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“All right, everyone, let’s get started.”
Sheriff Harward. He’d put on a few pounds since Greta had last seen him a couple of months ago. She had never interacted with him, except for friendly nods the few times she’d transported prisoners to Newport.
The last few chairs got occupied, and the rest of the people massed at the back of the room. By securing a middle wall spot, she had something to lean on and had a good view of the proceedings. She was one of the tallest in the room. Maybe two of the men met or exceeded her height. There were only two other women officers. The standees were several people deep, and at first, a man almost as tall as herself stood right in front of her, negating her height advantage.
She sent him a mental plea: Oh, Jesus Christ, don’t you know you’ll block my view?
She was about to shift to one side when the man did it himself, and a uniformed woman deputy a good ten inches shorter than Greta replaced the man.
That’s more like it, she thought.
The shuffling of feet, chairs, and conversations subsided, as Harward waited behind a podium. “I think most of us know each other. We won’t do a general catalog of who’s attending today . . . ”
Thank you, Lord! Greta murmured.
“ . . . but let me point out those here who are not in law enforcement.” Harward indicated specific individuals seated at the table. Everyone at the table faced the front, so Greta saw only the backs of heads. Harward rattled off a string of names, all of which Greta instantly forgot. What she remembered were the titles: two county commissioners, mayors of Newport and Lincoln City, a young woman from a state legislator’s staff, a Coast Guard officer, and a blond man from Homeland Security.
“So let’s get going,” said Harward. “This morning, at three nineteen a.m., a Coca-Cola truck driver came into the Lincoln City police office and told the officer on duty he had found a human body alongside 101 at the Tillamook County line. Sheriff’s Deputy Alex Boylan responded and confirmed a body in an advanced state of decomposition. From that point on, we treated the case as a potential crime scene until we knew more. Unfortunately, it looks like we have a murder. It’s been three years since the last one in Lincoln County, so everyone will watch how we investigate this one. Let’s all be on our toes. We’ll start off with the preliminary medical examiner’s report.”
Harward gestured to the seated men to his right, and a thin older man with glasses stood and took Harward’s place at the podium. Harward remained standing to one side.
The examiner’s eyes focused on papers he laid on the podium. “The victim was a thirty-eight-year-old male, about five foot eight, one hundred and sixty-two pounds. He had needle scars on both forearms, and the first tox screen found traces of meth, marijuana, and cocaine. A more complete chemical analysis will come in a few days when I get a report from Salem where I’ve sent tissue samples.
“He died from a blunt force blow to the back of the head. The blow was strong enough to crack his skull, and he likely died instantly. There was also a second blow to the left side of his face and jaw.”
The examiner held a flattened hand up to the side of his face.
“The blow to the back of the head hit the curvature of the skull, but the one to the face impacted along the left side of the skull down the cheek to the jaw. Likely, the same instrument was used. The blows indicate the impacts were from a metal object of about one or one-and-a-half-inches round or oval.” The examiner paused and looked at the audience over the top of his glasses. “If I had to speculate, I’d guess the weapon was a hammer.” He looked back down. “The body was too decomposed and encrusted with debris from being dragged to confirm any residue from the weapon. We may find out more when tests come back for the tissue samples around the wound. Those were also sent to Salem.
“The second blow fractured the hinge of the jaw and a cheekbone. Two of his upper left molars are missing. However, the first blow killed him. From the condition of the body and the preliminary tests, I would say he had been there for about a week, given the weather we’ve had. Something like six to eight days.”
He looked up from the papers, glanced around, and sat again without asking for questions.
“Thanks, Dr. Morton,” said Harward, who then motioned to a non-uniformed man on his left. “Detective Deputy Mitch Connors will lead the investigation. The investigation team will be a joint effort and will include Lincoln City Police detective Adam Tomasek.”
A man Greta had never met raised his hand.
“Assisting will be Patrol Deputy Alex Boylan. Where the body was found and the residence of the victim are both in Deputy Boylan’s district, so Alex knows the area best. Naturally, other personnel will contribute as needed.
“Since we are assuming the murder took place in or near Lincoln City, and since the investigation team’s primary members are all based and live in Lincoln City, the coordination will center there. Lincoln City Police chief Savilla has provided space for the team to work from.”
Connors took Harward’s place at the podium. He had dressed better today. A suit and a tie replaced the heavy coat
of last night.
Greta squinted at him. She’d swear his hair had been longer yesterday. Maybe it was just combed down, but she thought he’d found time to get a haircut. That could mean several things about him—good and bad.
“We’ve been busy since yesterday. The victim’s wallet was still in his pocket and contained three hundred and two dollars, indicating robbery was unlikely to be a motive.
“Victim’s name is Howard Toompas. Went by the name Howie. Lived at the Sea Breeze trailer park in Lincoln City. According to the park manager, Toompas inherited the trailer from his father and was constantly in arrears in the monthly community dues owed the park. Usually paid up within a month or two, and then was late again for a while.
“As far as we can tell, Toompas had no regular employment, though we’ll continue to check on that. He was intermittently signed up for unemployment and had filed several disability claims—all denied.
“His rap sheet is long in time and details, though no major violent indications. Multiple drug possessions, meth and marijuana, served a few months at a time in three different states—Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Charged twice in California, both cases dismissed—we will check why the dismissals.
“No convictions on sale of drugs, possibly just because he was careful enough not to be caught. Many traffic violations, including DUI, speeding, no license plate, no insurance, lights out. You name it, he had citations for it in all four of the same states, in addition to Kentucky and Minnesota. What was going on in the last two, we have no idea as yet.
“Suspected in burglaries, with one conviction. Served eighteen months in Washington for a Tacoma burglary. A couple of petty thefts. Made restitution in some cases, the rest dismissed for the victim not filing charges.
