The Caribbean Laundry: Upstate Mystery

By fj donohue

He was a CPA with a practice run from his house. He lived quietly with his dog Lucy. Friendly guy, but secretive about his life. A very private person with no local friends except Danny Osgood a neighborhood kid, who played video-games on the CPA's high-speed computer. He had little contact with the neighbors or folks in town. How did he end up with two bullet holes in his head?

A simple murder in a small upstate NY town or something much bigger? 

The extent of the crime goes far beyond this quiet town. Other states then outside of the country. 

How could this crime have such a far ranging impact. To solve this mystery will require the support of the DEA and FBI in a well coordinated effort.

Detective Elton Hendricks and Todd Adams from the Binghamton NY Police Department are integral to shutting down a major criminal operation.

• Language: English
• Publisher: fj donohue
• Release date: Jun 16, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201933722

fj donohue

I’m a retired International Sales Director, having worked in the commercial and military flight simulation industry for over 30 years. I lived in Brussels (Belgium) and Bonn (Germany) for eight years and met my British wife in Brussels. Before my career in the flight simulation industry, I was an Armaments and Electronics Maintenance Officer in the USAF during the Viet Nam era conflict. We have three children and seven grandchildren. Since retirement I continue to chase an ever-elusive golf game. Home is a small town in central New York State where the novellas are set. I'm a volunteer mediator and Lemon Law arbitrator and this occasionally appears in the stories. An underlying theme in my novellas is people helping people. In spite of the difficulties and crime that may surround us, there is always hope in friendship and good neighbors. Go to my website below for information about my novellas and to contact me for a FREE short story. I won't use your information for any other purpose.

Book preview

Prologue

HE WAS A CPA WITH A practice run from his house. He lived quietly with his dog Lucy. Friendly guy, but secretive about his life. A very private person with no local friends except Danny Osgood a neighborhood kid, who played video-games on the CPA’s high-speed computer. He had little contact with the neighbors or folks in town. How did he end up with two bullet holes in his head?

Chapter 1

LT. PHIL RAIMONDI, chief of detectives at the Binghamton NY

Police Department, was in Albany at a conference and would be away for the remainder of the week. Detective Elton Hendricks was in charge or as Phil liked to say, driving the bus. The call came from desk sergeant John Monroe.

Elton, sorry to mess up the rest of your day, but two uniforms just called in a possible homicide over at Sunrise Terrace.

Okay, John. I’ll get our newbie Todd Adams and we’ll head over now.

Todd was recently promoted from patrol to detective and assigned to Elton as part of his on-the-job training. Todd was bright but a little prone to conspiracy theories regarding crimes. Elton was always telling him to follow the evidence. Don’t try to fit your theory to the crime. Let the evidence lead the way. Easy to say, but hard for him to do at this point in his career.

John, make sure to tell the uniforms to secure the house and area around it. Has a crime scene team been dispatched yet?

Just calling them now, replied Sergeant Monroe.

Thanks. I’ll text Phil and let him know what we might be looking at.

The ride from downtown Binghamton to Sunrise Terrace was a little over fifteen minutes. Traffic was never an issue. Sunrise Terrace was an earlier development in Binghamton, built in the late 1950’s. It had fared well over the years. The homes were well maintained, and it was still a desirable area. Many of the homes had additions to keep up with expanding families and changing lifestyles. The lots were spacious and easily accommodated them. Retail businesses had grown up on Front Street close by. The area was a good blend of commercial and residential properties.

When they arrived, the house and surrounding area had been secured by the uniforms. The crime scene techs had not arrived yet. Elton asked patrolman Fred Malloy to fill him in.

The call came from the next-door neighbor on the right. The victim’s dog wouldn’t stop barking. He suspected something was wrong. The guy in the house, his name is Ted Gallo by the way, didn’t answer the door when the neighbor knocked and rang the bell. He looked in a side window and could see a body on the floor. He called 911 and we were alerted also. We forced the back door. It was easier to do than the front door and there was no sign of forced entry. We figured if this was foul play, the front door might be part of the crime scene. We went in ahead of the EMS guys to check the place out. EMS checked the body for a pulse. Once we saw the holes under his chin, we told them not to touch anything and to pull back. Looks like gunshot wounds.

Thanks, Fred. Nice work. We’ve a clean crime scene for a change. Tell the neighbor who called this in to stick around. We'll want a statement from him. Also, canvas the neighborhood and see if you can pick up any additional information.

