Citizen

Untitled Part 5

Chapter 5

Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Larry opened the fingerprint packet. It was confirmed. The fingerprint on the machete that killed Guy Del Toro matched the fingerprints on the letter. The inspectors thought that all of the suspects were Vietnamese, and were puzzled about how one of the attackers could have escaped and just how the scheme had been concocted.

Where was their suspect hiding out?

Dorothy Lopez, the woman who sent the letter, arrived at 9:40 AM.

Larry escorted her to Interrogation Room #2.

"Mrs. Lopez, your answers are being recorded."

Larry flicked the switch, and it began.

"State your full name and address."

"Dorothy Maria Lopez. 425 Oxford Street."

"We know that your son's fingerprints are on the letter and on the machete that killed Officer Del Toro."

Larry showed her the proof.

He said, "Mrs. Lopez, let me introduce Ms. Jackson, the lady sitting next to you. She did the fingerprint analysis and will explain the results. Jackson, please proceed."

She said, "We use an advanced Thales Cogent Automated Biometric Identification System. We look for typical patterns, such as loops, whorls, and arches. They help us identify each person's unique set of fingerprints. Experts disagree about how many points in common are needed to declare a match between two sets of fingerprints. For example, some experts will declare a match based on only 12 points in common, whereas others may require up to 20 points in common before declaring a match. We follow a 12-point match."

Jackson showed Mrs. Lopez the minutiae diagram with the 12 points marked by number. "My conclusion is that the fingerprint on the machete that killed Officer Del Toro and the fingerprint on the letter are a match. David Lopez touched the letter and the machete."

"Thanks. Ms. Jackson, are there any other fingerprints on that machete?" Larry asked.

"Yes. Mr. Duc Luong's fingerprints are on the machete."

"Thanks."

The expert left.

Hieu read Mrs. Lopez her Miranda rights. Larry sat as close as he could get to Mrs. Lopez. Hieu and Ray were standing next to the two-way mirror.

Larry took Mrs. Lopez's soft hand in his and stroked it.

"Do you wish to speak to us?" he asked.

Her pretty black eyes began to tear up.

"I don't know. My son is innocent."

So, there, he's not dead.

"Mrs. Lopez, can you tell us more about David?"

"I brought him up as a single parent. He never knew his father. David was obedient and compassionate. I took him to church. He did well in school. He earned a BFA in Industrial Design and is working as a freelancer. He has so many friends...female and male!"

Uh huh. Alive.

"Mrs. Lopez, when did David get his BFA?"

"2016."

"Is that right? Guy tested the shoes David designed in 2017." Larry wasn't sure.

"Well, I guess it was 2017."

"Let's go back a little further. When did David graduate from high school and where?"

"George Washington, around 2012."