Harry Hole Oslo Sequence 10 - Police

in the original rapes and murders in Maridalen and by Lake Tryvann.’
    ‘Thanks, Katrine, but we’ve done that, too. Ad nauseam, one might say.’
    ‘I know. But I work in a slightly different way, you see.’
    Deep sigh. ‘Go on then.’
    ‘I noticed there were different teams on the two cases. Only two officers from Krimteknisk and three detectives were on both. And none of the five could have had a complete picture of who was brought in for questioning. As neither of the cases was cleared up, it was a protracted affair and the case file was enormous.’
    ‘Enormous – you can say that again. And naturally it’s right that no one can remember everything that happened during the investigation. But everyone who was brought in for questioning is on the police central registration system. That goes without saying.’
    ‘That’s exactly the point,’ Katrine said.
    ‘What’s exactly the point?’
    ‘When people are brought in for questioning, they’re registered and the interview is filed according to the case they’re brought in for. But sometimes things fall between two stools, such as if the interviewee is already in prison – then the interview is an informal matter in the cell and the person isn’t registered as he’s already on the register.’
    ‘But the notes from the interview are still in the case file.’
    ‘Normally, yes. But not if this interview is primarily about another case for which he is the prime suspect, and for example, the murder in Maridalen was only a minor part of the interview, a routine long shot. Then the whole interview is filed under the first case and a search wouldn’t link him to the second case.’
    ‘Interesting. And you’ve found . . .?’
    ‘A person who was questioned as a prime suspect in a rape case in Ålesund while he was inside for the assault and attempted rape of an underage girl at a hotel in Otta. During the interview he was also asked about the Maridal case, but afterwards the interview was filed under the Otta rape. The interesting thing is that this person was also hauled in for the Tryvann case, but on that occasion in the usual manner.’
    ‘And?’ For the first time she could hear signs of genuine interest in Hagen’s voice.
    ‘He had an alibi for all three cases,’ Katrine said, and she felt rather than heard the air go out of the balloon she had inflated for him.
    ‘I see. Any other amusing stories from Bergen you think I should hear today?’
    ‘There’s more,’ Katrine said.
    ‘I have a meeting in—’
    ‘I checked the man’s alibi. It’s the same for all three cases. A witness who confirmed he was at home. The witness was a young lady who at that time was regarded as reliable. No record, no connection with the suspect, apart from them lodging in the same house. But if you follow the link to her name into the future, interesting things happen.’
    ‘Such as?’
    ‘Such as embezzlement, drug dealing and forging documents. If you look a bit more closely at the interviews she’s been summoned to since then, there’s a common theme running through them. Guess what it is.’
    ‘False statements.’
    ‘Unfortunately, we’re not in the habit of looking at old cases in a new light. At least not cases that are as old and complex as the Maridalen and Tryvann ones.’
    ‘What’s the woman’s name, for goodness’ sake?’ The interest was back in his voice.
    ‘Irja Jacobsen.’
    ‘Have you got an address for her?’
    ‘Yes. She’s in the police registration system, the national register and a couple of others—’
    ‘Well, for goodness’ sake, let’s get her in now!’
    ‘—such as the missing persons register.’
    There was a long silence coming from Oslo. Katrine felt like going for a walk, down to the fishing boats in Bryggen, buying a bag of cod heads, heading home to her flat in Møhlenpris and slowly making dinner and watching Breaking Bad while, hopefully, it started to rain again.
    ‘Great,’ Hagen said. ‘Well, at least you’ve given us something to get our teeth into. What’s the name of the guy?’
    ‘Valentin Gjertsen.’
    ‘And where is he?’
    ‘That’s the point,’ Katrine Bratt said, and could hear she was repeating herself. Her fingers flitted across the keyboard. ‘I can’t find him.’
    ‘Is he missing too?’
    ‘He’s not on the missing persons list. And that’s strange because it’s as if he’s vanished off the face of the earth. No known address, no registered phones, no use