2023/10/31 - Karen Coe, P.I. Ch. 01

"So who is the guy that referred you? Is he the guy you book your playtime with?"

"No, no, I told you, I book directly with Brandy. Even a couple of times she wasn't available and I ended up with another girl, I booked it through Brandy. The original guy was only a guy I know who gave me a tip. Once I expressed interest to the guy, I got the initial call from Brandy herself. Then after the first time, I guess she deemed me to be worthy and she gave me a private number to call for future dates."

"Please tell me how that intial call went, Mr Mahoney."

"Well, the following day I got a call on my mobile phone from a woman with a friendly voice. She said she was Brandy, that she had been told by Tony that I was interested in getting together and was now a good time to talk, you know, like that."

"Wait, wait, she mentioned a Tony?"

"Yeah, that's the guy I was telling you about. I take my car to a place up on the waterfront, up on Allen. Called Goncalves Auto. He's one of the kids who works on my Esplinade." Kramer pulled up a picture on his iPhone. "Yep, that's Tony." It was Antonio Soares.

"Mr Mahoney, we appreciate your cooperation. We have no desire for this to get back to Mrs Mahoney, and I'm sure you feel the same. We will be discrete, but it will come at a price, so pay close attention. You are to discuss this with nobody else other than law enforcement. You will cut off all contact immediately with this Brandy, with Tony, with Goncalves Auto. Not even a call to say goodbye. Get your car serviced elsewhere. Get your ashes hauled elsewhere, maybe even at home. Understood?"

"Loud and clear."

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The following morning, the RISP meeting began with a bullet-pointed handout:

WHAT WE KNOW

• Deena Brenner and Antonio Soares are suspects in the bombings

• Soares has not yet been located

• Nobody outside this room is to know that Deena and Soares are suspects

• We want to locate Soares before executing the search warrant on Deena

• We do not want the warrant to tip off Soares, making him flee or destroy evidence

• Deena Brenner is working as an escort, and is engaging in acts of prostitution

• Deena has at least 2 other women working as prostitutes for her

• These women have yet to be identified

• Antonio Soares appears to be involved in the prostitution business

• The extent of his involvement is unknown, but he is at least a point of referral

• One known referral was a customer having his vehicle serviced at Goncalves Auto

• The extent of involvement by Goncalves Auto in Deena's business is unknown

• We don't know if the prostitution and the bombing have any links of motive

• We have no evidence that Vanessa Voight was engaging in prostitution

• We have no links of any family members of the bomb victims to the prostitution

• Tension and unease have been observed between Deena and her husband

• Tension and unease have been observed between Deena and her in-laws

• Jason Brenner is guarded and tense when asked about the state of his marriage

• No evidence has been uncovered that Jason is aware of Deena's prostitution

Superintendent Cicero was present just to get a feel for the overall progress. Detective Commander Brennan ran the meeting but gave the floor to Mazza and Kramer. who essentially fleshed out the bullet points and answered questions. Then Waterhouse gave the ATF report. Although Karen was the expert between the two of them, Cicero's presence lent an air of formality to the meeting. So, as ranking ATF officer present, he presented Karen's findings, and made sure the boys in the room knew that they were hers. Mazza looked at Karen and smiled.

"OK the main topic for today is identifying the detonation sequence. Ms Colangelo has reviewed the findings of the various technicians who have sifted through the débris. The Shah scene was cleaned up prematurely, but the Brenner, Voight and Hopwood explosions yielded common ingredients. The powder was placed in plumbing pipes, fragments of which were recovered from all 3 bomb sites. All 3 are the same piping, and are a match for the SKU number of the piping known to have been bought by Deena Brenner. Fragments of the same insulated copper wiring were recovered from all 3 sites, and again are a match for the item shown on the same Home Depot sales slip as Deena's pipe purchase. The only thing still lacking is video evidence showing Deena Brenner making the purchase, as opposed to a third party using her card."

"Also all three sites yielded fragments of the same disposable phones Deena Brenner is known to have purchased, both by virtue of a charge made on her card and video verification that it was her making the buy. Ms Colangelo has pointed out that the most frequent detonation trigger in a car bomb is by connection to the car's electrical system. By making the detonation dependant upon the car's ignition system, the target is more likely to be in the vehicle at time of detonation. This stands in contrast to, for example, a timer, where there is less guarantee of the target being in harm's way at time of detonation."

