What Happened To Flynn

by Pat Muir

  “Mr. Jackson, you’d better look for the marked bills and show them to the attorney to avoid evidence challenges later,” I said.

  “Good point, Shane.”

  I could hear Jackson giving instructions to other DEA agents in the room. It took twenty minutes for Jackson to find the marked bills. He must have gone outside to talk to Swift’s attorney, who was being kept behind a security line. “Mr. Sweeny, I want you to see these bills, which we had previously marked and that glow under this fluorescent light.”

  “I see them. I reserve the right to challenge your seizing them.”

  “The serial numbers are also known to us. They were in a stash of illicit funds that has been delivered to your client.”

  I heard no reply from Sweeny. “He wants to talk to Swift, but we are not allowing it at this time. We need to book him first,” said Jackson. “Great job you did in organizing this, Shane.”

  I radioed Baker to proceed with the arrest of Perana and the search of his home and car. Then Steve radioed to let me know what else was happening on the site. “Andy’s office wasn’t locked, so we just walked in. He was furious and swore bloody murder as I handcuffed him. I think he would have tried to bolt if I hadn’t had a deputy with me. I wouldn’t have had the strength to stop him. I had evidence techs seize all his property. He had only a modest amount of cash in his office till, but we seized it anyway. I found the chute to Swift’s office, and I am having it photographed.” He paused. “I then went to his brother’s office, where we performed the same search and seizure operations. Wayne looked terrified as I put him in handcuffs and put him in a patrol car where he could see his brother in another car. ‘My brother had nothing to do with this,’ Andy yelled at me.”

  “He may not have known,” I commented. “It’s another case of innocents being caught up by the activities of others.”

  Steve called back as they were finishing up around four o’clock. “I got two office keys from employees here and am locking the place up. Swift’s employees have been asking questions about whether they still have jobs and if they are going to get their pay. I referred them to Swift’s attorney, who has been a pain in the butt here, challenging me on trivia.”

  “Come back to the office, and I’ll brief you on what is happening elsewhere,” I told him.

  I had been receiving reports throughout the day. Reporters had come to one of the check cashing businesses, where a couple of employees had been arrested for failing to comply with officers’ demands. Questions had been directed to the sheriff’s public relations officer. Forbes called me to say the same thing was going on at the DEA office.

  Somebody turned on a television near me, and I watched Thompson talking to a reporter in front of Swift’s San Marcos home. Technicians behind him were carrying out antiques, paintings, and jewelry cabinets. Behind, I could see a flatbed truck pulling an older Bentley onto its bed. Two Mercedes Benzes and a Range Rover looked prepared for the same fate. Reports from the arresting deputies continued. I had to make sure that all records and equipment taken were secured, and I needed verification that all businesses had been closed down, posted, and boarded up or guarded.

  Baker radioed me. “We searched Perana’s house and found his wife had fifteen hundred dollars in her purse,” he reported. “They were mostly in one-hundred-dollar denominations, which we deemed drug money proceeds, so we arrested her. She claimed her husband had given it to her but did not answer when we asked her where he got it from. She was screaming like crazy when we hauled her out to our car. Her concern appeared to be mostly for her two-year-old daughter in the house. I told her we had called child protective services to take custody. She was speaking Spanish most of the time, so I have a suspicion she is undocumented, another factor in her being so upset.”

  “Good work, guys,” I told them. “Bring her in for questioning.” I thought about that for a few minutes and then called Baker back. “This money laundering case is being done under DEA auspices, even though you got state warrants for their arrest. Pick up Geraldo and take them both to the federal detention center.”

  My biggest disappointment was that Arzeta had not been apprehended. His apartment had been searched, but nothing of significance had been found—no paper records, no computer, no cash, and moreover, no luggage bag. He had fled. Why hadn’t the team waiting outside the apartment seen and stopped Arzeta from leaving? I suspected they’d failed to receive the raiding order in a timely manner. The fault would lie at Thompson’s door, but he would never admit it.

