ryotaro_dojima (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
detectiveforhierophant) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
social_linked2017-08-11 08:07 pm
detectiveforhierophant) wrote in social_linked2017-08-11 08:07 pm
The Inaba Copycat Murders: Initial Investigation
Location: Tokyo Police HQ, in and around Tokyo
Summary: Dojima's arrival in Tokyo to help the investigation of the disappearances and murders.
Ryotaro Dojima was a simple man, or so he told himself
He was accustomed to small town life; and small town crimes with practical, logical solutions, grounded in reality.
The Inaba Serial Murdercase that he had been placed in charge of a few years back had scattered that all to the wind, with national attention suddenly on the town, and a crime that just seemed to have no easy answers.
No logical answers, anyway. Dojima had no belief in the supernatural, or paranormal, even if the circumstances of the murders were... well. Unusual. Bizarre, even.
The victims-- Mayumi Yamano and Saki Konishi-- found dead, hanging in the air from telephone poles or antennas; and no immediate sign of what had caused their deaths. The city had been covered in a thick fog, so no one saw when the bodies were placed, or by who.
Along with strange television shows on at midnight when it rained, and his nephew's strange behavior, he was left at a loss...
Only to be forced over and over to deal with otherworldly forces; his daughter being kidnapped and vanishing, suffering from an unnameable condition when she was rescued, and then...
Her death, and... subsequent inexplicable revival. A 'miracle', he was almost pained to call it, but he had no other words for it.
And then his junior partner... the true culprit. Adachi's confession was supposed to shine light on the murders, but only led to more questions; pushing people through the tv, tricking Namatame into targeting other's who'd shown up during the 'Midnight Channel'... all of it was a mess. And yet, it both matched the timeline of the murders, and the accounts from both his Nephew and Namatame.
Dojima had hoped as bizarre as the case was, he could put it behind him; focus on raising his daughter properly, and protecting Inaba from more 'normal' crimes.
But... life was never so simple, was it?
Tokyo, 2017.
It had started with a couple of run away teenagers. One by one, they were found, hanging from cables in alleyways and forgotten corners of the city.
Largely unreported, or excused as wayward delinquents who got in over their heads, committed suicide out of shame. Whether that was the callous media writing off their deaths as teenage angst, or an intentional suppression of the information, Dojima got word about it via police gossip. That some sick bastard was stringing up bodies like what had happened a few years ago in town.
"Probably someone wanting to copy your old partner, huh--"
Dojima had to hold back punching the guy in the back of head, but the look he gave him was enough.
He'd made the trek to the jail a day or so later, practically interrogating Adachi about these rumors-- but well. Adachi deflected his questioning, as he usually did. He was quick to point out it couldn't possibly be him; he's not been allowed any contact with tv screens, and the cameras could prove he hadn't left the jail.
"But, you know, Dojima-san... I'm not the only one with this power, right?" And there it was, that smirk, his expression lazy and laid back, but with that edge Dojima had come to know was Adachi's true self, "I think it was... a few years ago that you mentioned your nephew and a few of his friends were headed to Tokyo? University, or something."
Dojima did his best to control his expression, even as Adachi hit on the exact thing he didn't want to consider, but knew he had to. That the only other people who had this ability, were Souji and his friends.
He didn't want to believe they would be doing this. His heart told him no, those kids wouldn't do this, not after spending that entire year trying to solve the case themselves...
But his logical side knew it was a possibility, and too important for him to ignore. That sort of dismissal was what let Adachi...
"...It's probably not them, Dojima-san." Adachi's tone was annoyed, his expression returning to a dull look of boredom, as he leaned his chin against his entwined hands, "...they're too damn goody goody to think about doing shit like that. But..." He shrugged nonchalantly, glancing back up at Dojima, "...You know they're probably involved somehow..." He smiled-- that near feline-like grin he got when he knew he was right about something,
"Good luck interrogating the brats this time."
