Murder and Mayhem in Manayunk Read online

  Among the local heavyweights currently on the top of his grudge list, in no particular order or degree of distain, were: Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Fogerty, Philadelphia Police Commissioner John Hogan Regan and Dorothy Wiggins. Wiggins was likely on everyone’s least-liked list, so her inclusion on Gallo’s was a foregone conclusion, although Gallo’s reasons were so trivial as to expose him as borderline insane. As to Fogerty, Gallo’s grudge was almost rational since it was based on threats, or at least perceived threats, to his political future and economic well-being. Gallo’s grudge against Regan was intensely personal and spanned generations.

  Wiggins had once publicly referred to the Mayor as the ‘runt’ of his mother’s litter of six children. While it was true that his five siblings, three brothers and two sisters, were all tall, all of his brothers were over six feet tall, and his two sisters stood five feet ten inches, although never next to him, Wiggin’s making fun of Gallo’s height was unforgivable. It’s a good thing Gallo never heard the many insulting off- the-record remarks Wiggins had made about him, often referring to him as, “A mighty midget with an anatomically correct penis who no one would ever accuse of stepping on his dick!”

  Chief Justice Fogerty’s intervention in the Family Court House matter, of course, put a target on his back. Before Fogerty got involved, the Mayor had a sweetheart deal all set up on a site for the new facility. The Mayor now had to explain to his people that there may be no big pay day as they had been promised, or at the very least the pay day would have to be postponed until the situation became clarified.

  The Police Commissioner had more or less been a permanent member on the Mayor’s hit list. His decades’ old grudge dating back to Gallo’s father’s conviction and disgrace had been lying fallow, although far from forgotten. Gallo hated the Commissioner, and perhaps more accurately the Commissioner’s wife, for interfering with his relationship with the only woman he had ever loved, Annabelle, their eldest daughter. While Mrs. Regan was likely beyond his immediate reach, Gallo would make all the Regans pay dearly for interfering with that relationship.

  “Jack, my chief wants to meet. Apparently, there’s been a reaction to our removing the camera from Nooris’ condo.” Ichowitz told Regan that the Chief of Homicide had scheduled a meeting for later that day with certain parties from the feds, the particulars of which would be explained when he arrived at the Round House, as the Police Administration Building was referred by everyone except the police. The double towered concrete monstrosity at 7th and Race Streets , that was built in the 1960’s to project an image of raw power has for decades been the brunt of jokes and derision due to its peculiar design.

  “Izz, there must be a full moon or something. I’ve been summoned to a meeting with my boss this afternoon,” Regan replied. “I guess we’ll have to compare notes.”

  They agreed to get together after their respective meetings to see where all the pieces of the puzzle fit, assuming they were still working on the Larsen case after whatever their respective bosses told them.

  Regan was excited to learn that the removal of the security camera had resulted in a reaction. This could be the big break in the investigation that could lead them to Megan Larson’s killer. Even though he and his boss had a solid relationship, he was decidedly less excited about his meeting with the District Attorney. He assumed the reason for the summons had something to do with Mayor’s witch hunt.

  The door to her office was opened and she waved him in, motioning to him to close the door as she continued her telephone conversation. He sat down on the chair in front of her desk and waited. Susan Romansky had been the District Attorney for nearly two full terms. She had been a tenacious litigator before she assumed the post and turned out to be a better administrator than most of the pundits had predicted. She ran an effective and professional organization that gave the citizens who elected her everything she had promised them in her campaign. There had never been even a hint of a scandal during her tenure. Every prosecution was handled competently and fairly, no matter the background, race or economic standing of the defendant.

  “Jack, I suppose you already heard Gallo is on your father’s case again,” she said.

  He nodded.

  “This shit is beginning to get pretty old,” Romansky said as she uncharacteristically fussed with the stack of documents on her desk, obviously uncomfortable with what she was about to say.

  “Susan, you know my father runs a clean department. Whatever the Mayor thinks he has on him, I’m sure at the end of the day it will turn out to be crap.” Regan wanted to relieve his boss of concern for him or his father.

  “Of course, but it seems that Gallo’s dragging you into the mess too.”

  “How?”

  “According to the press release, Vito Coratelli Jr., has been granted immunity to testify before the Federal Grand Jury concerning a payoff to fix the prosecution against Lt Mathais’ son. Coratelli claims you reneged on the deal.”

  “What? That’s total bullshit,” Regan responded getting out of his chair.

  “That’s not all. The grand jury is looking into an alleged cover-up of sexual harassment in Mathais’ unit that Coratelli maintains your father directed.”

  “He’s just making this shit up!”

  Romansky motioned for Regan to retake his seat.

  “I know, I know, but Gallo’s from the slash-and-burn demagogue school of politics. Just throw it out there and repeat it enough times and people will believe anything. Look at the birthers and what they did to the President. He had to release his birth certificate to prove he wasn’t born in Kenya.”

  “Who would believe Coratelli? The man’s a certified jackass. He’s “shysters are us,’” Regan said.

  “Apparently not for much longer,” she replied.

  “What?”