  An officer raiding Andy Collins’s apartment radioed, “When we opened the safe in the Collins apartment, we found almost twelve thousand dollars, nearly all in one-hundred-dollar bills.”

  I felt elated. We had a possible connection to the dead man’s money, another piece of evidence pointing to Collins’s and Bailey’s guilt. I asked that the bills be brought to forensics and not given to the DEA. If they had Flynn’s fingerprints on them, the murder case was solved. I also told him to bring in Collins’s computer. I wanted it examined to see if it contained any incriminating e-mail messages.

  I got home late that night, just in time for the 11 p.m. news. I knew Thompson, publicity hound that he was, had TV crews primed for the raid of Larry Swift’s home. The camera focused on deputies hauling off valuable personal belongings from the house and then on Marge Holmes, who looked fabulous as she declined to answer the reporter’s questions. Thompson appeared on the screen, telling the crew that this arrest was the result of a long investigation carried out by his staff in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration. He commented that Swift was a prominent businessman but was not above the law.

  “Money laundering is a crime,” he added, “whether it be hundreds or millions of dollars.”

  I think Thompson said a great deal more, but the TV station would have edited out his pompous ramblings on crime. They would have other news to report. However, the press was in full swing the next morning. The front page of the local newspaper carried a picture of Larry Swift under the headline: “Prominent Businessman Arrested for Money Laundering.” Inside were more details of the charges, a photograph of his office, and even a society picture of him with the mayor and other local celebrities. Marge Holmes also appeared in that picture. Even in the grainy newspaper photo, she appeared a staggering beauty. The sheriff’s media person had given the press much to work on. The article mentioned Swift’s Lake San Marcos home and his board membership in a couple of charities. Comments of astonishment and disbelief by the mayor and friends were also reported.

  CHAPTER 23

  The next day, Steve and I discussed Swift’s and Andy Collins’ involvement in Flynn’s murder with Thompson. “We believe the murder took place in Sonoma County and was planned in San Diego County,” I told him. We reviewed the evidence together and decided the district attorneys for the two counties should help decide what to do. I set up a conference call between the two DA offices, Brenda Williams for San Diego and Dorothy McMain for Sonoma County, with Steve and me leading the discussion. Dorothy had Detective Angie Haigh participate in the conversation.

  I gave the three women a history of the case, mentioning our two original suspects as well as the final ones. I then had Steve report his research on Swift’s phone calls to Bailey and Arzeta and the latter’s phone calls to Andy Collins. I told them of the twelve thousand dollars found in Collins’s safe.

  “I think these phone calls show Swift and Collins were involved in Flynn’s murder,” I said. “The question is whether you should charge Andy Collins and Larry Swift with murder or conspiracy to commit murder.”

  “Have you found Flynn’s fingerprints on the Collins cash?” asked Angie.

  “It’s still being examined,” I replied.

  “We are not expecting to find it either,” said Steve. “That much cash doesn’t fit in a man’s wallet, so Flynn would have been given it in a bank envelope. He likely never touched the bills.”

  “Hm!” said Dorothy. “
The trouble is, we don’t have a corpse, and we don’t know where the murder took place,” said Dorothy. “My office, therefore, would not be prepared to charge either man. If we find Flynn’s body in our county, we would be happy to conduct a murder prosecution.”

  I was disappointed. “You don’t think Flynn’s dead body being in the trunk of his car is sufficient evidence to charge Swift and Collins? Murder cases have been made when no body was found. Look at motivation. Andy Collins works for Larry Swift, whose money laundering operation was being exposed by Flynn. Bailey’s fingerprint was found on the gas connector in the earlier attempt to assassinate Flynn. Bailey and Collins drove four hundred miles to the fishing camp in a stolen car, and Collins was clearly not interested in fishing.”

