When she realised she wasn’t getting anywhere with her research, she’d decided to go for a job at the home on Amrum. Anna Bauer had rapidly agreed to leave the island when she heard what kind of dealings Hein Bohlen was involved in. The twenty thousand euros Isabel paid her had certainly helped too – the money came from the pay-out of her brother’s life insurance. With the information Anna Bauer had given her, Isabel had found it easy to convince Hein Bohlen and his wife that she was the right person for the job. When she realised that Bohlen hadn’t been part of the gang’s criminal activities in years, she’d started sleeping with him in the hope of extracting more information. The only thing she’d found out was that Bergendorf was putting pressure on Bohlen. Comparing Bergendorf with her brother’s notes, she became convinced he was one of the men in the trafficking ring. She’d come up with the plan to kill Bohlen by reducing his beta blockers at around the same time. The licence plate number Isabel had given the detectives belonged to a vehicle she’d noted down during a surveillance session on Bergendorf’s property.
‘I was hoping you’d find those bastards,’ Isabel said at the end of her report.
‘I need your brother’s diaries. They weren’t in your room.’
‘I stored a few boxes at a friend’s place in Hamburg – they’re in with that stuff. And the list I created is on my laptop.’ She told Lena the file’s name and location.
Lena rose to her feet.
‘Will you catch them?’ Isabel asked. Lena could tell how draining the last half-hour had been for the young woman.
‘I certainly hope so – if not today, then very soon.’
‘Thanks. If you do, it’s all been worth it.’
Lena filled Johann in on their drive back to Dagebüll. On the ferry, they stood in silence for a long time, enjoying the view from the top deck.
‘So what’s the plan for this evening?’ Johann asked eventually.
‘I assume that one of the two gentlemen will be Chief Prosecutor Lübbers. He knows me, so it’d be good if you could receive him and lead him into the house. Just tell him you’re Bergendorf’s new assistant.’
‘No problem.’
‘We’ll question the two men separately. One of them’s got to crack before they get to talk to their lawyers. I’ve been authorised to offer a deal.’
‘It might just work. You’ll take on the chief prosecutor, right?’
Lena nodded and gazed out over the water. Erck popped into her mind. Had the last few days on the island changed something for her? She forced the thought aside and suggested to Johann that they find a quiet spot on the ship to discuss their strategy for the evening.
23
Lena positioned two officers from the armed response unit some distance away from the driveway to the mansion while the remaining four waited in the kitchen. They’d arrived on the island in two vehicles which were now parked, well camouflaged, not far from the house. Lena had decided against surveillance of the ferry to avoid any unnecessary risk. The doorbell rang the first time just after six. Johann opened. A short, thickset man stood in front of him.
‘Good evening,’ said Johann. ‘I’m Johann, Herr Bergendorf’s assistant.’
‘Ramke,’ said the man. ‘So old Bergendorf’s got a butler now? Fancy that.’
‘Would you care to follow me to the library?’ asked Johann.
The man handed his coat to Johann, then headed towards the library without paying any further attention to the detective sergeant. Lena, who’d been waiting around the corner, followed him into the room.
‘Oh, more staff?’
Lena pulled the door shut behind her, took her police pass from her pocket and handed it to the man. ‘So to speak, except that I’m paid by the state.’
The man stared at her photocard. ‘Is this some kind of a joke? Where’s Bergendorf?’ He came across as aggressive but a touch uncertain.
‘Unfortunately, Herr Bergendorf can’t make it. Are you carrying any form of ID?’
The man threw Lena’s pass aside. ‘What’s the meaning of this?’ he yelled. His eyes were darting around in rising panic. ‘Bergendorf, enough is enough!’
Lena picked up her pass, glared at him and shouted, ‘Sit down! Now.’ The man scowled at her but did as she asked. ‘ID, please.’
When the man didn’t react, Lena opened the door. ‘Come in!’
