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Chapter 142: I Just Like to Get Straight to the Point!
News came from the FBI Laboratory.
Their fingerprint matching progress was much smoother than expected. In addition to the initial congressional stenographer who'd left prints on the mirror, they'd matched five more: three congressional stenographers, one government employee, and one law student interning at the prosecutor's office.
Theodore categorized the fingerprints found in Room 511 into three types: hotel staff, past guests, and individuals related to the case.
When the forensic scientists from the Third Precinct collected fingerprints at the scene, they'd also gathered prints from hotel staff.
Upon returning to the forensic lab, they first sorted out the fingerprints belonging to hotel employees, then processed the extracted prints, removing duplicates and leaving seventeen unknown fingerprints to be sent to the FBI Laboratory.
Later, at Theodore's request, one more fingerprint belonging to the deceased was added, meaning the fingerprints at the FBI Laboratory were either from past guests or individuals related to the case.
Logically, by comparing the information of the individuals corresponding to these seventeen fingerprints with the Riverside Hotel guest registration records, it would be possible to confirm who were hotel guests and who were related to the case.
However, with the deceased using Annie Halleck as her registration name at the hotel, and Dennis providing another hotel's address as his registration address, Theodore and Bernie truly didn't know how much of the hotel registration information was accurate.
Theodore even felt that the hotel's guest registration records served no purpose other than wasting paper.
They tacitly ignored this convenient method, choosing to interview the individuals instead. This was the method Theodore disliked the most and Bernie was best at.
Interviews weren't conducted randomly, picking people without a plan and talking to them one by one. Theodore made his judgment based on the information of these six individuals, choosing to start with the government employee.
It was reasonable for stenographers and interns to appear in a cheap street-facing room like Room 511 at the Riverside Hotel, they were the main occupants of such rooms.
Comparatively, a middle-aged government employee with a stable income and many years of work experience seemed somewhat out of place.
This government employee, named Raymond White, belonged to the Communications Technology Department of the General Services Administration and was a middle-level supervisor.
Theodore and Bernie drove to the General Services Administration building and met Raymond White.
He was cold, didn't bother with pleasantries, and didn't give them a chance to introduce themselves. He asked them directly, "I'm Raymond White. What do you want from me?"
Bernie looked back and met Theodore's gaze.
Raymond White's age matched, his skin color matched, and he looked strong enough to throw a 146-pound victim out the window. Moreover, his tone was harsh, not one that suggested he handled interpersonal relationships well.
Theodore liked Raymond White's direct approach to conversation. He also chose to get straight to the point.
"Mr. White, we found several of your fingerprints at a murder scene. You're now the primary suspect in this murder case."
After a pause, he asked, "Where were you and what were you doing between ten PM on April 3rd, Monday night this week, and six AM the following day?"
Raymond White seemed displeased by Theodore's interrogative questioning. He retorted sternly, "Why are you asking that?"
Theodore ignored his question and continued, "Have you been to Room 511 of the Riverside Hotel?"
He even thoughtfully offered him a choice. "If you don't want to answer here, you can come back with us to the interrogation room to answer."
Raymond White felt threatened. He wanted to say something, his gaze lingered on Theodore's face for a moment, but in the end, he merely pursed his lips and remained silent.
The famous Theodore Dickson Hoover. How many people in D.C. didn't know him?
He understood the principle that trouble comes from the mouth.
Theodore repeated the question and stared at him.
After a moment of silence, Raymond White reluctantly nodded.
Raymond White admitted that he'd gone to Room 511 for services on Monday night, or more accurately, around two AM on Tuesday. He confessed that he'd spent $150 on special services that day.
Raymond White was introduced to the deceased by a friend. He himself didn't know the deceased's name, only that she was called 'Annie Halleck.'
According to him, the special services provided by the deceased required advance booking. The deceased would arrange the time and place and notify the client. Clients only needed to arrive at the agreed location on time to enjoy the service.
That day was his first time purchasing such special services. He was very nervous and somewhat embarrassed, so he'd specifically bought a bottle of wine at a convenience store to bring with him.
He didn't know the client who'd been there before him. The deceased had notified him to arrive around two AM, and he'd arrived on time. Besides the deceased, he hadn't seen anyone else.
However, Raymond White stated that he had realized he wasn't the only client who'd purchased services that night.
As he said these things, he unconsciously lowered his voice, constantly glancing toward the door, afraid that more people would discover his secret. He also wanted to beg Theodore and Bernie not to spread his secret, but remembering his attitude when they'd first met, he was too embarrassed to do so.
Bernie hoped he could provide the names of the friends who'd introduced the deceased to him, but he refused. This time, Raymond White was very firm and showed no sign of relenting.
Bernie then asked him to contact his friends to get the deceased's name and other information.
Raymond White hesitated for a long time, then stood up. "I can help you, but you have to promise me not to tell anyone about this!"
"And I won't testify in court!"
Bernie and Theodore exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.
Raymond White breathed a sigh of relief. His expression softened considerably, even showing a hint of a smile.
He left for nearly half an hour before returning, handing Bernie a slip of paper.
Bernie took it, glanced at it, and handed it to Theodore.
It had a name written on it: Annie Halleck.
If there hadn't been an address below it, Bernie would have thought Raymond White was playing games with them.
The address was in the Southwest District, very close to the Riverside Hotel.
Bernie used the General Services Administration's phone to contact Detective Thomas of the Third Precinct, asking him to help contact the patrol officer in that precinct and wait for them to meet up.
After yesterday's setback, Detective Thomas had completely lost all enthusiasm for solving the case, proceeding leisurely and lazily throughout.
After ending the call, Theodore and Bernie looked at each other, and both simultaneously recalled Agent Lombardi's evaluation of the Third Precinct.
It seemed those evaluations were indeed quite apt.
Bernie shook his head, thanking Raymond White for his cooperation.
[End of Chapter]
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