Elton called Todd over. Go take a look around. Make sure you have gloves on. Look in all the rooms including the bathrooms and closets. Let me know if there’s an attic. Check the basement too. If you see anything unusual, mark it and take a picture. We can dig into everything in more detail later. We won’t have time today to do a thorough investigation. But I want to make sure that we’ve a good feel for what we’re looking at.

By this time the crime scene techs and coroner had arrived and were looking over the office area and body. Ted Gallo was lying on his side next to his desk and computer. It appeared as if he might have stood up and been killed while standing. Two small bullet holes under his chin and no exit from the top of his head. Very little blood. There were some powder burns and trauma marks under his chin which pointed to someone jamming the gun under his chin and firing. Most likely a small caliber pistol as there were no exit wounds. Gallo had about $300 in his wallet and an expensive watch on his right wrist. Rolex said one of the crime scene techs. So, it didn’t look like robbery was the motive. The man’s clothes were casual but not inexpensive. For sure, he didn’t shop at JCPenney or Walmart. Probably catalog stuff off the internet, thought Elton. He didn't have a landline and they didn't find a mobile.

Dr. Davis, the coroner, said, Somebody knew what they were doing. Two bullets to the head, shot up close. Looks like a pro at this point. I’d guess a 22-caliber pistol. We’ll know more once I get him on the table. I don’t think he’s been dead more that twenty-four hours. You can probably count on the gun being a throw-away. Maybe the crime scene guys will get lucky with some prints, but I’d bet against it.

Check his hands, Doc. Maybe something under his nails? Looks like there’s some residue there. He’s missing a button from the top of his shirt. Could have been a struggle.

We’ll get him over to Lourdes Hospital today and do the autopsy first thing in the morning.

The crime scene techs were finishing up their work and preparing the body to be moved. Elton took the opportunity to take a closer look at Ted Gallo. The scene was almost pristine in terms of the amount of blood and neatness. It looked as if someone had just come in or was invited in through the front door. Ted Gallo had stood up and was shot.

Apparently, nothing was missing other than his mobile phone. He had converted the dining room into an office. But there weren’t any filing cabinets. All his information must be on the computer. Other than a small floor cabinet for office supplies, the office was bare. His desktop computer and large dual monitors were not disturbed. The computer was still on but had timed out of whatever application he was using. They’d have to find the password to get back in. The top of his work area was clean except for a framed picture of a woman and young boy. Maybe a Latina? The crime scene techs put the man’s wallet, keys and watch in an evidence bag and also took the framed picture and computer for analysis. Elton was not hopeful they would be able to crack the password. Maybe the lab in Albany would fare better. The techs also bagged the victim’s hands to protect any possible evidence under his fingernails, then put him in a body bag and took him to Lourdes Hospital.

Patrolman Fred Malloy had finished a canvas of the neighborhood and reported back to Elton. Nothing special from the neighbors based on an initial look. I have their names and phone numbers for follow-up later. They should provide a good historical background on Gallo. All the neighbors are longtime residents. Seems Gallo lived here for over six years.

Thanks, Fred. Nice work.

Detective Adams had finished his initial look around the house.

Anything interesting, Todd? asked Elton.

Everything’s so neat. The guy was anal. The shirts in his closet were separated by color and he had two of everything. Pants also separated by color and two of each also. Same for shoes. Everything in his dresser was neatly arranged and folded. It looked like a cadet’s room at West Point. Nothing out of place and all arranged carefully. The kitchen is the same. Fridge neatly stocked, cutlery all in separate spaces in the drawers. Cups and glasses all neatly placed by size in the cabinets. Everything’s in order in the house. No doubt this guy lives alone. I also checked the trash and recycle bins. The trash must have been picked up within the last day or so. The recycle barrel is half full and most likely will be picked up this week. I put it in the garage so it won’t be picked up until we can go through it. By the way, it had a lot of shredded paper in it.

Elton asked, Was it strip shredded or crosscut?

Crosscut.

Okay. Sort of expected that. Let's take a look at it tomorrow. We can spread it out on the garage floor. What kind of car did he drive?

BMW, nice ride, said Todd.

Let’s get it to the lab downtown for a look. Did you see anything else in the house that we need to get to the lab right away?

Not really. Everything seems to be in place. I don’t think the killer did anything more than take him out and leave.

I think you’re right, said Elton. "I guess we can rule out suicide. Two bullets