“I agree about distributing the photo. It’s a weekend. It may be Monday before I get an answer, but I have made another request to Justice to release the Park Sniper information to the national news. I think the chances are poor that I’ll get permission.”
“Why?”
“Washington politics. What would happen to park attendance if patrons were afraid of being shot? What would happen to the reputation of the FBI if people knew we couldn’t catch a man who has already killed dozens over many months? What would happen to the military’s reputation if the news media focused on former military snipers as important suspects? I could go on, but I think you get the point. We will all seem incompetent if this news is made public, and reputation is the main focus of our political appointees. The FBI’s reputation is damaged already, and our leaders are afraid of making public opinion worse. I think the decision was made at the very top of the Justice Department.”
“What if Sheriff Taylor decided to release the photo as the suspect in the Mildred Riley homicide. He’s not limited by what the Justice Department wants to do to cover its ass.”
“Please wait till Monday. If I get another no, I’ll give you a call. Sheriff Taylor would be very politically unpopular if he defies the Justice Department.”
“Coconino County is so heavily Democratic that he probably cares nothing of what political appointees at Justice think. He won 80% to 20% in the last general election.”
“Then he may be the right man to take the decision into his own hands. I can’t.”
After his conversation, Mike walked back to the picnic. He was expecting some exotic French food, but it was a simple variety of American-style sandwiches, mustard potato salad, tossed butter leaf lettuce, pear, and goat cheese salad, and a variety of chips with roasted onion dip. They enjoyed a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from Santa Barbara County. The spent an hour enjoying the lunch and the view. Mike and Richard dozed off for short naps while Wanda and Margaret chatted about Paris. Wanda and Richard had been there many times and knew great restaurants and outstanding sightseeing options.
Two hours later, Mike and Margaret got into their Highlander at Midgley Bridge to head home. “Well, now that we’re alone, please tell me about your mysterious phone call at the picnic.”
Mike explained the whole exchange with Adam Goldman and the idea that Sheriff Taylor might release the photo in connection to the Riley homicide.
“I really think you shouldn’t wait until Monday. Sheriff Taylor could distribute it today and it would be on the nightly news in Phoenix and Tucson. How will you feel if there is another murder tomorrow?”
“Agent Goldman specifically asked me to wait until Monday. I think the Park Sniper will be too busy laying low to kill someone tomorrow. He’ll want to change his appearance before he shows himself in a public place even without his photo being on the news.”
Margaret was quiet on the drive home. She was thinking about the case, and Mike hoped she would come up with some insight. She’d help to make his career a success with hundreds of good suggestions over the years.
After they got home Margaret said, “I think you’re correct about there being no sniper attack on Sunday because I think this bastard will be driving far away from southwest Utah. He’ll be looking for a plastic surgeon to remove the facial mole. I think he’ll probably shave his head as an easy first step until he can find another place to get a toupee, or maybe he’ll just keep it shaved. He can’t change his weight or height easily, but he could buy shoes or boots with lifts and maybe use a binding of some kind to pull in his stomach and look slimmer. He’ll want to be in a big anonymous city to do those things.”
Mike nodded in agreement and Margaret continued.
“If Sheriff Taylor decides to release the photos, you should probably provide a full body view using the video from the Barnes & Nobel that you showed me on your cell phone. I noticed he had a swagger in his walk that was rather distinctive. It was kind of an old cowboy movie walk. I think you should also have a drawing of what he would look like without hair. Of Course, this search should be done at a national level because he’s probably not still in Utah or Arizona.”
Mike thought she was right, as usual. “If the sheriff makes certain to identify him as a suspect in the Gregory murders as well as Hoover Dam, Salt Brush Launch, and Ms. Riley that might make the national news. He’s a serial killer just from his eight Arizona murders even if the long history of his homicides is an FBI secret.”
Margaret smiled. “It will be politically impossible for the FBI to keep everything quiet once Sheriff Taylor has his press conference on Monday. He should specifically let the press know the briefing will be about a serial killer in Arizona who murdered four young Gregory boys by slitting their throats one at a time. That crime still horrifies everyone who watches the local news. It was the biggest story on every station. That’s eight murders in Arizona in a very short time. If that doesn’t force their disclosure, the sheriff could threaten to make the whole story public unless the FBI goes public.”
Once they got home Mike said to Margaret. “I’ll call Sheriff Taylor and see if he agrees to a public announcement on Monday. Agent Goldman was not optimistic that full disclosure would be approved in Washington. He might want to also invite the sheriffs of Mohave and Greenlee Counties. That would boost both the credibility and the attendance at the press conference.”
The murders of the Gregory homicides were still the biggest news in Arizona. Margaret had cried when she saw their family photo on the evening news, and Mike had a difficult time in holding back his own tears. Mike had also seen the horror of a photo of the pile of their small bodies in the wooded gulley. They were covered with blood and had gaping wounds where their throats had been slit. The two year old had been almost decapitated. That had not been made public, and he certainly would not share that photo with the press.
