Chapter 653
At worst, we'll both perish!
"Yes!" the team members responded in unison and quickly sprang into action. One group followed their squad leader and quietly approached the main entrance of the apartment building; the second group went around to the back of the building and blocked the back door; and the third group ran quickly towards Ninth Avenue.
Lynn followed a group of team members to the main entrance of the apartment building. The team leader signaled to his team members to get ready, then took out a hydraulic pry bar from his pocket, gently inserted it into the gap between the door frame and the door panel, and pried it open with a slight creak. The door lock made a soft click, and the door was opened a crack.
The squad leader gestured for his team members to lower their voices, slowly pushed open the door, and went in first. Lynn and the other team members followed behind, guns in hand, cautiously observing their surroundings. The first floor of the apartment building was dimly lit, filled with a damp, musty smell and a faint, pungent odor. The floor was littered with debris and trash, looking like it hadn't been cleaned in a long time.
"Be careful, there might be an ambush inside," Lynn whispered to his team. His eyes were fixed on the stairwell, which was pitch black, but he could vaguely hear faint sounds coming from upstairs.
The squad leader nodded and signaled his team members to split into two groups. One group would guard the first floor to prevent the people inside from escaping from there, while the other group would follow him and Lynn up the stairs to the third floor to take control of the people inside.
The group carefully ascended the wooden stairs, each step producing a slight creak that sounded particularly jarring in the quiet apartment building. They slowed their pace, trying to minimize the noise, and made their way to the third floor.
The higher they went, the stronger the pungent smell became, vaguely resembling the odor of drugs. Light from the third floor shone through the gaps at the top of the stairs, illuminating the last few steps. The team leader signaled his members to stop, then slowly approached the top of the stairs and peered over the shoulder at the third floor.
The third floor was an open space furnished with several worn-out sofas and tables. Scattered on the tables were several small white plastic bags containing white powder, clearly contraband. Two Black men sat on the sofas, smoking and talking, with a handgun in their hands, which rested on the table.
The squad leader lowered his voice and gave the order to his team members: "Prepare to move out, three, two, one!"
The words had barely left his mouth when the squad leader rushed out, shouting, "FBI! Don't move! Hands over your head!"
The two Black men were startled by the sudden shout and immediately stood up from the sofa, reaching for the handgun on the table. Lynn and his team rushed forward, swiftly subdued them, seized the guns from their hands, pinned them to the ground, and handcuffed them.
"Don't move! Behave yourself!" Lynn said coldly, holding down one of the black men. The black man struggled and cursed, but the team members held him down firmly, unable to move.
The squad leader quickly checked the room and found a stack of cash and several notebooks on the table, containing transaction information and names of people. "Seal all evidence immediately," the squad leader told his team. "Seal off these contraband items, cash, and notebooks, and mark them clearly."
The team members immediately sprang into action, taking out evidence sealing bags and sealing and labeling the contraband, cash, and notebooks on the table. Lynn, looking at the two black men pinned to the ground, coldly asked, "Who are you? How many people are here? Where did everyone who went out to make the deal go? What are you trading?"
One of the Black men looked up, glared at Lynn, and cursed, "You bastards! Mind your own business! I'm not saying anything!"
"Is that so?" Lynn sneered. "I advise you to confess honestly, or you'll be in for a rough time when you get to the station. The evidence against you for selling contraband is conclusive. Even if you don't confess, we can find out everything. But if you confess honestly and cooperate with our investigation, you might get a lighter sentence."
The black man continued to stare menacingly at Lynn without saying a word, while the other black man seemed somewhat frightened, his eyes darting away, avoiding Lynn's gaze.
Just then, Lynn's phone vibrated. It was a text message from Jason: "The transaction site has been secured. Two traders have been arrested, and a quantity of contraband and a batch of cash have been seized. The team has been notified to seal the evidence and is currently on its way back to the apartment building."
Lynn breathed a sigh of relief after reading the text message. He looked at the frightened black man and said softly, "Look, your accomplice has been caught, and the transaction site is under our control. You have no chance left. Confess honestly, and you might still have a sliver of hope."
The frightened Black man hesitated for a moment, then looked up at Lynn and whispered, "I'll talk... I'll talk... We were working for a guy called 'Black Wolf.' This is our trading hideout. We were dealing heroin. There were six of us inside. The three who went out to make transactions went to Ninth Avenue, Seventh Avenue, and Tenth Avenue, respectively, to meet with regular clients. 'Black Wolf' is our leader. He just went out, saying he was going to meet a big client. We don't know where he went."
“Black Wolf?” Lynn frowned. “Who is he? What’s his real name? Does he have any other trading locations? Are you connected to the Brotherhood?”
“We don’t know his real name, everyone calls him Black Wolf,” the black man said in a low voice. “He’s very mysterious, we rarely see him, he’s always the one who contacts us and assigns us tasks. We only have this one trading location, we don’t know about any others. We have no connection with the Brotherhood, we just sell drugs and make some money.”
Lynn stared at him, his eyes sharp, trying to determine if he was telling the truth. Judging from his expression, he probably wasn't lying, but the name Black Wolf didn't ring a bell in Lynn's memory, clearly indicating that he was someone who was very well hidden.
"What does he look like? What clothes is he wearing? What are his distinguishing features?" Lynn continued to ask.
“He was very tall, about 1.9 meters, and very strong. He had a scar on his face that stretched from his left eye to the corner of his mouth,” the Black man said in a low voice. “He usually wore a black hoodie and sweatpants, with his hat pulled down low, covering most of his face. He spoke in a low, hoarse voice.”
Lynn nodded, making these characteristics clear to him: "When he went out just now, was he carrying a black backpack?"
“Yes,” the black man nodded, “Every time he goes out, he carries a black backpack filled with drugs and cash.”
