Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth
Chapter 970 - 439: Identity (Part 2)
"Of course."
"Will you catch the shooter?"
"Of course."
After sending off Antoine Powell and his mother, Luke posted the information about the suspected shooter in the group.
As the head of the shooting case, Luke was always overseeing the scene at the supermarket.
Reid dispatched two more forensic teams along with a large number of on-site investigators.
Not until two in the afternoon did the three forensic doctors complete the preliminary autopsies.
Luke communicated with each forensic doctor, but this time they didn't provide many new clues. It wasn't due to a lack of technical skill, but rather because the perpetrator live-streamed the entire crime, leaving little suspense.
All the deceased were Black, each shot 3 to 4 times, mostly in the back. There were no discrepancies in the time of death.
Luke also communicated with the tech team. They found a large number of bullet casings at the scene, mostly rifle casings, with only a dozen from a handgun. They also found IDs on the deceased.
The tech team didn't find many valuable clues either.
Instead, Mary seemed to have struck gold upon seeing the abandoned equipment possibly belonging to the shooter. She immediately sent it back to the precinct for identification.
Luke hoped they could make some progress; identifying the victims would prevent unnecessary work.
The scene investigation was wrapping up, and Luke returned to the precinct to convene a meeting.
Luke said, "It's been six hours since we took over the case; let's discuss the investigation progress."
Jackson looked grim, "I've identified all the victims. There were thirteen in total in this shooting incident. The death toll has exceeded ten, with three more injured and hospitalized.
Among the ten deceased, all were Black, and of the three injured, one was White, one Black, and one Asian." Jackson sighed, "Though I hate to admit it, this case indeed seems like a massacre targeting Black people."
Jenny said, "Raymond and I are responsible for finding witnesses. Someone witnessed the shooter from the moment he exited the vehicle to when he started shooting. One of the witnesses was standing near the supermarket; he was a White man, and the shooter didn't shoot him but prioritized shooting the Black people nearby.
We interviewed all the witnesses, and their descriptions were mostly the same. The shooter was fully armed, with his appearance fully covered, making it hard to determine race, standing around 1.8 meters tall. His shooting was extremely decisive with no hesitation.
None of the witnesses saw the shooter leave the supermarket.
Additionally, according to the witnesses, the black Honda at the supermarket entrance was indeed driven by the shooter."
Luke asked proactively, "Port, any leads on the suspect vehicle?"
Port shook his head slightly, "It's a car with fake plates. The engine number, chassis number, and any other identifiable marks were filed off, and the method was very professional, likely done by a car theft ring."
Luke looked at Marcus, standing nearby, "Marcus, you're responsible for tracing that car's origin."
"No problem," Marcus replied with a smile. Seeing that everyone had reported their investigation progress, he added, "The captain and I found Antoine Powell, yes, the little clever one hiding in the ventilation duct.
He saw the shooter's appearance, a young White male about 1.8 meters tall, matching the witness descriptions.
Additionally, this White male wore a baseball cap, a beige hoodie, and blue pants; we just need to check everyone who left the supermarket to identify this shooter."
After Marcus spoke, he wore a look that said, 'Praise me.'
After everyone had spoken, the deputy cleared his throat, "I've been mapping all those who left the supermarket after the shooting. Since the shooter damaged the supermarket's cameras, this investigation is quite challenging.
I scanned the surveillance around the supermarket and found several possible witnesses who had been there or nearby. The plan now is to invite them to the station to take statements.
However, because all we have are screenshots from the surveillance footage without identified identities, the investigation has its difficulties. I want Matthew to assist me, but this guy refused."
Matthew shrugged, "Deputy, it's not about not wanting to help; I simply have more important things to do."
"Okay, then tell us what you're doing."
Matthew saw everyone looking at him, returned their gaze, and loudly said, "I found out the shooter's identity."
The deputy was skeptical, "Kid, you haven't even left the office; don't boast."
Marcus was also a bit defiant, "We were racing all over out there, and you're telling me just fiddling with a keyboard beats us? How'd you do it, buddy?"
Matthew smiled, "I have to thank you; remember the live-stream video account you mentioned? I traced the account holder's real identity." Matthew stood up and handed a freshly printed document to Luke.
"Well done!" Luke gave a thumbs-up.
Marcus also moved over to look, as he contributed to the discovery.
Matthew looked at the deputy, "I wasn't trying to avoid helping; I was doing this all along."
The deputy countered, "Have you finished?"
"Yes, I've finished."
"Then come along with me to verify the identities of everyone who was at the supermarket."