"Now, the matter of the disposable phones presents us with a problem. Mobile phones can be used as detonators. The perp places a call to the number and the electric charge generated by the incoming call generates the detonation. But that method requires visual verification that the target is in the vehicle. It makes no sense to make the call if the vic is still in bed. But having a visual lookout for 4 explosions is unlikely and needlessly risky. Nobody wants to be in proximity to four bombings. Too much risk of discovery."

"The theory that Ms Colangelo is going with is that the car's ignition system was wired to the bomb with the disposable phone as a stand-between. The bomb-and-phone device is fastened to the car and hooked to the electrical system by Soares when the car is brought in for, let's say, an oil change. The car can be started without triggering the bomb. Hell, these poor folks were starting their cars and driving around merrily for days with these bombs underneath them. Then at a pre-determined time, Soares or somebody by else calls the phone number assigned to the specific car bomb. The stand-between is deactivated and the very next time the ignition is flipped, we get an explosion. Ms Colangelo?"

Then Karen stood and walked to an easel, pulled back the top page and showed 5 phone numbers. The first number stood alone at the top of the page. There was a line under that top number. Beneath the line were the remaining four numbers, each with a date and a time next to it. She began her presentation.

"What we have here are 5 phone numbers. They correspond to 5 of the 6 numbers assigned to the phones purchaed by Deena Brenner. The top number made and received multiple phone calls to the 6th phone she bought. But the last 4 phones here never made any outgoing calls. Each of the 4 received exactly two calls, all from the top number. The first set of calls was made from the top number to each of the 4 bottom numbers on date of purchase. This was likely a test to make sure they worked. Then each of the 4 bottom numbers received one call from the top number on the date and time shown. Each call was made around 3 in the morning, the morning of each explosion as you can see by the dates. They line up precisely with the dates of the four blasts. These were the phone calls that deactivated the stand-between and essentially primed the bombs."

"We are surmising only at this point, that either Deena or Soares had the phone that triggered the bombs, and the other had the 6th phone. So I am calling the stand-betweens 'phone number 2, 3, 4, and 5'. And the co-conspirators have phones 1 and 6. When we execute the warrant on Deena, we will see if that phone I heard humming in her purse is phone 1 or phone 6. And I'm afraid, if I may be allowed my two cents, that if she decides she doesn't need that burner any longer, she'll ditch it and we'll be screwed. If we lose her phone, we may lose her. Once we have her, we can catch up with Soares. But if she ditches the burner, he'll likely ditch his and we may never know which of the two of them placed the call that fried those three babies. If I get a vote, I vote that we sweep in now. Thank You."

**************************************************

The meeting broke up and Karen was gone. Brack found her where he tends to find her, in the smoking area behind the building. She was not doing well. "Brack, I know it's crunch time, but... shit... it's those babies. It's haunting the fuck out of me and I need a couple of hours."

"Karen, I can tell it's affecting you. But you are right. We want the phone out of Deena's purse ASAP and we both understand why. But we are nervous about spooking Soares. An overall warrant that targets Deena's home and vehicle risks tipping off Soares. I think we need a wiretap warrant. If we hear a conversation that incriminates one or both of them, then we can toss her house and car without worrying about who we spook. We can get a tap on phones 1 and 6. Then we listen, and we'll learn who has 1 and who has 6. This will tell us the level of each suspect's involvement and it will tell us who placed the calls that armed the bombs. We may also learn if there were others involved in the murders or the prostitution ring, and what the connection is and what the motives were. Take the rest of the afternoon off. In fact, let's head back to yours and let off some steam."

"Brack, don't take this wrong. You are hot. And I have no qualms about fucking a married guy as long as I'm not breaking up a family. But you are sheer excitement to me. I don't want excitement right now. I need to feel safe and warm and calm. There's a place I need to be right now."

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"Hey Prof, got lunch plans?"

"Hey babe, you look amazing, a little stressed though. Come here". He knew just what she needed. Not sex, booze or a smoke. She threw herself in his arms and cried. He held her. That was what she needed. "It's that bombing case you're working."

