Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

The next morning, at the Robbery and Murder Department.

Jackson entered the captain's office and said, "Captain, I've found an important lead."

Luke pointed to the chair opposite, "Sit down and tell me."

Jackson held a stack of files, "I've meticulously investigated the suspect Cabin Bass's background and found he has a history of drug dealing and theft and has been sent to rehab multiple times.

Additionally, I also investigated the agent Wendell Duma's background and discovered he also has a history of drug use, including a stint in rehab.

Coincidentally, both were at the same rehab center, and their timelines overlap."

Luke took the files to examine more closely, and indeed, both had been to the same rehab center in 2022.

Luke stood up and said, "Gather your gear, meet in the parking lot in five minutes."

"Yes, sir."

...

Forty minutes later.

Oswald Community, Wendell Duma's house.

Three police cars stopped outside Wendell Duma's house, and team members got out one by one. Jackson went to the gate and pressed the doorbell.

Soon, the gate opened, and a white woman dressed as a maid led the group into the villa.

In the living room, Luke saw Wendell Duma and a woman sitting on the sofa drinking coffee. He was somewhat surprised, "Rebecca Mozer, why are you here?"

Rebecca Mozer stood up and said, "I've been discharged from the hospital.

But I don't want to go home for now.

Wendell Duma let me stay temporarily at his place." Then she looked at Wendell Duma, jokingly, "Thanks again for taking in this homeless person, otherwise I'd be wandering the streets."

"Hey, don't say such silly things, you can stay as long as you like." Wendell Duma stood up, patted Rebecca Mozer's shoulder, and asked, "Captain Li, why did you suddenly come to my place?"

"We've found some information about the suspect and wanted to confirm it with you."

"No problem, I'm happy to help." Wendell Duma forced a smile.

Luke pulled out a photo of the suspect Cabin Bass, "Mr. Duma, do you know this person?"

Wendell Duma glanced at the photo and shook his head, "I don't know him. Is he the robbery suspect?"

"Yes, are you sure you don't know him?"

"I'm certain."

"But according to our investigation, in 2022, both of you were in the same rehab center."

Wendell Duma's face changed slightly, "That doesn't necessarily mean I know him."

Luke took out a document, "This is a search warrant, Mr. Duma. We need to search your house and hope you'll cooperate."

Wendell Duma angrily said, "Hey, you can't do this, are you suspecting me?

How could I possibly harm Rebecca, I've always treated her like family."

Rebecca Mozer also said, "Captain Li, you must be mistaken.

Wendell Duma has always been the person I trust the most, he would never harm me."

"I hope so too, and once the investigation is clear, it will completely eliminate his suspicion." Luke said, instructing his team to start searching inside the villa and the yard.

Wendell Duma looked furious, "You're absolutely crazy to think I'm connected to the suspect."

Rebecca Mozer walked beside Wendell Duma and comforted him, "Darling, I believe you, there must be some misunderstanding here."

Watching the affectionate pair, Luke felt he stood out awkwardly, so he simply left the villa to search the yard.

A while later, Port's voice echoed from the garage, "Captain, I've found something here."

Luke walked into the garage and saw Port standing behind a red Porsche car, with the trunk open. Port lifted the mat in the trunk, revealing a black toolbox underneath.

Port opened the toolbox cover, inside weren't tools but a gun and some exquisite jewelry.

"Take these items to the living room."

"Yes, sir."

Afterward, Luke and the team entered the living room, Rebecca Mozer and Wendell Duma were still sitting on the sofa, talking softly.

Port placed the black toolbox on the coffee table, pointing at the jewelry inside, "Ms. Mozer, do you recognize this jewelry?"

Rebecca Mozer paused, showing a shocked expression, "These are all my stolen jewelry, you've retrieved them!

Where did you find them? Have you captured the suspect?"

Luke said, "These jewelry were found in Wendell Duma's car, as for the suspect's whereabouts, you should ask Mr. Duma."

Wendell Duma's face turned very grim; he stepped back and sat heavily on the sofa.

Rebecca Mozer's mouth was agape, in disbelief, "Wendell, what on earth is going on? Why is my stolen jewelry at your house?"

Wendell Duma lowered his head, silently.

Rebecca Mozer's face was very pale, she said choking on tears, "Oh my God, you're in cahoots with the suspect. I trusted you so much, why did you hurt me."

Wendell Duma sighed, "Rebecca, I never intended to harm you, I swear, things weren't meant to be this way.

I just sent him to your house for a robbery, I never expected that bastard to harm you.

When I found out, I was even angrier than you."

Rebecca Mozer asked in confusion, "Why did you send him to rob me?"

"I wanted to help you." Wendell Duma waved his hands helplessly, "You're in your thirties now, past your prime, and haven't landed good roles in a long time; your visibility is decreasing.

Now it's hard to even vie for a supporting role in a TV drama.

Not long ago, Bradley Lindeman came to me, saying his wife issued an ultimatum for him to break up with you.

He wanted me to convince you to part ways peacefully."

Wendell Duma took a deep breath, "Do you know what that means?

If you and Bradley Lindeman break up, without his resources and connections, it'll be hard for you to even land a supporting role in a drama in the future.

That's why I came up with this plan.

I initially hoped the robbery incident would generate buzz and exposure for you, revitalizing your career.

And indeed, that's what happened; I've already received several show invitations.

Do you know how many TV reporters are camping outside your house now?

You're famous again."

"I don't need to be famous this way." Rebecca Mozer showed a furious expression, "You have no idea what I went through that night? You have no idea."

Wendell Duma explained, "I've told you, I only wanted him to rob you, I never expected that bastard would hurt you.

I was angry too."

Luke chimed in, "So you killed him."

Wendell Duma hesitated for a moment, then denied, "No, I didn't kill him."

"Then why are the stolen goods here?"

Wendell Duma said, "He left in a rush and asked me to sell these items then give him the money."

"Where is he?"

"I don't know."

"Then how are you going to give him the money?"

"I..." Wendell Duma thought for a while, "He said he'd contact me again."

Luke stared at him, saying, "You know what? You're not good at lying."

Wendell Duma firmly asserted, "Everything I say is true; I didn't kill him."

Later, Luke stayed at the scene to investigate, leaving the vice-captain in charge of tracking the suspect Cabin Bass's whereabouts.

The vice-captain first checked the dashboard camera of Wendell Duma's Porsche, finding the connection cable unplugged and it hadn't been used for a while.

Subsequently, he could only contact the car manufacturer to investigate the car's GPS tracking system, discovering that in early dawn yesterday, Wendell Duma drove to Highway 1, which matches the suspect Cabin Bass's escape route.

The vice-captain took his team to the GPS location, finding the nearby area to be a desert. Based on his experience, the surroundings were ideal for murder and burial, but searching would be challenging and resource-intensive.

The vice-captain, considering, chose not to deploy too many resources, instead bringing in two search dogs.

Using the car's GPS location as the center, the two search dogs began searching either side of the highway, which continued for several hours.

At four in the afternoon, a police dog found an anomaly, its paws digging the soil.

Then, two officers began digging at the site found by the police dog, getting about thirty centimeters deep and uncovering a shovel.

The police dog continued barking.

The police continued digging, going about a meter deep, unearthing a large black bag, big enough to fit a person.

The police dug around the soil, smelling a strong stench of corpse even before opening the black bag.

An officer, wearing a mask and gloves, opened the black bag, revealing a body inside, precisely the suspect Cabin Bass they were pursuing.