Anders Knutas 03 - The Inner Circle aka Unknown

by Mari Jungstedt

  Sohlman changed pictures.

  "This was where the body of Martina Flochten was found, hanging from a tree. Generally only the farmer or someone who might want to get a better view from the bird tower would enter this area at all. That's why it's not so strange that it took several days for the body to be found. Let's take a look at the injuries. This isn't exactly your usual sort of murder."

  Several of the detectives began to fidget as soon as the pictures of Martina appeared.

  "What's significant is that she seems to have been killed in more than one way," Sohlman went on pensively. "The victim was both strangled and knifed. One qualified guess is that she was first hanged from the noose, and afterward the perpetrator slashed her with a knife. The appearance of the incision indicates that it was probably done after death. Since she has no other injuries, it looks as if the perpetrator was able to cut her open in peace and quiet, so to speak. She didn't offer any resistance. But there's another issue."

  Sohlman paused for effect and looked at his colleagues pointedly.

  "We're not positive that she died from hanging. There are several indications that she was already dead when she was hung up in that tree."

  "What sort of indications?" asked Knutas, looking startled.

  "As I said, this is just a hunch—I'll gladly leave the confirming analysis to the ME—but I've seen quite a few hanging deaths when people committed suicide by kicking away the chair or whatever they were standing on and then were strangled by the noose. The deceased typically has specific types of injuries. These include bruises along the groove on the neck where the rope dug in, as well as hemorrhaging at the base of the neck muscles along the collarbone. These signs of vitality, as they're called, are easy to detect. You notice them at once if you've been at that type of death scene before. Martina doesn't have any of them. Something doesn't add up."

  Jacobsson looked in surprise at the crime tech.

  "So that means the murderer might have used several methods to kill Martina instead of settling for just one—and the hanging and stab wound in the abdomen were two of the methods. But what actually killed her?"

  A tense silence followed. Wittberg was the first to speak.

  "It's one thing when a killer stages an assault by using a knife, for example, to stab the victim and then continues to hack away even though the person is already dead. Or he keeps firing unnecessary shots at the victim. That's something that occurs in a fit of rage or because the killer is under the influence of drugs or has simply gone berserk. But this seems to be a different story."

  "The murder feels ritualistic," murmured Knutas as he looked at the pictures.

  "Yes," agreed Smittenberg. "The perpetrator would have had time to stop and think between the various steps; he should have calmed down."

  "What about the motive?" said Jacobsson meditatively. "He had a definite reason for killing her in several ways. It symbolizes something. The modus operandi seems like some sort of ceremony, just as Anders said. The question is: Why is she naked? What does it mean?"

  "There are no outward signs of sexual assault, but if she was assaulted it will show up in the autopsy. Yet the fact that she's not wearing any clothes clearly has sexual connotations."

  "What sort of evidence have you found?" asked Wittberg.

  "Not much so far," said Sohlman. "We're in the process of searching the entire promontory, and there's a lot of area to cover."

  "We're continuing to go door to door in the summer-house area," interjected Knutas. "Let's hope it produces some results."

  "How many summer houses are there?" asked Smittenberg.

  "About twenty."

  "Was the murder committed at the site where the body was found?"

  "It's hard to say at the moment," said Sohlman. "I didn't see any signs of a struggle at the site. On the other hand, we haven't yet had a chance to examine everything thoroughly. The ME has to make his examination before we can move the body. Since the decomposition process has already set in, I would guess that she's been dead for two or three days. I can't give you a more specific time of death at the moment—but it seems likely that she was killed late Saturday night or early Sunday morning. It's virtually impossible to drive into the wooded area, so the perp probably carried her there if he killed her somewhere else. It's at least a couple of hundred yards away on foot, which means that we're dealing with someone who's quite strong. Martina was not a petite girl. She was both tall and muscular."

  "I'm thinking about the decapitated horse in Petesviken," said Jacobsson. "I wonder if there's some connection. That seemed ritualistic, too."

  "Of course we'll look for points of connection between the two cases," said Knutas. "We need to find out more about Martina Flochten's past. Who was she? What was she doing before the murder? Did anything unusual happen? Did her behavior change in any way? What sort of person was she? Can you take responsibility for finding out these things, Karin?"

  "Sure."

  "It's also important that we talk with every single summer-house owner around Vivesholm as soon as possible, and even more important, the guests who were staying at the hotel over the weekend. I'll leave that to you, Thomas. All the archaeologists have to be interviewed, too—the students taking the course, the teachers, and the others at the college. Since I don't want the press to get wind of this ritualistic angle, no one should say anything about it, and I mean not to anybody at all."

  Knutas gazed sternly at his colleagues sitting around the table.

  "If this gets out, we're done for. Then we'll have reporters chasing us all day long."

  He stood up.

  "At four o'clock this afternoon we're holding a press conference. Lars and I will handle it."