Dojima couldn't help but hate it when Adachi was right. He left the jail with more questions than answers; so if Adachi wasn't the cause, it was probably someone like him. That did leave the kids as possible suspects...
He didn't want to believe they'd do anything like that, and yet he'd thought the same about Adachi. He couldn't trust his feelings on this, not when lives were at stake.
At the very least, he'd need to question Souji.
It was only a few weeks later, with the case file opened on his desk that it all came to ahead. Despite the Tokyo's Police department's best endeavors to suppress the information to the general public, the high profile murder of a foreign CEO's daughter couldn't be hidden. The media had a field day, declaring it the 'Inaba Copycat Murders', digging up all of the previously 'ignored' cases rile up a panicked public even more.
He'd gotten some calls from reporters wanting his 'opinion' as the previous head detective of the serial murders; but he blatantly ignored them, instead working on a copy of the case file to send along to Tokyo, making plans to call Souji that night and ask him what the hell was going on.
But he didn't get very far in either. Instead, he was called to the head office by his superiors who had news for him.
He was being temporarily transferred to Tokyo to assist with the copycat investigation, due to his previous experience. It was at the request of the Police Commissioner; having someone who had technically 'solved' the Inaba case would calm the public's panic, or so they hoped. Of course, some were quick to quietly whisper how Dojima may be being tossed under the bus, since the media would surely pounce on the fact it was his junior partner who ended up being the murderer...
Dojima was far more focused on the fact they were asking him to go to Tokyo on short notice, when he was a single parent. He couldn't just drag Nanako with him, she had school to go to, but who knows how long he was expected to stay in the city...?
Fortunately, small towns have their advantages. Gossip always spread like wild fire, and before the day was over, he'd gotten a call from the Amagi Inn-- Yukiko, Souji's friend, would be willing to take Nanako in temporarily and look after her while he went to the city. That was a weight off his shoulders, even if there was still more to work out. And... to talk to Nanako about this.
He'd gotten nothing but phonetag from Souji over the past several weeks, and Yukiko was also in the dark as to what was going on... or so he could discern from her words. Seems like he was going into this blind, with nothing but past experience to give him a sign.
A few days later, Ryotaro Dojima had arrived at the HQ in Tokyo, ready to hit the pavement and see what he could find out. Hopefully office politics here in the big city wouldn't slow him down too much. Namely, that he wanted to get especially hands on with the case.
If you were going to drag him out to the big city to help, he wasn't going to just standby to look pretty for the press, that was for sure.
(Locked to Naomi)
First order of business was to take a first hand look at the bodies of the victims. Apparently they had a well respected if... unusual forensic examiner working with them right now. There'd been some gossip about her in the media too, before, but honestly... who cared, if she could get the job done?
There was a knock at the door of the lab, before Dojima opened it, letting himself inside.
"...Pardon the intrusion. I'm looking for Dr. Kimishima?"
(Open to All)
Second order of business? Interviews. Lots of them. This would be... considerably more difficult compared to Inaba, but he had some ideas for who to ask.
Including some people not on the interview list...
Summary: Dojima's arrival in Tokyo to help the investigation of the disappearances and murders.
Ryotaro Dojima was a simple man, or so he told himself
He was accustomed to small town life; and small town crimes with practical, logical solutions, grounded in reality.
The Inaba Serial Murdercase that he had been placed in charge of a few years back had scattered that all to the wind, with national attention suddenly on the town, and a crime that just seemed to have no easy answers.
No logical answers, anyway. Dojima had no belief in the supernatural, or paranormal, even if the circumstances of the murders were... well. Unusual. Bizarre, even.
The victims-- Mayumi Yamano and Saki Konishi-- found dead, hanging in the air from telephone poles or antennas; and no immediate sign of what had caused their deaths. The city had been covered in a thick fog, so no one saw when the bodies were placed, or by who.
Along with strange television shows on at midnight when it rained, and his nephew's strange behavior, he was left at a loss...
Only to be forced over and over to deal with otherworldly forces; his daughter being kidnapped and vanishing, suffering from an unnameable condition when she was rescued, and then...
