by Alan Bexley
The indicator light got to ‘Ground’ and pinged. A recorded woman’s voice said, ‘Doors opening.’
At the third floor they got out of the lift. A sign showed that they had to turn left further down the corridor. They walked under an arch that displayed the ward name and went in. Helen caught a nurse’s attention and asked for Ingermann. He was at the far end of the row of beds.
The sheets covered Ingermann’s worst injuries but his face was a mass of bruising. He had a patch shaved out of his hair where he had been stitched. His eyes turned to them.
‘Afternoon, Mr Ingermann, you’re looking better,’ Frank said.
Helen fetched another chair, and they sat beside the bed.
‘Very amusing.’ Ingermann was without his spectacles and screwed up his face to squint at Frank. ‘Why don’t you both bugger off?’
‘I mean it,’ Frank said. ‘Last time I came in, the doctor wasn’t sure you’d live.’
‘You’re here to cheer me up then?’
‘We’re here to find out if you’ve come to your senses and will tell us what happened to you.’
‘Your attacker intended to kill you, I reckon,’ Helen added.
Ingermann focussed on her.
‘Tell us who it was,’ she said.
His silence showed he was considering what she had said. This surprised Frank as no one risked informing on the Morgans.
‘We can give you police protection,’ he said. ‘I can get an officer on permanent guard if you want.’
‘I’m safe enough here with all these people around.’
‘Are you sure?’ Frank said. ‘What about when they turf you out? Can you take care of yourself if they come back to finish the job?’
‘You’re just trying to put the wind up me.’
‘You’re not a stupid man,’ Helen said. ‘You’re in a fix and we can help you.’
‘Only when it suits you; if I can be useful to you.’
‘I think it was Loki who did this to you,’ Frank said. ‘We’ve a witness who saw him leaving your home.’
No confirmation came from Ingermann who looked confused.
‘I’m sure I’m right,’ Frank said.
‘You might as well confirm it.’ Helen tried to coax him.
‘I’m telling you it wasn’t him.’
Frank said, ‘Come off it.’
‘I was hit from behind and knocked unconscious. They must have belted me several times while I was down.’
‘I’ll arrange for that copper to watch over you,’ he said. ‘We still need the name of the person who bought your car.’
Ingermann had closed his eyes. ‘They stole it.’
‘Be honest with us,’ Helen said. ‘Tell us who bought the car from you.’
He didn’t answer.
‘Was it Loki?’ she asked.
‘It was stolen.’
‘You’re worried about being connected to the murder,’ she said, ‘but it’ll be worse if you deny it now and we prove it later.’
‘I’m not going to say any more.’
Frank and Helen stood up. Helen said, ‘OK. Get some rest. We’ll speak to you later.’
Chapter 15
In the lift the officers remained silent, each thoughtful. It was Frank who spoke first, ‘I think we can justify arresting both Ed Morgan and Kowalski. We can question them about the assault on Ingermann.’
‘We may be able to get Loki,’ Helen said. ‘But he won’t give up Ed. Loyalty, real or bought, will keep Ed untouchable as always.’
‘It might be possible to sway a jury. It would be in Crown Court so miles away and no Westchapel residents on the jury,’ Frank said.
‘In your dreams,’ she said.
Frank’s phone rang.
‘You’re supposed to switch that off in here,’ she said.
The lift arrived, and they stepped out.
‘Hello.’
It was Jade’s voice, ‘I’ve just spoken to Gina Morgan’s neighbour. She heard Gina and Cassie arguing on Wednesday morning around eight o’clock. Gina was berating Cassie for being lazy. Gina was loud and furious. It’s a frequent argument. The neighbour heard both voices.’
Frank ignored the people passing and giving him disapproving looks. ‘So, we can place them both at home when the killer was torching the car.’
‘We can cross them off our suspects list.’
‘Maybe I’m sexist but I always thought Ed was a better bet. Thanks.’ He ended the connection.
‘Cassie and Gina’s alibis are confirmed then?’ Helen asked.