  Staffan Mellgren looked haggard when Knutas met him in the reception area of police headquarters. His face was pale and his eyes red-rimmed and shiny. There was something jumpy about him, and his clothes were so wrinkled that it looked as if he had slept in them. They went up to Knutas's office where they could talk undisturbed. Mellgren declined the offer of coffee.

  "How are you doing?" asked Knutas after they sat down across from each other.

  "This is so terrible, what happened to Martina. I can't understand it."

  "I want to start by talking some more about the student group. We understand that Martina was quite popular. Was there anyone who didn't get along with her?"

  Mellgren shook his head.

  "No, not as far as I know."

  "Do you know of anyone who was particularly fond of Martina? Or maybe even in love with her?"

  "Not exactly," he replied hesitantly, "but there are two guys who paid a lot of attention to her."

  "Who are they?"

  "Jonas is a Swede, from Skåne, probably no more than twenty years old. Mark is American, a little older, about twenty-five, I would guess. Those two really get along—Mark and Jonas, I mean. They're as thick as thieves."

  "In what way did they show an interest in Martina?"

  "Well, they were always hovering around her. Both of them liked to talk and joke with her."

  "Did one of them seem more fond of her than the other?"

  "No, I don't think you could say that. I think they both liked her equally."

  "Was the interest mutual?"

  "I think Martina thought they were fun and nice as friends, but nothing more than that."

  "How do you know that?"

  "It's just a feeling."

  "Are the two of them also staying at Warfsholm?"

  "Yes."

  "Have you noticed any strangers hanging around the excavation site?"

  "Just the usual. People we know or one of the neighbors who drops by to talk for a while. Small groups of tourists show up several times a week, but they usually keep a safe distance away."

  "As the leader of the course, do you have any idea who might have murdered Martina?"

  "No."

  "I've asked you this question before, but I'm going to have to ask it again: What was you
r relationship with her?"

  "She was a student that I liked and respected, as a student," said Mellgren in a sharp voice. "Of course there was nothing going on between us. I've already told you that."

  "Where were you on Saturday night?"

  "I was actually out having a beer."

  "Alone?"

  "Yes."

  "Where?"

  "First at Donner's Well and later at the Monk's Cellar."

  "Did you meet anyone you know?"

  "I always run into a few acquaintances."

  "When did you get home?"

  "I don't know. I didn't look at my watch."

  "But you must be able to say whether it was 9:00 p.m. or 3:00 a.m.," said Knutas impatiently.

  He was starting to be genuinely annoyed, and he wondered what a married father of four was doing out on the town alone on a Saturday night. Why wasn't he home with his family if he hadn't planned to meet someone?

  "I guess it was almost three."

  "What's your marriage like?" asked Knutas.

  Mellgren was slow to answer. His jaw visibly tightened.

  "You'll have to excuse the question, but I need to ask it," Knutas went on as he stared back at the man.

  "Things are fine between Susanna and me. Did she tell you otherwise?"

  Knutas raised his hand in protest. "Absolutely not. I was just wondering."

  The room in which the press conference was going to be held was buzzing with life. The reporters were taking seats in the rows of chairs, and microphones were being set up on the podium at the front of the room. Up until now the police had declined to issue any statement, so everyone was very curious about what they were going to hear about the murder of the young archaeology student.

  The murmuring automatically stopped when Anders Knutas and Lars Norrby took their places up front.

  "Welcome to the press conference," Knutas began. "The young woman who has been missing since Saturday, Martina Flochten, who was born in 1983, has been found dead outside of Vivesholm. That's just outside of Klintehamn, approximately nineteen miles south of Visby on the west coast. There is no doubt whatsoever that she was murdered."

  He glanced down at his notes.

  "The body was found at 5:45 a.m. by an individual who was out walking in the area. Many of you already know that Martina was born and raised in the Netherlands, but her mother was from Hemse here on Gotland. The mother died three years ago. Martina has lived in the Netherlands all her life. She came here in early June to take part in a course on archaeological excavation that is offered by the college. She had been on Gotland for a month before she disappeared on the night that a concert was held at Warfsholm. July third. We'll now take questions."

  "Can you tell us anything about how she was murdered?"

  "No."

  "Why not?"

  "Because the investigation is ongoing."

  "Was some sort of weapon used?"

  "Yes, but I don't intend to say anything more on the subject."

  "Was she sexually assaulted?"

  "We won't know until an autopsy is performed on the body."

  "When will that happen?"

  "The body was examined by the ME at the site this afternoon. Tonight it will be transported to the forensic medicine lab in Solna. The autopsy will be done in the next few days."

  "Do you know how long she's been dead?"

  "Not yet. The autopsy report will tell us that."

  "Surely you must be able to say something about how long she'd been dead when she was found. Was it a matter of an hour? Or had she been dead since she disappeared?"

  "This much I can tell you: It was most likely that she'd been dead at least twenty-four hours."

  "Is it a question of one killer, or were there more?"

  "We don't know at the present moment."

  "So there could have been more than one?"

  "That's possible."