Her death, and... subsequent inexplicable revival. A 'miracle', he was almost pained to call it, but he had no other words for it.
And then his junior partner... the true culprit. Adachi's confession was supposed to shine light on the murders, but only led to more questions; pushing people through the tv, tricking Namatame into targeting other's who'd shown up during the 'Midnight Channel'... all of it was a mess. And yet, it both matched the timeline of the murders, and the accounts from both his Nephew and Namatame.
Dojima had hoped as bizarre as the case was, he could put it behind him; focus on raising his daughter properly, and protecting Inaba from more 'normal' crimes.
But... life was never so simple, was it?
Tokyo, 2017.
It had started with a couple of run away teenagers. One by one, they were found, hanging from cables in alleyways and forgotten corners of the city.
Largely unreported, or excused as wayward delinquents who got in over their heads, committed suicide out of shame. Whether that was the callous media writing off their deaths as teenage angst, or an intentional suppression of the information, Dojima got word about it via police gossip. That some sick bastard was stringing up bodies like what had happened a few years ago in town.
"Probably someone wanting to copy your old partner, huh--"
Dojima had to hold back punching the guy in the back of head, but the look he gave him was enough.
He'd made the trek to the jail a day or so later, practically interrogating Adachi about these rumors-- but well. Adachi deflected his questioning, as he usually did. He was quick to point out it couldn't possibly be him; he's not been allowed any contact with tv screens, and the cameras could prove he hadn't left the jail.
"But, you know, Dojima-san... I'm not the only one with this power, right?" And there it was, that smirk, his expression lazy and laid back, but with that edge Dojima had come to know was Adachi's true self, "I think it was... a few years ago that you mentioned your nephew and a few of his friends were headed to Tokyo? University, or something."
Dojima did his best to control his expression, even as Adachi hit on the exact thing he didn't want to consider, but knew he had to. That the only other people who had this ability, were Souji and his friends.
He didn't want to believe they would be doing this. His heart told him no, those kids wouldn't do this, not after spending that entire year trying to solve the case themselves...
But his logical side knew it was a possibility, and too important for him to ignore. That sort of dismissal was what let Adachi...
"...It's probably not them, Dojima-san." Adachi's tone was annoyed, his expression returning to a dull look of boredom, as he leaned his chin against his entwined hands, "...they're too damn goody goody to think about doing shit like that. But..." He shrugged nonchalantly, glancing back up at Dojima, "...You know they're probably involved somehow..." He smiled-- that near feline-like grin he got when he knew he was right about something,
"Good luck interrogating the brats this time."
Dojima couldn't help but hate it when Adachi was right. He left the jail with more questions than answers; so if Adachi wasn't the cause, it was probably someone like him. That did leave the kids as possible suspects...
He didn't want to believe they'd do anything like that, and yet he'd thought the same about Adachi. He couldn't trust his feelings on this, not when lives were at stake.
At the very least, he'd need to question Souji.
It was only a few weeks later, with the case file opened on his desk that it all came to ahead. Despite the Tokyo's Police department's best endeavors to suppress the information to the general public, the high profile murder of a foreign CEO's daughter couldn't be hidden. The media had a field day, declaring it the 'Inaba Copycat Murders', digging up all of the previously 'ignored' cases rile up a panicked public even more.
He'd gotten some calls from reporters wanting his 'opinion' as the previous head detective of the serial murders; but he blatantly ignored them, instead working on a copy of the case file to send along to Tokyo, making plans to call Souji that night and ask him what the hell was going on.
But he didn't get very far in either. Instead, he was called to the head office by his superiors who had news for him.
He was being temporarily transferred to Tokyo to assist with the copycat investigation, due to his previous experience. It was at the request of the Police Commissioner; having someone who had technically 'solved' the Inaba case would calm the public's panic, or so they hoped. Of course, some were quick to quietly whisper how Dojima may be being tossed under the bus, since the media would surely pounce on the fact it was his junior partner who ended up being the murderer...