  “You’ve convinced me,” replied Dorothy. “It’s what I can convince twelve jurors that matters. You’ve got the fundamental problem that the perpetrator’s Avalon left a day after Flynn’s car disappeared from the park. You reckoned Collins or Bailey drove Flynn’s car away that Tuesday with Flynn’s body in the trunk after leaving it overnight somewhere.”

  “The body could have been dumped on Sunday night,” I interrupted. “Flynn’s car could have been driven to Compton on Monday or Tuesday.”

  “Shane, you made the same argument when you believed Dollar and Johnson were the killers. In the latter case, you felt assured when you found money in Dollar’s safe that matched what Flynn had on him. Now you find Andy Collins has a similar amount. A good attorney will challenge your theory and suggest Dollar and Johnson, whose alibi comes from a close relative, as the guilty party instead. If I choose your theory that Flynn’s car was driven to Compton on Monday, where would my case be if Collins or Bailey, when you apprehend one of them, comes up with a reliable witness placing them both in the camp that day? Then we would have to rely on your alternative theory of Flynn’s car being parked nearby and driven off on Tuesday. I could not convince a jury that murderers would leave themselves exposed like that. Wouldn’t you agree with that assessment, Angie?”

  That detective replied, “I certainly would.”

  “Perhaps Flynn’s car was parked in a secluded spot outside the park,” I said. “Perhaps there was a third party to drive off the car, thus giving cover to Collins and Bailey.”

  “Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps,” responded Dorothy. “Your evidence is not strong enough. I am not prepared to proceed until a body is found.”

  “Do you think we have enough evidence to charge Swift and his associates with conspiracy to murder?” I asked Brenda.

  “I think we do,” replied Brenda, “but I will have to check with my division head.”

  Dorothy then said, “Your theory, Shane, is that Flynn was killed to stop him from giving evidence about money laundering against Swift. So, he or Arzeta would have given the order for Collins and Bailey to go after Flynn. Andy Collins is the weak element. He doesn’t have the lifestyle of Swift, so he has less to lose. You should threaten to charge him with conspiracy to commit murder in return for a reduced charge against that and for his role in the money laundering. If he confesses, then you probably have enough evidence to convict Swift of the same charge…and Bailey whenever you catch him. That leaves it open for me to charge all three with murder when the body is found.”

  “A very good suggestion,” said Brenda. “Thank you.”

  I concurred and began to fill out the arrest warrant affidavits for Swift and Andy Collins. I had Robert Neill approve them, and then I went to court to get them signed. I called Drew Ryan to tell him I wanted to question Andy and Swift about Flynn’s murder. Ryan told me there had been a bail hearing that morning and that both men had already been released on bond. Evidently, some of Swift’s backers had put up the bond money for them. Wayne Collins was released on his own recognizance. “Before you go off to arrest Swift and Andy Collins,” Ryan added, “could you come over here and help us in questioning the drop man, Perana. We are not getting very far with him. He wouldn’t say anything without an attorney. The attorney has talked to him and claims we have no evidence against his client. It would help us if you came over at one o’clock and brought the video recordings of his and Collins’s trips to the other locations.” Then, as an afterthought, he added, “Also bring over one of your crew who witnessed the drop and the pickup the other day.”

  I told Ryan we would be happy to help and promptly notified Steve. I gathered up the two recordings, and after a quick lunch, we showed up at the federal detention center. Perana, a handsome thirty-year-old Hispanic, did not appear nervous when the two of us entered the questioning room. There, Ryan introduced me to Perana’s lawyer, a Mr. Norrega, and to a young federal attorney named Herman George. He then turned on the recorder and made the usual reference statement before questioning the drop man, who had already been given a Miranda warning.

  “Mr. Perana, you carried a large quantity of money into the house you visited two days ago,” stated Ryan. “We have arrested the man who collected it later. Where did you get it from?”

  “Officer, I don’t know what you are talking about. I know nothing about any such money. How do you know it wasn’t in the house beforehand?” He had a point. We hadn’t checked the house before Perana arrived.

