Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

Luke chuckled, "Miss Winter, don't you think it's a bit late to call the police now?"

Pancy Winter replied helplessly, "I have to thank you all. I don't live here currently. If it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't have known my car was stolen.

Can you help me catch the thief? I would be extremely grateful."

Luke stared at her for a while and asked, "When was the last time you saw that car?"

"Um... honestly, I can't remember. It should be at least a month ago."

"Apart from you, is there anyone else who would drive that car?"

Pancy Winter shook her head, "No, I'm the only one who drives it."

Luke walked to the side of the shutter door and checked; indeed, the lock showed signs of being tampered with, and the entire lock core had been damaged.

He believed Pancy Winter's words somewhat.

Of course, he wasn't entirely convinced; who knew if Pancy Winter had tampered with the lock deliberately to cover her tracks?

Luke carefully examined the garage, which contained a lot of clutter on a cement floor, but he did not find any obvious traces left by suspects.

Luke stood up and asked, "Does your white Honda have any distinctive markings?"

Pancy Winter thought for a while, "No, I drive carefully and haven't had any scrapes. The seat covers inside are gray and quite resistant to dirt.

I used to have a decor item at the front of the car but removed it later."

Luke continued, "Does the car have a tracking device?"

"No."

Luke walked out of the garage and glanced at the neighboring house, "Miss Winter, if your car was stolen by a thief, then the thief probably scouted ahead and knew no one might be home.

He would most likely also enter the house to steal.

I want to investigate inside the house."

Pancy Winter frowned slightly, "I don't think it's necessary. I just checked the door lock; there's no sign of tampering."

Jackson also advised, "If the only way in is through breaking the lock, then this thief isn't very professional."

Pancy Winter shrugged, "Captain Li, I'm not very comfortable with outsiders entering my house.

How about I check inside first, and if something's missing, I'll call the police and invite you inside to inspect the house."

"OK, that's your right." Luke didn't press the issue and called over a few subordinates to assign tasks.

Because Pancy Winter hadn't been here for a month, it's impossible to confirm the exact time of the car theft, many investigative methods were unusable, and some clues and evidence had disappeared.

The police can only conduct interviews and collect surveillance footage.

Luke finished assigning tasks to his team and walked alone to observe the front and back doors of the house; the locks indeed showed no signs of tampering, and the windows had no signs of damage or recent repairs.

Pancy Winter came out of the house and said, "Captain Li, I just checked, and nothing seems to be missing from inside the house. Since I don't live here, there aren't any valuables inside.

That car is probably the most valuable thing."

Luke asked, "Are there any signs of break-in inside the house?"

"No."

"I see." Luke replied; in his view, there are two main possibilities for this situation.

The first possibility is that the car wasn't stolen by an outsider. It's very plausible that Pancy Winter herself had driven the car for criminal activities, which is why she didn't break into the house.

As for the garage lock, she might have destroyed it herself.

Of course, Luke is purely guessing and has no evidence.

The second possibility is that the thief's purpose was clearly to steal the car.

More specifically, looking for a vehicle to use for criminal purposes, stealing an unrelated vehicle, even if the police trace back to the owner, they won't be able to find the real criminal.

As for which scenario it is, it still depends on the specific clues and evidence gathered in the ongoing investigation.

Soon, the people Luke sent out for interviews began to return.

According to the reactions of nearby neighbors, Pancy Winter really doesn't live in the community, and the house has been vacant for a long time. They haven't seen Pancy Winter drive that white Honda for ages.

Pancy Winter's account aligns with the descriptions from the surrounding neighbors, plus her boyfriend provides an alibi, so her involvement can be temporarily ruled out.

Afterward, the technical team arrived on-site to examine the inside of the garage thoroughly, but the stolen vehicle had already been driven away, leaving the suspect with few traces.

Luke took out a photo of Little William Moses and asked, "Miss Winter, do you know this man?"

Pancy Winter took the photo and checked, "Do you suspect he stole my car?"

"No, he is the gunshot victim, shot once in the shoulder and once in the face."

"What a pity, he was a handsome young man." Pancy Winter handed the photo back to Luke, "I don't know him."

Luke handed her a business card, "If you think of new leads, you can bring them directly to me."

"OK, I will."

After the technical team completed the site examination, Luke led the team and left Pancy Winter's home.

Although the owner was found, the car wasn't.

This lead still needs further investigation.

...

"Ring ring ring..."

The next morning, Luke was awakened by a ringing phone.

He fumbled at the bedside, found the phone, and pressed the answer button, "Hello."