Dojima was far more focused on the fact they were asking him to go to Tokyo on short notice, when he was a single parent. He couldn't just drag Nanako with him, she had school to go to, but who knows how long he was expected to stay in the city...?
Fortunately, small towns have their advantages. Gossip always spread like wild fire, and before the day was over, he'd gotten a call from the Amagi Inn-- Yukiko, Souji's friend, would be willing to take Nanako in temporarily and look after her while he went to the city. That was a weight off his shoulders, even if there was still more to work out. And... to talk to Nanako about this.
He'd gotten nothing but phonetag from Souji over the past several weeks, and Yukiko was also in the dark as to what was going on... or so he could discern from her words. Seems like he was going into this blind, with nothing but past experience to give him a sign.
A few days later, Ryotaro Dojima had arrived at the HQ in Tokyo, ready to hit the pavement and see what he could find out. Hopefully office politics here in the big city wouldn't slow him down too much. Namely, that he wanted to get especially hands on with the case.
If you were going to drag him out to the big city to help, he wasn't going to just standby to look pretty for the press, that was for sure.
(Locked to Naomi)
First order of business was to take a first hand look at the bodies of the victims. Apparently they had a well respected if... unusual forensic examiner working with them right now. There'd been some gossip about her in the media too, before, but honestly... who cared, if she could get the job done?
There was a knock at the door of the lab, before Dojima opened it, letting himself inside.
"...Pardon the intrusion. I'm looking for Dr. Kimishima?"
(Open to All)
Second order of business? Interviews. Lots of them. This would be... considerably more difficult compared to Inaba, but he had some ideas for who to ask.
Including some people not on the interview list...
no subject
"I'm in the middle of working. What do you want?"
She probably looked annoyed, but who wouldn't be? He wasn't the first person to interrupt her, he wasn't going to be the last, and if anyone came in here just for the all intense purpose of finding out if the rumors around her were real, she was seeing them out.
no subject
"... To be frank, to take a look at the bodies."
Closing the door with the back of his shoe, his eyes went from the doctor in front of him to the body she was working in on the table.
"The ones in Inaba had a pretty ... 'unique' look to them, so I wanted to see if they matched up, first hand."
But, he had interrupted her, so...
"...If you rather I came back later, it's no trouble. I'm sure the police chief wants me to do some sort of public interview... for the lot of good that would do."
He didn't do much to hide the annoyance in his voice.
no subject
"And? Would you care to properly introduce yourself before asking to look at them?"
He can be annoyed; looking over public interviews would be a waste of time.
"I probably should tell you to get started on those interviews for slipping up that much."
Point was, she couldn't just let anyone look at her bodies or be in her room without giving her their rank and name. This case was still a hot bed. Never knew who would attempt to slip into even her room.
no subject
He looked a bit sheepish, but quickly pulled out his badge and ID, presenting it to the Doctor. Ryotaro Dojima, Detective, Yasoinaba... it was all there.
"... I'm used to everyone knowing me, so it slipped my mind. My apologies. Ryotaro Dojima of the Yasoinaba Police force... I was the head detective on the Inaba Serial Murder Case."
This entire experience was just making him feel like a fish out of water. By the same token... it was good she was taking the entire case this seriously. He knew others on the force back home... well. It's easy to think you can slack off when you're in the sticks.
no subject
She had been right, but she needed to see his badge and ID still. Anyway, a look over and she nodded, turning back to the body.
"Well, Detective, do what you want. Besides the posthumous external injuries from where the bodies were recovered, there isn't much to see though. That's what you wanted to confirm, yes?"
no subject
"Yeah. When we found the first victim, all of the 'injuries' were posthumous, obviously from how she was hanging up. And then the second was no different."
He glanced over the body; she was young, though not at young as Saki Konishi, but younger than Mayumi Yamano...
"... when our forensic guys went over the bodies, they could pin point time of death, but not the exact cause."
