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forensicated · 6 months ago

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03x04 - Missing Presumed Dead

TW: Sexual assault

Uniform perform door-to-door on an estate in the pouring rain after gunshots were fired. AMIP (Area Major Investigation Pool) are involved but Roy doesn't see why as all they have is 2 bullets in a wall and some blood but not a body. The AMIP officer thinks it's gang warfare and that CID are hiding something from him. Roy promises to keep him informed if anything arises and, the AMIP officer agrees to leave it to Sun Hill - for now.

The residents all have the same story - no one heard or saw anything. Even those who overlook the exact area where the shooting happened claim to have seen nothing. There is no evidence that links anyone to either being the victim or any suspect. Forensics are trying to get what they can but the driving rain makes it very difficult. Forensics tell Roy that preliminary evidence suggests the shot came from a slow-moving vehicle 'somewhere over there' and he guesses 3 people were involved.

Filling up with petrol, Bob hears a call that a dark Ford Cortina was seen driving away. It's an anonymous tip-off that may or may not be linked, there's no evidence either way. He hears tires squeal as a dark car drives by him so he follows it. Bob calls for assistance to help him and the patrol cars speed off the estate but reports that he lost the car soon after. In the dark Bob ends up hitting a pedestrian in dark clothing who was out walking her dog and who came out of nowhere.

Forensics think the man who was shot was dragged into the car. A woman on the estate invites the officers inside. Yorkie runs over to Roy to tell him they think they have a witness. Ted doesn't understand why they'd take the body of whoever they shot. Roy suggests they'd have an idea of who did it if they knew the victim. A journalist asks Roy for some info. If he runs a freephone number in the paper for people to call with information, Roy will give him an unofficial exclusive interview the next day. When Ted says he wouldn't trust the press as far as he could chuck them, Roy says that with a potential gangland murder on their patch, they have to take what help they can get.

Bob helps the old lady who is slumped in the middle of the road. Her dog is ok and walks off. Mike reports the accident to Roy and that uniform have stopped the dark car and found it was two youths on their way to a party and they are not linked to the shooting.

During the door-to-door, Nick and Taffy find a flat housing exotic animals, including an owl flying free. The resident has been 'borrowing' them from an exotic wildlife park and other places. In the bath there's a crocodile and her baby!

Jim gets a cafe to open so he can ask the owner questions about the shooting. The owner tells him he's lived in the area for 50 years and that it's steadily getting worse. "It was never like this when the twins were about!". Jim describes the man and the peaked cap in the description rings a bell with the owner. "He was very tanned, looked like he'd just come back off his holidays." He was about 40, 6ft 2 or 3 and he had 2 sausage sandwiches and savored them like he hadn't had them for a long time. He looked like he was waiting for someone.

Reg checks local hospitals for reports of anyone with gunshot wounds. They've not had anyone arrive or dumped outside so Alec asks him to try hospitals further away.

Brian arrives at the scene of Bob's accident and is antagonistic from the start. Bob calmly tells him he was traveling at 30mph because visibility was bad and the woman appeared from nowhere. Roy arrives and tells Dashers to stay in the car because 'somethings are not for your ears'. Brian says there are complications and snaps that he wants to know if Bob was in pursuit of the other vehicle or not. "It's a simple enough answer!" Roy shouts at Brian to leave it out and he tells him to shut up because it's nothing to do with him. "Of course it's something to do with me when one of my colleagues is in trouble!" Brian tells him to go and focus on his shooting and Roy snaps back that when the shout goes up everyone piles in to help because they're a team. CAD asks Mike to inform Roy that Ted is on his way back with a witness. "One of these days I'll have you, Kite," Roy growls, adding "Look after yourself, Bob." With Roy walking off, Kite warns Bob; "This brings disrepute on the force through dangerous or careless driving on your part. You won't find me as sympathetic as your colleague! I'll take you all the way!" There's no 'if' in there. He clearly thinks Bob was being careless and is to blame. There is nothing to like in this man!