Mike had a long strategy conversation with Sheriff Taylor who decided to arrange a press conference for 10:00 Monday morning. He expected to go ahead even if the FBI later decided to provide more information. The horror of the Gregory boys’ murders would ensure every news organization in the state would cover it. He would ask Sheriff Jimmy Duncan from Mohave County and Sheriff Oscar Rodney from Greenlee County to attend and describe the murders in their jurisdictions. Sheriff Taylor would set things in motion but he wanted Mike to cover the details and display the still photo and videos from the bookstore. He would call in a local artist to make a drawing of the Park Sniper without the brown hairpiece and salt and pepper beard.
Sunday was a beautiful sunny day with mild temperatures. It was a great day for another beautiful hike. After mass that morning, several people asked how his investigation was progressing, and Mike explained that they would be releasing a photograph of the suspect tomorrow morning at a ten o’clock press conference.
Mike did not expect another homicide to occur soon because he supposed that the Park Sniper would be driving to a large city where he could be anonymous while he changed his appearance. That probably meant Las Vegas or Salt Lake City. He assumed the FBI would be busy looking in those cities, but without releasing the suspect’s photo, he thought their chances were poor. By tomorrow, the Park Sniper’s photo and video would be widely seen whether the Justice Department liked it or not.
After mass, Mike and Margaret changed into hiking clothing and went to a Thai place in the Village of Oak Creek for lunch. Afterwards, they hiked around Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte seeing several couples that they knew who were also enjoying the perfect weather. As they returned to the trailhead parking, Mike got a call from Agent Goldman.
“Mike, the head of the FBI appealed the decision all the way to the top of the Justice Department. The FBI can’t release the excellent photo you recovered from Barnes & Noble video. I’m not sure if it’s because of the uncanny resemblance to a TV commentator or just general reluctance to acknowledge how big the problem is. We’re sure it is over thirty deaths, but it might actually b
e forty. It would be very difficult to explain why this has been kept a secret from the public for months.”
“Adam, I expected that. In fact, Sheriff Taylor will call a press conference tomorrow morning at 10:00. He will release the photo and video clips. We plan to attribute the deaths of the five members of the Gregory family, Ms. Riley, the victim from Kansas at the Hoover Dam, and the homicide at the Lake Mead boat launch to the same killer. That is clearly a serial killer and that is how Sheriff Taylor will phrase it. In fact, yesterday, he talked with his counterparts in three counties in New Mexico and in Washington County Utah where Zion National Park is located. They all believe we’re dealing with the same maniac sniper. The FBI cover-up will be public in spite of the Justice Department tomorrow at 10:00.”
“Mike, don’t quote me, but I was hoping you’d say that. We’re busy reviewing the places that sell toupees and other things that would assist in a disguise, but I’m not optimistic. I think the mole will be difficult to cover-up, and we’re also checking with plastic surgeons in nearby cities. He could probably cover the tattoo with makeup or a turtleneck shirt, but that mole would still be a problem for him. I’ll keep you informed.”
Chapter 16
Mike could tell the press conference was a really big deal in Arizona when he arrived at the Flagstaff Law Enforcement Building. News vans from four Arizona stations and one Las Vegas station had already set up to stream the event live to the Phoenix, Tucson, and Las Vegas markets. Normally, there would be only one with a shared feed.
On Sunday afternoon, Sheriff Taylor had called every station in nearby cities informing them the brutal homicides of the four Gregory boys and their father was part of a killing spree that had already claimed at least twelve lives in the states of Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico. The sheriffs of Greenlee, Mohave, and Coconino Counties would be giving their joint briefings in Flagstaff at ten o’clock on Monday. The Gregory murders was already the biggest story of the year in Arizona, and the news that there might be a serial killer involved put the coverage over the top.
There was a group of well-known news anchors giving morning show updates in front of the cameras. Several knew Mike and asked him for his comments. He spoke briefly with two of them on camera, merely saying that he was confident that a single person committed these eight Arizona homicides as well as others in New Mexico and Utah. The press would need to wait for the press conference where the three Arizona sheriffs would provide details.
One news anchor asked if the four young Gregory boys had had their throats slit and left in a blood-soaked pile.
Mike looked grim and said, “Yes, it was an especially vicious crime as the younger boys would have seen their brothers killed before the murderer came for them. Their father suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the forehead and died instantly. His vehicle ran off the road and crashed into a dry wash. The killer took the time to kill all four young boys. He chased the eight-year-old through the forest and drug him back to where he’d already killed his older brother. The youngest boy was in car seat and couldn’t escape while he saw his brothers killed.”
After the interviews in the parking lot, Mike attended a meeting with the three sheriffs where they coordinated who would explain each section of the connection. Sheriff Taylor would relay his conversations with the Santa Fe County and Cibola County, New Mexico sheriffs and the supervisor of Chaco Canyon National Historical Park, as well as his discussion with the Washington County, Utah sheriff. He would explain the similarities of those four homicides with the murder of Mildred Riley near Sedona. Sheriffs Duncan and Rodney would describe the homicides in their counties. After that, Mike would introduce the photo of the killer and the drawing of what he might look like after getting rid of his hairpiece and goatee.