  “Coratelli was storing what he believed to be a kilo of meth in his office. He had been set up by the FBI on a tip from one of the mob guys he represented who offered him up in return for a minimum sentence on his own drug bust. Apparently they shared the pipe a time or two, so when push came to shove Coratelli was his get out of jail quicker card.”

  “Geez Susan, I don’t know who’s scummier, Coratelli and his crack-smoking buddy, or the feebies.”

  “So Jack, what are you going to do about this?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “For now, I’m going to ignore it and go on with the Larson investigation, if that’s all right with you.”

  “OK. But Jack, I don’t think this is going away. You’ll have to confront Gallo’s allegations sooner or later,” she said.

  Ichowitz was ushered into the Homicide Unit’s conference room. His boss, Lt. Larry Jackson, was sitting at the conference table facing two men Ichowitz assumed were from the FBI or some other federal agency. Jackson motioned for Ichowitz to take the chair to his right.

  “Detective Isadore Ichowitz, Simon Conway, Regional Director of Homeland Security,” Jackson said as he pointed to the man who sat across from Ichowitz, “and Special Agent Monroe Ossberg,” he gestured to the man seated to Conway’s left, “are apparently upset with you for removing a security camera from the Larson murder scene,” Jackson said, flashing the federal agents one of his patented smiles.

  Larry Jackson was the first African American to become Chief of Homicide detectives. He was forty-two years old but looked ten years younger. Ichowitz had been his rabbi when Jackson first joined the unit five years before. Ichowitz, who had been the first Jew to be assigned to the unit several years earlier, understood firsthand the barriers a minority would have to overcome to survive. In the Homicide Division a member of a minority meant any detective who was not a charter member of the Emerald Society, the fraternal organization of Irish police officers.

  Now the roles were somewhat reversed, and Jackson was Ichowitz’s rabbi. He would not allow Homeland Security or the FBI to interfere with PPD Homicide’s investigation, nor would he permit the feds to intimidate his detective. Jack
son realized that Ichowitz was more than capable of handling himself; he wanted Ichowitz to know he had his back.

  “Director Conway, Special Agent Ossberg, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m so glad you’re here. We really need to review the video of the Nooris condo for last Friday. It very well could lead us directly to Megan Larson’s killer,” Ichowitz said, smiling at the two men who stared back at him with shocked expressions.

  “That’s completely out of the question. Those videos contain matters of national security. There’s no way we would ever release them to local authorities,” Conway replied.

  “So you’re acknowledging that you have video footage of the murder scene during the day the murder took place. That’s excellent!” Ichowitz said. “Lt. Jackson, our friends from Homeland and the FBI must have had judicial approval to put the camera in the condo. So any evidence we obtain when they share the video with us will be admissible.”

  “Wait a god damned minute,” Conway shouted. “I never acknowledged that we had video of the homicide at the Nooris condo.”

  “Of course you did. You just said so. That being the case, I’m sure you want to assist us in our murder investigation. After all, withholding the video would impede our investigation. I’m sure you wouldn’t want a public disclosure that your agencies would stand by and let a murderer get off, would you? Besides there’s ample judicial authority that supports our right to obtain this critical evidence. Once again I am sure you’re aware of the cases.”

  “Detective Ichowitz is correct about all of this. It really wasn’t necessary for the two of you to come down to the PAB. We would have been more than happy to send someone over to get the video,” Jackson said.

  “Are you fucking guys out of your minds? There’s no fucking way I’m releasing those videos!” Conway’s face was flushed with anger and he pounded on the conference table.

  “So the purpose of our meeting was not to advance cooperation of federal and local law enforcement?” Ichowitz asked shaking his head as if he was really confused. “You would really withhold this evidence?”

  “Director, perhaps we should reconsider our position,” Ossberg said to Conway. Unlike the Director, Ossberg did not raise his voice or express any sign of displeasure.

  “But I…” Ossberg gave Conway a shake of his head.

  “Detectives, can we have a moment?” Ossberg asked.

  “Certainly Izzy and I will be in my office,” Jackson replied.

  When Jackson and Ichowitz left the room, they could hear more pounding on the table and Conway screaming at the FBI Agent.

  “Sounds like the Homeland Security Regional Director isn’t happy with the way things are going down,” Jackson said.

  Ichowitz shrugged his shoulders and said, “Jack, so maybe this time we can chalk one up for the good guys. We’re the good guys aren’t we?”

  “Depends on who you ask; obviously Mr. Conway doesn’t think so.”

  Monroe Ossberg knocked on the door jam and asked, “Gentlemen, can we talk?”

  “Well played, Detective Ichowitz,” he said as he sat down.

  “Special Agent Ossberg, call me Izzy. I hope this won’t cause you any problems with the Regional Director.”

  “Izzy, that jackass thinks he’s Jack Bauer on that TV show “24,” for Christ’s sake. He’s just a political hack who was born on third base and thinks he hit a triple. My job is to babysit him and make sure he doesn’t get his lame ass in too much trouble,” Ossberg responded.

  “Sounds like a fulltime job,” Jackson observed.

  “When can we see the video?” Ichowitz asked.

