After the two finished talking, Luke glanced at his watch. It was already ten in the morning. "Deputy, you should go take a rest. I'll keep an eye on the scene."
Having been tormented by the kidnappers all night, not to mention the old man, even young Luke was exhausted.
The deputy waved his hand, "Getting older, I can only sleep a few hours at night, but I can't sleep at all during the day.
You go rest."
"OK, then I'll leave the scene to you." Luke didn't stand on ceremony.
Deputy "..."
I...
Luke said farewell to everyone and returned to the police station office to get some sleep.
This was also his years of experience in the force, taking naps whenever there's time between cases because once it gets busy, there might not even be time to eat.
With the deputy at the scene, he felt at ease.
Luke slept until a bit past one in the afternoon.
After getting up, he washed his face and ate a hamburger.
At two in the afternoon, Luke gathered everyone for a meeting with a cup of coffee.
"Everyone, thank you for your hard work. Let's discuss the new developments in the case."
Jackson put a sketch in front of Luke, "Captain, what do you think?"
It was a sketch of a middle-aged white man. Luke nodded, "Not bad. Is this the sketch of the kidnapper, Tom?"
The deputy answered, "That's right. We had someone from Carter Cleaning Company identify him as the one who booked the cleaning service. We can confirm Jim wasn't lying.
Once the sketch was completed, I let Jim leave."
Luke could also do criminal sketches himself, but he usually only did it in urgent cases. This time, Reid provided adequate logistical support, sending a forensic sketch artist directly.
Luke was relieved, and he wasn't the type to take on more than necessary.
Luke asked, "Haven't found any photos of Tom yet?"
The deputy shook his head, "Not yet."
"What about the house where the kidnappers are hiding?"
"We contacted the homeowner, who hasn't been in Los Angeles for a while and didn't rent out the house.
The kidnappers likely occupied the house temporarily.
Moreover, I had someone visit the neighbors in the community.
These people kept a low profile, and the neighbors didn't notice any intruders."
Luke sipped his coffee, "Looks like these guys are pretty cautious."
Jackson agreed, "Indeed, very cautious.
Actually, the cleaning company had surveillance cameras, but when Tom went, he wore a hat and kept his back to the camera, so they couldn't see his face."
Luke pursued, "Any suspicious vehicles on the community surveillance?"
Jenny shrugged, "This community's a bit chaotic. The surveillance cameras are often vandalized, and they are still under repair."
Luke finished his coffee in one go, "Can anyone give me some good news?"
"Be patient, young man. I was just about to say." The deputy chuckled, "The tech team collected some biological evidence and household trash from the house.
There is a set of fingerprints that don't match the homeowner's, likely the suspect's, but we haven't identified them yet.
Additionally, biological evidence was extracted from the household trash, and the tech team is examining it."
"That's good news. Hopefully, we can identify the kidnappers." Luke jotted something in his notebook and glanced around, "Where's Marcus? Why haven't I seen him?"
Everyone looked at the deputy.
The latter said, "At ten this morning, the kidnappers called Jim.
They inquired if Jim received the gold and demanded he pay the six million US Dollars in cash as agreed.
The transaction is set for March 17.
Jim agreed.
I was worried the kidnappers might contact Jim again, so I had Marcus help him as a liaison."
Luke raised an eyebrow, "Are you sure he can handle this task?"
"Jim is black, so having Marcus nearby won't raise any suspicion. Besides, Marcus grew up in the ghetto, and his ability to adapt is strong, not inferior to anyone here."
The deputy was confident, "Trust me, he will complete the task smoothly."
Although Luke was still a bit worried, since Marcus was already on the mission, he couldn't overrule the deputy's decision. He changed the subject, "So, on March 17, we have a chance to capture the kidnappers all at once."
The deputy said, "As long as nothing goes wrong with Jim, it should be fine.
The kidnappers wouldn't just give up six million US Dollars; that's their ultimate goal..."
"Ring, ring, ring..."
Luke's phone rang. He glanced at it and said, "Alright, guys, that's it for now. Let me know immediately if there are updates from the tech team or Marcus."
"As you wish, Captain."
Luke returned to the captain's office and pressed the answer button, "Hello, this is Luke."
Anthony's voice came from the phone, "Buddy, how's the case of Isa Redman's kidnapping going?"
"Some progress." Luke replied perfunctorily and asked back, "What about the case of the real estate tycoon Gary Sane's son being kidnapped?"
Anthony sighed, "The kidnappers haven't contacted us again. Things aren't looking good."
"The news about the real estate tycoon's son being kidnapped is everywhere on TV; it's all over the city. As long as the kidnappers aren't fools, they wouldn't contact the family now." Luke changed the question,
"What I'm more curious about is, how did the news of the real estate tycoon's son being kidnapped get out?"