The deputy captain thought for a moment and said, "Not necessarily. If the kidnapper really saw the police at the scene, he wouldn't contact Bruce Redman again.
His frequent changes of the transaction location, this kind of cautious measure, actually shows that the kidnapper has a real intention to make the transaction.
Young man, have some patience. It's only been a little over two hours." The deputy captain frowned, as if he remembered something,
"I recall encountering a kidnapping case before, where the kidnapper gave a transaction location, instructing that the ransom be delivered at midnight.
But we waited until three in the morning and still didn't see the kidnapper's shadow.
Past three in the morning, the kidnapper called and changed the transaction location again.
We rushed to the new location, and still, the kidnapper didn't show.
The next night, the kidnapper called again with a new time and location; we waited all night, but the kidnapper still didn't come.
On the third night, the kidnapper continued to call, saying the transaction was at one in the morning; by two, the transaction was said to be canceled.
But at four in the morning, the transaction was proposed again. After messing around back and forth a lot of times, the kidnapper finally appeared at the transaction spot.
We eventually caught the kidnapper.
The more it gets to times like these, the more patience is needed.
Whoever shows their hand first, whoever gets impatient, will lose."
At four in the morning, the kidnapper called again, giving the new transaction location under the bridge on Kerman Street.
After circling around, it returned to the previous transaction location; the difference was that it was now under the bridge, which was undeniably frustrating.
But as the deputy captain said, whoever gets anxious and loses composure at this time will lose.
Luke continued implementing surveillance calmly and methodically.
At four twenty in the morning, Bruce Redman drove to the spot under the bridge, and the kidnapper called again, instructing Bruce Redman to place the gold next to a pier under the bridge and leave immediately.
He was also ordered not to call the police and to go home and await news.
Within three days, they would release his daughter.
Bruce Redman agreed readily and also requested, as per Luke's reminder, to speak with his daughter.
This time, the kidnapper agreed.
"Dad, it's Isa. I'm so scared, please save me... save me..." The voice grew fainter.
Bruce Redman shouted at his phone, "Isa, my darling, are you okay? Have they hurt you..."
"To see your daughter again, do as I say." Then, the kidnapper abruptly hung up the phone.
Confirmed that his daughter was still alive, Bruce Redman took a deep breath, adjusted his mindset, and placed the six gold-filled bags next to the pier before driving off.
Bruce Redman left, but the police still kept watch around the area.
Two homeless men huddled in a corner near the bridge; this time, to avoid suspicion from the kidnapper, they didn't get too close and used binoculars to observe secretly.
The drone continued to surveil from the sky.
Previously, Luke had been cautious, advising Bruce Redman to place the gold under the outermost pier.
This way, with the limited cover from the bridge, the police could still observe the situation around the gold with the drone.
At four fifty in the morning, a black Ford car slowly passed under the bridge. Luke observed from afar with binoculars and sensed something suspicious about this car, though it did not stop.
At five in the morning, the black Ford car circled back under the bridge and stopped.
Two Black men got out of the car, carefully observing the surroundings, walked to the pier, opened a backpack to check, and then placed the backpack with the gold into the trunk before driving away quickly.
The deputy captain smiled, "The fish has bitten the hook."
Jackson, somewhat excited, asked, "Captain, should we take action now?"
"Wait, it's not time to reel in yet. Let's see where they go. If they can take us directly back to their lair, it would be less risky than catching them here."
The deputy captain nodded, "I agree with this plan.
However, this will increase the difficulty of tracking, as we can't be discovered by the other party, nor can we lose them."
Luke said, "Continue with the relay tracking.
Marcus, Jackson, you guys go too.
Also, have the drone track in the air."
"Yes, sir."
The Ford was driving fast, and to avoid detection, the police didn't dare to follow too closely, so they had an officer sit in the patrol car to control the drone for tracking.
Additionally, Luke contacted Reid, having him track the black Ford car through road surveillance.
With multi-faceted collaboration from the police, the suspect vehicle's whereabouts remained under control.
Half an hour later, the suspect vehicle drove into a Black neighborhood.
The garage door on the east side of a white slanted-roof house was open, and the Ford drove directly into the garage.
The garage door closed, and all was quiet.
This ransom delivery operation temporarily came to a close, and it had been over four hours since the kidnapper's extortion call.
By now, the horizon began to lighten with a hint of dawn.
Through road surveillance and drone observation, the police confirmed the kidnapper's hideout.
Luke began setting up surveillance around the area.
A black SUV parked a little distance away from the white house, and Luke observed through binoculars.
The deputy captain asked beside him, "What do you think?"
Luke analyzed, "From the current situation, this is likely the kidnapper's hideout or one of their bases.
It's just that we don't know the situation inside yet, nor do we know if the hostage is here.
If we act rashly, there might be certain risks; it's best to assess the situation first."
The deputy captain nodded, "Being cautious is right, but I have another concern.
Once the kidnappers get the gold, the hostage has no more value. Might they kill her immediately?"
Luke frowned slightly. The deputy's concern was valid; whatever choice they made carried risks, and they could only choose the best possible plan.
Just then, a gray BMW drove over and parked in the kidnapper's yard.
A Black man wearing sunglasses got out of the car, looked around cautiously, and quickly went inside the house.
Luke watched through binoculars, his expression changing as he recognized the man with sunglasses.
The proprietor of the Strange House Antiques Store and csj Pawnshop, Jim.
This guy has long been involved in shady businesses dealing in stolen goods.
The deputy captain also saw Jim through the binoculars, smirking, "This guy looks a bit familiar..."
Luke reminded him, "In the Getty Museum painting theft case, his antique store coincidentally sold high-quality counterfeit paintings suspected to be from the robbery."
The deputy captain replied, "I remember now. This guy even helped a bit in the painting theft case. How is he involved in a kidnapping case? Isn't this guy supposed to be only dealing in stolen goods?"
To this, Luke was also a bit puzzled. Even though Jim's business was illegal, as long as it didn't affect the police's interests, they turned a blind eye.
After all, in this gray market chain, taking one down only leads to another rising. Rather than letting them flourish in secret, it'd be better to keep them under the police's watchful eye.
From this perspective, Jim had gang connections, and the police were too lazy to bother him. As long as he didn't cross them or overstep, he lived quite comfortably, so why risk getting involved in a kidnapping case.
Unless...
Luke had a hunch.
5,000 ounces of gold valued at ten million US dollars couldn't be spent directly by the kidnappers; they would need someone to convert it to cash. Perhaps, that's why Jim came.
Jim has black market connections. Maybe he could convert those 5,000 ounces of gold into cash.
Moreover, Luke noted Jim was traveling light without bringing more people.
This suggested he trusted the people in the house. Could it be that they are his collaborators?
Reasoning along these lines, those who took the gold might not be the kidnappers but rather Jim's subordinates, and even if the police caught them, they may not necessarily find the kidnappers.
Instead of saying the kidnappers were coming to Jim for exchanging gold, it's more like using Jim to take the fall. If Jim got caught, they would certainly disappear without a trace.
If Jim wasn't caught, it would mean the victim's family did not call the police. As agreed, Jim would directly exchange the gold for cash, and they would just wait to get their money.
Even though Jim would undoubtedly take a commission, it would serve as additional insurance, shifting the most dangerous ransom delivery phase of the kidnapping onto someone else.