  “Mr. Perana, we believe you carried it inside in your briefcase. We are examining that briefcase as we speak to see if residues in your case match those on the outside of the money package and if your fingerprints are on that package.”

  “You won’t find any, because I did not carry in any money.”

  While Perana spoke, I was wondering what had happened to the money packaging material itself. Was it in Collins’s studio or in Swift’s inner office? Had the DEA picked it up, or had it been inadvertently discarded?

  Ryan asked, “If you were not carrying money, why would you carry an empty briefcase into the house?”

  “I carry my briefcase as a matter of routine,” replied Perana. “I also gather brochures at these various houses I visit.”

  Ryan clearly saw his questioning was stymied, so he asked me to show the two pertinent videos and explain their significance. A video projector and screen were brought into the questioning room, and I ran commentary as they were played.

  “Here, we see Mr. Perana entering the Madrid Manor mobile home park and leaving ten minutes later. Now we see the entrance and exit repeated by Andy Collins, whom we arrested two days ago for transporting a large sum of money to be laundered.”

  “Really, Ms. Notfarg,” said Norrega, interrupting the video, “if you are trying to show a pattern of my client and a suspected money launderer visiting the same house at a close time together, this video does not show that. The park entrance is not the same as the vacant house where you allege my client left money.” I ignored the remark while recognizing its validity and went on to show the video at the Tierrasanta house. It showed Perana arriving at the house, looking for the lockbox, and then driving off. It showed a similar pattern for Collins twelve minutes later. “You certainly are not showing a drop-off and pick up of any contraband there,” said Norrega. I had to confess to myself the lawyer had a point.

  I motioned Steve to speak. “Mr. Perana, do you remember seeing me on Monday?”

  Perana moved his head from side to side as he stared at Steve. “I don’t think so,” he replied after a lengthy interval.

  “I was walking my dog right by your car as you came out of the house. I had to restrain it from sniffing you,” said Steve.

  Perana began to laugh. “So that was you. Is your dog training you, or is it the other way around?”

  The humor seemed out of place in the room, but it elicited smiles from me and Steve, who went on. “Mr. Perana, I watched you get out of the car that day with your briefcase, enter the vacant house, and return five minutes later. My team then entered the house and added marked bills to the money package you left in the water heater closet.”

  I was struck by Steve’s use of the word “my” instead of “our.”


  “I never left any money package,” said Perana. “Again, how do you know it wasn’t there before I arrived?”

  “We’ve taken your fingerprints off the water tank door latch,” said Steve.

  I was surprised. I had forgotten to request such work. I hadn’t realized it might be necessary.

  Perana shrugged. “I might have touched the latch when I looked around.”

  “Yes, but you also put your hand on the water tank, and we have your prints from that,” added Steve.

  Perana’s demeanor changed. He looked hard at Norrega, who stared back at his client and then asked for some private time with his client. We exited the room, and then I challenged Steve: “Did you send forensics to get those fingerprints?”

  Steve grinned. “No, I didn’t. Like you, I never expected Perana to deny everything.”

  “So, it was pure bluff?” I asked.

  “Yes, but we’d better cover ourselves by taking those fingerprints if they do indeed exist.”

  “I’ll order it up,” I said. “I just hope Bolder’s fingerprints haven’t contaminated Perana’s.”

  Ryan told Steve what a great job he had done in getting Perana to acknowledge his role. Back in the questioning room, Norrega stated that his client was prepared to say he’d placed a package in the water tank closet but had been unaware of its contents.

  “You place these packages in vacant homes on a regular basis, then?” asked Ryan.

  Perana looked at Norrega, who nodded, and then he said, “Yes.”

  “Who supplies them to you?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Then, how do you get them?”

  “I drive to the McDonald’s near my home at six fifteen and go inside for breakfast. I find the package inside my car when I leave.”