“You’re a genius Duncan.”
“Science actually Hunter but I will accept that accolade.” He turned off the lamp plunging them back into semi-darkness.
Hunter switched the room light back on.
“Another four or five hours and I’ll have this room telling me what exactly went on but at least for now I’ve given you something which will help hold them in custody.”
Hunter and Grace thanked him and made their way back to the car.
* * * * *
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It was just after four pm when they got back. Other members of MIT were still out on enquiries and Hunter had gathered from Isobel that she expected them all back within the hour. They had gathered enough statements and material evidence to place Ari and Pervez in flat 508.
Armed with this information Hunter and Grace made their way back to the custody suite to re-interview Pervez.
Pervez was already waiting in the sticky warm soundproof interview room with his solicitor. He didn’t have that air of cockiness like his brother yet nevertheless he fixed them with a penetrating glare.
As they sat down Pervez folded his arms in defensive posture and met them with a smug grin.
Hunter liked nothing more than a challenge.
Grace switched on the tape recording machine and turned around to switch on the TV/DVD player.
“Mr Arshad during your last interview you chose to make no comment throughout and as you know that is your prerogative. However it is only fair to tell you that since that last interview things have moved on considerably. We have interviewed your brother Ari and I have to tell you that he has implicated you in the abduction of Samia. We have a statement from a witness placing you at the scene where Samia’s body was dumped and I must also tell you that Jilani Hassan, Samia’s mother and your aunt has also made a statement implicating you and Ari.”
Suddenly his eyes were restless. He searched out his solicitor who had his head down making legal notes. He returned his gaze back across the table.
“You’re bullshitting.”
“Mr Arshad would I be telling you this in the presence of your solicitor and on tape if it wasn’t true?”
Hunter watched him roll his eyes up towards the ceiling.
Pervez unfolded his arms and wiped the palms of his hands down the thighs of his trousers.
“Now I know you have been shown the CCTV evidence of you following Samia in Meadowhall and then your involvement in her attack down in the car park and that you chose not to respond when that evidence was presented, well now I want to show you some more footage we have recently acquired, which you might find interesting.”
Grace switched on the DVD player and started to play the footage, which Barry had shown to the team that morning.
Hunter watched the sweat trickle down the sides of Pervez’s forehead. He brushed away the trickles before they rolled onto his neck.
Hunter heard Grace switch off the machine. He leant across the table and locked together his fingers. “We have now found yours and Ari’s flat. As we speak forensics are going through the house with a fine tooth comb. We already know this was where Samia was held and where she was killed and you have seen from that CCTV footage that we now have you on camera taking out her body to dump in the lake. Now as I say you have every right not to say anything, but I hope your brother will be as loyal when he sees this.”
Hunter watched Pervez’s face change. He was rigid with fear.
“Ari raped and killed Samia,” he barked out. “I thought we were only going to kidnap Samia and force her to go to Pakistan. That’s what Ari told me. He said Uncle Mohammed wanted to teach his daughter a lesson because she had brought shame on the family and that we were to take her to our place and hold her there.”
“Is that what happened then after you put her in the back of the van at Meadowhall?”
He nodded feverishly. “Yes, yes. We took her back to our flat and Ari tied her up in the bedroom. He phoned Uncle Mohammed and told him we had her and asked us what he wanted to do with her.”
“What did your uncle say?”
“I don’t know. Ari was always the one who talked to Uncle Mohammed, though he did come to the flat the next day and started hitting Samia. Swearing at her and saying she had brought dishonour to him and she didn’t deserve to live.”
“Is that when she was killed?”
“No, no, he busted her mouth and nose and I cleaned her up with a towel from the bathroom. She was still alive. She begged me to let her go and then Ari came into the bedroom and dragged me away. Uncle Mohammed left and I could hear him and Ari talking in the hallway.”
“What were they saying?”
“I don’t know I couldn’t hear. They were sort of whispering together.”
“What happened then?”
Pervez’s eyes started to glass over. He dabbed at them with the back of his hand. “Nothing that night, but the next day Ari told me to go out and get some food for us. I went to the local Spar and when I came back Samia was dead. Ari had killed her.” Tears welled up in the corner of his eyes. “That’s the truth. I swear on the Prophet Mohammed.”
“When you say she was dead. Describe what you saw.”
“There was blood everywhere. Up the walls and a huge puddle around her head. She was lying on the carpet in the lounge near the armchair. When I left her she was tied up in the bedroom. When I got back he was pacing up and down and he had that knife-thing in his hand. He’d cut her throat with it.”
“Was she still tied up?”
“Her hands were behind her back but he’d untied her feet.” Pervez gulped and look down towards the table. “She wasn’t wearing her jeans or her knickers. I knew what he’d done.”
“When you say she was dead did you check at all to see if she was still alive?”
“I looked at her but you could tell. There was a big pool of blood. Her eyes were wide open. She wasn’t breathing.”
“What did you do?”
I freaked out. I couldn’t believe he’d done that. We argued and I asked him why. He said Uncle Mohammed wanted him to do it. I didn’t know whether to believe him or not.”
“What happened then?”
“Ari said we had to get rid of the body. He wrapped Samia in the carpet, wiped the knife-thing and put it in with her and then he asked me to help bind her up. After that he rang Uncle Mohammed.”
“Did Ari tell your uncle what he had done?”
“Yes he told him he had slit her throat. But I don’t know what my uncle was saying. I couldn’t hear that part of the conversation.”
“Is that when you brought Samia across to Barnwell and dumped her in the lake?”
“No we kept her body in the flat a couple of days. We put the rug in the bath so no more blood seeped out. Ari said Uncle Mohammed was going to ring him and tell him where to take the body. Then that Friday evening Ari took a call from Uncle Mohammed and said he had found a place to hide Samia where no one would find it. That’s when we drove to the lake and dumped her.” His voice started to quaver. “That is the truth. I didn’t kill Samia. It was Ari. My Uncle Mohammed told him to do it.”
* * * * *
It was after six pm when Hunter and Grace finally returned to the incident room having completed a second interview with Mohammed Hassan. He had been more stubborn than his nephews. He had refused to accept the testimonies and evidence presented and had continually bleated that everyone was lying against him — including his wife. However as they had walked him back to his cell they had witnessed the first signs of him cracking. As Hunter had slammed the heavy, reinforced door into its metal frame he had inspected him through the door’s hatch. Mohammed had looked up at him from the bench with glassed over eyes, quickly followed by a pained look as he had hung his head into his chest.