Evil Impulse by Leigh Russell

Author:Leigh Russell
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oldcastle Books
Published: 2020-11-02T11:40:16+00:00

34

A report had been sent by the forensic team which had been examining the bin in which Leslie’s body had been transported. Extensive tests having failed to reveal any prints or DNA, Geraldine quizzed a member of the team about the disappointing results.

‘Human fingermarks are left by natural oils deposited on any surface the fingers come into contact with,’ the officer explained to her.

‘Yes, yes, I know all that, but surely you must have found something, even a partial print, somewhere on the bin? Did you examine every inch of it?’

‘Every millimetre,’ the forensic scientist replied. ‘The trouble is, a non-porous substance like plastic is easily cleaned using a simple solution to break down the oils. Even a damp cloth can do the job. Whoever handled this bin was careful to remove any marks that might have been left on it.’

‘What about DNA? You must have found traces of DNA on the bin?’

‘Only the victim’s, I’m afraid,’ the scientist said. ‘The whole bin, inside and out, was cleaned with a strong solution of sodium hydroxide which corrodes organic materials. The bin stank of it. That would have been enough to destroy any traces of DNA, especially if the user was wearing a mask.’

Geraldine frowned. ‘Someone took a great deal of trouble to cover their tracks. How easy is it to get hold of sodium hydroxide?’

‘It’s readily available, everywhere. It’s widely used to unblock drains.’

‘But wouldn’t sodium hydroxide have dissolved the bin?’

‘No, on the contrary, sodium hydroxide is stored in plastic containers because it damages glass, and anything else organic.’

Later that afternoon a message came through from the VIIDO team that Andrew had spotted someone wheeling a bin into the passageway beside the club on Friday at around six pm.

‘Well done,’ Eileen said, gazing around the room. ‘It’s just as well someone around here is on the ball.’

A couple of other officers mumbled discreetly, but no one minded that Eileen had singled out a newcomer for such high praise. What mattered was that they might have a sighting of whoever had deposited Leslie’s body in the alley. Eileen put the footage up on the screen in the incident room and they all watched in silence as she played it through. The film was disappointing. Whoever was wheeling the bin was only clearly visible from behind, stomping along the street fairly quickly. When a camera did catch a shot from the front, the figure was moving swiftly, and the image was blurred by heavy rain. Whoever was pushing the bin had chosen a wet day when the pavement would be less crowded and any film would be indistinct.

‘This killer is no fool,’ Eileen muttered crossly. ‘He’s making it impossible for us to track him down.’

‘Almost impossible,’ Geraldine replied softly, and the detective chief inspector grunted.

Eileen played the short film through again. Silently they watched the killer, or perhaps an accomplice, pushing the large bin along the pavement. His hair concealed beneath the hood of an anorak under his loose hi-vis jacket, he

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