okay, Mr. Weller," I said, "I'll give you two answers, and you choose the one that works best for you. First, if the Public cannot see how efficiently our Fire Department responded and handled the incident, and if they can't see how efficiently and effectively the HAZMAT Team responded to ensure the Public's safety, and if they can't see how well all of the Public Safety Department responded under the efficient, professional, and enlightened Administration of Sheriff Antonio Griswold, how is my presence going to help them see it?"

I continued: "And the other answer is that the the Railroad system in the US is massive, and we do have accidents and incidents on occasion, most of them not catastrophic. But what scares the shit out of me is that the current U.S. Transportation Secretary in Washington doesn't have the brains of a Betta Fish, and would be a disaster if he had to handle shipping problems, transportation problems creating baby-formula shortages, airline ticket systems failing and flights having to be canceled during Holiday season, and any real Railroad disasters."

Me: "If that had been vinyl chloride in those tanks instead of one tanker of gelatinized gasoline, we'd have an unmitigated disaster on our hands. So with that bozo in Washington as our Transportation Secretary? He may be as dangerous as U.S. Attorney General Derrick B. Harland. No, Mr. Weller, I will not help you try to reassure the Public. The Public had better be as unreassured as it has the wits to be!"

After the long silence in the room, I finally said: "But I also was not there because I was investigating the murder of Amelia Sedgwick, which might have been prevented if the FBI hadn't prematurely raided that warehouse against my advice." My eyes bored into Jack Muscone's as I said it. His glare back at me was exactly equal in its intensity.

Weller didn't let it go: "What was more important, Commander? That crime that your people handled efficiently?... they caught the shooters... or this potential railroad disaster?"

"The murder." I said simply. Weller looked scandalized. I continued: "I don't exist here to be your optical illusion to fool the Public---"

"Agent Weller," Cindy Ross said, interrupting me, "would now be a bad time to tell you that the FRA found two breaches in the railroad tracks that created alarms, not just one?"

"What?" Weller said.

Cindy brought up a map on the 5x4 matrix of monitors. She said "The first breach that occurred was here, over 600 yards south of the tracks's proximity to BOW Enterprises. The second breach, which happened seconds after the first one, was further north, a little closer to BOW Enterprises. And sir, I'm not that great at calculus, except for its business applications like continuous interest... but Professor Stephanie Steele, who is being nominated for the Nobel Prize in Astronomy, is very good at the mathematics of motion."

Cindy said: "I contacted her and gave her all the coordinates, as well as the length and weight of the train and the motive power pulling it, that I got from the FRA. She says that if only the first rail break and alarm, the train stops with that tanker right in front of BOW Enterprises, and the explosion could have severely damage the facility. As it was, the train stopped short, and we lost a good restaurant but nothing worse."

Chief Moynahan said "That is a goooood starting point for a criminal investigation, Mr. Weller."

"Uh, yeah, it is." said Weller, who was stunned by the news.

I said "Solve that, and it's one hell of a citation on the wall for you, Agent Weller."

Weller said "I don't care about that. But I do care about terrorism, foreign or domestic. Mr. Muscone, I'm going to need your help on this..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Weller and all of the other Federal Agents left the room to confer and to make phone calls. The Chief said "Okay, let's hear about this ambush and murrrrderrrr."

Claire Michaels said "Just about all of us have been on the Toyota Gang armed robberies, and Lieutenant Parker has collated everything we have so far. Teddy?"

"Thank you, ma'am." said Parker. "First, the cell of the Toyota Gang that we are calling the Asian Team... because that's what they call themselves... successfully ambushed the TCSD van taking Amelia Sedgwick back to the prison facility near the Hospital. They killed her and two Deputy Sheriffs, and I'm not mentioning their names so that those names won't be leaked to the Press before the next of kin can be notified."

Detective Kerri Ambrose said "Would the Press here really do that?"

"Yes." I said with reptilian flatness. "They have in the past, and I sure as hell don't trust them not to do it again." Dwight nodded thoughtfully.

Teddy Parker continued: "All four lawyered up, and all four immediately invoked. They've all been charged with murder in the first. One of the women at the scene yelled what amounted to an unsolicited confession. Her name is Cassandra Yeoh, and she is a programmer for MegaTech Industries. No prior criminal record at all, yet she graduated straight to Murder-1, and apparently with a lot of hate."

I said "I'll talk more about it later, but yes, there was a lot of hatred for Amelia Sedgwick in the Swamp Frogs's hearts. But I'm distracting you... keep going."

"Please sir, feel free to interrupt at any time." said Parker. "Anyway, beyond the Asian Team four, we have three more arrests tonight. I don't have the name of the man Commander Troy arrested at the Hospital... sir, did you file your Police report?"

