"Who authorized the change?"
"Lawson said he did."
Simone paused.
"Did anyone explain why the original record was inaccurate?"
"No."
"Did anyone provide supporting documentation?"
"No."
"Did Keller ask questions?"
Price hesitated.
"Not exactly."
"What did he do?"
"He looked uncomfortable. Then he said he didn't want the case coming back on him."
Simone's pen stopped.
"What happened next?"
"Lawson told him not to worry. He said the department would handle the paperwork."
Price swallowed.
"Then Lawson turned to me and said I needed to process the final correction before the end of the day."
"Did you?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because I knew the original entry wasn't wrong."
"How?"
"Because I had personally recorded the transfer."
The room became quiet.
Price continued.
"I had the original paper log. I had the electronic entry. I knew exactly when the item arrived and who signed for it."
"Where is that original paper log?"
"I made a copy before I resigned."
"Do you still have it?"
"Yes."
"Can you provide it?"
"Yes."
Simone nodded.
"Thank you."
Price looked down at his hands.
"I thought if I refused, they'd leave me alone. But they didn't."
"What happened?"
"Two weeks later, I was told my work was being reviewed. Then I was transferred to another duty. After that, Mercer started questioning every little thing I did."
"Did you receive formal disciplinary action?"
"No. But I knew what was coming."
He looked toward the evidence specialist.
"I resigned because I didn't want my name attached to something illegal."
Simone's expression softened slightly.
"You made a difficult decision."
Price shook his head.
"I should have spoken up sooner."
"That's easy to say now. What matters is that you're cooperating."
He nodded.
Then he looked at her.
"There's something else about Keller."
"What?"
"He wasn't just worried about the Walker case."
Price opened his backpack and removed a small envelope.
"He gave me this."
Simone looked at the envelope.
"What's inside?"
"A copy of an email."
She opened it carefully.
The message was dated several months earlier.
It had been sent from Keller's personal email account to an address associated with an external recipient.
The subject line read:
Need to discuss the files.
The message contained a short paragraph.
I know what happened to the original records. I don't want to be involved in any more changes. If this comes out, I need something that proves I didn't authorize it.
Simone read it twice.
"Did Keller send this to you?"
"No. He sent it to someone else. I found a printed copy on the shared office printer."
"Did you know the recipient?"
Price shook his head.
"No."
Simone placed the email inside a document sleeve.
"Did you make a copy?"
"Yes."
"Where is the original?"
"I don't know."
Simone looked at him.
"Mr. Price, this may be significant. We will need to verify the message and identify the recipient."
Price nodded.
Then he asked a question that surprised her.
"Is Keller going to prison?"
Simone closed her notebook.
"That's not something I can predict. Our responsibility is to establish what happened, determine who was involved, and present the evidence through the proper legal process."
Price looked disappointed.
"I understand."
She continued.
"But if someone knowingly altered evidence, intimidated witnesses, or obstructed an investigation, those actions can have serious consequences."
Price looked down.
"I just want it to stop."
Simone nodded.
"That's why we're here."
At 1:15 p.m., the forensic examination of the recording was complete.
The audio lasted eighteen minutes and forty-two seconds.
The quality was imperfect, but the voices were recognizable.
Simone sat in a secure listening room with Elena and two investigators.
The recording began with the sound of a door closing.
Then a man's voice spoke.
It was Captain Lawson.
"We need to settle the Walker file before the attorney requests another review."
Another voice answered.
Lieutenant Harris.
"The transfer history has already been corrected."
Lawson replied.
"Then make sure the final version matches."
A third voice entered.
Paul Mercer.
"I can handle the administrative side."
Lawson spoke again.
"Good. I don't want this coming back to the division."
There was a pause.
Then Keller's voice.
"What about the camera?"
Lawson answered.
"The recording is incomplete. That's already documented."
Keller sounded uneasy.
"But the original device log shows it was stopped manually."
Nobody spoke for several seconds.
Then Lawson said something that made Simone sit forward.
"That is not a discussion for this room."
Keller responded.
"I'm just saying someone is going to ask."
Lawson's voice became sharper.
"Then we give them the report."
Harris added:
"The report has already been approved."
Keller said:
"I don't want my name attached to anything else."
Lawson answered:
"Your name is already attached. You were the arresting officer."
A chair moved.
Then Mercer spoke.
"We should focus on getting the paperwork finished."
The recording continued for several minutes.
It contained references to the Bennett complaint, the Walker evidence log, and a request to close an internal review before the next supervisory audit.
At one point, Keller said:
"Rachel Bennett isn't going to let this go."
Lawson answered:
"Then somebody needs to explain to her that the matter has been resolved."
The recording ended with the sound of footsteps and a door closing.
Nobody in the listening room spoke immediately.
Elena slowly removed her headphones.
"That's significant."
Simone nodded.
"Very."
The recording did not establish every detail of the alleged misconduct. It did, however, provide a direct account of several people discussing evidence records, an incomplete body-camera recording, and the handling of a civilian complaint.
Most importantly, it contradicted earlier statements.
Captain Lawson had claimed he did not remember authorizing the Walker correction.
The recording suggested otherwise.
Lieutenant Harris had claimed he believed the correction was properly authorized.
The recording showed that he had participated in a discussion about it.
And Keller, who had previously described himself as unaware of any improper activity, appeared to know that the original device log raised questions.
Simone removed her headphones.
"Now we verify every statement against the records."
Elena nodded.
"What about Mercer?"
"We need to establish who accessed the database yesterday and whether he attempted to interfere with the investigation."
"And Keller?"
Simone looked at the transcript.
"He's going to have an opportunity to explain his own words."
The following morning, the Department of Justice issued formal preservation requests covering the relevant records.
The department also began cooperating with additional lawful evidence-gathering procedures.