Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth
Chapter 969 - 439: Identity
Little Black left with Antoine Powell. In such a sensitive situation, Luke didn't want too much contact with the black boy either.
Luke personally led the team to search the supermarket thoroughly, but no suspicious person was found.
The technical team and forensic doctors also rushed to the scene, but the crime scene was too large, and there were too many victims to complete the on-site investigation in a short time.
Luke called Reid, asking him to send more personnel. The sooner the site investigation is completed, the more helpful it is to solve the case.
Luke's subordinates had already been sent out to investigate separately, but no exact information about the gunman had been found yet. With each passing minute, the killer's chance of escape increased.
Luke calmed down and put himself into the position of the gunman. If he were the gunman, what would he do after killing so many people?
Why did the gunman carry out the massacre?
Was it merely because he was an extreme racist, motivated by hatred for black people that he orchestrated this slaughter?
Just then, Luke caught a glimpse of three people approaching from not far away: Little Black and the Powell mother and son.
Little Black said, "Captain, Mrs. Powell says she wants to thank you personally."
Mrs. Powell stepped forward with gratitude on her face, "Captain Li, I've heard from Antoine. Thank you for finding him.
If it weren't for you discovering him hiding in the ventilation duct, that silly boy might still be in there."
"It's what I should do." Luke looked down at the black boy, "Hey buddy, can I talk to you?"
The black boy looked at his mother, saw her encouraging expression, and said, "Okay."
"The gunman left so long ago. Why did you remain in the ventilation duct?"
The black boy looked around, whispered, "I was scared."
"Scared of what?"
"I was scared the gunman would shoot and kill me."
"But he already left, and the police have secured the supermarket. What are you afraid of?"
The black boy became more nervous, "I saw the gunman... he didn't leave the supermarket, no, I don't even know if he left the supermarket...
I don't know how to explain."
"Don't be nervous, just tell us what you saw and heard, and we'll figure it out."
The black boy looked at his mother, and after seeing her nod, he slowly said, "I saw the gunman, he was killing people all over the supermarket. I was so scared that I hid in the ventilation duct.
I felt like he might have taken off his gear. I don't know what he was doing or if he'd kill again, and the police hadn't caught him, so I didn't dare come out."
Luke pressed further, "You saw the gunman take off his gear?"
"I didn't see it with my own eyes." The black boy organized his words and said, "I was hiding in the ventilation duct at the time. Climbing would make noise, so I stayed near the opening of the ventilation where I could see the outside, but it was dark in the duct, and from outside you couldn't see inside.
I saw the gunman kill people, I was terrified.
He killed all the people he could see, and there was no more noise outside.
After a while, I saw a white man rushing out. At first, I thought he was a customer of the supermarket, but he was different from the fleeing customers.
Moreover, the gunman didn't chase him. After this man left, I felt something was wrong.
According to my speculation, the gunman should still be near the lockers, and the white man was also near there but dared to walk out openly. The gunman had no reason not to kill him, but he didn't shoot.
So I guessed that this person was very likely the gunman.
He took off his gear, and you couldn't catch him at all.
He might be hiding somewhere. The police hadn't caught him, and I didn't dare to come out for fear that he'd kill again suddenly."
"Why didn't you say this earlier?"
"You were all pointing guns at me, I was very scared."
Luke stared at him, and the boy's expression was still somewhat panicked and tense, which added to the difficulty of micro-expression analysis.
"Did you see anything else?"
"Gunshots, people running, blood... that's all I noticed." Antoine Powell shivered.
Sasha Powell hugged her son's shoulder, "Captain Li, Antoine is terrified. He's always been timid since he was little."
Luke nodded, "Can you describe the appearance of the gunman?"
"He was a white man, wearing a hat, a gray baseball cap.
I just took a glance at him. I didn't dare to keep staring at him."
Antoine Powell's description was too brief, so Luke continued to ask, "How tall was the gunman approximately?"
"He might have been around six feet tall. Maybe taller, I can't be sure."
"What clothes was he wearing?"
"It seemed like a beige hoodie and blue pants."
"What about his shoes?"
"I didn't notice."
"What color was his hair?"
"The baseball cap covered it, I didn't see."
"What about his face?"
Antoine Powell shook his head.
"Did he have any tattoos?"
"I don't know."
"Where did he run to?"
"The ventilation duct has a narrow view, I'm... not sure."
"Did he still have a weapon on him?"
"I'm not clear." Antoine Powell shook his head and sighed, "That's all I know, really."
Luke extended his right hand, "Antoine, thank you for the clues you've provided. You're a brave young man."
Antoine Powell breathed a sigh of relief and shook hands with Luke, "Are these clues useful?"