"You're right." The black detective wholeheartedly agreed. They were the first to find this hideout, and if they kept waiting, they would be scooped by the Robbery and Murder Department.
If the Robbery and Murder Department got lucky and found the oil paintings in the villa, the credit would go to them, and the reward would go to them too. Their group would be miserable.
Davo Gali forced a smile and greeted, "Captain Li, what brings you here?"
It was the third time Luke met Davo Gali. The first encounter was when he took over the case of officer Jens Hauley's murder, which Davo Gali was responsible for handing over.
The second was when he went to the Southern District to learn about the oil painting heist, and Davo Gali was the one who received him.
"We discovered this hideout while investigating the murderer of officer Jens Hauley. What about you guys?"
Davo Gali said, "We found this place while investigating the oil painting heist. Why would these two cases lead to the same hideout?"
"I've said before that these two cases have a certain connection." Luke pointed at the yellow villa. "What's the situation inside?"
Davo Gali briefly explained, "We talked to the neighbors around here, and no one has seen any movement at the yellow villa in the past two days. It might be empty.
However, we can't rule out the possibility that the suspect is laying low inside the villa."
Luke nodded towards the villa, "What do you plan to do?"
"We're about to enter the villa and search it."
Davo Gali was tempted to say they didn't need it, but his rank wasn't as high as Luke's. If Luke decided to take over, they would have no choice but to share some of the credit.
"I plan to lead a team into the villa to search it. If there are robbers hiding inside, they might try to escape, so we'll need someone watching outside."
Luke studied Davo Gali and the other officers from the Southern District, sensing their wariness of him. He smiled, "Okay, I'll take my team to watch the backdoor."
Davo Gali breathed a sigh of relief, fearing that Luke might change his mind and take over the scene, which would be a disaster.
Fearing Luke might change his mind, he instructed his team to check their equipment and enter the villa for the search as soon as possible.
Luke also gathered his squad and led them to the backyard to keep watch.
Officer Black remarked regretfully, "These guys got here ahead of us."
Luke tightened his bulletproof vest and checked his magazine, saying, "The robbery happened early morning on the 30th. The Southern District's night shift detectives were the first to arrive at the scene. They definitely have more leads than we do, so it's not surprising they found this place."
Officer Black stared at the villa, enviously asking, "Do you think the paintings are hidden here?"
"Bang!" With a loud crash, the villa door was smashed open.
Davo Gali led a team of fully armed officers into the villa.
Davo Gali holding a shotgun, led the search in the living room, "Clear."
Other officers entered the rooms to search.
The officers did not find any signs of robbers in the villa, and many team members breathed a sigh of relief, though also with some disappointment.
The black detective poked his head from the second floor, shouting excitedly, "Detective Davo, we found a wooden crate in the second-floor study. Judging by its size and style, it's very likely to be for the paintings."
The police officers were thrilled. These ten paintings were not only crucial to the case but also tied to a two-million-dollar reward.
"Let's go have a look." Davo Gali led a few officers up to the study on the second floor.
The door lock to the study had been broken, suggesting it had been locked before. A large brown wooden crate was placed in the corner against the wall, with thick foam pads at its corners.
The black officer walked up to the crate and used a hammer to break the lock directly, "Bang!"
The black officer rubbed his hands and opened the crate's lid, staring inside with wide eyes. The sound echoed from the box,
"Fuck!" cursed the black officer.
A loud explosion blew off the roof, sending flames and smoke into the sky as half the villa collapsed with a roar.