Another Mid winter morning in the city and a report of not one , but three high end jewelry thefts....Robbery -Homicide was on it and baffled...
Meanwhile....We were still trying to figure out our major jewel theft and murder of a leading citizen.....
We were all up and eating ,hot steaming breakfast platters and drinking hot tumblers of coffee ,purchased for us by Sissy's husband ,Eddie C. and myself, Assistant District Attorney, Keith Wallace..
"I never heard of a D.A. that takes as good of care of detectives as you do Keith." said Eddie C.
"They take good care of me...They bring in good cases..Cases I've been able to prosecute and win...."I said...
''When you put it that way....It makes sense.." he said.
As the detectives ate....Lt. Sissy Van Buren chaired the morning report with FBI Deputy Special Agent in charge, Sharon Hopkins...
"Yesterday , there were three high end jewel thefts...Three seperate stores....Robbery-Homicide sent the reports to us by email...The reason why I bring this up is because it fits a pattern." said Sissy...
"In all three jewel thefts....The Street cam and the nearby traffic cams in the area was knocked out for 35 minutes up to an hour and the store security alarm was disabled as well the store camera...Ring a bell?" said Sharon...
"It's exactly like the Monaham Jewel Theft and murder.....Same pattern of the thief ." said my wife, Carlotta.
"Angie and I ruled out Glenn...I talked to him yesterday and he had an iron clad alibi...for the time of the Monaham Murder and Jewel Theft...It checked out." said Sirena..
"Yeah...He was at his job, not only confirmed by his employer, but by three customer's and their credit cards and store cameras with time dates...This was not him..." said Angie..
"What about yesterday's jewel thefts....You said there was a pattern." said Tyriq...
"Yes...We have a grainy photo of what looks like a woman at the scene of the Monaham Murder...dressed in all black..." said Sissy...
Sharon walked us into the surveilience room...
"Well our jewel thief got careless again..." said Sharon....
"She got caught by an ATM camera across the street from one robbery and a buisness camera from another one and a very astute customer who caught her in the act with their phone at the third robbery...
and we got a facial and we got a hit..."
Duke chimed in...
"Guys...our suspect is none other than 86 year old Edith Barry, master jewel thief" he said.
"And when Sharon cleans up that photo we pulled from the Monaham job...I'm certain it will reveal the same person..." said Jimmy...
"She may be our jewel thief...Of that I have no doubt...But she is not our murderer." said Hazel...
"She's got an accomplice?" asked Hop...
"This woman works alone...Nothing in her M.O. ever shows an accomplice.
Edith Barry's career as an international jewel thief spans six decades Keith, with a criminal record dating back to 1952. Her modus operandi is to enter jewelry stores posing as a well-to-do woman, typically looking for a diamond ring. Using her charm, she would engage the clerk, asking to see an assortment of items. Eventually, she would "cause the clerk to forget" just how many items were outside the case; and, at some point, she would leave with one or two pieces.
Her crimes have spanned five decades. She has been arrested many times; she is a career criminal.
Edie Barry is most noted for stealing a 10-carat diamond ring, valued at $500,000 (US), from Monte Carlo in the 1970s. She fled to France, but was detained in Nice and later extradited back to Monte Carlo, where she was held for nine months before being released, as the Monégasque authorities were unable to locate the stolen gem."said Duke ,who had been tasked with getting information on her..
"Edith Barry was arrested in Ohio in the 1980s after she escaped from federal custody during a hospital visit.
On Friday, January 22, 2010, Edith Barry was arrested in Costa Mesa, California for removing the tags from a $1,300 Burberry trench coat from a Saks Fifth Avenue store and subsequently leaving the store with the coat. In January 2011, at the age of 80, Edith was sentenced in a San Diego court to 16 months in prison for stealing a 1 carat diamond ring.
On October 29, 2013, Edith, age 83, was arrested on felony larceny charges for stealing a $22,500 diamond-encrusted ring in Palm Desert, California. Edith Barry pled guilty. On April 30, 2014, she was sentenced to two years in prison, followed by two years on parole, and was ordered to stay away from jewelry stores.However, she was released three months later due to prison overcrowding. In July 2015 she was reportedly stealing again and was believed to have stolen a $33,000 (US) ring, although this has not been proven yet. On October 23, 2015 she was caught on security cameras putting Christian Dior earrings valued at $690.00 in her pocket at an Atlanta, Georgia Saks Fifth Avenue store. She was arrested and charged with shoplifting by Officers from the Atlanta Police Department." said Tyriq..who had also studied the famed jewel thief extensively...
"Edith Barry has openly spoken about her crimes and has used at least 20 aliases, at least ten social security numbers and at least nine dates of birth that I can trace." said Hop..
