The man briefly glanced her way before he returned to staring at the wall and biting his nails. His clothes were wrinkled, his hair unkempt and a stale smell of sweat emanated from his body. Maggie noted his hands fidgeting and wondered if he was nervous or desperate for a fix.
She leaned forward and let the silence build.
‘Don’t know what you’re talking about.’ He shifted in his chair.
‘How about I refresh your memory? Burley Woods? You were lurking around watching the police at a crime scene like an addict waiting for his dealer to arrive. When I approached and called out to speak to you, you ran off in the direction of Knowle Hill. Why did you run off?’
‘Why the fuck do you think?’ He snorted.
‘Did you have drugs in your possession at that time too?’
‘What do you want with me? The drugs were for personal use, so just charge me, bail me, whatever. I don’t have time for this shit.’
‘I’d like to ask you why you were hanging around the crime scene? Did you see anything prior to the police arriving? Do you make a habit of hanging around crime scenes?’ Maggie was beginning to wonder if this could be the mysterious man Raven had mentioned. Though the name didn’t fit, it was likely Raven gave a false name to throw them off the scent.
‘Thought you coppers were supposed to be clever. Why do you think I would be hanging around there? And no, I don’t go hanging around crime scenes. What do you take me for? Some kinda weirdo.’
‘Yes, that is exactly what I take you for. Look. Can we just cut the bullshit here? The sooner you answer my questions, the sooner you’ll be back out and can go and get that gear you so obviously need. If you want to play games, I’m more than happy to keep you locked in a cell until you’re vomiting your guts up all over the walls.’
‘Fuck sake. Yes. I go there to score drugs, OK? Like you said, an addict waiting for a score. Happy now? There’s usually someone waiting to deal, but when I saw the police tape, I just wanted to take a look. I had a little bit of gear on me and didn’t want to be caught, so I freaked out and ran off. I live right around the corner. That’s why you couldn’t find me. I was watching you look around from my window.’
‘So, you hadn’t been to the woods earlier, or heard anything that sounded suspicious in the early hours of the morning? ‘
‘Nope. Can I go now?’
‘Can you account for your whereabouts?’
‘If you’re asking me where I was, I’ll need to check my diary.’ He smirked.
‘This is no laughing matter. You could be facing serious charges.’
‘Christ. Take it easy. I do work you know. Long hours. And when I’m done, I go straight home. My girlfriend works in the evenings, so I have to look after the kids. You can check that all out. Now really, are we done here? I don’t want to lose my job.’
Maggie sighed with frustration. He was just some loser in the wrong place at the wrong time. ‘I’ll speak to the other officer. He’ll deal with the drugs matter. If you think of anything, give me a call.’ She stood and looked directly at him. ‘Next time an officer calls out and wants to speak with you, don’t run off.’ She left the room and shut the door behind her.
After letting the custody sergeant know she was finished, Maggie headed back up to her office. She was disappointed that had led nowhere, however she sent a quick email to social care. The man admitted to drug use and having caring responsibilities for his children. They could deal with that.
She had known the minute she walked into the interview room that it would probably be a waste of time, as he didn’t look like he had enough sense to tie his laces, let alone chop up a body. She’d get Bethany to check out his movements.
Bethany looked up with eager eyes as Maggie arrived at the open-plan office. ‘Any luck?’
‘Total waste of time. Drugs, nothing more. But can you do me a favour and check out these details for me?’ She passed over a piece of paper. ‘Any CCTV in the area?’
‘Nothing so far. I’ll keep you posted. Nathan called. He wants you to meet him at Stafford Probation this afternoon. Said he booked an appointment with Tony Preston – he’s Bill Raven’s current officer.’
‘Thanks.’ Maggie wrote a quick email to Sarah Hardy to get the heads-up on Tony Preston. Although Probation were generally helpful, she had come across a few arseholes and wanted as much forewarning as possible. Her phone dinged and Maggie read the immediate response from Sarah. It confirmed her worst fears: Mr Preston was a pompous arse. Not the best officer, he was arrogant and manipulative and often behind in updating his records.
