Carat Capers

by Dan Kelly

  Thirty minutes later they’re knocking on Reid’s apartment door. When he answers the knock it is obvious he has been sound asleep as he only appears to be half awake.

  “Mr. Reid, I’m Aldo Palosa, head of security at the museum, and these gentlemen are Lt. Morretti of the New York City Police Department and Mr. Ferguson a consultant working with the Lt.” All of them flash their IDs at him, but he is still in that waking up stupor and just nods and waves them inside.

  Aldo continues with, “Mr. Reid, it’s come to our attention that you were paid a visit by someone who offered you a lot of money to let him into the museum after hours so he could take some pictures. Is that correct?”

  This had Ralph wide awake in seconds. “Who told you that?”

  “Just answer the question, Mr. Reid.”

  Ralph quickly figures he’s in a heap of trouble and doesn’t want to make things worse by lying, so he fesses up. “There were actually two guys. One night I was taking out the trash and emptying the cans in one of the dumpsters out back when these two guys come from around the side of the building and ask to talk with me. They told me they were photographers working for a magazine that was trying to come up with something on the pending Silverman gem display that would have the competition eating their dust. They said that the PR department at the museum had already nixed their request because they didn’t want to be accused of favoritism by any of the other magazines. They didn’t want to do anything that might cast the museum in a bad light.

  “They told me that no one would ever know how the pictures were obtained, but they couldn’t convince the PR people. They offered me a thousand dollars to let them in after closing hours for a couple of hours. I told them the security people would spot them in a heartbeat, either eyeball to eyeball or with the security cameras. They said they would wear uniforms like we do and upon a cursory glance should be able to fool the guards. I figured no harm could be done. The only way out of the museum would be the door I opened for them. If I kept my eye on them, they couldn’t get out with anything they didn’t bring in with them. I’m a lot bigger than they are, so I figured I could handle them if they tried to steal anything. A thousand dollars is a lot of money to me so I agreed to let them in.”

  Mickey said, “Mr. Reid, a bullet doesn’t care how big you are. They could have been armed and shot you anytime they wanted.”

  Shaking his head he said, “I didn’t think of that.”

  Mickey said, “You weren’t thinking of anything but the money and that could have gotten you killed. Did they give you any names?”

  “One said his name was Tom and the other said his name was Harry.”

  Chuck started shaking his head and said, “And you were the dick they needed to complete that well known threesome, every Tom, Dick and Harry. Weren’t you the least bit suspicious when they gave you those names?”

  “I never gave them a second thought. I really didn’t care what their names were.”

  “Where are you from originally?”

  “England, Leighton Buzzard to be exact. Why?”

  “I’m hearing a trace of a cockney accent, but I’m no linguist and want to know if I guessed correctly.”

  “You’ve got a good ear. I’ve been working hard to lose it as people over here have trouble understanding it. Pausing for a moment he continues with, “How much trouble am I in?”

  Aldo answered him. “I don’t think you broke any laws, but if I were you I’d start looking for another job.”

  Mickey says, “I want you to come down to the station to work with a police artist to come up with a picture resembling the faces of the men who bribed you. Once we have what you think is a pretty good likeness of the two men, we can run a comparison thorough our data bases for anyone who has a criminal record and through those of the DMV for a match with drivers licenses.”

  “Okay, when do you want me to come down? As far as I know, I still have a job and need to get some more sleep because I work the graveyard shift. Can I come in tomorrow afternoon? It’s Friday and I’m off on Fridays and Saturdays. I’ll be more rested and will probably be more helpful.”

  Mickey thinks about it for a minute and decides a day isn’t going to make much difference as the museum robbery took place weeks ago and the janitor has made a good point. Being rested was much more apt to produce something useful than being out of it. “Okay, I’ll give you the address of where I want you to go and I’ll set things up for four o’clock in the afternoon. That will give you enough time for some decent shut eye.”

  “I’ll be there. So, you think the guys I let in are involved in the Silverman collection robbery?”

  Mickey said, “That we do.”

  Ralph let his head drop and he mumbled softly, “Oh shit.”

  That was as good an exit cue as any, so Mickey gives Ralph his business card that has the address of where he is supposed to go and they leave Ralph to his mutterings and head back to Manhattan.

  Chapter 14

  They had taken Morretti’s car so he drops Palosa and Ferguson off at the museum and drives back to the station. When he walks into the office his phone is ringing. It’s Chuck Ferguson. “Lieutenant, I got so wrapped up with Palosa and Reid that I forgot to tell you what I was able to dig up.”

