Autopsy of a Mind

Chapter 82: Implementing the Wrong Method

"When was the last time you saw her?" You could see that the detective was trying his hardest to maneuver the guy to talk. They knew by that time that he had seen her that night, but they needed him to build a lie which they could later debunk. Remember that it is also a crime to lie during an interrogation, not that it is chargeable for more than a fine, but it is at least pinning something on the suspect. 

Apparently, he had seen her three weeks ago. 

The detective paused for a second for effect and then mumbled his acknowledgment. 

"How close were you to Irene?" he asked. This question was one that needed a little more explanation on the suspect's part, which was why the detective asked it probably. 

"Yes." I scrunched my brow.

"Look at me when you are talking," the detective said. It was hard to believe that the guy was polite despite how irritated he sounded, his accent making it quite humorous. But the situation wasn't funny. It had been two minutes into the interrogation and the suspect had already agitated the detective. It was not a good sign, especially considering that interrogations were psychological warfare and the suspect somehow had gained an upper hand by frustrating his opponent. 

Emotional upheaval leads to making poor choices, hence it is not ideal for the interrogator to feel this way.

The moment the detective asked the suspect to look him in the eye, William turned slowly, his head moving exorcist style and staring blankly at the detective. 

Sebastian paused the video. "The suspect has morphed himself into this abnormal and creepy character. It can be a strategy or a mental breakdown, we are unclear about that. What is incredible is that the behavior dictates the pace of the interrogation. It is a win for his side. The detective has just closed the distance and commanded eye contact, recognized techniques to increase the psychological pressure on the suspect. Yet the haunting manner in which the suspect turns his head and fixed his gaze unsettles the detective, making him look away and reposition himself." At that very moment, I could see the detective shifting back in the chair, leaning against the back and physically keeping a distance from the suspect. 

"Does this happen in interrogations?" I asked, stupefied.

"Almost never. It takes quite a lot to unsettle a seasoned detective, especially since they have seen loads of people try different techniques to evade the truth. Rarely do they come face to face with someone with the mental capacity to hold on to their methods." 

The approach of the detective softened, he started to sway away from his line of questioning and spoke about the suspect's interests in law. It seemed like he was trying to open him up to conversation by making him talk about himself. It was a good technique, but it didn't work on William. He strongly held on to the character he was performing, just answering lifelessly with no more than three words.

The detective asked such questions for a couple of minutes before ramping up the pressure yet again. 

As he questioned their friendship and when he last saw her, he placed Irene's picture between his fingers. For a second, William turned his head a tad bit faster than his demeanor allowed him and looked at it intently. He then turned back to look at the detective again. 

Suddenly the detective picked up his phone and started to talk into it. 

"What is he doing?" I asked in confusion. 

"People don't take calls during an interview, but when they do, it's to give the suspect a sense of doom. The phone call subliminally translates to important new information that could reveal what they had done. Why else would the detective have their cell phone on? He was expecting more information." Sebastian whispered. 

When the detective put the phone back into his pocket, he turned to William with a stoic expression. "Just tell me what happened, kid."

"I don't know," his voice was small but still monotonous. 

"Where is she? I am asking for your help." There was no sign of pleading in the detective's voice, unlike the previous interrogation they had watched. I took note of it and paused the video for a second. Sebastian turned to me curiously. 

"I see the differences in the style of the interrogation but I feel like this is not the method that needs to be taken with this guy. At least the way it is being implemented is not correct. The detective doesn't sound invested in his emotions. He sounds almost patronizing. Is this a tactic that he is using? Is it saying that I have power over you and I know, you just need to confess, but I will act like I care about you..." The words flew out of my mouth as I analyzed and mulled over the technique. 

"While patronizing the suspect is a tactic used, it is not highly approved of. I know of many cases where it would work, especially with people who have issues with feeling excessive guilt, have inferiority complexes, or even excessive superiority complexes. Someone who is too sure of their ways needs to be shown their place and told who holds the power in that room. Your gut feeling is right in thinking that this technique is not working in this situation. I don't want to spoil it for you, but it would be good if you take notes and tell me where they failed, exactly." His explanation made sense, and I made a mental note to ask him to refer me to books and videos where I could see it in action. 

"Can you help me?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" the detective asked. "You don't know if you can help a friend out?" My lips tugged into a frown. For a second I thought he was talking about himself and wondered why he would say he was William's friend. My mind wandered into the possibilities of why he would say it when I realized that he was talking about Irene. William said he was Irene's friend. I wanted to slap myself on the head for being stupid.