Devil's Crossroads: No-one said it would be easy. Read online

  Jaime held a debrief in police HQ with Gloria, Jessica and Mike Mather. It had been a productive day in that she was talking but there were serious matters ahead.

  Jaime then headed off home whilst Gloria went with Jessica and Mike to the Hilton roof terrace bar to relax in the warmth of the evening sun with some cooling drinks before retiring for the evening.

  It was 09:30 on Thursday when Gloria arrived at the Hilton hotel and collected Jessica and Mike for the journey to police HQ. They had the briefing with Jaime before making their way to the interview room on the arrival of the prison van and escort. Jessica was wearing a similar white blouse with a collar with the black trousers. Gloria was wearing a plain orange coloured blouse and a black skirt.

  It was now 11:42 when Gabriella walked in with her guards, she smiled and greeted her two interviewers whilst the guards secured her to the table. Once again Gloria went through the legal obligations prior to starting the interview.

  Gabriella, “I hope you fine young ladies had a pleasant evening last night, I decided to stay in, with some company.”

  Gloria,” We will continue where we left of in Colon, did you meet with Felipe after you boarded the cruise ship?”

  “Why would I want to do that number one?”

  “It’s believed you saw him in Aruba?”

  “I saw him but had nothing to do with him.”

  Gloria introduced Susanna in to the interview, “You were travelling with Susanna, that’s right, isn’t it?”

  Gabriella paused but knew there were photographs, “Yes, that was her name. She knew the boy not me.”

  “Did she have sex in the Radisson in Colon with Filipe?”

  “I don’t know, ask her, she can tell you.” Knowing that they couldn’t. “orange suits you, shows off your skin colour, very nice.”

  “How long did you stay in Aruba?”

  “A few days, I’m sure you know exactly, you tell me?”

  “Ok, when did you fly to Colombia from Aruba?”

  “You know the answers, that’s why you are asking me.”

  “Did you have sex with Felipe?”

  “Do you not know the answer to that one, never. Susanna fucked him?”

  “Who is Susanna, what is her real name?”

  “Now you really don’t know that one do you, what has she done fucked some young rich boy, ask him”

  “What did you do when you went back to Colombia?”

  “I went back to my apartment and stayed there with a girlfriend of mine and had a good time for a few days.”

  “Until when?”

  “You know when, why do you ask questions you know the answer to?”

  “When?”

  “Until I came to Panama, happy?”

  “When was the last time you saw Susanna?”

  “When I got off the plane in Cali” she knew they couldn’t prove otherwise once she was outside the airport.

  “Are you certain you have not seen Susanna since the flight?”

  The image of Susanna lying on the tiled floor with blood oozing out of the two chest wounds and her throat which she had sliced open, staring up into her face came back into her mind. “I’m certain, I didn’t really know her, paid for a job and the job was done that’s it. Is this about me or Susanna?”

  “It is about Felipe Lopez. When was the last time you saw him?”

  “I saw him briefly in Aruba, that’s it, why?”

  “Where would we find Susanna?”

  “I would imagine somewhere in Colombia.” She knew exactly where she was rotting in the ground.

  They decided to take a break from the interview, have a drink and a light meal and discuss the next strategy. Gabriella was taken to a holding cell and provided with a taco meal and a cold drink.

  Jaime had decided now was the time to start making challenges to Gabriella on the evidence that she would not know that Mike Mather had gathered.

  At 14:00 they were all sat in the interview room, Gloria again reminded Gabriella of the legal obligations and started the interview.

  Gabriella, “The taco was cold, far better quality in La Joyita.”

  Gloria wanted to say you had better get used to it but grimaced, “I’m sorry about that, I’ll try and ensure it’s hot next time. Shall we continue, you and Susanna travelled together but you didn’t know each other is that right?”

  “Yes, that’s right.”

  “When we spoke about the murder of Borja, when you murdered Borja, you said he had killed your friend. Was Susanna the friend you were talking about?”

  Gabriella was taken by surprise, she looked at Gloria straight faced the smile had gone, “No, no it was not Susanna?

  “Who was you friend Gabriella, that he killed?”

  “It was, it was, it doesn’t matter now Borja is dead.”

  “So, tell me who was it?”

  “He did not kill Susanna, I know that.”

  “Just tell me your friends name?”

  “He killed El Cerdo, he killed El Cerdo.”

  “You have a friend, had a friend called the pig?”

  “Yes, yes Borja killed him. What has this got to do with the boy Filipe.”

  “Was it Filipe he killed?”

  “No, I fucking told you, El Cerdo not Filipe.”

  “Did Susanna kill Filipe?”

  “What Filipe is dead? It has nothing to do with me.”

  “Yes, Filipe is dead, killed by a woman, a Latin American woman, with a nice figure.”