It had been beyond frustrating-- the victims just seemed to drop dead.
"...The victims aren't all girls this time, if I remember right. So it's not an exact copy of what Adachi did..."
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
no subject
But none of that was really important to the girl sitting quietly and staring down at her hands. Gwendolyn Dellingr, age 16...this wasn't her first visit to the police station, either. The first was when the death of her sister, Griselda, raised many questions. Involvement in criminal activity, anyone looking to hurt her...it pained Gwendolyn to talk about her now lost sister, but she provided everything she could on the matter.
It was also the only time her father came with her. All that time, his focus was on his deceased daughter.
Gwendolyn sits alone after being picked up by the police, emotionally exhausted after the hell she endured in her dungeon. Lingering traces of smudged make-up trailed beneath her eyes despite the many tear-soaked tissues. Certainly, the girl was shocked about all of this, but she could still listen and respond. She could tell them what happened.
Not that she expected anyone to believe her. How can she expect the police to believe talk of shadows and dungeons and personas? Even with some of that being made public, it's still a lot for anyone to wrap their heads around, Gwendolyn included. Still, it's what she'll tell them. She doesn't have the energy to lie or come up with a story...
no subject
More like how Rise looked when they interviewed her after her 'disappearance'. It was that same sort of exhaustion...
Or was he just seeing things?
When he came into the room, he had a plastic cup filled with water, and a new box of tissues.
"Gwendolyn Dellingr, right?"
He took a seat in front of her, waiting for her response.
... Same age as Naoki too.
no subject
"Yes."
She stopped crying not too long ago, but she does look over the box of tissues, expecting to need them soon. Gwendolyn takes a sip of that water and breathes a small sigh.
"I'm...sorry if I'm taking up your time, detective."
no subject
He put down his pad of paper for making notes himself. He'd looked at her files and knew her being the culprit was extremely unlikely... Especially since she'd just returned from vanishing herself.
"I know you've already dealt with the police a lot in the past while... so I'm sorry to impose this on you when you probably just want to rest. But... I'd like to ask you some questions, all the same."
no subject
She's tired. Absolutely. She wants to just go home and sleep, but...part of her didn't want to go home right away. Seeing her inner self, facing those true thoughts about her family...she wasn't sure if she wanted to deal with her father right now. Not after all of this.
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
LET THIS SHITSHOW BEGIN
The best way to speak to Boss Guzma is to entice him with something he can't deny, and the big boss was a hell of a sweet tooth.
It was a quiet diner, with many of the customers there seated on the furthest opposing end of the place as possible, as grunts were munching away on hamburger steak and fries and taking down drinks like it was nobody's business but theirs. But Guzma had helped himself to a chocolate milkshake, feet up on the table and leaned back in his chair. He physically was checked out of this whole thing, but there was a logic in letting a sniffing cop know the truth so the authorities would go bother someone else for a change.
It was clear to many that both the Dragons and the Skulls had been slowing their roll lately in their rivalry. Why?
"Whatchu want, my sad backstory, or are we doing the dance where you dumps pin something unrelated on me 'cause you're short on your quota?"
no subject
Dojima had just ordered coffee for himself, though he despaired privately over the quality of the stuff. He shouldn't expect anything more from a greasy spoon like this, but, one would hope...
"And no, we're not looking to 'pin' anything on you and your group..." He rolled his shoulders, staring squarely at the young adult across from him.
He was reminded of someone, very distinctly.
"If anything, we... I want to help find some closure for the ones you lost."
no subject
But the slurping stopped when closure was put on the table. "...Closure."
He rolled his shoulders and looked away. "What do the cops care about a bunch of people who went missing or worse? What was it I heard some of your people calling 'em...? Oh yeah, 'street rats' for one. That's one of the nicer ones."
no subject
At Guzma's questioning, Dojima... sighed. How much should he tell this guy? Being demanding wasn't going to work. If he balked at authority, his usual 'cop' attitude wasn't going to help.
