Third Deadly Sin by Lawrence Sanders

Author:Lawrence Sanders
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9780425081716
Published: 1980-12-31T13:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8

On May 10th, the Saturday afternoon Zoe Kohler and Ernest Mittle were flying a red balloon in Central Park, Edward X. Delaney sat in a crowded office in Midtown North with Sergeant Abner Boone and other officers. They were discussing the murder of Leonard T. Bergdorfer at the Cameron Arms Hotel.

Present at the conference, in addition to Delaney and Boone, were the following:

Lieutenant Martin Slavin, who had been relegated to a strictly administrative role in the operations of the task force assembled to apprehend the Hotel Ripper …

Sergeant Thomas K. Broderick, an officer with more than twenty years’ service in the Detective Division, most of them in midtown Manhattan.

Detective First Grade Aaron Johnson, a black, with wide experience in dealing with the terrorist fringes of minority groups and with individual anarchists …

Detective Second Grade Daniel (“Dapper Dan”) Bentley, who specialized in hotel crimes, particularly robberies, gem thefts, confidence games, etc. …

Detective Lieutenant Wilson T. Crane, noted for his research capabilities and expertise in computer technology …

Sergeant Boone opened the discussion by recapping briefly the circumstances of Leonard Bergdorfer’s death …

“Pretty much like the others. Throat slashed. Multiple stab wounds in the nuts. This time the body was found on the floor. Take a look at the photos. The bed wasn’t used. The autopsy shows no, uh, sexual relations prior,”

Bentley: “Sexual relations? You mean like my sister-in-law?”

(Laughter)

Boone: “He hadn’t screwed at least twenty-four hours prior to his death. Like the others.”

Crane: “Prints?”

Boone: “The Latent Print Unit is still at it. It doesn’t look good. Two things that may help … The tip of a knife blade was found embedded in the victim’s throat. It’s a little more than a half-inch long. Lab Services is working on it now. There’s no doubt it’s from the murder weapon. Probably a pocket knife, jackknife, or clasp knife,whatever you want to call it.”

Johnson: “How long was the blade do they figure?”

Boone: “Maybe three inches long.”

Johnson: “Sheet! A toothpick.”

Boone: “Victim suffered first-degree burns of the face, especially around the eyes and nose. The Medical Examiner’s office blames phenacyl chloride used in CN and Chemical Mace. The burning indicates a heavy dose at close range.”

Broderick: “Enough to knock him out?”

Boone: “Enough to knock him down, that’s for sure. As far as the victim’s background goes, we’re still at it. No New York sheet. He was from Atlanta, Georgia. They’re checking. Ditto the Feds. Probably nothing we can use. And that’s about it.”

Crane: “Was the Mace can found?”

Boone: “No. The killer probably took it along. What’s the law on Mace? Anyone know?”

Slavin: “Illegal to buy, sell, own, carry, or use in the State of New York. Except for bona fide security and law enforcement officers.”

Bentley: “Black market? Johnson?”

Johnson: “You asking me ‘cause I’m black?”

(Laughter)

Johnson: “There’s some of it around. In those little purse containers for women to carry. There’s not what you’d call a thriving market on the street.”

Boone: “Well, at the moment, the Mace and the knife blade tip are all we’ve got that’s new. Before

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