Maggie rang Nathan. She didn’t have time to waste and would rather not have to trek to Stafford Probation office if she could avoid it.
‘DS Wright speaking.’
‘Hey. How soon do you need me?’
‘Don’t bother. Mr Preston has nothing new to offer; in fact, he doesn’t seem to know much about his own case and his records are a mess. They’ve agreed to send over his most recent risk assessment though, so we may find something there, once it’s been updated that is.’
‘Why isn’t his manager all over him?’
‘That’s what I’m going to find out.’
Maggie was relieved. After learning about Dr Vraines and then the recent avenue being a non-starter, she had enough paperwork to fill out before the end of her day. She didn’t envy Tony Preston. If Nathan got his way, the Probation Officer might not be holding that case, or any case, for much longer.
CHAPTER SEVENTY-ONE
With the start of a new week, Maggie was hoping that they would have something soon to push the case forward. She’d arranged a meeting with Dr Blake at her lab. Waiting for the forensic evidence to come in dribs and drabs made her struggle to put the full picture together. If she could talk everything through with Fiona, the missing pieces may fall into place.
Fiona worked from Staffordshire’s Police Headquarters in a specially designed lab that was recently funded by the police crime commissioner. The pathologist report had confirmed that the most recent victim had died from suffocation before her body was dismembered into what Fiona guessed were eight parts, even though only the head, both arms and lower part of the left leg had been recovered.
Unfortunately, animals had made a meal out of the victim’s face, so they’d need to rely on other techniques to get a formal ID. New and old track marks on the arms also established that the latest victim was an intravenous drug user and was likely drugged in captivity.
‘In terms of the weapon, can you talk me through your findings?’
‘No problem. In dismemberment cases, it’s common that circular saws or large kitchen knives are used.’ Fiona pulled down a screen, fired up her laptop and opened the post mortem pictures so that she could show Maggie the points she was discussing as they went along. ‘You can see with our unidentified female here that the limbs were individually wrapped first in plastic shopping bags before being wrapped in black bin bags and then secured with silver duct tape. All items that you can purchase at local grocery or DIY stores.’ Fiona flicked to the next picture. ‘The examination of dismembered limbs requires a whole different approach. I need to investigate any wounds, tissue, bones and cartilage to make sure forensic evidence isn’t lost in transit.’
‘Do you think some of it’s been lost?’ Maggie pressed her lips together.
‘You can wipe that look of concern off your face. My team are vigilant and we’ve recorded and compiled the evidence without issue.’
Dr Blake continued. ‘We need to consider how the victims of murder are generally dismembered. Contrary to popular belief, a person doesn’t need medical knowledge to chop someone up. Sorry to be so blunt.’
Maggie listened intently.
‘It’s quite demanding though, both physically and psychologically, so you’re probably looking at someone in reasonable physical shape. But also someone who doesn’t have a problem undertaking gruesome tasks.’ Fiona spoke as if she was talking about what she was g
oing to buy for her dinner.
Dr Blake put three pictures on the whiteboard of all three victims for comparison. ‘Have a look at these. A body is commonly dismembered into six pieces. Sometimes skin, tissue and muscle can also be removed in segments, this is often as an attempt to remove tattoos or fingers, anything to hinder identification. None of this occurred with our victims.’
Maggie took out her notebook and started writing down the key points to refer to at a later time. Why does the killer want the women to be identified, when this clearly helps the police build a case against them?
While Maggie was in mid-scribble, Dr Blake carried on. ‘An electric saw was used to dismember the first victim, Lorraine Rugman.’
Maggie rubbed her temples.
‘You’ll see that after the first murder, the killer honed their technique and changed their weapon. They moved to a more efficient instrument.’ She clicked to the next picture. ‘A pair of long-arm ratchet anvil loppers. These are able to cut through skin, tissue, muscle and some bone in a quick and effective manner. Commonly used for cutting large branches out of trees.’