Two officers clad in black came into the room and positioned themselves next to Lena. ‘It’s your choice. Show me your ID or I’ll have you arrested on the spot.’
The man swallowed and reached into his back pocket to pull out his wallet, then placed his ID card on the table. Lena glanced at the name and handed the card to one of the officers.
‘Thank you. I think I can manage on my own from here.’
Once they’d left the room, Lena joined her suspect at the table. ‘Alois Ramke?’ The man nodded. ‘Hand over your phone, please.’
The man reluctantly reached into his pocket again and passed Lena his mobile.
‘I’ll get straight to the point. You’re under suspicion of being a member of a group that has been engaging in organised child trafficking and sexual abuse of minors for over a decade. We have evidence that you have personally taken part in at least one rape of a minor. I don’t doubt for a second that we’ll be able to prove many more such cases during the course of our investigation.’
‘I want to talk to my lawyer.’
‘You have the right to remain silent, and yes, you’ll get the chance to contact your lawyer. But first of all, I’ll have to transfer you to Kiel, where you’ll be presented before the judge.’
Alois Ramke said nothing.
Lena slid the two chatroom transcripts across the table for him to see.
‘I’m guessing you’re “Beil”. Your house will be searched within the next two hours, but as far as I can see, we’ve already got more than enough to put you behind bars for many, many years.’
‘What do you want from me?’
‘I have been authorised to offer you a principal witness deal. The offer stands from now for’ – she checked the time – ‘fifteen minutes exactly.’ Lena set the timer on her phone and placed it on the desk in front of Ramke.
She could tell the man was struggling. His breathing was shallow, his eyes flickered nervously and the colour of his face changed from red to chalky white. Finally, he pressed the stop button on Lena’s phone and said, ‘I won’t say another word. I want to talk to my lawyer.’
Lena picked up her phone and the chatroom transcripts. ‘Your call.’ She opened the door and waved the two armed response officers back into the room.
‘Well?’ asked Johann, who was waiting in the hallway for the next visitor to arrive.
‘He’s refusing to talk. He’s not interested in a deal. I’ve a feeling he’s not privy to everything going on in that group, but you may have more luck with him.’
Lena’s phone buzzed: a text from one of the officers stationed outside. ‘Number two’s on his way. Take him to the living room this time.’
Johann grinned. ‘At your command, ma’am.’
Moments later the doorbell rang. As before, Johann introduced himself as Bergendorf’s assistant and led the tall, blond man into the living room, where Lena was now waiting.
‘Evening, Chief Prosecutor Lübbers,’ she said in greeting.
Lübbers stared at Lena, half-turned as if sizing up his chances of making a run for it, but then turned back to her. ‘Have we met before?’
‘I don’t know if you know me.’ Lena stepped towards him, holding out her police pass. He glanced at it and asked, ‘What are you doing here? As far as I know, this is still the private domicile of my friend Herr Bergendorf. Show me the search warrant!’
‘Why don’t we sit down? This conversation may take a while.’
‘No, it won’t. Where’s Bergendorf?’ Lübbers spoke in the arrogant tone favoured by a superior when dealing with a seemingly incompetent subordinate. ‘I’m leaving now. I do
ubt you’ll have a job to go to in the morning.’
He turned round and opened the door, slowly closing it again when he saw the two armed officers waiting outside. ‘Are you quite out of your mind? Does your boss have any idea what you’re up to?’
‘Would you please give me your phone?’ Lena held out her hand. ‘It’ll be easier for you if you cooperate,’ she added with a glance at the door.
‘Under protest. I demand to know what’s going on.’
‘Please, sit down,’ said Lena.
‘I promise you’ll regret this.’
He took his coat off and folded it carefully before taking a seat. Lena placed the two chatroom transcripts on the table in front of him and waited for him to scan the text.
‘What’s all this?’ he snarled.
‘We’re questioning Herr Ramke in the next room. It’s only a matter of time until he accepts our principal witness deal. I’ll leave you for a moment.’ She stood up, opened the door and let the two officers in. ‘These gentlemen will look after you in the meantime.’