  He tells him about Pierre Lavelle and what he is doing with the information. “This might not lead us anywhere, but it’s something worth a closer look. My people in Paris are under orders to move this guy to the top of their ‘to do list’ until I say otherwise.”

  “Thanks, Chuck. That was good work. Keep working your rumor mill. Grist has a way of showing up at the strangest times and places.”

  Mickey is about to tackle the human resource departments of the robbery victims when his phone rings again. It’s his buddy in dispatch, Tony Appecelli. “Mickey, I got a guy calling from Greenwich, Conn. He says he’s a Captain with the police department there and he’s asking to speak with you. He says you know him from some case you both were working on a year or so ago. He says his name is Roy Conklin. Should I put him through?”

  “Yeah, Tony, put him through. I know him.”

  “Roy, how are you? I’ve been meaning to call you to follow up on what happened to the Westfield girl after her folks were hauled off to prison for twenty years.”

  “Lucy Westfield is doing fine. She’s dealing with the fact that her parents were embezzlers of the highest order a lot better than most folks thought she would. She has an aunt on her mother’s side who has taken her in and agreed to finish raising her. As for me, I’ve just been pulled into something that looks like it might involve the same folks giving you grief in the Big Apple.”

  “What’s going down that makes you think that?”

  “We’ve been hit with a series of precious gem robberies just like you have, Mickey. Extremely high value items are being stolen and nothing is being left behind to gives us a clue, a hint even, of who is behind them. I’m talking millions of dollars’ worth of rare jewelry quality gems and what’s confusing the hell out of us, some exquisite stones are being left untouched while others are being taken. It’s like these people are filling orders for customers as easily as they would requests for pizza.”

  “It sure looks like it’s the same people driving us up the wall, Roy. Let me fill you in on what been happening here and in other countries and where we are in our investigation.” Twenty minutes later Mickey finishes up with, “I’ve brought in some outside help, someone who has dug up info that has eluded us. He’s a private investigator who has his own firm with tentacles all over the world. I think it would be a good idea for you to bring him on board with you. He has the personnel and means to access channels of information not readily available to law enforcement. His name is Chuck Ferguson and I’ll have him call you if you’re interested.”

  “Mickey, I’ll take all the help I can get anywhere I can find it. I’m spinning my wheels here.”

  “Tell me, Roy, tell me everything you can recall about the robberie
s, who was robbed, when they were robbed and what was taken. These guys have been busy and to commit so many robberies over a large geographical area in a limited amount of time indicates that there are more than a few folks involved, they’re well- heeled and well organized and they think they’re smarter than us and aren’t worried about making mistakes that will put an end to their activities. Let’s put our heads together, not only the two of us, but let’s bring in Interpol as well. I believe the merchandise is being transported and sold to people all over the world. They could be a big help to us in uncovering the distribution channels and identifying the end buyers.”

  “That definitely sounds like a plan that might get us somewhere. Okay, here’s what’s happened up until now.” A half hour later Roy is telling Mickey about the latest robbery of a high end jewelry store that also specializes in handling estate sales of top quality jewelry of the very wealthy residents in the city and Greenwich has more than its fair share of those. “Three employees were killed in this one.”

  “Roy, How about our two departments sharing the reports that have been written up and submitted to our higher ups concerning the robberies in our cities? Looking at them together could bring to light something that would remain hidden if only looked at separately. I’ll run it by my boss if you’ll do the same.”

  “I don’t have a problem with that. Let’s touch base on it tomorrow and discuss how we’ll approach Interpol.”

  “Okay, Roy. It’s been nice talking with you again.”

  “Me too.”

  Mickey hangs up and looks around the office for signs of Clancy and there aren’t any. His door is open as it usually is, but the office is empty and it doesn’t look like it has been occupied all morning. He asks Clancy’s secretary where he is and she says he is in a meeting with his boss and the mayor and she doesn’t know when he will return.

  “He’s probably being put through the wringer again. There is no way I’d ever want to be a boss. I know the doodoo runs downhill, but by the time it gets down to the grunts its lost most of its smell.”

  Mickey orders a salami and provolone on rye with a side of slaw from the deli next door and then gets focused in on his agenda for the rest of the day, calls to the HR departments and surfing the internet for combination and key code cracking equipment as well as other security related equipment.

  Chapter 15

  At four o’clock on Friday, Reid is a no-show. At four thirty, Mickey calls his home number, but no one answers and there is no voice mail. At five, as Mickey is about to call it a day, his phone rings. It’s a Sergeant Palmer calling from the Hoboken, NJ police department. Mickey’s gut is telling him bad news is coming his way.

