Underbelly Files: Tell Them Lucifer Was Here Page #3

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July 18 was the Green Papaya

and August 15 the Silky Emperor.

Now, the Green Papaya was

the "Lucifer' crack, yes?

Yeah.

When the cops turn up,

tell them Lucifer was here.

In July, he throws down a challenge to us.

In August, he works up to murder.

Does our Lucifer have

a grudge against police?

Let's look at everybody who's lodged

a complaint with Ethical Standards,

the ombudsman, that sort of thing.

Yeah.

What if these guys aren't

the restaurant robbers?

You know, what if it's unrelated?

I mean, they could be, uh, I

don't know, interstate drug runners

who just happened to be in the area.

Hey, skip, got a report of a girl who

just bought a replacement rear windscreen

for a Hyundai Excel.

PAu:
Aha!

That's it. Number eight.

Detective Sergeant

Ritchie, Lorimer Taskforce.

Who owns this vehicle?

Me. Why?

And what's your name? Nicole Debs.

Nicole, has this vehicle

been damaged recently?

Nuh.

Well, then why was a rear windscreen

purchased for it yesterday?

Look, it was Dad who busted it.

Your dad?

What happened?

Yeah, his wagon was in for a service,

so he needed to borrow

mine to do a tiling job.

I don't know what happened.

He said he had these long tiling

things, like metal strip things,

in the back, sticking out.

Slams the hatch on 'em and

smashes the window to bits.

Why didn't you say so in the first place?

So your dad, what's his name?

Bandali Debs. Everyone

calls him Ben. Great.

He's not home.

Got his mobile number? He's

not got it with him today.

You just tell him we called.

Yeah, don't you worry. I will.

PAu:
I know Bandali Debs. He's nothing.

A low-level thief. He's a bottom feeder.

Yeah, you got him on a handling charge

back in '79.

I was in uniform. You

must've been in nappies.

So, what, forget about him?

No, Mick, you don't forget about him.

You get a statement out of him. Check every detail

- twice.

Hey, shut the f*** up!

Oi!

Oi! Quiet, you little b*tch!

Come here, girl. It's alright.

Yeah, me daughter told me youse was here.

So could you tell us how you

broke the windscreen, Mr Debs?

Uh, yeah, well, me wagon was off the road,

so I had to use hers to do

this job over in Jaguar Close.

And I had this... these f***in'

brass tiling strips in the back

and it was too long for the car.

When I slammed the hatch, they went

straight through the back window.

And when was this?

Uh... last Wednesday.

What were you doing on the 15th?

That was the night them cops got shot.

Mm-hm. Uh...

I did a job in Noble Park during the day

and then I just kicked back with

the family and had a few brews.

Any objection if we take a

look at your phone records?

Why?

Oh, it's just something we like to do.

If I can find them.

We'll arrange to pick them up.

OK, read and sign this

if it's correct, sir.

Colleague heard a whisper

about an individual

who was in Moorabbin on

the night of the 15th.

"Colleague'? Meaning fellow

sex offender or fellow murderer?

I'm told this individual was driving

a stolen dark blue Honda Civic.

He was pursued by your

colleagues, if I have it right.

And does this "individual' have a name?

Depends on what you

want to put on the table.

I have a list of what I consider

to be totally reasonable requests.

F*** is...?

Go, go, go, go, go!

Jesus!

Don't move! Don't move! Stay there!

Police! Get down!

What the hell...?

I break and enter into

cars for a living, yeah?

It's how I earn a quid.

That what you were doing in

the Silky Emperor car park?

Working?

I was cruising round the

car park looking for stock.

Suddenly, I spot this VS Commodore

with two blokes in it. Cops!

So I got out of there pretty quick.

Commodore stuck with me for a bit,

and then I lost him on Warrigal Road.

Did you happen to come back an

hour later, then, for another look?

No! I was at home shitting myself.

Plus, I heard all that "shots

fired" stuff on the scanner.

Yeah, well, this is the

time to come clean, mate.

Don't plead not guilty and

then have us prove you're lying,

'cause judges, they hate that sh*t.

I'm not lyin'!

Did you shoot Gary Silk and Rod Miller?

No! It's not in my nature.

Oh! "Blood will flow"?

Shooting cops sounds exactly your speed.

Oh, that's bullshit. I'm a thief, man.

Pssh!

We'll need blood and hair for DNA testing.

Oh, and your earwax.

Earwax?

Mmm.

Why?

Well, your filthy ear preserves

gunshot residue for months.

This is gonna cost 20 million

by the time we're done.

Do you reckon we'd go to the same

amount of trouble if they weren't cops?

We're protecting the uniform...

...the thin blue line

between order and chaos.

Update on our Nazi car thief.

He was home in bed when

the shots were fired.

He's got a neighbour with

insomnia and a telescope.

Haven't you people got homes to go to?

Wanna hear something weird?

Nicole Debs just bought

another rear window for her car.

Another one?

What happened was I installed

the first one myself.

I used silicon. "Great

job, Ben," I thought.

Except that the bastard blew

out when Nicole was driving it.

Isn't that right, kitten?

Hey, what are you doing having

a stickybeak? Go back inside.

Next time, we'll get a professional

to install the little f***er.

And don't forget

- you still owe me, Dad.

So did you manage to round up

those phone records we asked for?

Yeah, I'll just go and

get them for you. Ta.

Bang! Bang!

Shh!

Inspector, when do you

expect to make an arrest?

I can't say. I don't have a crystal ball.

Well, how long are you gonna keep

looking for these men? Months? Years?

As long as it takes. Inspector!

Paul, John Silvester from the "Age'.

Do you think your taskforce is gonna

be better resourced and better supported

than Walsh Street was?

I'm not here to discuss Walsh Street.

Well, is that a yes or a no?

We have everything we need. Thank you.

Is that all we get?

When I have something to say, I'll say it.

Inspector! Inspector!

We're reporting here live from

the steps at police headquarters.

That was Paul Sheridan...

Paul.

Not only do we have to do this

one better than Walsh Street,

we have to be seen to do it better.

Walsh Street was a mess because

there was no clear chain of authority.

Too many chiefs, too

many conflicting opinions.

That's why I wanted you and you alone talking to the media

- regularly.

Even if I've got nothing to say?

Paul, two coppers are dead.

The public wants to know

what we're gonna do about it,

so does the Chief, so does the

Minister, so does the Premier.

Now, would it kill you to release

the occasional harmless

snippet of information?

Graeme, if you want a PR

campaign, I'm not the man.

Put the Bandali Debs case to me.

Alright. Debs has a proven

record of dishonesty.

I point to his 1979

conviction for handling.

Further to that, three

years ago, he pleaded guilty

to stealing that spare wheel from

the car yard at Ferntree Gully.

He received a bond and no

conviction was recorded,

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