She went to the kitchen, rang Warnke and gave him Alois Ramke’s details.
‘And number two is Chief Prosecutor Lübbers.’
‘I’ll order search warrants for them both. The chatroom transcripts and their presence alone should suffice.’
‘I’ll be in touch when there’s news.’
‘Please do.’
Lena returned to the living room and waited until the two policemen had left the room.
‘How much longer is this going to take?’ asked Lübbers. ‘I don’t need to explain to you how many laws you’ve breached already.’
‘Herr Lübbers, I’m placing you under arrest.’ She informed him of his rights and asked, ‘Can we talk properly now? You know precisely how this works. Right this minute, search warrants are being issued for your house and your office. My colleagues will start sifting through your things in half an hour at the most.’
‘You are completely and utterly insane. I’m going to sue the living daylights out of you. You do realise your time as a police officer is over, don’t you? You can consider yourself lucky if you don’t end up in prison for this.’
‘Herr Lübbers,’ Lena said calmly but sternly, ‘as with your colleague, I’ve been authorised also to offer you a principal witness deal, provided you have the information we need. The chat shows clearly that you hold a leading position within your group.’
‘You’re mad!’
‘And you’re a fucking paedophile!’ shouted Lena angrily. ‘It’s over! Grab this one last chance, or forget it. We’ll bring you to book for every last crime you’ve ever committed. You’ll be sent down for a very long time. You do realise who you’ll meet in there, don’t you, because I do.’
‘You honestly believe you can pressure me with this ridiculous little show of yours? It’s nothing but hot air.’
Lena’s phone buzzed. She checked the display and smiled. ‘Oh well, it’s your life. One of my colleagues has been inside for a year now. I’m sure you’ll have heard about him. He took bribes, manipulated witness statements and leaked confidential information. He’s in Flensburg Prison to minimise the chances of bumping into inmates he’s put there himself, but he barely survived the last attack. Shall I tell you what they did to him?’
Her phone buzzed again. She read the message, stood up and walked to the door. ‘Terrific. Your friend Ramke wants to speak with me. I’ll be right back.’
She met Johann in the hallway. They’d arranged the text messages beforehand. ‘Did you get anywhere?’
‘No, not a sausage. He’s absolutely convinced we can’t touch him, though he did look a bit anxious when I left the room just now.’
‘Lübbers didn’t. Maybe Ramke will cave first after all.’
‘How far are we going to take this?’
‘The whole night if we have to. We need a result.’
‘OK, back into the fray.’
Back in the living room, Lena sat down with Chief Prosecutor Lübbers and waited. After ten minutes of mutual silence, the blond man cleared his throat. ‘So, where do we go from here, Inspector?’
‘We wait.’
‘If you’d be so kind as to tell me what for.’
‘My team have brought their vehicles over. The next ferry doesn’t leave for a while.’
‘What exactly are you accusing me of? Visiting a friend on Amrum? You can’t be serious.’
Finally, Lena thought, but didn’t let it show. ‘When did you last speak with your friend?’
‘Yesterday. We arranged a meeting.’
‘What time, roughly?’
‘Late afternoon, I think.’
‘You can’t be talking about Herr Bergendorf. He was in an induced coma by then.’
Lübbers swallowed. ‘That can’t be right.’
‘I’m sorry you didn’t hear about it. Fresh findings not released in the public domain – you know what that means.’
She pulled the search warrant from her pocket and placed it on the table in front of Lübbers. ‘Not that it’s any of your business, but since you asked so nicely . . .’
Lübbers checked the document then pushed it away.
‘I took the liberty of taking part in your little chat last night. I borrowed your friend’s name. Not very imaginative, I must say.’
‘That was you?’ Lübbers looked irritated.
‘You didn’t think we could do it? It wasn’t that hard to find you lot on the Dark Web.’
‘I don’t believe you. You’re bluffing.’
