Everyone was startled and rushed out of the office to the operations center. A large screen displayed a live feed of a subway platform. A man in a hoodie was looking sideways at the surveillance camera, occasionally glancing up.
"Where's the location?" Jubal shouted to the technician. Meanwhile, an NYPD liaison picked up the phone and began contacting NYPD dispatch directly.
"A suspicious individual has been sighted at the subway station between 59th and Lexington Avenues. We need officers to the scene."
"Oh my God, he's got a gun!" Garcia screamed. Everyone in the operations center paused their work and looked up at the large screen. The man in the
hoodie glanced around for a moment, then suddenly pulled something dark from his pocket and pointed it at a woman waiting on the platform with her back to him.
The surveillance footage was silent, so no one could hear the gunshot, but Garcia couldn't help but cover his eyes, unable to bear the sight. A murder was being carried out before their eyes, and no one present could do anything to stop it.
Danny dashed to his liaison and yelled into the phone, "Damn it! Where's the nearest officer?"
"He's getting away," Garcia cried tearfully. Jiejie, beside her, hugged her, her eyes also red.
"Switch the surveillance cameras and track his whereabouts." Jubal stared at the figure leaving the platform with a sullen expression, his eyes brimming with rage.
The images on the big screen began to change continuously until the hooded killer reappeared. A technician shouted, "He ran west on 59th Street. There's a park in front of it, which is a blind spot for surveillance."
Jack gritted his teeth, his expression equally grim. In his previous life, due to privacy concerns and various resistance, the NYPD didn't officially equip every patrol officer with a body camera until 2015.
As for the number of street surveillance cameras, due to privacy concerns, he had never heard of the existence of surveillance systems similar to China's "Skynet" or "Sky Eye" before his time travel.
This world is even more outrageous. Despite Frank Regan's fervent push after becoming Commissioner, funding and political obstruction have meant the NYPD has only installed fewer than 8,000 cameras citywide.
Furthermore, the more vulnerable these cameras are in less-safe areas, the more vulnerable they are to vandalism. A third of the cameras require annual maintenance.
Even more outrageous are the speed cameras installed at intersections. New York City already has a limited number of speed cameras, most of which are located around schools. State law requires these cameras to be deactivated between 10 PM and 6 AM each night.
(I'm not making this up; in reality, New York City didn't reclaim control of these traffic cameras from the State Legislature until 2022.)
"We've lost track of the suspect," a technician whispered.
He didn't need to say anything; everyone was glued to the big screen, watching the hooded figure vanish into the distance. A single patrol officer's uniform never appeared in the frame.
Danny put down the phone and slammed his fist on the table. "The nearest officer is a block away, and it'll be at least two minutes before they arrive."
No one blamed the NYPD. Frank had already sent all the detectives on vacation to the streets, but it was still impossible to fully cover every block and subway station.
Dana Moger, who had appeared out of nowhere from the operations center, walked over to Rossi and whispered, "Nearly 300 FBI agents will be arriving in New York tonight. This situation can't continue."
"We'll go help out on the streets tomorrow, too!"
"Me too,"
Emily volunteered first. Newcomer Luke Elvis, a man of action, couldn't sit still.
"Everyone put on bulletproof vests to identify yourself, at least in groups of two. I have a feeling that those guys may not be coming for the BAU, but they are very likely coming for the FBI." Jack did not object, but just reminded that
the murderer changed the frequency of attacks from once every two or three days to once a day after the FBI announced its official intervention. Jack couldn't understand why the other party did this.
What is the purpose of urging the FBI and NYPD to take to the streets on a large scale? If the other party really wants to use this as an opportunity to attack FBI agents or police officers, they can just drive a truck full of fertilizer and directly hit the Hoover Building. It's not like no one has done something similar before.
"In this case, the murderer may change the crime scene to other places, such as libraries, parks, community centers or even schools." Joyna said with some concern.
"That's better than doing nothing. Forcing him off the streets and subway stations, changing his habits might reveal some clues."
Hotchner hadn't finished his words yet. Today's scene had dealt a heavy blow to everyone's morale. A group of people watched helplessly as the killer killed someone, unable to do anything. Even the usually composed Hotchner felt like gritting his teeth.
Although the BAU team was here to conduct profiling, instead of having everyone sitting in the office tearing up manuscripts, it was better to send everyone out into the streets. At least, they couldn't let the other party continue their rampage.
Jack had everyone wearing FBI-emblazoned bulletproof vests out on the streets not just for safety reasons but also as a statement, a clear statement of the FBI's stance and a way to reassure the citizens.
"Except for Red and Garcia, who will remain, we'll all be out in the streets tomorrow. As Jack said, in teams of two, and be extremely vigilant," Hotchner said gravely.
"Jack, Jiejie, and Rossi will go to the scene with Detective Reagan."
Since we can't figure out their tactics for now, we might as well play along and see what they want. We represent the ultimate force, the ultimate force. At worst, we'll just have to escalate the situation.
Back when the "DC Sniper" was at its peak, the National Guard was deployed.
Garcia is no longer the ordinary, shut-down girl who covered her eyes at the slightest sight of gore. While everyone was discussing personnel assignments, she had recovered and quietly returned to Jack's small office to continue working, analyzing the surveillance footage.
When Jack and the others returned from the crime scene, they found everyone gathered in his office, standing behind Garcia, watching something.
"Same scene as before, almost nothing. What are you looking at?" Jack asked curiously.
Hotchner loosened his tie, a look of confusion on his face. "Garcia discovered that this killer isn't the same as the previous two."
"There are three killers now?" Rossi was equally incredulous.
"So the possibility of a gang involvement has increased?" Jiejie had spent the day looking through gang files and hadn't found anything. The thought of missing something filled her with regret.
"Or maybe it's a family crime, and the killers could be brothers or something. I want everyone to go out on the streets tomorrow and come back tonight to continue profiling and make sure we haven't missed any clues."
Although everyone was willing to work overtime, Hotchner's arrangement basically meant everyone would have to eat and sleep in the Federal Building.
(End of this chapter)