The Paper Hanger and the Hot Girl: Tech’s Role in solving crimes – Part 1.

I already looked at one case where computers helped me solve a rather difficult crime. Let’s look at another.

The Crime-

Picture it. it’s 1992, late October, Antonito, Colorado.

A man driving a green Chevy pickup with a camper has pulled up to the gas pump. As people go, he’s very ordinary. He dresses in jeans, a shirt and wears a ball cap. He looks as about as ordinary as a cone of vanilla ice cream.

He isn’t.

The man’s a superhuman and he has mastered the ultimate weapon, the tongue. The Bible warns us of the power of the tongue. It tells us that it can lead to all manner of sins.

Or blessings.

In any other circumstance he may have been a great statesman. Maybe a great orator, actor, or preacher. But he’s chosen to use his powers for his own profit rather than those of the Human race.

What can he do with his tongue? He can get people to do what he wants them to do. Couple that with the Powers of Deception and look out.

He doesn’t know it yet but he’s about to cross paths with three more superhumans.

He goes in and explains he needs to buy some gas and a few goodies. Then he says, “Can I ask you to cash this money order for me please. That way I can pay for it all.”

The store clerk looks at the money order. She doesn’t look like a superhuman. No funny costume or such. But she has a couple of superpowers.

Superpower number one. She’s a very attractive girl. Nice hair, nice face, nice figure, great smile. Guys flirt with her, period. Young kids, teens, old timers. It doesn’t matter. If you’re a guy, you’ll fall all over yourself to flirt with her. Heck, I’ve even known gay guys who flirted with her.

Her name is Emily. Her husband is into restoring vintage cars. He takes them and her to car shows and drapes her over them. Usually, she’s wearing something that leave little to the imagination.

The cars get a lot of attention.

Or she does.

And here’s this guy using his superpower against her. He’s leaning over the counter and engaging her in conversation. He’s smiling, trying to make her laugh. He’s definitely liking what he sees.

Emily’s superpower number two. It’s a secret power pretty girls have. As if being hot wasn’t superpower enough, God had to equip them with this. You flirt with a pretty girl and they remember you. They remember everything about you. How tall you were, age, hair color, eye color. You know, everything you need to make a picture. Then they take all that and they put it into one of three files. The files are labeled Cool, Everyone Else, and Total Creep!

She’d already filed this guy away in the Total Creep folder.

Emily smiled a professional smile as she looked at the money order. It was a typical money order purchased at a Seven-Eleven for two hundred dollars. It was made out to Alan Hale, Jr.

The name sounded vaguely familiar.

“Excuse me,” she said and called the store owner over. She explains to him what the man wants to do.

“Let me get this straight,” The store owner said coming over. “You want to get gas and some snacks and we cash the money order?”

“Yes. And I get the rest back in cash.” The guy smiled.

Darth Vader would have said, “The Force is strong with this one!” because the next thing said by the store owner is “Sure.” He didn’t see anything wrong with it. “It’s as good as a traveler’s check.”

So, the man fills up his truck, and buys soda, jerky, and chips. He pays for it with the money order and gets the difference in cash.

He drives away never to be seen again.

That evening, the owner makes his deposit at the bank.

A few days later he finds the money order for two hundred dollars has been returned. It’s not worth two hundred dollars like it says.

It’s only worth two dollars.

It’s been altered.

And that’s my cue to enter the story.

Next – The Paperhanger and the Detective: Techs Role in solving Crimes – Part 2