Legendary FBI Detective

"It's indeed a bank robbery."

A moment later, Luo An sprinted to the scene, and saw a large crowd of LAPD surrounding the Federal Bank entrance, with police vehicles of various sizes and types parked all around.

From a distance on the sidewalk, there were about twenty members of the media from Los Angeles, including some from major news corporations and several from smaller entertainment newspapers.

"It really is Hollywood."

At this moment, Luo An, in a suit, pronouncedly walked into the LAPD blockade with long strides, his demeanor outstanding. The light from a burning police car nearby illuminated his face, highlighting his resolute expression.

"Hello, I'm Detective Albert."

Several LAPD officers approached from the right, led by a chubby middle-aged Caucasian in his forties, his forehead sweating profusely.

"FBI Los Angeles Branch, Deputy Chief of the Special Investigation Team, Luo An Greenwood."

Luo An pulled out a golden badge from his pocket and briefly showed his identity, asking:

"What's the exact situation here?"

As a detective who had worked at the Los Angeles Police Department for many years, Albert only knew about a few of the numbered investigation teams within the FBI; it was his first time hearing about the Special Investigation Team.

And encountering such a young Deputy Chief was also a first for Albert.

However, everything Luo An presented was normal, Detective Albert closely observed Luo An for a moment and then led him into the interior of the scene:

"A group of criminals drove into the bank, aiming to rob it. They have bombs and have taken a number of hostages.

The exact number of hostages and identities of the criminals remain unknown, and the criminals have yet to make any demands."

Inside the scene, all LAPD officers dispersed, lying behind cars with guns in both hands, aiming tightly at the bank entrance, sweat dripping from their faces.

The LAPD officers from the car that was blown up had just been urgently sent for rescue; no one knew if they would survive, as the situation looked dire.

Additionally, a group of SWAT team members armed with semi-automatic rifles and blast shields took positions even closer to the front, and several snipers were perched on the elevated platforms across from the bank.

After the explosion, the LAPD was incredibly shocked and deployed their fastest response ever, reaching the scene at an unprecedented speed.

Though there were many officers, no senior leaders had arrived yet; everything depended on Albert, who was slightly higher in rank, to command temporarily.

Albert, despite his age, was still just a detective because his abilities were average, and he had risen through the ranks by his years of service.

This was not Albert's first bank robbery case, but he had never been in charge before. Today, he was merely on duty when the incident occurred, and since he was the highest-ranking person at the scene, he had no choice but to step up.

Now, with the arrival of Luo An from the FBI, a huge weight was lifted from Albert's heart.

Unbothered by Albert's gaze, Luo An listened to the introduction and quickly took a small telescope from an LAPD officer, climbed onto a police car, and observed the bank interior, noticing several hooded individuals fitting hostages with bombs.

He couldn't see farther into the bank; there were a total of eight robbers, with five in the main hall, and three unaccounted for.

"Fu-k!"

Luo An cursed softly upon seeing this, then jumped down from the police car and turned to ask:

"Where are the bank's senior executives? Get them here immediately!"

Although the bank was named "Federal Bank," it wasn't owned by the Federation but was a large bank controlled by a Californian consortium.

"The bank's senior executives are on their way."

Detective Albert quickly responded, and a SWAT officer also came over, loudly saying:

"Rear door of the bank is secured! Two SWAT teams have completely blocked off that area."

"Good."

Luo An waved his hand, signaling for an LAPD officer to bring him a megaphone, while he stood with his arms crossed over his chest, intently watching the nearby bank, frowning in thought.

According to Luo An, although this bank was located in Los Angeles, its main clientele were not the ordinary citizens of Los Angeles, but rather those big companies in Hollywood.

From the start of a movie's production to its release, substantial funds were inevitably involved. To distribute risk, Hollywood film companies often sought external investors or industry peers rather than taking on all the financial burden themselves.

To prevent their investments from disappearing under mysterious circumstances, investors usually appointed a third party to oversee and monitor the financial expenditures throughout the movie production process. One of the main services offered by the "Federal Bank" was just that.

Therefore, the amount of money and gold in the bank's vault was not considerable, especially when compared to the JPMorgan Chase Bank just down the street, which was not far from here.

From the perspective of effort versus gain, making such a big scene and expending so much effort to rob this bank didn't seem to pay off.

However, recalling the world-class hacker Mona had identified earlier...

Luo An slightly narrowed his eyes, developing some new ideas about this bank robbery incident.

The LAPD quickly brought Luo An a loudspeaker, but before Luo An could speak, two people suddenly emerged from the bank across:

A robber wearing a black hood, holding a gun to a hostage who was pale, trembling, and wrapped with explosives.

Unfazed by the myriad of gunpoints, the robber took a cellphone from his pocket, threw it towards the nearest LAPD officer, then leisurely retreated back into the bank.

The cellphone was promptly handed to Detective Albert, who instinctively passed it to Luo An. Luo An gestured with his hand for him to answer the call.

Detective Albert's mouth twitched slightly, pressing the answer button. A male voice, both magnetic and composed, came from the other end:

"Hello, let me introduce myself, my name is Jack."

"Hello, Jack."

Luo An, standing beside Detective Albert, also heard the voice on the phone. Taking a deep breath, Detective Albert stated firmly:

"State your demands."

"I like straightforward cops!"

Jack on the other end laughed and said:

"Within 30 minutes, prepare a plane at the airport that can fly internationally. Soon, we will head to the airport in a van along with the hostages.

To give you a brief overview, all the hostages in the bank are strapped with explosives. If you don't fulfill my demands within the designated time, I will blow up a hostage every three minutes."

After finishing, Jack hung up the phone without waiting for Detective Albert's response.

"Son of a bitch!"

Hearing the busy tone on the call, Detective Albert cursed loudly—he, a mere detective, did not have the authority for such matters.

But at the moment, behind a police car about ten steps away from him and Luo An, the chief of the Los Angeles Police Department and the director of the FBI unit, Potante Byrne, both arrived at the scene.

Morton York, head of the Special Investigation Team No. 4, also arrived from another direction with two agents.

Seeing the chief arrive brought a glimmer of hope to Detective Albert's eyes. Luo An and the director Potante Byrne exchanged glances. As they were about to join Detective Albert, Mona and Reesi suddenly appeared.

Among them, Mona, holding a laptop, quickly ran up to Luo An and whispered:

"Luo An! I've found some information!"

Luo An exchanged a glance with the director Potante Byrne for a second, then halted and took the laptop Mona handed over.

At times like this, clues are the most important!

Detective Albert hurriedly approached the police chief, holding up the cellphone to brief the big boss about the situation:

"Chief, the situation is urgent, the demands of the robbers are..."

Meanwhile, Morton York, head of the Special Investigation Team No. 4, seeing Luo An and the other two already on the scene, frowned, not expecting them to have arrived earlier than him.

However, it was crucial to first understand the situation on the ground. Morton York was just about to walk over to the director's position when Luo An, suddenly holding the laptop, walked towards that location even faster than he had.