Roy asks Alec if there's anything he should know and Alec tells him that the Chief Inspector of Area Traffic is going to investigate Bob's accident.

Bob has hold of the letters the pedestrian was out to post and says he better post them for her. The Chief Inspector tells him she's a widow with seemingly no other family and has to suspend Bob from driving police vehicles. Bob is desperate to get to the hospital to see how the victim is but the CI wants to talk to him first. He explains that Brian alleges Bob was in pursuit after calling for backup to assist. Panda's are not pursuit vehicles and if that is correct, despite Bob's protestations, that could be it for him.

At the station, the witness from the estate is taken to speak to Roy. Her boyfriend, Eric [A guest starring Andrew Paul who later returns in series 5 to become Dave Quinnan] doesn't want her to speak to the police because they have to continue living on the estate.

She tells Roy that her boyfriend was putting the kettle on for a cup of tea. She looked out the living room window and saw a Cortina pull up outside. The man on the pavement went towards the car and then suddenly he fell down with his hand on his chest. She pulled away from the window because she was scared and called for Eric. Eric looked outside and there was nothing there. When she looked out beside him seconds later it was empty like nothing had happened.

At the hospital, a nurse tells Bob that the elderly woman went in for an emergency operation but asks him to speak to reception for more. Bob stands outside the operating theatre, waiting for more information about the victim. She's eventually wheeled out but is clearly very poorly.

Roy has a funny feeling that something is being hidden in the shooting case and requests Alec to call everyone in for a briefing. A large number of officers are dealing with the animals found in the flat so uniform help is a little limited at the moment. Jim reports that a cafe owner, reported a man in the checkered cap that was found at the scene was in the cafe earlier and he's got a good description.

The

RSPCA Inspector tells Tom that the animals have been well looked after and have been stolen from pet shops and wildlife parks all over the city. "It's quite easy to do if you put your mind to it."

At the station briefing, Viv is filling in for missing uniform officers (aka: spotted a chance for overtime) despite not being on the original investigation. Forensics think that with the amount of blood at the scene there's very little chance the victim is still alive. The Royal Free is the only hospital that had a gunshot wound victim but it's nothing to do with their inquiry. June asks for news on Bob and Roy tells her he's still at the hospital as far as he's aware. There's a partial fingerprint in blood of the victim on the pavement but it's unlikely to be able to identify anyone given the location of the print. Roy asks Jim, Ted and Dashers to discreetly inquire at local pubs to see if the landlords have heard anything or recognise any descriptions. He reminds Ted it's work and not a pub crawl excuse.

June heads over to the hospital to support Bob. He wants her to take his statement sooner rather than later and wants to hang around to know how the old lady is. The nurse doesn't seem overly optimistic and suggests Bob go home. June tells him the statement can wait till tomorrow and also tells him to go home. She says she'll come and see how the lady is in the morning and ring him to tell him but Bob insists he's staying until midnight and will fill out his statement whilst he's there and that June should go home.

Ted asks three late-night stragglers to leave a pub after closing hours when the landlord reports that they won't leave during his attempt at asking questions about the shooting. They don't take overly kindly to it and assault him, forcing him face-first onto the pool table.

Bob is confronted by the nephew of the lady he knocked down. He shouts at Bob that he's slack and tries to get the nurse to throw him out. Bob gathers his hat and statement and leaves.

Ted refuses an ambulance or the police, he just asks the landlord to take him to hospital. "And if you mention this to anybody I'll bring the world down on your ears." Sadly from how Ted was forced over, the sheer amount of blood on the back of his trousers and his inability to sit down, it appears that Ted might have been brutally sexually assaulted with a pool cue or bottle. He books in under a false name 'Mr Jones' and slips over onto his backside when the chair he leans on moves, shouting out in pain.

Bob returns to the hospital the next morning to find that the lady had passed away in the middle of the night.