I said "The Feds came and got him, right out of my Interrogation Room. And I may not bother even making a Police report of the incident; in hindsight, I'm not sure how good a case we can even make against him."

"Seeee meeee after the meeeeting." drawled the Chief, overusing his allotment of 'e's. I nodded in acknowledgement of the instruction.

Teddy Parker: "The two men we got in the office building off Jefferson Avenue were Dr. Mark Wages, a high level official of MegaTech Industries, who used to work at their Palmyra County office until that office was shut down." (Author's note: 'Long Cool Woman')

Parker: "The other man is Feng Xingshi, Peter Segui's colleague at Stubbs & Wheaton Venture Capital, LLC, in Palmyra County. We thought he might be one of the Asian Team four, but we now think he may be a higher-up, either what we're calling a (air quotes) 'Liaison', or the actual leadership of the group."

Chief Moynahan said "Dooo we have the Asian Team's cellphones and vehicle cameras, and all that stuff?"

It suddenly grew quiet in the room. Lt. Jerome Davis said "No sir. They did not have cellphones on them when we arrested them, and the cars weren't tricked out to record what they were doing. Different Toyotas were being used after the Feds seized the tricked out ones in that auto repair shop."

I said "But our own Officer-cams and videocams got the unsolicited confession out of Cassandra Yeoh, isn't that right?" Jerome nodded in confirmation.

The Chief said "Captain Mike-ulls, a little test for yooo... exactly what are we going to be giving the District Attorney's Office to prosss-uh-cuuuute? Especially concerning this Azzzian gang?"

Claire said "We've got 12 perps dead to rights, caught in the act of armed robbery or murder. We have significant electronic data from their confiscated phones, showing connections to each other. I don't know exactly how Commander Troy wants to handle the data he obtained..." She looked over at me. I knew she meant Keiko Shimono.

I replied "As a Confidential Informant."

Claire said "We have that, then, giving us a further connection between the Asian Team and the others. As to the wider operations and conspiracies, the Feds have taken over most of it, and we can get their data to augment what we already have."

"Which izzz?" the Chief asked. "Especially regarding the higher-ups, like Feng Xingshi, Peter Segui, Dee Stubbs? And now this Squerciati guy, and Mark Wages? Where's their tie-ins?"

After a moment of awkward silence, Claire said "I'm not sure how to answer that, sir. I need to consult with Commander Troy and the ADA on how to proceed with them."

I said "I guess I will be filing that Police report on Squerciati. Chief, the connection is that Feng Xingshi and Wages were found in the office where Wages's phone was pinging... the phone that took a call from Squerciati at the Hospital to report the success of mission, as Amelia Sedgwick was indeed dead. And we can work back from there. It is complex, Chief, but I think Paulina can make a good case."

"If it's Paulina." Cindy Ross said. "God help us if Miriam Walters puts Savannah Fineman on it."

"For armed robbery? For murder in the first?" I replied. "Paulina is back with MCD cases now."

"Just sayin', is all." Cindy said. I peered at her. What does she know that I don't know? I wondered to myself...

Chief Moynahan said "O-kayyy, unless there's something really pressing, let's shut down on the Toyota Gang case for the night. We'll pick it back up in the morning, and maybe not until Monday morrrrr-ning..."

Part 20 - Oops, We Did It Again

Saturday, October 16th. Little Jack Burke's birthday was October 15th, but because of all that happened, the gift-giving had been delayed. He wasn't happy about it, but his mood improved a lot when Teresa told him we would make it up to him with a big pizza party at The Cabin today. This morning, he got his presents from Doug, Mike, and Todd and Teresa, then Todd had to go back to BOW Enterprises to make sure the Federal Government didn't try any stunts in the aftermath of the train incident.

The Bypass and County Road 5 were still shut down, though we'd begun allowing employees of BigPharmaCorp, Crown Chemicals, and BOW Enterprises to drive directly to their places of work via the way that did not approach the derailment site, do not pass Go, do not collect $200.

At 9:00am, Paulina and I began 'working from home' on the Toyota Gang cases. After two hours, she gave me her analysis. And it wasn't all that good.

"You caught three teams in the act of their crimes, and those are absolutely solid." she said. "But the further out you go from those specific incidents, the harder and harder it's going to get to prove anything."

Paulina: "The similarity of the names of the burner phones and the emails is circumstantial, but good. Ditto that for the Xboxes. And you can show the Black Team and the Hispanic Team actually possessed the phones you captured via their fingerprints. But you found no phones on the Asian Team that shot up the TCSD van, so saying that those four you arrested are the four using the Asian emails and cellphones isn't solidly linked... without a confession by someone."