  “Where was he killed?”

  “Margarita Island, Venezuela.”

  “Nothing to do with me, I’ve never been to the place, I don’t know where it is.”

  Gloria had Gabriella saying the right things, “Ok could it have been Susanna?”

  “Yes, I suppose so but why would she do it?”

  “You told me you had sex with some men, is that right?”

  “I do, of my choice, why not?”

  “Have you ever been to Margarita, Porlamor?”

  “No, I have never been to Margarita.”

  “Apparently Susanna flew in and out of Margarita at the time of the murder of Filipe.”

  “There you go, speak to her not me.”

  “Have you been in a hotel Colinas Del Sol?”

  “Where?”

  “Margarita.”

  “How many times do I tell you, I have not been ever to Margarita”

  “When people fly into Margarita, they have their photograph taken at the airport and Susanna had hers taken.”

  Gabriella could recall the stop at the passport check, she had been wearing a wig, “So.”

  “The person in the photo looks like you.”

  “Susanna looks like me different hair though straight.”

  “I believe it’s you.”

  “We are similar, it is not me.”

  “You’re certain you have never stopped in Colinas del Sol hotel?”

  “How could I, if I’ve never been on the Island”

  Gloria paused for effect; she could see that Gabriella was uncomfortable. “Filipe was viciously murdered in room 103 of the Colinas Del Sol hotel and I, we, believe that you are the person responsible for his murder.” She paused Gabriella said nothing. “The murder was recorded on his mobile phone, then later it was sent by a WhatsApp message to his parents in England. They are devasted by their only sons’ death which was graphically shown on the recording. It was you, wasn’t it?”

  “I’ve told you, it may have been Susanna; it wasn’t me, I’ve never been there.”

  Looking directly into Gabriella’s face, into her eyes, “Can you explain your fingerprints in the room where he was murdered?”

  Gabriella looked away from Gloria, head down directly at the metal table top, speaking softly, “It wasn’t me.”

  “It was you, you enjoyed the passion, the sex with Felipe, you set him up like you did Borja, you planned it. You had a climax, it’s on the recording, your arms go over your head and you grab the posts
behind the pillows.”

  Gabriella could remember the moment exactly, there was not that many experiences with men. She closed her eyes and said nothing.

  “Why, why did Felipe have to die such a horrible death?”

  She started to cry, Jessica passed some tissues, Gabriella said, “Thank you” and opened the packet and wiped her eyes with a fresh tissue.

  “His parents need to know why, they want this finished, please tell us why and what has happened?”

  They let Gabriella cry her tears, unknown to Gloria and Jessica the tears were for Filipe and Susanna, not for herself.

  What was she to say and do, she had no life, in prison now for eternity, with no chance of release with the charges against her, she had a thought?

  “If I tell you something, would I get a trial in England?”

  Gloria, “I highly doubt it, I would like to tell you what you want to hear. The way things are, here, you are looking at getting over 90 years in jail, possibly more, listen 15 years would kill you in there, will kill you. You can make it easier on the parents and no more difficult on yourself if you tell us what happened.”

  There was silence Jessica and Gloria could see that Gabriella was troubled, her head was in her hands down on the table top, her fingers running through her wavy hair.

  Quietly she replied “Yes, I did it, I didn’t want to do it, I was scared. I was shown what I had to do by Borja and Paco, I had no choice they are violent, very violent, killers. I cried when I did it, you are right I have never enjoyed sex with a man like that before and very likely never again. I am so sorry for him and his parents, I deserve to die. Can we stop now and start again tomorrow?”

  “What happened to Filipe?”

  Gabriella was crying, the tissue was over her eyes but the tears were dropping like rain drops onto the table top, “Felipe was taken by two men, in a large laundry collection bag and later dropped in the sea a long way from the town, I don’t know where, that is the truth.”

  Gloria spoke quietly, “Did you send the message to his parents?”

  Gabriella was now crying uncontrollably, she was nodding her head, they waited, then almost in a whisper, “Yes I did, I cannot forgive myself, I don’t expect anyone to forgive me. It is not me, it’s not me, I’m not the person who could have done this and I have, they have done this to me, changed me.”

  “Why Filipe, why kill an innocent English young man?”