The camera behind the checkout station at Barnes & Noble was very high resolution, and Mike arranged for the image to be projected as an eight by six foot close-up of the face. He would point out the mole, the slight dimples near the corners of his mouth, the gray in his sideburns, and the wing tattoo that showed slightly near his collar. He would also draw attention to the rather distinctive attached earlobes, a feature difficult to change or disguise. The ears also showed signs of previous piercings. He would project four drawings of what the sniper might look like after his attempt to change his appearance.
About fifteen minutes before the press conference, Sheriff Taylor was called to an urgent phone call in his office. His administrative assistant gave him a note indicating who was calling without saying the name in the conference room, but Mike could make a guess. It was someone high up at the FBI or Justice Department who wanted the press conference cancelled. Sheriff Taylor returned ten minutes later, and his expression showed he was furious. His only comment was, “We will continue as planned.”
“Justice Department?” Mike asked.
Sheriff Taylor nodded. “I told the asshole that he was on a recorded line and that if he continued to try and obstruct a local homicide investigation, I would play the recording of our conversation at the press conference. He hung up.”
The three sheriffs and Mike entered the briefing room together. Every seat was taken and men and women lined the back and sides of the auditorium. Five cameras were set up. Sheriff Taylor began by introducing the other sheriffs and Mike. Next, he reported on his conversation with the sheriff of Santa Fe County, New Mexico.
“A nineteen-year-old expert male skier at the Santa Fe ski resort crashed into a tree on while skiing on an especially challenging slope. His name was Jack Elberton. It was a Wednesday when ski conditions were not especially good, and the slopes were not crowded like they would be on a normal a weekend. When the ski patrol reached him, they found a large caliber round had pierced his forehead making a huge exit wound in the back of his skull. They believe the round was fired from the tree line near the unused overflow part of the parking lot. That was over a kilometer away. It was a perfect kill shot by an expert sniper.”
The technician projected a photo of the young man skiing that had been taken by his girlfriend the same day as his death. Sheriff Taylor nodded and the technician moved to a photo to Chaco Canyon National Historical Park.
“Chaco Canyon National Historical Park hosts one of the most extensive pre-Columbian archeological sites of the ancient Pueblo People. A college student from New Jersey named Hector Cruz was killed by a single shot through the forehead. The shot came from a ridgeline over a kilometer away.”
The assistant projected a photo of the twenty-year-old man standing in front of some pre-Columbian ruins. He wore a Princeton Tigers t-shirt.
Next the scene showed El Morro National Monument south of Gallop, New Mexico.
“El Morro National Monument is a massive rock outcropping with a permanent water supply in this arid area south of Gallop. A thirty-seven year old woman named Susann Griffinson was hiking along the top with her family. She was probably standing enjoying the view when she was hit in the forehead with the same caliber round as was used in the Santa Fe ski area and at Chaco Canyon. For the next phase of the timeline, I will turn the reporting over to Sheriff Rodney of Greenlee County in eastern Arizona.”
Sheriff Rodney wore a blue suit and looked the part of a big city banker. Mike knew that most of the time he wore a Stetson and boots. He moved to the microphones and continued the story. “The evening of the same day as Ms. Griffin’s homicide at Morro National Monument, one of my deputies responded to an argument at a campground in a heavily forested area of Greenlee County. The dispute was between a Mr. Gregory who was tent camping with his four young sons, and a man camping in an expensive Mercedes camper conversion van in the next campsite. The dispute arose because Mr. Gregory objected to the man in the van smoking marijuana around his young sons. When the deputy arrived, the van driver showed a Virginia Driver’s license with the name Jonathan Jones; his van had a Texas tag. His driver’s license was later proven to be a fake and the car tag had been stolen from a vehicle in El Paso. The van driver claimed he was
a veteran with PTSD and that a Colorado Doctor had prescribed the marijuana. The deputy settled the dispute by requiring the van to move to a distant campsite away from the Gregory family. Our deputy claims that the suspect in the van looked exactly like a FOX News contributor by the name of Sebastian Gorka. He had a similar accent as well. Sheriff Taylor of Coconino County will report on the next related death.
Standing tall and ramrod straight, Sheriff Taylor returned to the podium. “A sniper murdered a prominent Flagstaff resident, Mildred Riley, with a shot from a high caliber rifle. The death occurred at dawn near Midgley Bridge in Sedona. It was an identical headshot to the sniper deaths in the Santa Fe ski area, Chaco Canyon, and at Morro National Monument. All shots were made from over a kilometer away striking in the center of the forehead. All indications are that it was the same caliber weapon although none of the rounds or their brass was recovered. Several witnesses saw a gray Mercedes camper van near dawn at the Midgley Bridge parking area from where the weapon was fired. We have strong evidence that it was the same van as was seen in the campgrounds in Greenlee County. For the next part of the story, I’ll turn things over to my friend Sheriff Duncan of Mohave County.”
Sheriff Duncan stepped to the podium. Mike noticed that his hands trembled slightly. He was dressed in a navy sports coat like Mike, but he wore cowboy boots. He had left his white felt cowboy hat on his chair. He was the oldest of the three sheriffs. Mike guessed he was in his early to mid seventies.
The Body at Midgley Bridge Page 11