Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

Police Detective Bureau.

One morning, two bodies were found, and Luke's days of leisure fishing were over.

The information about the two victims was also compiled and handed to Luke.

The first victim was named Balte Ramos, an owner of a used car dealership, who was sniped from a distance while driving a BMW.

The second victim was named Garrett Swan, a real estate broker, who was shot dead inside the Patuo Apartment building.

Two seemingly unrelated individuals, yet they died at the hands of the same person.

At three in the afternoon, Luke convened a meeting to summarize the case details.

Luke glanced around at everyone and said, "From the clues we have, these two incidents seem to be connected; it's very likely that the two victims were killed by the same gunman.

This gunman used a silenced sniper rifle and pistol, which from his professional killing method, suggests he might be a professional assassin.

Moreover, the real target of this gunman seems to have been the first victim, Balte Ramos.

This can be determined from his carrying a sniper rifle.

If his real intention was to kill the second victim, there would've been no need to carry a sniper rifle, much less to shoot at a car on the highway.

Another point, the second victim was accompanied by a woman, who likely saw the face of the gunman."

"I checked the apartment elevator surveillance, and indeed saw Garrett Swan and a woman take the elevator to the sixth floor." Port walked over to the projector, played a video showing Garrett Swan and a blonde woman entering the elevator. The woman was Caucasian, wearing a red long dress, a khaki cardigan, and red high heels, which were identical to the ones Luke found in the stairwell.

Port switched to another photo, "This is a frontal photo of the woman in red shoes, we have yet to find her whereabouts or identify her."

The deputy asked, "Why did Garrett Swan go to apartment 611?"

Raymond replied, "Apartment 611 is for rent, and Garrett Swan was the real estate broker managing the rental."

The deputy further inquired, "Could the woman in red shoes be a client renting the apartment?"

Raymond shook his head, "I don't think so, I contacted the real estate agency where Garrett Swan worked, and he didn't have an appointment with any clients that morning."

Luke summarized, "From the evidence we have, this is highly likely a case of hired murder.

We will focus our investigation on three aspects, the first is to check the personal and financial associations of the first victim, especially those involving large amounts of money recently.

The second aspect is to trace the whereabouts of the gunman and prevent further crimes.

The third aspect is to find the female eyewitness who saw the gunman."

After Luke finished speaking, he continued assigning tasks, "Marcus, you're in charge of tracking down the female eyewitness starting from the call records on Garrett Swan's mobile phone.

Deputy, you will handle the investigation into the gunman's whereabouts.

Jenny, make contact with the victims' families."

"Yes, sir."

...

Campos Hospital.

Luke and Jackson came to the hospital to visit the people injured in the car accident; they were not only victims but also witnesses who might provide valuable clues.

Room 309.

"Knock knock." Jackson knocked on the hospital room door.

"Come in."

Jackson and Luke pushed the door open and entered. Lying in the hospital bed was a Mexican-American man who was in the same car as the victim, Balte Ramos.

The Mexican-American man had an arm bandaged, his face and body bore numerous scratches, and he looked tense upon seeing Luke and Jackson, "Who are you?"

Jackson introduced himself, "I'm Detective Jackson from Robbery and Murder Department Squad One, this is Captain Lee.

We are in charge of investigating your case."

"God, I really didn't expect anything like this to happen," the Mexican-American man sighed.

Luke pulled up a chair and sat next to the bed, "What's your name?"

"Casdi Torres."

"Mr. Torres, what was your relationship with the deceased, Balte Ramos?"

"Business partners, we co-operated a used car dealership."

"Can you describe what happened during the accident?"

"Balte was driving a BMW 740, I was in the passenger seat, we weren't driving fast, everything was normal...

Until suddenly there was a 'bang,' the windshield shattered, Balte was injured, the car went out of control, flipping over...

Our car surged into the oncoming lane, collided with another car, then several more collisions occurred.

I thought I was going to die, fortunately, I was wearing a seatbelt, only suffered minor injuries...

It was all so sudden.

So terrifying.

Poor Balte... I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye."

"Where were you guys heading?"

"To Long Beach, Balte wanted to open a branch there, we were going for a survey, didn't expect something like this to happen on the way.

Was he shot?"

"Yes."

"Did you see the gunman at the time?"

"No, not at all."

"Who else knew about your trip to Long Beach?"

"Family, people at the store, as far as I know, that's all, whether he told anyone else, I don't know."

"Did Balte Ramos have any unusual behaviors recently?"

"I didn't notice any."

"Did he have any enemies?"

Casdi Torres hesitated for a moment, "I don't know how to define that term?"

"Anyone who had conflicts with Balte Ramos counts."

"We run a used car dealership, it's a competitive industry, indeed there have been some disputes over interests, and sometimes we were threatened."