  Again, Gloria and Jessica waited for the answer silently, “It was a mistake, a fucking big mistake, Susanna had started talking to Filipe and a man called Josh on the canal cruise, they were friendly and fun, then as you know we met in a bar in Colon before we took the cruise. Susanna had sex with Felipe, I didn’t, you know.” She took a drink of water from a paper cup Jessica had given her. “I thought that was it and then Felipe came to Aruba and he and Susanna had good times together, you know, then we went back to Colombia. I’m not saying names ok.” She took another drink of water. “We were taken to a house and were shown photographs of us together with Filipe and Josh, then we were told the drugs had been taken by the police in the US and some men had been killed. We were told that Felipe and Josh were agents, we said no, but they did not believe us. We were taken to a farm to be fucked all day by the field workers as our punishment. Borja turned up, fucked me, no raped me and there was a knife fight and Susanna was killed, I was told I could stay on the farm and be fucked all day, every day like a pig or do a job for them. I was scared, I didn’t want to stay on the farm.” She paused for another drink of water. “They brought El Cerdo in and told me what to do and I killed him, I thought that was it, then they told me I had to kill Felipe.”

  “Did you kill El Cerdo the same way?”

  “Yes, I didn’t like the man but they would kill me. I’m sorry.” She paused for a while the room was silent. “Can I see you tomorrow again please, I have told you my part maybe tomorrow I can tell you some more.” She finished the water in the plastic cup.

  Gloria called for the guards to take Gabriella to the holding room, as she left the interview room she turned to Gloria and Jessica, “I’m sorry, for everything.”

  After Gabriella had left the room, Jessica and Gloria stood up together and embraced, both had tears in their eyes and were visibly upset at what they had heard, they held each other close for about twenty seconds. They collected their paperwork and walked to the debrief with Jaime and Mike.

  Mike had placed a large water jug in the middle of the briefing table and placed 4 glasses next to the jug, Gloria and Jessica entered the room, Jaime and Mike were standing waiting. Jaime walked towards Gloria and embraced her, she started to cry on to the shoulder of his pristine blue shirt. Mike did the same with Jessica who appreciated the comforting. They stood back from each other. Jaime, “I think we can leave the debrief for tomorrow, you have both achieved everything we could hope for, the interview was excellent Gloria, just perfection.” Then looking at Jessica, “Thank you Jessica, it is easy to interrupt and break continuity, you were excellent, played your part, said so much, by saying nothing.” Then to all, “I think we should break now, it has been emotional, there is not a lot to be gained by a debrief but maybe there is more to learn tomorrow if you wish to continue. She has admitted the murder and sending the message, Mike if you can liaise with NCA London and arrange for the parents to be informed and Superintendent Tinkler in Newcastle, Jessica if you want to tell Steve direct, I have no problem. I still have no doubt in my mind that there will be no likelihood of a prosecution in Venezuela, unless the body of Filipe is recovered and it is a big, deep ocean. Are you both prepared to talk to Gabriella tomorrow, maybe leave it until Monday?”

  Gloria, “I would like to push on tomorrow if it’s okay with Jessica?”

  Jessica, “I’m okay for tomorrow.”

  Mike, “If you don’t object, I would like to get the flight back to Caracas tonight, my objective has been completed, thank you so much ladies.”

  Jaime, “No objections Mike, we can update you later if anything you need to know is discovered. I will contact Arturo and let him know we will have a full team debrief tomorrow night, somewhere, I’m sure you would enjoy that Jessica.”

  “Yes, that would be great, thank you.”

  They all had one more hug in celebration of the interview success and comforting for the interviewers.”

  Mike was to be given a police journey to the airport, Jaime was returning directly home and Gloria was dropping Jessica off at the Hilton and would share a glass of wine or two on the roof terrace. Gloria made a call to Enrique, her work partner and Paco the ex-tourist police officer to meet them there if they were available.

  It was now 17:20 and Jessica made a call to Steve. He was lying on his bed naked when the phone alerted him to the call, he looked and saw it was Jess and answered immediately, “Hi Jess, just caught me, just about to get my beauty sleep, how are things in Panama?”

  “I’ll keep it brief then; you need as much beauty sleep as possible. Gabriella, aka Maria has just admitted murdering Filipe and sending the message to his parents.”

  Steve sat upright immediately, “That’s fantastic, she coughed everything?”

  “She did, even admitted killing another man in Colombia in a practice for killing Filipe.”

  “Bloody hell, why did she kill him?”

  “You were right, it was connected to the cruise liner going in to Fort Lauderdale and the drug seizures, the Colombians wrongly believed that Filipe and Josh were US agents.”

  “Are you okay, it must have been difficult?”

  “Yes, I’m okay now. Gloria was fantastic in the interview; we were both upset at the end.”

  “I bet you were. Have NCA or the boss been told yet?”

  “Mike Mather is doing that now and Superintendent Tinkler will inform the parents, tomorrow I guess now.”

  “What was Maria like?”

  “I don’t know what to make of her to be honest. I know she is a killer but she has
been made into a killer, like Jaime said in the first briefing, no matter how nice she is, remember she is a cold-blooded murderer, but, I believe there is a nice person, honest person within her but I wouldn’t trust her.”