Roy and Jim are the first officers in CID the next morning with both believing Ted would have drinking each pub he called in dry. Mike is at the site of a burnt-out Ford Cortina on waste ground. The plates were removed before it was gutted and forensics are unlikely to be gathered.

The clothing van has arrived at Sun Hill to allow those who need it to obtain new items of uniform. Yorkie is struggling to find a pair of trousers that will fit him. "You must have lost weight." "You have been doing the post-natal exercises haven't you!?" Taffy teases him.

Ted slowly makes it into the office with a blow-up ring to sit on, telling Mike and Roy that his 'farmers' [piles] are playing up. The way Dashers asks if he's alright is so gentle. He is about to slowly lower himself onto his seat when Roy takes his arm and asks him if he wants to go home instead. He even passes Ted the inflatable ring so he doesn't have to bend down to pick it up.

Our little CID family are adorable! ❤

Jim searches through the cafe's rubbish for the paper discarded by their victim. The owner comes out clutching it and hands it over. Jim updates Roy who arranges for him to be collected to take the paper to SO3 (forensics) and for Mike to sort a photofit line up.

The two estate residents return to CID for Roy to tell him they've remembered something. Just before the victim was shot someone was walking away from him. She didn't see them talking but it was obvious that they had been. She couldn't see his face clearly but he was middle-aged with white hair. Mike arranges for a man to sit with her and build a photofit of the suspect.

June attends the hospital and sees the bed of the RTA victim is now empty and is told she has passed. She returns to her car and spots Bob walking aimlessly nearby.

Ted sits outside the pub he was attacked in, waiting for his attackers to return. Beside him on the passenger seat is a crowbar...

The Chief Inspector from Traffic attends Sun Hill to tell Brian that the victim has passed away. He has gathered enough evidence from the scene and witnesses to prove Bob was not driving carelessly or dangerously. Brian mutters that it's a good job for Bob and the Chief Inspector doesn't buy a word of it. He points out it was Brian who alleged that Bob was driving poorly rather than the victim or any witnesses. "My concern is for the good reputation of the force." The Chief Inspector calls his bluff, knowing he would be just as down on Bob if he'd sat back and done nothing. Brian tries to say that it looks like a whitewash to Mrs Martin's family but the Chief Inspector tells him he has spoken to her neighbour who says it isn't the first time that her dog has pulled her into the road and caused an accident.

June tells Bob not to blame himself and that it was an accident. "It's the risk you take being a policeman," she says softly. "You've told me that often enough. And you were right. If it wasn't for you, Bob Cryer, I'd have left the job ages ago." Bob wonders what kind of woman she was and that he never got to tell her he was sorry.

Reg contacts Roy to tell him that a woman has arrived at the Front Desk with information about the shooting. He arranges for her to be brought up to his office. The woman asks to see and feel the hat as she's a psychic. She brings in 'references' and assigns Tom Penny - with a smirk - to be the officer to look after her.

Ted spots the three men who attacked him coming out of the pub and he gets out with the crowbar in hand. Uniform are called to an alley to 'deal with a disturbance'. Jim takes the call before any uniform - other than the extra who is driving him to take the newspaper to be fingerprinted - can. Ted has pinned one man down and is wrestling a second away. The second runs off when he spots Jim and Ted raises the bar Jim grabs Ted from behind. Ted freaks, sending Jim flying. The man escapes and Ted turns on Jim. Jim holds his hands up with Ted coming to his senses but spitting out a warning. "Don't you ever....! I'll never forgive you for this, Carver."

Jim reports back to the station that the alley was all quiet on arrival and that he didn't see anything. Ted is in the back of the car with his eyes closed. When Jim returns, Roy asks how long it takes to take the paper to SO3 but he says he was delayed by taking Ted home. A thumbprint is found on the paper. The victim is called Brian Corrigan.

The psychic is 'feeling' her way around some wasteground with Taffy and Yorkie tasked to 'help' by digging holes to locate 'evidence'. So far all they've found is an old bike wheel.