She sniffed and nodded. "Karen, I've been following it in the papers. God, the babies...." He knew. They were on a wavelength. They walked silently, hand-in-hand to the campus sandwich shop, sat under a tree, split a ham and Swiss, and snuggled. He put his arm around her and she settled back into him. He softly stroked the side of her arm. This was not just a guy who gave her sex and liquor. She felt like she was in a sanctuary. She'd never felt quite like this. And she was afraid to lose this. But she knew she would. She knew that she'd be back in bed with Brack Waterhouse before the week was out. She came here for peace and now she was once again in turmoil. Clark sensed it.

"Karen, you're looking for something. I can feel it. You are clinging to me like I'm a life raft. You're bold and brassy on the surface and then you let your hair down around me and you seem frightened, like you're looking for something or someone to save you."

"Ha ha Prof, you know me better than I know myself. You can sense what makes me tick. You knew it the first time you bent me over your desk. You are going to get burned if you get too close to me. Look Clark, I like you. I really do. But I have never been faithful to a man in my life. No! Let me correct that! I have never made a promise to be faithful to any man, because it's not a promise I'm confident I can keep. That's how I am and I've always been fine with it. I have never wished I was different. Until now."

"Wow, you called me Clark. That's a big step, ha ha. You know, Karen, I always appreciate honesty. How many people promise to be true and then stray? The divorce courts are full of them. Fine. Don't make me a promise if you are going to break it. I can respect that. But know then, that you can't expect any promises from me. Besides, why are you here in my arms right now? Why are you not off with your precious Lt Waterhouse?"

"OK Clark, that's a fair question. He is a colleague when we are working. As soon as we clock out he is instant excitement and nothing more. I don't have to go hunting, I don't have to wait. By the end of the work day, I'm on edge and he takes the edge off. That's it. I'm not going to insult you and try to say that he's not good looking, not a fun person, not good in bed. He is. He's all of that. But the thing that drives the sex with him is just right-place, right-time. And it feels good at the time and it scratches an itch I have there and then. But no lasting impact. Right now I'm in your arms, and there is no sex. And it feels so right. And if I never see you again, I'm going to remember the way I feel right now for the rest of my life."

***************************************************

Her phone had started buzzing while she was still in the arms of Clark Mathers. It was late afternoon and she was now racing to the RISP office. Brack had just started his briefing. It seems the surveillance team had been busy. They had observed Deena Brenner leaving her husband's bedside to take a phone call. She was observed engaging in a spirited phone conversation. There was visible anger. There were tears. That was good. Less in control meant less guarded. Which meant they might possibly incriminate themselves. Possibly issue what lawyers liked to call "excited utterances", words spoken in the heat of passion that were more likely true than false, and were harder to impeach on the witness stand. A silence descended on the room as each attendee seemed to ponder his own set of implications.

Suddenly the door to the conference room swept open. Two strange figures appeared in the doorway. The first one spoke to a stunned room. "Gentlemen.... ma'am.... sorry to intrude, but we all need to talk."

Brack took control. "Gentlemen, I am Special Agent Brackwell Waterhouse, ATF. And you are...."

"I'm Special Agent Raymond Church, FBI. With me here is Special Agent Paul Mendes. We have come upon information that you may find useful." They were made welcome at the table and Church carried on while Mendes set up a piece of equipment.

"We have been following leads in a case we are working that involves an interstate auto theft ring with ties to organized crime in Brazil. A number of Brazilian nationals resident in the US are in charge. The lower level guys are often first-generation Americans of Brazilian origin. Agent Mendes here has Brazilian background and knows lots of stuff that most of us don't. One of the places we've been watching is Goncalves Auto. We were observant enough to notice that your team is sitting on Goncalves as well. I got clearance from the Director himself to network with your team. I became aware of the connection between Goncalves and your bombings while listenening to wiretaps."

"Wait!" Karen interjected, "You guys already have a wiretap warrant?"