‘Really? I’ll be watching the gardener more closely now.’ Maggie tried to lighten the mood.
Fiona laughed. ‘I definitely believe the killer has refined their skills, and loppers are easily purchased and fairly cheap.’ She put another picture up on the screen. Dr Blake pointed to it. ‘See there? The teeth of the blade snagged the flesh here and here. Small particles of concrete dust and dirt were found in the cuts, so from that, I concluded that Lorraine was probably killed on a concrete floor, something like an unfinished cellar for instance. You’ll recall the flat where Raven had alleged he murdered the victims had wood floors with some carpeting. No wood or carpet fibres were embedded in the any of the parts recovered. If you find the location, we can compare the samples.’
‘But we know Raven couldn’t have killed these women, so that’s not surprising. What if the killer moved the body elsewhere to dismember it?’
‘That’s a possibility. Dismembering a body produces significant contamination of the scene and possibly the offender. Body fluids may seep into carpets, through floorboards, and between tiles and blood splatter would be inevitable if the victims were alive at the point of death.’
‘So, when we do find the kill site, forensics will be looking for all those things?’
‘Yes, and more. Limbs may have been lifted and rested on a surface to enable ease when sawing and this can leave tool marks on a variety of surfaces, for instance on the edge of a bathtub. This is just my personal opinion, but I think the disposal sites were carefully chosen. They were specific. The killer wanted the parts to be found, the same way they wanted the victims to be identified.’
‘I agree with you. There are still parts that remain missing, though, and we want to be able to put the families’ minds at rest.’
‘Animal activity may affect that. I’d suggest you also look in any nearby lakes or canals. The parts may have been weighed down and disposed of.’
‘We’ll do our best.’ Maggie managed a weak smile.
‘Well, in terms of the trace evidence, and the hands in all three of the victims, the fingernails were first examined for damage and then sampled for the offender’s DNA. We lifted finger and palm prints and searched the database. Due to their lifestyle, two of the victims were found in the system for various offences relating to drug possession and prostitution and now we’re just waiting to confirm the third. I’ll be sure to send that over as soon as it comes in. I’m going to have to kick you out now as there is a fellow waiting for me.’ She pointed towards the mortuary examination room.
‘Sorry for delaying you and thanks so much for all of this. I’ll speak to you soon.’ Maggie put her notebook away and headed for the door.
‘Without being rude, let’s hope you don’t have to …’
CHAPTER SEVENTY-TWO
On the short bus ride back to the office, Maggie reviewed her notes. Three dead women and other than the J-man and Adrian Harrison, the team didn’t have anyone else in their sights. Well, there was Bill Raven, of course, but they needed the connection. When she arrived at the police station, everyone was focused on their screens. Maggie said a quick hello, sat down and got to work.
The phone on her desk rang. Maggie answered it and listened as the caller spoke in a low tone.
‘I’ve just watched the news and saw something about the murders of those women.’
‘OK. Before you go on, can I just get your name and details?’ Maggie raised her pen to the pad of paper on her desk.
‘No! I’ll tell you what I know, but I don’t want anything leading back to me. If that’s not good enough, I’ll just hang up now.’ His voice was shaky.
‘That’s fine, sir. What is it that you want to tell me?’
‘Sasha Thompson. She’s always with Adrian. If you want to find him, ask around for her. He won’t be far from her.’
‘Do you know who I should be asking for this information?’ The man provided her with a few names. Maggie scribbled the details down as fast as she could. She hoped she’d be able to read her writing afterwards. They had already known about Sasha and Maggie had interviewed her with a few others at the start of the original investigation. At the time, she had been dismissed as a person of interest; lately, after providing details showing she was in Manchester when Lorraine’s remains had been discovered, she had been ruled out of having any involvement. When they tried to locate her again recently, it was assumed she had left the area, possibly with Adrian.