"It is alleged in Charlotte, North Carolina, that on July 11, 2015, Edith Barry visited a jewelry store at SouthPark Mall. After she left, store employees realized a diamond ring valued at $33,000 was missing from a showcase. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department did not issue an official statement or APB, but local ABC affiliate WSOC-TV obtained a copy of an email sent to all area jewelers regarding the alleged crime and alerting them to be on the lookout. An arrest warrant was issued for Edith Barry in August 2015, by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg sheriff's department. In Atlanta, Georgia, on December 13, 2016 she was again arrested on larceny charges.Like Duke said...She works alone.." said Jimmy.
"There is a first time for everything..And we know she didn't kill this woman...She's not capable of this kind of violence...but she might have had this goon with her as a lookout..." said Carlotta.
"Well maybe...but as I told you....I managed to pull a latent fingerprint off the skin and neck of Lillian Monaham and somebody gave her neck a real working over...Somebody with big hands and that fingerprint and DNA ,extracted from sweat matches this cool guy.." said Hazel as Sharon loaded the photo and mugsheet of a man..on the screen in front of us..
"His name is Dexter Prefontaine...Long rap sheet...Burglary, Grand Larceny, Loan Sharking...Petty Theft...numerous assaults..." said Sharon..
"I busted him when I was in Robbery-Homicide."said Carlotta.
"I did too...He's a vicious thug, who was a leg breaker for the loan sharks and a member of several high line heist crews...mostly a driver or muscle." said Tyriq..
''Sirena, you and I busted this guy before too..You remember him ,don't you?" said Duke..
"Yeah...I'm kinda bummed...I was hoping our murder suspect would be someone more exciting...you know? Not common street trash like him..." said Sirena..
"I've got four addresses for him...and a bar he hangs out in...Maybe we'll get lucky and pick him up." said Jimmy....
"Okay, so we know that Edith Barry is our suspect in all of the jewel thefts..We know that...and this goon is more than likely our killer....but my question is...What puts these two very different people together...??" I asked..
"You mean who, don't you? I doubt that a professional like Edith Barry would have wanted to work with a common street thug like Dex....Her shot caller put them together." said Sissy... II-
"We have a plain clothes guy from Narcotics and a plain clothes girl from Robbery -Homicide , right across the street in a formerly empty apartment on top of one of the stores...They are using a telephoto lense
To photograph and film activity coming from Dante Peppers Jewelry store...directly across the street.."
said Sissy...
"We've been seeing a lot of very important visitors lately..."
said Duke...
"A virtual who's who...In the Drug traffic business.....Sharon has pulled no less than ten major dealers going in and coming out...and one guy from Atlanta and another drug figure from New York and they aint buying jewelry for their girlfriends.." said Tyriq..
"We picked up some very interesting calls ,not only from them...but from our good friend Jerome Monaham."said Carlotta...
"Really?" I said...
"Yes...and this is where it gets cute. Dante is bitching about not being able to move that jewelry.....No one will buy it...He can't get his money's worth.." said Sirena...
"See Jerome Monaham is in debt up to his ears...Lillian was close to filing for legal seperation and she had cut him off somewhat..." said Jimmy...
"My guess is that he set this jewel theft up...Knowing the jewels are insured...and figuring Peppers could sell the jewels for a hefty price , collect his end and pay Edith Barry for her services.."said Hop..
"Only those stones are sooo hot..nobody and I mean nobody will touch them...He can't get his money and Monaham can't cash in his insurance policy on his wife or those jewels just yet...how would it look?? Whoever he owes money to , wants to get paid and soon..."said Angie..
"We recorded a record 16 calls yesterday between the two..."said Sissy...
"Those jewel thefts yesterday was so that Edith Barry could get paid...She hasn't been paid..she needs a cash payment and quick...If we catch her going to Peppers to fence...We got her and him....Hopefully our murder suspect goes there too...It will be a nice neat package..."said Carlotta.
"What's your play Sissy?" I asked.
"I want to turn the temperature up a bit..Raise the stakes....Duke, You ,Rico, Jimmy and Hop find Dexter Prefontaine...Stop by headquarters, get as many uniforms as you need...He runs with a rough crowd and will throw down...Kevlar vests, trauma plates, glocks and riot pump shotguns ..for everybody....That's an order...from me!" she said..
"We 're on it Boss Lady." they said as they suited up and took off..
"Chica, Sirena, Angie...Find this woman, Edith Barry...She's been in the game a long time...We don't have much on her...but I want her brought in on suspicion if nothing else..." Said Sissy..
"We have a few addresses for her...Maybe we'll get lucky.." said Sirena...
"If I know right ,she won't have any merch on her...but perhaps we can pull some other things on her ,like the tools of the box man's trade.." said Angie...
"Let's turn the heat up on them."said Carlotta..
"I'm going to give Screaming Jay Hawkins...Jerome Monaham, his update that he's been waiting for...I'm going to stop short of telling him about Dante Peppers..or that we suspect he's involved in this...I'm just going to tell him we have two suspects in his wife's murder..."
"I like it...Then watch how interesting the phone calls are going to be...Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...I like it."squealed Sharon...
"Makes me wish I were a cop..So I could go along..." said Hazel....
"I'll be right down ,I have to run up to my room." said Carlotta.