  “Lieutenant Morretti, one of our patrol officers just found a stiff in a dumpster in a shopping plaza over here. The guy was shot once in the back of the head. The body still had a wallet on it and it contained eighty bucks, so it wasn’t a robbery. The wallet also contained a New Jersey Driver’s License and one of your business cards. The man’s name is Ralph Reid. Do you know this guy?”

  “Yeah, Sergeant, I know him. He was indirectly involved in the recent American Museum of Natural History gem collection robbery here in Manhattan and was supposed to be here at four o’clock to work with our artist to come up with some sketches. He never showed.”

  “Our guys are still processing the scene and the medical examiner is still there as well. If and when I have more information as to time of death, any clues being left, possible witnesses, etc., how should I get this info to you?”

  “Initially, a phone call would be great and then we can play it by ear from there.”

  “You got it.”

  The line goes dead and Mickey collapses in his chair completely dumbfounded over the slaying. “The way Reid was killed there’s no way this was a random thing. I’d bet my last nickel the guys we’re after are behind it and the reason for the hit was because he was suddenly viewed as a threat, but why now and not soon after he opened that damn door?”

  He let that question rattle around his brain for a while until a scary thought pops up. “Somehow these people found out we were on to Ralph and were afraid the thousand dollars they paid him wouldn’t be enough to buy his silence. Dead men can tell no tales, so bang! But how did they find out we had zeroed in on him. There had to be a leak somewhere. The only people who knew we talked with Ralph were Aldo Palosa, Chuck Ferguson and me. Aldo and Chuck are professionals. They would be very careful about sharing information concerning an ongoing investigation and I know I didn’t tell anyone what we were doing with Ralph.”

  Then an even scarier thought crosses his mind. “The leak could be right here in the department. I submitted my progress report to Clancy and everything about Ralph was in it. I’m sure Clancy doesn’t just read these reports and then file them away somewhere. He’s certain to pass on important information to others. I also had to make arrangements with the police artist to do the sketches. Damn! I need to talk with Clancy.”

  He finds Clancy in his office and tells him what has happened to the one tenuous lead they had and shares his concern about a possible leak in the department. Mickey thought Clancy would go through the roof when he mentioned the possibility of a department leak, but is surprised to see almost no reaction to what he has put on the table.

  When he told his boss about what had happened to Ralph, Clancy’s face went red with rage, but the suggestion of the possibility of a leak only got a puffing of his lips and then a moment’s silence.

  “Mickey, your beating the bushes relentlessly coupled with this Ferguson fellow’s efforts will eventually payoff. Don’t give up. Mr. Reid’s demise is just a tragic bump in the road. I’m convinced that these people are so full of themselves, so overconfident, that they’ll continue to push their luck big time and screw up royally. Concentrate on being there when they do.

  “As for the other matter, I’m sure you’ve noticed that I’ve been out of the office a lot more than usual lately. The main reason for that has been that more than a few situations have arisen throughout the NYPD that have aroused the suspicions of the top brass and department heads that we have an information security problem. Internal Affairs, outside consultants and others are seriously looking into these cases and I’m hoping that they will get to the bottom of things in short order. I never thought we had that kind of problem here, but this Reid killing changes my position on that. So, until further notice, all reports will be given orally to me and your notes kept in a secure location known only to you.”

  “Sir, are you going to tell the other men in out department what is going on? Once word gets out, the culprits are going to go to ground.”

  “No I am not nor are any of the other department heads going to tell their people for the very reason you just stated. I’m telling you because you already have your own suspicions. So, if you have nothing else to discuss, I’ve got a lot of pacing and worrying to do and I’m at my best when I do them alone.”

  “I’m out of here.”

  Walking back to his desk to call Ferguson to tell him about Reid, paranoia sets in and he starts wondering if his phone is tapped. “Maybe I should work from home for a while.” Shaking his head, he grabs his car keys off his desk and splits, deciding to call Ferguson from his cell.

  Chuck answers on the first ring and Mickey hits him with the news, about Reid not the department leaks. “Boy, this paranoia gig can get out of hand in a hurry.”

  “Well, Lieutenant, we still have the Pierre Lavelle iron in the fire. That could lead to something.”

  “Yeah and maybe something will turn up during my internet searches or phone conversations with the HR departments of the robbery victims.”

  “What have you got going there?”

  Mickey tells him what he’s up to and Chuck says, “My people can help you with that Lieutenant. It will cut down the time to uncover something helpful and maybe prevent someone else from getting hurt or killed.”

  “Okay, I’ll call the HR dep
artments and you can help with the internet searches. And knock it off with the Lieutenant bit will you? Mick or Mickey is fine with me.”