  “I’ll have a copy delivered to you this afternoon. Gentlemen, is there anything else?”

  “Agent Ossberg, can you share with us why you had Nooris’ condo under surveillance?” Ichowitz asked.

  Ossberg stared at Ichowitz for a moment and said, “Here’s my card with contact info. After you view the video, if you need to know more, give me a call.”

  ELEVEN

  “Ladies and gentlemen, thanks for coming on such short notice,” Police Commissioner John Hogan Regan addressed the assembled media and reporters who filled the briefing room at the Police Administration Building. Commissioner Regan’s formal news conferences were usually well attended because they were infrequent and always news-worthy. The Commissioner did not waste either his or the working press’ time on frivolous ego trips.

  “As you know, the Mayor convened a press conference earlier today to announce that he has referred a matter to the Justice Department requesting that an investigation be conducted into possible corruption of this department. He identified Lieutenant Gary Mathais as the target of the probe and implied that my office was involved in a cover up. The Mayor’s press conference was the first time I became aware of these serious allegations. While that is regrettable, I wish to assure the public that this department will of course cooperate with the federal authorities in any investigation they may undertake.”

  “It has been the policy of this department, since I became Commissioner, not to publicly comment on internal investigations of police officers. I will not deviate from that policy now. However, I want the citizens of Philadelphia to know that the Internal Affairs Division has started an investigation of the matters referred to by the Mayor. The investigation is ongoing, and if there is any merit to the allegations, appropriate action will be taken if warranted at the conclusion of the investigation.”

  “The unusual manner with which the Mayor has decided to bring this issue to the public does require some comment. As you know, I was appointed Commissioner by the Mayor’s predecessor. When the Mayor was elected, I tendered my resignation. I believed then, and I continue to believe, that whoever is elected Mayor has the right to appoint whomever he believes should hold this important position in his cabinet. The Mayor declined my offer to step down at that time.”

  “However, if the Mayor has lost confidence in me, or if he wishes to appoint a new Commissioner all he has to do is pick up the phone and let me know, or of course he can convene another press conference to say that, and I’m confident you will let me know.”

  “Commissioner, can you comment on the Mayor’s allegations regarding your son’s actions?”

  “Certainly, as you know my son Jack is an assistant District Attorney. I’m proud to say that during his tenure with the District Attorney’s office he has successfully prosecuted over ninety percent of the cases he has litigated. Most recently, he obtained the conviction of Gary Mathais Junior in a vehicular homicide case. The defense counsel in that matter has apparently made allegations that my son reneged on a plea agreement deal that this individual claims had been arranged and for which my son had received payment to secure.”

  “Defense counsel offered his testimony in return for immunity in a drug offense for which he had been arrested. There has never been any question involving my son’s integrity. That cannot be said about his accuser. I believe that when all the facts are disclosed the allegations against my son will be exposed as completely baseless. I understand that the District Attorney has taken no steps to relieve my son of his duties and responsibilities. I assume she has dismissed the allegations as lacking any credibility; however, I’m sure you can reach her directly for comment.”

  “Thank you again.”

  “Jack, did you see your father’s press conference?” Ichowitz asked.

  “Yes.”

  “KYW also got your boss on the record confirming his comments. She even went further in attacking your buddy Vito Coratelli, Jr.”

  “Yeah Izz, but we would all be better off without this side show. How did you make out with Homeland Security?”

  “Jack, that’s the real reason for my call. Get over to the 4th District. Monroe Ossberg, the FBI Special Agent who babysits the political appointee putz who is the current Homeland Security Regional Director, is sending over the video of Nooris’ condo. And we just got a hit on one of the partial license plates. You better sit down becau
se you are not going to believe who the car is registered to.”

  “Izz you’re killing me with the suspense, who already?”

  “His Honor, Mayor Bruce Peter Gallo.”

  “Izz, you got to be shitting me!”

  “Jack, I shit you not!”

  By the time Regan got to the 4th District Ichowitz had already set up the monitor to play the security video. “Izz, should I get some popcorn? I guess we’re going to be here for some time,’ Regan said as he sat down at the conference table.

  Ichowitz turned on the monitor and the screen displayed a series of views with what appeared to be people walking through the great room of the condo at a staccato like speed.

  “Jack, I can stop the video at any point and watch the action in real time or slow motion. This is cutting edge stuff.”

  They watched the monitor, and Ichowitz stopped it at 5:32 PM when Wiggins first entered the condo. Even without sound they could see Wiggins actually begging Larson and being summarily rejected. The video confirmed Wiggins’ account of the events, including her leaving the condo before 6 PM when the Comcast tech made his appearance.

  The surveillance tape also corroborated the technician’s account of his meeting with Larson, including a warm embrace of friends who were happy to reconnect after a protracted absence. Once again there was complete corroboration of the timing of the tech’s leaving Larson at Norris’ condo.

  “What the hell?” Regan said when the screen went blank. He turned to Ichowitz, who was fumbling with the lap top keyboard, trying to coax the video back into life. The monitor continued to show the time at the top of the screen with no picture. Finally the monitor came back into focus showing the lifeless body of Megan Larson. The time on the monitor was 23:42.