I followed Carlotta to our room...I softly closed the door...
Carlotta turned and smiled at me... "You want something Papi?" she asked innocently...
''Yes....You! I've been staring at you all morning.." I said...
"Yes ,I noticed...You've got to stop that!" she joked...
"I just want to have you baby..." I said...
"Awwww, you do have me papi...All of me...I hope you never get enough...I hope you have as much of me as you want." she said and kissed me passionately...
We kissed for about ten minutes.....
"Ummmmm, I wish we had time for a quickie.." I moaned..
"I have to go...you're not capable of a quickie..." she laughed....
We kissed a little more and I let her go...I watched her as she walked down the hall..
"I'll see you later papi....and you can have more.." she laughed as she left...
I stood there ,smiling...
III-
Jerome Monaham paced the floor of his tony home...He looked annoyed...Then the bell rang....To his surprise...It was Lieutenant Sissy Van Buren....
"Good Morning Mr. Monaham..." she said.
''WELL I'LL BE DAMNED....LIEUTENANT...I ASK FOR TRANSPARENCY....I ASK FOR UPDATES ON MY WIFE'S MURDER AND YOU AND YOUR DETECTIVES VANISH!" he bellowed..
Sissy spoke in a whisper..
"That's why I'm here..My detectives have to work in somewhat quiet stealth in order not to compromise the investigation...I didn't want things to get to the press or media and alert your wife's killer or what looks like killers.." said Sissy...
"So you have a break?" he asked..
"Oh yes...I wasn't going to say anything to you until we'd actually made an arrest but Captain Cantrell, The Deputy of Operations and the Police Commissioner have been on my back about this.." said Sissy..
"THEY HAVE? Oh ,well uh..well they uh want to uh see progress in this case..." he said.
"We've identified two suspects...Edith Barry, a master jewel thief and her accomplice, Dexter Prefontaine..They look very good for your wife's murder...We should have them in custody soon.." said Sissy...
He looked totally shocked and a little nervous..He didn't expect us to get this close to solving the case...His bluster was a smoke screen, to take suspicion off of him...
"You have evidence to uh prove these two committed the murder?" he asked...
"Of course..My detectives worked their street sources...and we have quite a bit of forensic evidence...All I'm waiting on is to hear from them....Just thought you'd like to know.." said Sissy.."I'll call you when arrests have been made.." said Sissy, who smiled and got up and excused herself..
"Well yes...Thank you Lieutenant..." he said tritely..
After she had driven off...He immediately went to his cell phone and called who else, Dante Peppers..
"PEPPERS...PEPPERS...WE GOT A PROBLEM!!! THE COPS HAVE WARRANTS OUT ON YOUR TWO GUYS...Prefontaine and that old woman, Edith Barry....THEY KNOW!!!" he screamed..
"Monaham....You idiot..WHY ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT THIS ON THE DAMN PHONE?" screamed Dante Peppers...
"THIS IS A CLEAN PHONE...A BURNER PHONE...I JUST GOT A VISIT FROM LIEUTENANT SISSY VAN BUREN OF THE POLICE...SHE TOLD ME THEY HAVE WARRANTS OUT ON The
old woman, the Jewel thief...and on that thug, Dex...IF THEY CATCH THEM, DEX could tie you and me to a MURDER!" said Jerome..
"SHUT UP...THE HEIST WAS YOUR IDEA...TO PAY OFF YOUR DEBTS...BY THE WAY, I HAVE NOT GOTTEN A DIME...THESE STONES ARE TOO HOT, THE FBI AND THE COPS ARE CRAWLING UP EVERYBODY'S ASS LOOKING FOR THESE STONES...WHY DIDN'T YOU HOLD OFF ON HAVING YOUR WIFE CLIPPED? "Screamed Dante Peppers...
"YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING....TAKE THOSE TWO OUT....IF THEY GET PINCHED...YOU AND I BOTH COULD BURN..." Screamed Jerome...
"Jerome....Get off the phone...Don't call me again...I'll handle this..." said Dante Peppers...
"Oh...Okay...Look..I'll cash in my wife's insurance policy..I'll pay you..."said Jerome...
"Jerome....Get off the phone...Don't call me again...I said I'll handle this..." said Dante Peppers...
"Okay!" said Jerome..
After he hung up...He looked at a man ,dressed in a black pin stripe suit...
"Yo Jack...Take out the old lady and Dex....and then drop by Jerome Monoham's house and take him out...He's more of a problem than he's worth.." said Dante Peppers...
Jack nodded and smiled.
I looked at Sharon and smiled.
"Can you believe this? We got all of this on tape?" I said..
"You know... In a lot of cases...you just get lucky....We never get THIS lucky..." laughed Sharon...
"Oh My God.." I said as we shared a laugh...Sissy had called this one just right. Surprisingly enough my thoughts turned to Carlotta...
I know she was out there working this case...
but I was horny right now and wanting her something terrible..I was hoping to wrap this case up...but for a different reason.
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