Roy goes to speak to Corrigan's ex. Corrigan has been living in Spain where he escaped to after grassing on fellow villains. The ex genuinely believes he still is and that she and their daughter are only now starting to recover, 5 years on. Roy has to tell her that he has returned and was murdered. There's only one thing he'd return for and that is Susan, their daughter. The ex tells Roy that Gerry Noakes, Corrigan's cousin, rang and wanted to take Susan out for the day but she refused to let her go. Roy rings Sun Hill and orders the photofit to be checked against Reg's file on Noakes. If it matches - which it does - arrest him immediately.

Roy and the ex have history. She claims that if she talked she'd end up like Brian and asks what is more important to Roy, solving the crime or her life? "Just this once. For old times sake." She tilts her head. "How many times have you said that to me?"The man he should talk to is called Harry Stobbs. They lean in and are about to kiss before she pulls away and asks him to leave her alone.

Noakes was kicked out of the address Reg had on file 3 weeks previously. Thankfully the person who lives there now had a forwarding address but it's not good news. His things are there but he is not. He was seen the night before with a suitcase heading towards Heathrow.

Bob is called to see Brownlow. Brownlow knows it's been difficult for him since Kite arrived. "...He does have an abrasive manner." Charles says diplomatically. "That's what we're calling it, is it?" Charles continues that the men like and respect him, as does he, and he suggests that Bob go for Inspector. "Would we still be having this cosy little conversation if I had been found responsible for the accident?" he asks, before saying he's staying at the rank he is.

Roy goes in to see Stobbs at his office. He reminds Stobbs of when they first met - a charity dinner for the Police Dependent's Fund. They auctioned off an autographed Spurs football and he was very generous in what he paid. Stobbs asks what Roy really wants and Roy gets to the point. He thinks Stobbs got Noakes to set Corrigan up to be shot under the pretense of seeing his daughter. Stobbs claims he doesn't know Noakes. "When an East End boy makes good, there's a lot of talkative people in the shadows..." Roy warns him.

Brian Kite spots Bob in the canteen and goes to sit with him. He says how sorry he is to hear that the victim of the RTA has passed but that he has heard Bob has been cleared. Bob nods and reminds him that he tried to break him and almost succeeded. Brian is left staring at the table as Bob walks off, returning to his work as Custody Officer.

Stobbs tells Roy that he was blamed by Corrigan for 4 counts of robbery that he didn't commit and he's entitled to feel bitter about it. "You paid off a lot of people..." Roy points out. "I'm a great believer in British Justice," Stobbs says before telling him that Corrigan put away a lot of innocent people who have an axe to grind and that the world revolves on rumours. "For example... who assaulted your Detective Sergeant last night? I could probably find out..." "Don't you play the Godfather with me!" Roy growls. He is adamant that CID will have arrested Noakes by now and he'll be on the way to the nick." Stobbs simply smiles. "As you say, I'm a very busy man..." Roy warns Stobbs that he is the law in Sun Hill and walks out. As he logs back on the air, he receives a message from Dashers via CAD to tell him 'Our bird has flown via Heathrow'.

The next morning Ted returns to the station and apologises to Jim for how he spoke to him the day before, "Mum's the word, right?" He says before Bob tells him there's been another shooting at a warehouse. Mike, Jim and Ted head to the warehouse with Roy arriving soon after. The victims have all been strung up and kneecapped. Jim pointedly says he has seen them 'somewhere before' when Roy asks if they know who they are. Dashers wonders if it's the beginning of gang warfare and Roy shakes his head, "It's a message for me." he sighs, walking over to Ted. "You know who they are, don't you? Why didn't you tell me about last night?" Roy asks. Ted sighs. "I was embarrassed. If they'd done it anywhere else I wouldn't have minded but having a glass up your jacksy like that. It's humiliating." "Not half as humiliating as being told about it by a villain like Stobbs and then receiving a demonstration of who the real law is on the manner." Roy tells him, walking off and leaving Jim watching after him and Ted.

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