I nodded soberly as Paulina continued: "So you have some grounds for showing the general conspiracy, but you don't need it for the specific crimes you're busting the captured perps for, just for additional charges. And your C.I., Keiko, gave you the outline, but you said the names she gave were only half-right, and she is definitely going to be discredited as a reliable witness on several grounds, not the least of which was that she told you all that while you were banging her."

I shrugged my shoulders, making Paulina whimper a laugh, then she said "And then we start getting to the (air quotes) 'Periphery People'. I'll tell you right now, you have nothing, nothing at all, on Feng Xingshi, unless you or the Feds can show some kind of fraud connected with Stubbs & Wheaton Venture Capital. Wages made that call to you from the same burner that Squerciati called, but the only thing you have on Xingshi is that he was in the room with Wages at the time they were arrested. Not at the time of the phone call, but the time they were arrested."

"Yeah, I see what you're saying." I said forlornly.

"Now let's talk about Dr. Wages." Paulina said. "Your cellphone recorded the call he made to you. You can probably get a voice ID match to him. His words seem to confirm the Olympics of Crime as well as showing the attack on Amanda Sedgwick was part of it. But it's thin. Verrrry thin."

"How so?" I asked. "How could he have known about the Sedgwick attack? We maintained radio silence on it. And the Olympics of Crime? I myself only heard that from Keiko Shimono... oh... Laura's undercover mission that was almost a disaster."

"Yes." Paulina said. "I've already mentioned how difficult using Keiko as a reliable confirmation would be. And I don't know how much of Laura's mission she wants to be put out into the Public's knowledge. And Wages can say he and Keiko and some others just made up the 'Olympics of Crime', as some sort of fantasy story more suitable for the Literotica website."

I felt myself slipping into a reverie. I came out of it and said "Hmm... I wonder if Keiko fed me that line about the Olympics of Crime solely to provide Wages just that cover."

"Could be." Paulina said. "When Laura told me about that, I, like you, was wondering how Keiko could know the current stuff that was going on while she was in prison. Anyway, that's the least of our issues. The much worse one is how you got Wages's cell phone number and location."

I said "Ahhh, Squerciati. I was on thin ice legally, wasn't I?"

Paulina said "Ice? I'd say you were trying to walk on melted water with that one, and it's likely not going to hold up. You recorded his conversation without a warrant. You can claim 'exigent circumstances', and can claim it's not illegal to have recorded it, and you'd have a fighting chance both ways. But the way you took him down and took his cellphone?"

"Yeah, I get it." I said.

Paulina said: "My guess is that you acted on what you heard him say, so you won't be in legal trouble. But that's how you got Wages's cell number, and that's how you traced Wages to where he was. Even Rodney K. Watts and Franklin Washington are not going to let that be admissible in Court. And so the warrant to raid the building and arrest Wages is thrown out, and therefore the arrest and the whole case against Wages is thrown out."

Seeing my somber look, Paulina said "Don't feel too badly. You uncovered and exposed a huge criminal organization and crime spree, even if you can't prove all of it. And the Feds's case? I look forward to watching them try to prove that the perps in custody stole the Double Eagles and possessed the 'China White' they found in that warehouse. You were right: Jack Muscone acted wayyyy too prematurely in making that raid."

I said "So what can we do?"

Paulina said "Let it play out. You actually have some time. The Feds have no plans to bring anyone to trial just yet; they want to work on getting links to the Cartels, the pipelines, and the Organized Crime figures involved. And they may ask for a delay in the trials of your perps, which the Judges are likely to give them."

Paulina: "And you can use the time to keep working the cases. You need someone to confess something. Offer deals. Squerciati wanted a deal. Offer him one, even though he doesn't need it. Ditto that for Feng Xingshi. He may not realize that his position is a lot stronger than it looks."

Paulina: "And look for the weak links in the chains, and put heavy pressure on those weak links. Wages is potentially a weak link. Cassandra Yeoh is a weak link. 'Heywood J' is a weak link. Work 'em like only the Iron Crowbar can."

I gave that a brief smile, then said "We'll have to see. I am strongly suspecting that the Feds are going to come swooping down on this and causing massive problems. Like you said... we'll just let it play out."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

3:00pm, Saturday, October 16th. Jack Burke was now eight years old, and his birthday party was in full swing. After the initial gift-giving and birthday-cake-and-ice-cream consumption, the kids played while we bigger kids talked amongst ourselves.

Todd, Teresa, Cindy, Sheriff Griswold, and I went out on the back deck. I lit the fire pot and we gathered around it as we talked.

Todd said "We were lucky. If that tanker car explodes right next to our building, it not only could've severely damaged the structure, not to mention set it on fire, it could've hurt or killed people. Napalm sucks the oxygen right out of the air, and creates a huge amount of carbon monoxide (CO) gas. People wouldn't have to be burned to be asphyxiated or have CO poisoning."