‘And they ain’t gone you know.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘The news says they had left Staffordshire. That’s a load of bull. Apparently, they came into some money, probably drug money. Robbing bastards. They’re definitely still about though, as a friend of mine scored some weed off Adrian the other day.’
‘Can I ask why you’ve waited so long to come forward? Is there any chance you can come in and speak to me? I’d like to get more details off you in person if I could?’
‘I didn’t think anything I had to say was important, but once I saw that bullshit on the telly, well I had to say something. Adrian’s a prick. He deserves to get hassled. As for coming in … Fuck that. I’ve told you all I know.’ The man hung up.
Maggie stared at the receiver before replacing it in the cradle.
She didn’t want to get her hopes up, he could be trying to get Adrian in trouble for some drug deal gone wrong, but the caller had been so sure. She didn’t realize she had been smiling until Nathan’s voice broke her from the thoughts.
‘Are you going to tell me what’s happening, or do I have to guess?’
‘You’re not going to believe this. I think we finally may have something.’
He looked at her, head tilted and waited for her response. ‘Well?’
‘Someone has come forward. They saw the most recent press conference and remembered Sasha Thompson was with Adrian Harrison around the time of Raven’s arrest.’
‘Yeah, I thought we already knew that.’
‘If you let me finish.’ She gave him a frosty look.
Nathan’s face flushed and he apologized for interrupting. Maggie immediately regretted being so sharp and updated him on what the caller had said.
‘I’m going to pass some of the names he gave on to Bethany to check, and I’ll check some too. Then go out and speak to anyone who may be able to shed more light on their whereabouts.’ A wide grin spread across Maggie’s face.
‘Excellent work. As much as I hate to admit it, maybe the press conferences were a good idea after all.’
Maggie wasn’t sure she agreed with Nathan’s sentiment, her ego was more than bruised after the media had verbally slaughtered her, but she knew this was a promising development and hoped it didn’t lead them down the wrong path. She gathered her notes and headed to the incident room.
CHAPTER SEVENTY-THREE
DI Rutherford stormed into the inci
dent room waving the pathologist’s report around. ‘Open your ears, people – this is going to throw a spanner in the works and the shitstorm it produces will be legendary.’
The room fell silent. ‘We have an ID on the victim found in Burley Woods and …’
‘Come on, guv.’ Maggie stood.
‘… it does not belong to the third victim that Raven had confessed to killing.’ There was a collective sigh in the room. ‘So that leaves us with two questions: where the hell is Zoe Bridle and how does Veronica Chapel fit into this pattern of murders? We need answers.’ She turned to the board, scanning the evidence and suspects. ‘Maggie, I take it this is not the news you were hoping for?’
‘I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed … Where is Zoe Bridle? We’ll need to trace her.’
‘She’s technically a misper and we don’t have the resources to take on other people’s work. We can ask to be kept in the loop though. Have we located the J-man or Adrian Harrison?’ She looked around the room waiting for a response.
‘Not yet, guv.’ Bethany opened her notebook and flipped through the pages. ‘Everything we do know is there on the board. When I double checked with the prison, they were adamant that Harrison had given the address that he shared with Raven as his last release address, and when officers went around to chat with him they were told he hasn’t been seen for months. We now believe that no address checks were undertaken by the prison and after returning to the flat to collect his belongings, Harrison fled the area with the Thompson woman.’
‘Ah, ma’am. I have …’
Rutherford held up her hand. ‘Hang on, Maggie. Months? So how long between the last sighting and Lorraine’s murder?’ DI Rutherford felt flustered.
‘About three months. One person in the building said they saw him leave with a large duffel bag. I guess we can assume that’s when he left? The witness couldn’t give an exact date but it tallies with the time Harrison was released. The landlord says that a lot of property had been left behind though. The reliability of those in that building is questionable given their … um … background …’
The Other Killer Page 20