  "Do you have any suspects?"

  "Not at the moment, no."

  "Are there any witnesses?"

  "We've been knocking on doors all day, and we're compiling statements from everyone in the area who might have seen something."

  "Martina Flochten was half Swedish, and her mother was from Gotland. Is that significant?"

  "Of course we're working on a broad front and will follow up on all possible leads."

  "Does she have any relatives here on Gotland?"

  "No. Her only relatives here were her maternal grandparents, and they've been dead for years."

  "Has the area out there been cordoned off?"

  "The wooded area where the body was found has been cordoned off."

  "For how long?"

  "Until the technical work is completed."

  "How much contact did she have with Gotland?"

  "She used to come here once a year on vacation."

  "What could be a possible motive for the murder?"

  "It's much too early to speculate about a motive," snapped Knutas.

  "Was Martina Flochten known to the Dutch or Swedish police?"

  "No, not as far as we know."

  "She'd been missing for several days—why wasn't Vivesholm searched by the police earlier? It's so close to Warfsholm, after all."

  "We didn't see any reason to do so. The police have to work on one area at a time, so we start with the location where the individual was last seen, and then we gradually expand our efforts from there."

  "Was there any evidence left by the murderer?"

  "A perpetrator always leaves evidence. I can't discuss what it might be, since the investigation is ongoing."

  "What are the police going to do now?"

  "As I said, we're working hard to interview people and take their statements. The police would like to appeal to the public for any tips, both from those who were at the Warfsholm hotel on the evening when the Eldkvarn concert took place, and from others who may have seen Martina with someone who could be of interest to the investigation. It's especially important at this early stage."

  Knutas stood up to indicate that the press conference was over. He ignored the flood of questions directed at him. Various journalists began taking him aside for separate interviews.

  An hour later the whole spectacle was finally over, and he could escape to his office. In all his years as a police officer he had always found it trying to deal with the press whenever major events occurred. It was a balancing act, trying to tell reporters enough without giving away too many details that might harm the investigation.

  When Knutas was back in his office, the ME called. He had finished examining the body at the site.

  "I must say that I've never seen anything like this before. We're dealing with a truly deviant killer."

  "We've already realized that."

  "I've done a preliminary examination, and I don't want to draw any definite conclusions, but there are a number of things that I can tell you."

  "Let's hear it."

  "I would say that she's been dead for at least three or four days."

  "So it's possible that she was killed on the same night that she disappeared?"

  "That might very well be. She was subjected to several types of violence, and I won't be completely sure of the cause of death until after the autopsy. Judging by the look of the injuries, I would guess that she was not killed by the knife wound in her abdomen."

  "Sohlman suspected as much."

  "On the other hand, there are signs that she may have died from drowning."

  "Is that right?"

  "I've found residue of a certain type of foam. When the victim drowns, foam gets whipped up in the windpipe and lungs. It gathers around the mouth and looks a bit like egg whites that have been whipped and then hardened. In addition, she has traces of seaweed and sand in her hair, as well as under her fingernails, which indicates that the killer may have pushed her head underwater somewhere along the shore. When she struggled, she buried her fingernails in the sea floor—that's where the seaweed and sand came from. She
also has hand and fingernail marks on the back of her neck and on her upper arms. I've found sand and sludge from the sea floor in her mouth. And there are tiny specks of blood in her eyes, which she could have gotten from fighting back or from lack of oxygen. As I said, I don't want to be more specific about the cause of death right now, but judging by appearances, she was dead before she was hanged from that noose. The most probable scenario is that he first drowned her by holding her head underwater. In all likelihood she was drowned somewhere else. Her body was then transported out to Vivesholm."

  "Why do you think she was killed somewhere else?"

  "Simply because that type of sand isn't found out at Vivesholm."

  "So she was killed near a sandy beach?"

  "Not necessarily, but the sea floor was sandy. Out at the bird promontory where she was found, it's mostly rock. She would have had more injuries to her hands if she'd been drowned there."

  "I see."

  Knutas was taking copious notes. He was impressed by how much information the ME could read from a body.

  "There's one thing that surprises me. How did the perpetrator manage to hang the body up there? He must have hoisted her up in some way, or else he didn't do it alone," the ME went on. "She looks as if she weighs between 130 and 145 pounds, at any rate. That much dead weight is difficult, if not almost impossible, to hoist up single-handedly."

  "So you think there were more people involved?"

  "Either that, or else we're dealing with a physically strong man with some sort of ingenious hoisting method." The ME cleared his throat. "There's something else that has me confused. It's that incision she has in her abdomen and the blood from it."

  "What about it?"

  "The incision looks to be deep enough to have damaged the aorta, which would result in a great deal of blood loss. The accumulation of blood on the ground under the body should have been bigger. It's almost as if the killer collected some of the blood."

  "Is that right? Sohlman said the exact same thing about another recent case. Do you know about the horse that was decapitated a little more than a week ago?"

  "Sure."