Chapter 18
Big, black SUVs are pretty much the first choice of government agencies. I was the new tenant in a space previously occupied by a government agency. Maybe that was the connection to the vehicle following me. Then again, anybody could buy a black SUV.
Who were these guys?
After a half mile or so, I made another right turn. The SUV didn’t follow me.
Was I just paranoid? Sometimes I wondered.
Then again, “just because you’re paranoid, it doesn’t mean people aren’t out to get you”.
I drove on to the apartments where Tim Shaw lived. The SUV didn’t follow me.
His landlady was a wealth of information. She clearly had her nose in everybody’s business. She told me his habits, complained about the way he bagged his trash, even suggested Mr. Shaw needed a new set of tires on his car. She talked about his girlfriend Diane Montgomery. In all of my lengthy listening, she never indicated there was anything remotely sinister about Tim Shaw, or his friends.
As I was leaving her apartment, I spotted another big black SUV, parked up the street. It could be just another example of my paranoid leanings, because as I say, SUVs of every kind are as common as birds, in this town. Still, I decided to drive by it.
It was the same one. I recognized the license number.
Now, what are the odds…?
When I got back to the office, Tim Shaw was out in the hall, up on a ladder, installing the second camera.
“Hey Tim, how’s it coming along?”
“No problems, Mr. Tucker. This is really pretty much routine. We should be able to test the system in another hour or so.”
I nodded and went inside.
“Well, did you learn anything? I’ve got nothing. He seems like a pretty decent guy,” I said.
“…Same here. When he finally became aware I was flirting with him, he started talking about his girlfriend. He was always polite, never forward or sexually aggressive. I think he really is in love with his girlfriend. He enjoyed talking about her. He doesn’t seem like the same guy Tom Montgomery told me about. I didn’t see anything that would cause me any concern whatsoever.”
I thought about what this might mean.
I also thought about the SUV.
I borrowed Christine’s car and went for a spin. No one followed me. After explaining the situation, I sent Christine out in my truck to go to Starbuck’s and bring back some coffee for the three of us.
When she got back, she was pale. After Tim took his coffee back out into the hallway, Christine told me the story.
“It was just like you described it. I didn’t see them follow me from here, but when I came out of the Starbuck’s, they were parked a couple of rows away. They followed me back here.”
“Did you get a good look at the driver?”
“No, there were always a couple of cars between us.”
“Did they get a good look at you?”
She nodded.
I could see she was concerned.
“This isn’t about you. They were following my truck. They either have a tracking device on it, or they’re accessing the GPS system in the truck. That way they don’t need to sit here and watch for me. If the truck starts moving, they can go right to wherever it is, or drive along on another road running parallel to it, and follow without being seen at all.”
“These days, everything from our cell phones to our cars is connected to GPS and emergency services, which can be used as locaters, who would bother to install a transponder on your truck? Do you think it could be the police or FBI? I know the NSA and FBI do that to persons of interest. I saw on TV, where some Muslim guy was trying to sue the Feds for breach of privacy, after they put a tracking device on his car.”
“No, I don’t think it’s the Feds or the police, they could legally use the GPS in my truck. Private persons wouldn’t be able to access it, so they would have to install their own.”
“Who are they, and why are they following you?” she asked.
Good question.
“I don’t know, but I intend to find out.”
Later, as I was sitting at my desk, I tried to puzzle it out. I was pretty sure they weren’t Feds. There was no reason for Feds to be following me. Actually, there was no reason for anyone to be following me. If they weren’t Feds, then who were they?
Christine buzzed me in my office. The security cameras were all hooked up, and ready for testing.
Tim showed us how using our computers, we could see the pictures from all four cameras on one screen, or we could select which camera angle we preferred. We could even zoom in on an image, without much distortion.
“Y’all can access the feed on your smartphones or your home computer. So, if you want to watch absolutely nothing happening at three in the morning, you can.” He chuckled.
When he was gone, Christine and I agreed there was something strange about this case.
There are a number of ways to deal with having a tracking device on your vehicle. You have to determine your goals. Do you want to avoid being tracked? You could abandon the car with the tracking device in favor of another. That will work well for brief outings. Eventually they’ll track the new vehicle. You could remove the device and either destroy it or throw it into a dumpster. I like the latter for setting them up to track the trash truck.
If your goal is to find out who is tracking you, you can lead them into a trap and confront them head on.
I like to track the trackers. They seldom consider that while they are following someone, someone may be following them.
The quickest and easiest way is to follow them as they follow your vehicle, with someone else driving it. Or, you remove the device and put it on a different vehicle and follow them as they follow the decoy. Pizza delivery vehicles, taxi cabs, and rental vehicles are good for that. I might even go with a parcel delivery truck.
I got a call from Tom Montgomery, asking if I had found any leads yet, into the nefarious character of Timothy Leroy Shaw.
“No Mr. Montgomery. I’ve run a background check on him, and I’ve interviewed people who know him. I’m arranging to have surveillance put on him, but we have nothing at this time. I would have to say the investigation is ‘ongoing.’ I should remind you our fee is $500.00 per day. You have paid us a retainer of one thousand dollars. We’ve pretty much used that up, and we have nothing, so far. I can’t guarantee we will find anything suspect on the subject. I will be happy to submit a written report on the findings of our investigation to this point. I’ll understand if you don’t want to commit to additional expense. Full time surveillance is one of the most time consuming and therefor expensive services we offer.”
He was thinking about what I’d said. I could tell he hadn’t expected my answer.
“No, no, the expense is not a problem. I need you to find anything, anything at all, that will show my sister how nasty he really is. You said you were going to follow him around, right?”
“Sometimes, surveillance will lead to interesting contacts and activities.”
“Yeah, yeah, do it, and send me a bill! Thanks.”
He hung up.
Now I had some answers.