“Kannas. The fingerprint,” said Takamäki.
“Right. The print belongs to a man from Korpi’s gang by the name of Matti Ahola, at least presumably he’s still with Korpi. Twenty-six years old with a history of drugs and debt collection.”
“One of Korpi’s lieutenants, according to the information we have,” said Takamäki. “He is-or at least was-a former drug addict himself, but Korpi’s been using him mainly as a torpedo. A warrant for his arrest has already been issued. Based on Suhonen’s description, it’s possible the driver of the Escort was Ahola, but that’s still unconfirmed.”
“The car is at our lab for further analysis, but I haven’t received any results yet,” said Kannas.
“Photos of Ahola have been posted at all border checkpoints,” said Takamäki.
Joutsamo had made copies of Ahola’s photo for everybody. His nose, broken at some point in his life, was raked sharply to the left. “Ahola is one of three lieutenants responsible for his own branch in Korpi’s organization. We don’t really have a complete picture of everyone involved, but here’s a diagram with some of Ahola’s potential connections,” said Joutsamo as she handed out copies. “Moving down from Korpi we have three main offshoots: Ahola, Siikala and Nyberg, and then a bunch more subordinates as you go down the line.”
The names, telephone numbers and other contact information were written beneath the photos. “We matched the fingerprint to Ahola twenty-five minutes ago, so he’s got about a two-and-a-half-hour head start.”
“Does he have any connections to foreign operatives?” asked Syväoja, his eyes scanning the handout.
“Some Russians and Estonians, but no links to known terrorist groups.”
Syväoja seemed satisfied.
Kulta spoke up, “Any link between Ahola and the envelope the Lehtonen girl got?”
“Nope,” said Joutsamo. “We don’t have his DNA on file, and so far we’ve found no matches to the DNA on the envelope.”
“Kulta, how are the interrogations going with Jere Siikala and the attorney?” asked Takamäki.
“Neither’s talking,” said Kulta. “They’re denying all involvement and demanding to be released.”
“Well,” said Takamäki. “Both will be remanded into custody tonight. Suhonen, what’s the status with Korpi and Nyberg?”
Suhonen raked his hands through his hair. “Both in solitary. No contact with the outside. No newspapers, no TV, no visitors. The only person they see is the guard who brings in the food. Or at least that’s what they tell me.”
“Okay,” said Takamäki. “Clearly Matti Ahola is our prime suspect in the bomb investigation and yet another connection to Korpi. The bomb was undoubtedly a retaliation against Mari Lehtonen, probably planned in advance, since Korpi shouldn’t be having any contact with the outside, at least not after his transfer to solitary and Martin’s arrest. We don’t know what’s coming next, but we have to assume that something will.” He let his eyes roam the room. “They’re upping the ante.”
He went on. “The good news about the bomb is that now we’re looking at attempted murder, which means the court will grant us warrants for phone taps. The bad news is we can’t ensure the victim’s safety when Mari Lehtonen is so comfortable being a sitting duck. At any rate, it’s clear that the matter should be kept from the media. This morning’s operation will be referred to as a bomb threat.”
“So lie to the media?” wondered Karila.
“Well, not exactly. We’ll just tell them our version of the truth. The bomb never exploded, so technically it was just a threat, right?” Takamäki scanned the officers in the room. “If anyone has a better word to describe the incident, they can suggest it to me later, but as far as I’m concerned, the presence of an actual bomb should be kept secret here.”
“That’s fine with me, as a tactical decision,” said Deputy Chief Skoog. “But what about getting this woman committed? It’s a smart move if you ask me. She can’t be sane behaving like that. At least we could get her off the streets that way.”
“Uh-huh…” Takamäki managed to say before his cell phone cut him short. He checked the caller: Römpötti. His first thought was to ignore the call, but the possibility that he could get some leads based on what the media knew or wanted to know made him change his mind. “Just a sec,” he said to the others.
“Hello?”
“Hi, it’s Römpötti. Bad time?”
Takamäki felt like smiling, but his voice was serious. Kannas was whispering about something with Syväoja, but the others tuned in to Takamäki’s call. “Well, we’re in a little meeting here.”
“Why don’t I call back later.”
“No. What’s up?”
“Well, about this incident on Porvoo Street.”
“What about it?”
“I hear it’s your case.”
“You heard right.”
The reporter tried to use silence to coax more out of him. A few seconds passed before she broke the silence. “Well, tell me about it.”
“We’ll release a statement within the hour.”
Römpötti didn’t let on that she had any new information, so Takamäki decided to test the waters a bit. “It’s really nothing all that unusual. We’re just trying to figure out who might be behind it.”
“I see…nothing all that unusual.”
Takamäki didn’t care for the tone of her voice. “That’s right.”
“Listen, I’ve always thought you’re a pretty fair cop and that’s why I’m still on the line. We’ve gotten along pretty well, but don’t you dare lie to me. I know for a fact that a bomb was placed in front of Mari Lehtonen’s building. I also know the backstory on the threats and all.”
Shit, thought Takamäki, and his eyes darted about the room in search of the mole. Who in the hell had gone and sung to Römpötti? His dumbstruck expression had gotten even Kannas and Syväoja to quiet down.
“How in the hell…” he began, but Römpötti interrupted him.
“Don’t bother looking for a mole.”
“Goddamn it! It can’t be…”
“But it is. Mari Lehtonen told the whole story on camera.”
Takamäki felt the need to sit down, but there were no chairs within reach. “You’re not planning on airing it, are you?” he said in a last ditch effort.
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because it’s a death sentence. Once it’s public, Lehtonen will be fair game for every criminal in the country.”
“No, she won’t, because she’s not an informant. She’s an ordinary citizen who you guys couldn’t protect, so you tried to ditch her in some safe house. You had your opportunity, now let’s see if a little publicity can protect her.”
“And if it doesn’t?”
“Well, it couldn’t be any worse than under your watch.”
“So you’re saying Lehtonen’s face is going to be on TV,” said Takamäki as the others looked on in open-mouthed astonishment.
“Don’t be stupid. Although that’s what she wanted…to show her face, but I decided to scramble it. The thing is, her story has raised quite a few pointed questions about police performance. If you don’t want to answer them, then hand me over to Skoog. I’m guessing he’s there at your little meeting. And if he doesn’t want to comment, I’ll just keep going up the chain of command. We’ll see if anyone wants to comment.”
Takamäki paused. He didn’t like this kind of arm-twisting, but they had to change their game plan, and there was no point in further irritating Römpötti. “I’ll call you back within the hour,” he replied coldly.
“Okay. And no more lies. Your wife wouldn’t like that either,” she said, and hung up the phone.
The others were waiting to be filled in, but Takamäki took ten seconds to gather his thoughts. “Well, I’m sure you overheard. The game has changed. The threats against Lehtonen will be aired on the evening news tonight. Lehtonen gave an interview to Sanna Römpötti.”