Just then, the squad leader approached Lynn and said, "Detective Carter, all the evidence has been sealed. We seized approximately one kilogram of heroin, $500,000 in cash, and a transaction log containing all transaction information and a list of clients. Additionally, we found a submachine gun, several handguns, and some ammunition in the corner of the room." "Good," Lynn nodded. "Take these two suspects away and hand them over to the team. We'll conduct a detailed interrogation at the station. Also, notify the team outside to closely monitor the surroundings and keep an eye out for a black man about 1.9 meters tall, with a muscular build and a scar on his face, carrying a black backpack. He's the leader of this gang, named Black Wolf. If you spot him, subdue him immediately, but don't fire unnecessarily. Be careful."
"Understood." The squad leader nodded and immediately gave instructions to his team members.
Just then, Jason returned with several team members, carrying two suspects and several sealed evidence bags. "Lynn, the transaction scene is under control. We've apprehended two traders, seized approximately 200 grams of heroin, and $100,000 in cash," Jason said as he approached Lynn. "Also, while we were tracking that trader, we discovered he had an accomplice waiting nearby. He was also apprehended and brought back with us."
“Good, well done.” Lynn nodded. “We have now apprehended five suspects, and the ringleader, Black Wolf, has just gone out. We have instructed our team to keep a close eye on his movements, and we believe we will catch him soon.”
“Black Wolf?” Jason frowned. “The leader of this gang? Who is he?”
“We don’t know his real name yet, we only know that he is called Black Wolf, he has a scar on his face, he is about 1.9 meters tall, and he is muscular. He just went out with a black backpack, saying that he was going to meet a big client,” Lynn said. “We have his characteristics, and the team is searching the surrounding area. We should be able to find him soon.”
“Okay,” Jason nodded. “So what do we do now? Wait here for news from the team, or go out and search together?”
“We’ll wait here,” Lynn shook his head. “This is their trading location, and there might be other evidence. We’ll search carefully again to see if we’ve missed anything. Also, tell the team to be discreet during the search and not to alert them. Black Wolf has weapons; it’s dangerous.”
“Understood.” Jason nodded and, together with Lynn, began to carefully search every corner of the room. The room was very simple; besides a sofa, a table, and scattered miscellaneous items, there was nothing else. They searched every drawer and cabinet but found no other evidence. It seemed that all the evidence in this hideout had been sealed away.
About fifteen minutes later, the team leader's voice came through the walkie-talkie: "Captain, captain, target spotted at the intersection of 10th Avenue and 45th Street. Matches Black Wolf's description. He's carrying a black backpack. We've quietly surrounded him. Requesting instructions."
The squad leader immediately picked up the walkie-talkie and said, "Don't make any rash moves. Keep a close watch on his movements. We'll be there soon."
After hanging up the walkie-talkie, the squad leader said to Lynn and Jason, "We've found Black Wolf at the intersection of 10th Avenue and 45th Street. We're heading there now."
“Okay,” Lynn nodded. “Let’s go together. Be careful, Black Wolf has weapons, don’t let him get away.”
The group quickly went downstairs, got into the emergency team's SUV, and headed towards the intersection of 10th Avenue and 45th Street. It was already late at night; the streets were almost deserted, illuminated only by streetlights and vehicle headlights. The SUV drove fast but smoothly, minimizing noise to avoid alerting Black Wolf.
About five minutes later, the SUV arrived at the intersection of 10th Avenue and 45th Street. From a distance, Lynn saw several team members quietly surrounding a tall, muscular black man. The man was wearing a black hoodie and sweatpants, his hat pulled low, and had a noticeable scar on his face. He was holding a black backpack and was standing on the side of the road, scanning his surroundings with a wary and tense look in his eyes.
“It’s him, Black Wolf,” Lynn said in a low voice, his eyes fixed on the black man.
The squad leader signaled to his team to get ready, then opened the car door and quietly approached Black Wolf. Lynn and Jason followed behind, guns in hand, vigilantly observing Black Wolf's movements.
Black Wolf seemed to sense something, suddenly turned around, pulled out a pistol, pointed it at the approaching team members, and shouted, "Don't come any closer! I'll shoot if you do!"
The team members immediately stopped, raised their guns, pointed them at Black Wolf, and shouted, "FBI! Drop your weapons! Surrender! You're surrounded!"
Black Wolf's eyes turned fierce. He glanced at his teammates, knowing he had no chance of escape, but he still didn't lower his weapon. Instead, he gripped his pistol tightly and said, "You want me to surrender? Not so easy! We might as well die together!"
“Black Wolf, you have no chance,” Lynn said slowly as he stepped forward, lowering his voice. “Your gang has been completely taken over by us, and our trading hideout has been shut down. Even if you resist, it won’t change anything. Lay down your weapons, surrender honestly, and cooperate with our investigation, and you might get a lighter sentence. If you dare to fire a shot, we will retaliate immediately, and then you will only suffer the consequences.”
Black Wolf stared at Lynn with a fierce look in his eyes, then hesitated for a moment. He knew Lynn was telling the truth; he was surrounded and had no chance of escape. If he fired, he would be shot dead on the spot by his teammates.
“I surrender,” Black Wolf finally laid down his weapon, put his hands behind his head, and said, “but I have one condition: I want to see my lawyer, and I will only talk to one of you.”
“Okay,” Lynn nodded. “We can let you see your lawyer, or we can let you talk to me alone, but you must honestly tell us everything and cooperate with our investigation.”
Black Wolf nodded. The team members slowly walked over, pinned him to the ground, handcuffed him, and then took the black backpack from his hands. Opening the backpack, they found approximately 500 grams of heroin, $200,000 in cash, a cell phone, and a laptop. (End of Chapter)