Diane Rucho.

23

On Monday morning, Sandy met with Officer Michael and Officer Preston in the meeting room, along with another officer. He had introduced himself to her as Officer Dan. He was slightly shorter than Michael and Preston. The officer had a not-so-pleasant mark on his left brow and a beer gut. Sandy noted this from the moment he sat down with a coffee mug dangling in his right hand. The wrinkle around his forehead made him look a little older than he should be. He was wearing a black sweater over a blue police uniform, and his black boots were tied sloppily. Michael was also wearing his uniform, while Preston had on a white shirt paired with black khaki trousers.

Officer Dan asked Michael, "Where have you been sleeping? You look awful, man. Tag me along next time."

Michael stared back at him and then turned to Preston, "I'd prefer if I don't have to listen to him."

Preston chuckled softly and said, "Try clogging your ears, see if that even works."

"Maybe I should give it a try," said Michael.

Officer Dan snorted with laughter before gurgling his coffee down his throat. When he placed the mug back on the table, some of the coffee splashed onto the table.

Preston asked, "Did something come up?"

"That's a bit of an understatement considering what I was able to deduce," replied Officer Dan.

"Get to the point, Dan," said Preston.

"Alright, I found something. I'm not sure if it will make slight changes to the case, but it is worth looking at," said Officer Dan.

"What is it?" asked Preston.

"I took a sample of the gunpowder residue collected from the crime scene. I was quite lucky that the stub kits were still well-preserved. If not, well, you know I would have had nothing to work with. At the lab, I conducted a test of Scanning Electron Microscopy with dispersive X-rays (SEM-EDEX). The sample was not substantial, but it did reveal traces of antimony, barium, and lead. BaPbSb particles. The fact that these particles can still be traced means that they were a whole lot more ten years ago. The colour change technique used back in the day was quite unreliable. That explains the negative GSR examination that had been carried out." He took another sip of his coffee, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, then continued, "The gun was shot from a very close range. The shooter must have been standing next to the victim before pulling the trigger."

"What about the ammunition? Can you tell the type of ammunition?" asked Michael.

"It must have been a semi-automatic handgun," replied Officer Dan.

"Why do you say that?" asked Michael.

"BaPbSb particles are mostly common with single cartridges," explained Officer Dan.

"That makes the breakdown much harder. In every 10 criminals, there is a high likelihood that four of them have a handgun holstered in their trousers. How are we going to trace the one that killed her?" asked Michael.

"One bullet strike. One cartridge. That would explain the missing cartridge," concluded Preston.

"Finding the make of the handgun would be hard since all handguns leave behind the same gun residues. But you'll be pleased to know that BaPbSb particles were not the only elements I found. There were traces of cadmium, uranium, and chromium. These are heavy metals mostly found in paint," said Officer Dan.

"What does that mean?" asked Sandy.

"It means that either your victim or suspect was exposed to a paint product," concluded Officer Dan.

Sandy noticed that Preston and Michael exchanged a knowing look.

"Big Ted?" Michael stated, realizing something.

Preston took a moment to think before answering, "I believe we may have finally identified a suspect. You saw the shelf at the Auto Garage Shop. There was car paint. Big Ted must have still been selling them back in the day."

"So, on the day he finished work, he went straight to Diane's house. She willingly opened the door and maybe even had a conversation with Big Ted before he finally got the courage to pull the trigger."

Michael said, "That would explain the no forced entry at the door. Plus, the head of staff at Amara Restaurant placed him with Diane the day before the murder. He assaults her, gives her a broken nose, and bruises her wrist, leaves her helpless by the roadside. Gary Wako finds her by the roadside and takes her to the hospital."

"I am struggling to comprehend the connection between Officer Edward's accident, the missing flash drive, Gary's kidnapping, and the Doctor's sudden death. It appears unlikely that one person could have orchestrated all of these events alone."

At the mention of her father's name, something clicked in Sandy's mind. It was a cold realization.

"Perhaps Big Ted had an accomplice."

"That is what I was thinking as well. Someone who was involved in these incidents. Our priority is to locate this Big Ted. Maybe he will lead us to the other person."

"How should we go about doing that? The man at the Auto Garage Shop was not able to provide us with much information."

"We could try visiting the house where Diane lived and speak to anyone who knew her or her boyfriend. We may obtain a name or some valuable information."

"Okay."

Preston inquired, "What did you find out from the van at the Kibera Station?"

"I found nothing. The vehicle had been wiped clean, so it was a dead end. I then went back to Syokimua at the warehouse, where the van was initially discovered. I asked around if anyone had seen the person who drove the car there, and everyone said no, except for one man. He claims to have just left his house, a few miles away from Mombasa Road when he arrived at the warehouse to check his documents stored in his storage unit. He saw the van drive-by at around 7 pm on Thursday. It was not completely dark yet, so he saw a man leave the van and enter another car that drove off."

"Did he get a good look at the man?"

"He claims to have a photographic memory and remembers the man's appearance. The sketch artist will be meeting him today."

After the meeting concluded and both Michael and Dan had begun to leave the room, Sandy pulled Preston aside.

"What was that all about?" she inquired.

"What do you mean?" replied Preston.

"You mentioned my father's accident. How is that related to the investigation?"

"We have some reasons to believe that your father's accident might not have happened accidentally," said Preston.

"You mean it was intentional?" asked Sandy.

"Yes," confirmed Preston. "Well, there's something else you need to know."