"We do indeed, ma'am, and... I'm sorry, we haven't met," Church replied with a warm smile. Karen knew where this was going and went along as she usually did. She smiled back, twisted a lock of her hair around her finger, and said in a slightly breathy voice, "My name's Karen..." She was going to get the dirt on the bastards who killed the Voight babies if she had to fish it out of Church's trousers with her teeth. Brack got green and jumped in, "Agent Church, this is Detective Karen Colangelo, retired, Providence Police. She's with me." Well, that was ambiguous enough, thought Karen. She got a little warm, thinking about these two alphas having a pissing match over her.

Still smiling at Karen, Church laid it out, barely addressing anyone else in the room. "We got a wiretap warrant on number of phones. The name Antonio Soares has been on our radar for some time, and he loves to chat. We have recordings."

Karen's heart quickened as he went on, "He talks to lots of people And one of those he chats with is one Deena Brenner. I'm sure she's on your radar, as my notes tell me her husband is the only surviving victim of the bombing campaign. From the sound of things, you guys don't have a wiretap warrant yet, but mine is legal and you are free to use it in your case. Some of the tapes go back to before the bombings. so you will have this whole thing chronicled. Agent Mendes, if you please."

Mendes started the playback and the whole thing played out for them. They sat there in open-mouthed silence and listened to the culprits hanging themselves.

The last recording concluded, Karen looked up at Brack, "We've got them!" Brack looked down at her and added, "Now we know where Soares is. Special Agent Church, can you make the call and have a few of your boys pick him up?"

******************************************************

Antonio Soares had been getting desperate. When he and Deena Brenner had flown into Miami, they had done so with a large wad of cash. He had insisted on it. Deena had taken out several thousand from her personal account and had even raided the joint account she shared with Jason. They wanted the flexibility of being able to live off-grid should the need arise. The cash payments for a series of low-budget motel rooms and cheap meals kept their movements untraceable. They knew the cash would not last forever and Deena even turned a few tricks in the few days she was down there, just to pad out their stash of cash.

But after she flew back to Providence, Antonio's unsupervised spending habits caused the cash supply to start running thin. He called her and asked her to mail some travellers cheques, and gave him the name of his current hotel in Ft Lauderdale. At Waterhouse's behest, Church made the call. The FBI were there within 2 hours. That evening, Deena got home, travellers cheques in hand. She was just stuffing them into the stamped and addressed envelope when the FBI executed the search warrant on her home and vehicle, and took her into custody.

Brack and Karen were at the hospital to notify a stunned Jason Brenner and his equally stunned parents. Both defendants were taken to the Metropolitan Correctional Center New York. It is a federal prison for pre-trial detainees. The charges were federal crimes and they would be tried in a federal court in New York City. Deena Brenner had first been taken to a local Providence lockup. She thought that since she lived in a non-death-penalty state, she would likely get life in prison. Her attorney quickly disabused her of that notion. The Feds had jurisdiction in this case, and the Feds had the death penalty. And these were capital crimes under federal law.

Each defendant faced a laundry list of charges, the top ones were 7 counts of conspiracy to commit murder, one for each of the 6 murder victims and one more for conspiring to kill Jason Brenner. You don't need to succeed with the murder itself in order to be guilty of conspiring to commit it. And of course, each faced 6 counts of murder in the first degree for the actual murders themselves.

As the details of the evidence unfolded, Deena emerged as a tragic character. She wasn't malicious by nature. She was restless, bored in her marriage, bored with life, and numb from the boredom. She met Soares and went along for the ride. She was at the Salonika Diner waiting at the cashier's for a takeout lunch order for her department next door at work. Soares worked across the street and was at the register paying his bill. They made small talk, and he walked her out to her tired old VW. He oohed and aahed over it, that it was "nice for an older model." She mentioned that it was due for a trip to her VW dealer for an oil change. He told her he specialized in German cars at "his" business across the road and that he did it for half the price of the dealership.

And so she dropped her car off with him the following morning before work, and picked it up after. When she was there that evening, Antonio told her she could be driving a nice BMW SUV, and that a beautiful lady like her deserved a classy car. He showed it to her on his lot, she asked Jason for it and he bought it for her. Antonio detailed it, slapped a Goncalves sticker in the back window, handed her the keys and suddenly Deena had a new friend. The "new" (slightly used) car was a boost out of her doldrums, and she associated it more with Antonio for selling her the car than with her own husband for buying it.