"I can't speak for the police here in Tokyo, I'm not from here after all," Guzma may have seen him on the news, paraded in front as a 'special investigator' for the missing people and the murders.
"...But I do know better than most how not getting answers can eat you up inside."
no subject
He slammed down his drink a little harder than one normally would atop the table.
"I've been on this rodeo before, where the guy acts all nice and tries to twist me all up inside and pull on my little black heartstrings in the hope that I'd slip in a moment of weakness and reveal some crap." With a finger, he tapped down his shades to cover his eyes.
"I'll tell you what I told the last guy: Ya boy's working on it. 'Cause the fuckin' nanosecond I let the cops in on the whole thing is the moment a shiny warrant with ink barely dry gets whipped out like a Sunday night hardon, ready to slap some 'troublemakers' and 'bad kids' into holding, booking, and whatever other hoops you bastards put people into.
They're just kids, Detective. And they're my little brothers and sisters. I dunno where most of 'em came from, so it's not like I can give you an address so you can take the bodies to the parents... but if the kid's a Skull, then they have reason to be. You feel me?"
He turned his head, finally seeming to regard Dojima.
"Last thing they want is for the chunk of meat they're left as to be in the hands of the people that broke 'em."
(no subject)
(no subject)
no subject
An initial questioning revealed that he'd been in contact with several individuals related to the Inaba Copycat case, Souji included, but the real red flag was his file: a couple misdemeanors in the late 2000s in various cities, moved to Iwatodai in 2009 and kept a clean record there, then declared dead on March 5th, 2010. No cause given.
By themselves, those facts probably aren't something special, but considered together, they seem almost too convenient.
Not that Minato seems to care. Actually, he seems to be more concerned with finding a good song on his MP3 player than he is about being in an interrogation room, waiting to be questioned.
no subject
And to the untrained eye, it may seem opened and shut-- the kid was obviously involved in criminal activity, maybe something to do with the Yakuza...
But the name in his file, Iwatodai, catches Dojima's eye. He knows of someone from Tatsumi Port...
A fellow detective named Kurosawa, who only a few years back had asked questions about the Inaba Murder Case. He'd given Adachi's testimony and the case file for him to look at...
Maybe it was time for Kurosawa to return the favor.
So, one... enlightening phone call later, Dojima entered the interrogation room, casefile in hand.
"...So they didn't take that from you when they brought you in?"
Seriously, how lackadaisy were the cops in Tokyo?
no subject
"That's a good question."
He unhooks the blade from his belt and places it on the table, a sign that he's got no intention of causing trouble here.
no subject
Dojima opened his mouth, and then closed it, only a long suffering sigh leaving through his nose as he reached out and grabbed the sword. It was very... ornate.
"How could they have missed this, damnit..."
Either the kid had hid the sword somehow, or someone was going to get a write up, that's for sure.
But the fact he was willing to give it up so readily at least was a good sign. Dojima left a moment, to put it outside-- with Minato hearing him YELLING at someone about it, before he turned... with a glass of water. He put it infront of the younger man, before sitting across from him.
"So... Minato Arisato, is that right?"
no subject
He accepts the glass with a nod and takes a courteous sip before putting it back down.
"Yeah, that's me."
For a brief moment, Minato feels a cold chill down his spine, like something really bad was about to happen. It disappears as quickly as it came, however, so he decides to ignore it. It's probably nothing.
no subject
no subject
The frustration in his voice was palpable as he came in early, ready to write up his reports on what he'd observed from the Skulls and their leader.
"I thought they'd have better machines in the city..."
Sitting down at his computer, he flicked the mouse, waiting for the screensaver to disappear.
"Let's see what's going on..."
Even if he had no real talent with electronics.
no subject
Shaking the other computers from sleep would show similar windows.
no subject
Yeah no, Dojima was not computer savvy but he knew that was nothing good.
"Where's the cancel button?"
He clicked a few places along the computer screen, his frown getting deeper as he couldn't seem to find anything.
Control Alt Delete time...