‘Yes. Let’s get some uniform backup and get down to the Elektra.’
Frank, Helen and four uniformed officers stood in Maxwell Road just far enough away to be out of the range of Ed’s CCTV cameras. He phoned the club and asked for Ed. He disconnected as Ed answered and gestured the officers forward. The first officer was carrying the heavy ‘enforcer’ battering ram, which smashed open the outer door with a single blow. Frank and Helen let the officers go steaming in while they waited outside.
‘Don’t you want to join in?’ Helen asked him.
‘In a fight everybody gets hurt,’ he said.
‘OK, grandad.’
It wasn’t long before both Ed and Loki were pulled out onto the street. Loki was struggling but Ed was calm. Probably expecting his expensive lawyer to get him out of police custody in short order. They were both in handcuffs and taken to the waiting police van. The handcuffs weren’t strictly necessary, but a humiliation arranged by Frank. He and Helen walked along the corridor and entered Ed’s office. They stood and pulled on latex gloves.
‘Right, let’s see if we can find anything interesting,’ he said.
The filing cabinet by Ed’s desk was locked but Frank reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a large screwdriver. He made short work of breaking the locking mechanism and opening the top drawer. He found accounts for the business of the night club, and staff records. Ed might be a criminal but his paperwork was top notch. He didn’t want to be pulled up for accounting discrepancies. The Al Capone syndrome.
‘Look at this,’ Frank said.
Helen turned from the cupboard she had been searching. ‘What have you got?’
‘Our luck is changing. I’ve got the building society statements for the Francis Holdings Trust.’ He held them up for Helen to see. ‘This goes towards proving a connection between the Morgans and the money in the building society account. I wonder if we can get the account frozen pending investigation. I bet they can’t provide a legitimate source for these millions.’
‘It’s a wonder that HMRC aren’t already on the case,’ she said.
‘Maybe they are, but untangling the dummy companies is likely to be tricky,’ Frank said.
He opened a plastic evidence bag and slid in the folder of statements and completed the label on the outside.
They spent several minutes searching but found no more revelations. Frank handed the evidence bag to Helen while he carried the personnel files pulled from the cabinet. Now they had to get back to the station and interview their arrestees.
The custody sergeant leaned on his desk and asked Frank, ‘Who do you want first?’
‘Leonard Kowalski or Loki or whatever he wants to call himself.’
‘Right, I’ll fetch him. He’s forgone legal representation.’
‘I wonder if that’s a good sign,’ Frank asked Helen.
She shrugged.
Kowalski walked along the corridor; his shoulders slumped. Frank couldn’t read his expression. They led him into the interview room.
‘Leonard—’
Loki interrupted Frank, ‘Loki, I want you to call me Loki.’
‘As you wish, Loki. You have been arrested on suspicion of assault occasioning actual bodily harm of George Ingermann at approximately 11:45 on the morning of 11th January 2018. Our witness says you left Mr Ingermann’s flat at about that time. Neighbours heard raised voices. Do you know anything about this?’
�
��Yes, I do. I attacked George with a baseball bat.’
Chapter 16
Frank did his best to hide his surprise. ‘Did you mean to kill him?’
‘No, only to give him a beating.’
‘Who employed you to carry out the assault?’ Frank asked.
‘No one.’
‘Why did you attack George?’
‘He had disrespected me and I lost my temper. I was in a rage when I attacked him. I lost control.’
‘Did Ed Morgan pay you to attack George?’
‘No, why would he?’
Frank leaned back in his chair and stared at Kowalski. Helen took over the questioning.
‘Do you realise the seriousness of your confession?’ she asked.
‘I do.’
‘You are admitting to Actual Bodily Harm which is a crime that carries, given your previous convictions, a prison sentence of up to five years and a fine or community order?’
‘Yes.’
‘And you are saying that no one put you up to the attack on Mr Ingermann?’
‘I already answered that question. No one asked me or paid me to attack George.’