‘Well, there is no Romanian. And Hein Bohlen did not die of natural causes. And you’re not the saint you make yourself out to be either.’
Lübbers said nothing.
‘Remember Osnabrück? A boy named Florian Müller – or did you just call the children by a number? A small, skinny boy with blond hair. Don’t remember? He remembered every last detail. He described each one of you so well that I recognised Herr Ramke immediately.’
Still Lübbers remained silent.
‘You know what? The first witness is always the hardest to find in cases like this. But once one talks, everyone else follows. Right now an experienced team of investigators is scouring children’s homes up and down the country on the lookout for further victims. It’s only a matter of time until—’
‘Won’t you just quit this nonsense!’ exclaimed Lübbers.
‘You do know the difference between going straight to jail or accepting a principal witness deal, don’t you? The former means a life of hell; the latter means that life goes on for you. You’ll lose your job, of course, and you’ll have to move, start over. It’ll be tough, really tough. But you’ll live. You won’t be able to practise as a lawyer any more, but you’ll get a second chance. How old are you now? Mid-fifties? Let’s say a fifteen-year jail term – that would make you seventy when you came out. Well, always provided that you survive that hell on earth.’
Lena’s phone buzzed again. She checked the display, rose to her feet and said, ‘I’ll be right back.’
‘Any progress?’ asked Johann, handing her a cup of coffee.
‘Not really. You?’
‘I feel like he’s beginning to crack. I can’t promise anything, though.’
‘Dammit. The moment they get to their lawyers tomorrow they won’t say another word. I’m not even sure what the judge will say then: two respectable citizens, blah blah blah.’
‘We’ve still got a few hours left,’ Johann said. ‘I’ll go and tighten the thumbscrews.’
Lena nodded and went back in.
‘So what now?’ said Lübbers, still playing confident. ‘You’re going to tell me again that Ramke’s about to talk?’ He gave a short laugh.
Lena waited a few minutes before she spoke again. ‘Have you ever thought about what you’re doing to those children? You were a boy once.’ She looked at Lübbers intently. ‘Those big hands groping you everywhere, touching you in places only your mother’s touched you at bathti
me. You’re scared, so terribly scared, of having done something wrong and getting punished for it. You’re ashamed and you hate yourself for what’s happening. You can’t sleep at night because you’re terrified someone will come and grab you, drag you back to hell, back into that black hole you’ll never ever be able to forget.’
Lübbers swallowed. For the first time her words seemed to affect him.
‘You cry all night until your eyes hurt. You can’t breathe. You run to the window and open it, but you still feel like you’re suffocating. Your whole body aches. You stare at your hands but don’t know if they’re yours. A noise. You flinch. Is that him? Is he coming back to get you? What’s he going to ask of you this time? It hurts so much, so horribly much. Why isn’t anyone helping you? You want to die. You find a knife, but it’s not sharp enough. Hell is black and silent. No one hears you when you scream. No one.’ Lena stared at Lübbers for a while before she went on. ‘Believe you me, you won’t fare any better in prison. The only difference is that you’ll deserve what those brutal men will do to you. Every day, in the shower, in a dark corner of the laundry, at night when the warden accidentally forgets to lock your cell. It’ll be a never-ending nightmare. Your nightmare.’
‘What do you want from me?’ asked Lübbers in a whisper.
Lena sensed he was about to crack. ‘I want it to stop. As of today. If you have an ounce of decency left in you, you start talking now. I guarantee you’ll get a deal. A child rapist in gaol – you might as well hang yourself now. And believe me, I’ll personally make sure the inmates hear who’s sharing their cell. You won’t even make it through to your trial.’
‘What guarantees do I get?’ Lübbers seemed broken. He was staring down at his trembling hands, his face ashen.
‘You give me the names of the two remaining chatroom participants, then I call the attorney general and you have a chat with him. Then we’ll keep going until we’ve gathered all the most important details – dates, names, places.’
The Body on the Beach Page 20