Frank took over again. ‘You’ll go back to your cell and attend a committal hearing at the Magistrates’ Court in the morning. We’ll oppose bail. I expect you’ll be held on remand until you are tried in the County Court. You understand all of this?’
‘I do.’
‘And there’s nothing else you want to say before I finish this interview. Nothing you’d like to add?’
‘Nothing.’
‘I’m terminating this interview at 14:20.’
Ed was represented by a solicitor who was wearing an expensive suit and smiled as Frank began the interview.
‘We are investigating an assault on George Ingermann causing Actual Bodily Harm. Do you know anything about this?’
‘I do not,’ Ed said.
‘You regret that Mr Ingermann came to harm?’
Ed frowned. ‘I regret when anyone comes to harm.’
‘Did you instruct Leonard Kowalski to assault George Ingermann?’
‘I did not.’
‘But you know George Ingermann?’
‘He’s done odd jobs for me but I found him to be unreliable so I don’t use him anymore.’
‘Your files show he’s done rather more than odd jobs.’
‘If you’ve read my file on him, why are you asking these questions?’
‘Where were you at 7:30 am on Wednesday morning?’ Helen asked.
‘That isn’t the time of Mr Ingermann’s beating,’ the solicitor said.
‘It’s the time of the murder of Victoria Crosby,’ she said.
The solicitor began to protest, ‘That’s an entirely separate matter.’
‘It’s OK,’ Ed said. ‘I’ll answer. In fact, I answered this question for Detective Sergeant Grey before. I was in the flat above the Elektra Night Club. As I wouldn’t have got to bed until four or five in the morning, I was asleep during the time you’re asking me about. My girlfriend - Teressa Allen - was with me.’
‘There was a file for Vicky Crosby.’
‘Yes,’ Ed said. ‘Vicky had done work for me.’
‘Yesterday you denied knowing her.’
‘She must have slipped my mind. My memory isn’t what it was.’
‘She worked in a building society. What work would she be doing for you?’
‘A few sessions of hostessing in Elektra, come to think of it. She was good at it too. The punters liked her.’
The room fell silent while Frank stared at Ed.
‘If you’ve no further questions for my client, I think we should wind this up now, don’t you?’ the solicitor suggested.
Frank agreed and ended the interview.
Jade had telephoned the mobiles of both Ed’s and Loki’s girlfriends.
‘They both confirm what the men are saying. Ed and Loki worked late and they were in bed asleep when Vicky was killed.’
‘Do we trust them?’ Frank asked. ‘It’s unlikely that the girlfriends of these two are upstanding members of the community.’
Jade responded with her own question. ‘Loki confessed to attacking George Ingermann then?’
‘He did. I imagine he’s been well compensated for the short jail sentence he’s likely to get.’
‘You won’t be surprised that we can’t get the trust fund monies frozen.’
Helen spoke up from her desk across the room, ‘I couldn’t imagine Ed actually driving the car at Vicky. He would have used someone like Loki to do it.’
Frank looked at the whiteboard. ‘I hope to God we’re not going to be reduced to hunting a mystery man.’
‘We need to go and interview Neil Morgan if we’re to meet your deadline,’ Helen said.
‘Right,’ Frank said, standing and pulling on his jacket. ‘Jade, while we’re doing this, can you do some digging into Loki’s girlfriend’s background? I want to see if we need to interview her or whether she can be considered reliable. Give me a call when you’ve taken the measure of her.’
Neil Morgan invited Frank and Helen into his former council flat on the eighteenth floor of Oswell Point - or ‘Oz’ as it was known locally. His girlfriend - Patricia Highwood - made them coffee once they had refused ‘something stronger’. An L-shaped settee stood in front of a huge television with a soundbar attached that fed multiple speakers. Frank and Helen sat on one side of the settee while Neil sat on the other with his arms stretched along its back. The flat was spotless with a few china ornaments on a shelving unit under which was a cupboard with two sliding doors which must have been hiding the detritus of everyday living.
‘We’re investigating the death of Vicky Crosby,’ Helen said to him.
‘I know,’ he said. ‘I was told.’
‘We need to know your whereabouts at 7:30 am on Wednesday,’ she said.
‘Like I told your guy on the phone I was at home in bed with Patricia.’
‘That’s right,’ Patricia said.
‘So why are you here?’ Neil said.
‘I prefer to interview suspects in person,’ Frank said.
‘How come I’m a suspect?’ Neil said.
‘This is routine,’ Helen said. ‘The victim had connections to the Morgan family and so we are interviewing you all.’
‘He’s just making trouble for us,’ Neil said to Helen. ‘Sergeant Grey has a bloody grudge against my family.’
‘I have a grudge against anyone who breaks the law,’ Frank said.
‘All you’ve got on me is two old convictions for possession. Pathetic. Everybody has a little goddam coke to smooth out the day.’
‘It’s time for you to sod off,’ Patricia said. ‘We’ve answered your questions.’
Outside, Helen said, ‘That went well.’
‘He’s a sly bugger. I’m sure he’s dealing to school kids. Little bastard.’
Helen checked the time on her phone. ‘We’ve got time to talk to the neighbours before we return to the nick.’
‘I’ll take this side,’ Frank said, and they rang the doorbells of the neighbouring flats.
‘Good afternoon,’ Frank said to the middle-aged woman who answered the door.
‘I’m Detective Sergeant Grey.’ He held up his warrant card.
‘I need a quick word with you about your neighbour Neil Morgan.’
‘Oh, him. He’s forever playing loud music and people are coming and going at all hours.’
He heard a door slamming in Helen’s face. Seconds later, she joined Frank. ‘I wanted to ask you about Wednesday morning around 7:30 am,’ Frank told the neighbour.
‘Wednesday morning?’ the woman lowered her voice. ‘Did that bastard have something to do with the poor woman who got run down? What’s her name?’
‘Vicky Crosby,’ Frank said.
The neighbour thought back. ‘I’m not sure. I was getting ready for work. There was music from their flat. They must have been moving about. The walls are so t
hin if it had been quiet, I’d have noticed. I didn’t actually see either of them, though.’
‘Thank you anyway,’ He said as the door closed.
‘Inconclusive,’ Helen said, ‘but you got on better than I did.’
Chapter 17
Altman was talking to Jade when Frank and Helen walked back into the CID office.
‘Well done on getting a confession from Kowalski,’ he said.
Frank decided against revealing that Kowalski had volunteered the confession.
‘How are we getting on with eliminating the Morgans?’ Altman asked.
Frank scratched his forehead and picked up a whiteboard marker pen to tap the images on display. ‘I’ll start with Gina. The murder took place early morning. They’re all saying the same thing: they were at home with their loved ones. In Gina’s case, she and Cassie are alibiing one another and a neighbour heard both their voices while they were arguing. Then there’s the Amazon delivery man who got a signature from Gina. We’ll send him a photograph of her and ask for confirmation. Cassie’s boyfriend stayed over and confirmed their alibis. It looks like we can strike these two out. Ed Morgan’s alibi needs to be checked with his girlfriend.’ He looked at Jade.
‘I phoned her. We had a chat woman to woman and I got the impression she likes bad boys. Apparently, Ed can be a charmer when he wants to be. She works for us in a manner of speaking. She’s a traffic warden. I checked her out and her record is spotless. Not even unjustified complaints from disgruntled illegal parkers. I would say Ed’s off our list.’
‘I never thought he carried out the murder himself,’ Frank said. ‘But what about Loki’s girlfriend? He’s a likely candidate.’
‘Yes,’ Jade said. ‘Leonie Elliott used her mobile from his flat on Wednesday morning so we can assume she was there. She has no criminal record. Doesn’t own a car. She’s worked as a cashier at ASDA for five years. I checked with their HR people. She’s well-regarded, efficient, good timekeeper, etcetera. I spoke with her parents who don’t approve of Loki. They reckon she can do better for herself. They say she’s never been in any trouble. Never given them any cause for concern. But they suspect she’s been using drugs since hooking up with Loki. That’s about it.’