London Kills (2019) s01e01 Episode Script
The Politicians Son
1 Help me.
Help.
It certainly looks like a suicide.
Yeah, uniform aren't convinced.
I reckon they've got a point.
How come? Well, he didn't string himself up.
And I'm betting he didn't do that to his own face.
Sarge.
Rob.
And this is? Billie Fitzgerald.
Trainee detective constable.
I've just been transferred from CID.
Acting Detective Inspector Vivienne Cole.
Do me a favor.
Find out who discovered the body and get their account, yeah? So, definitely not a suicide? No doubt about it.
He's been murdered.
But why bother to make it look like he killed himself? I hear you found the body.
Can I get your name? Amber.
Amber Saunders.
Amber, can you tell me what happened? Yeah, um I was just cutting through the park, and and I caught sight of something in the trees, and he was just, um He was just hanging there and Sorry.
You've had a terrible shock.
Don't be.
I.
D.
? No phone, no wallet, nothing.
He is covered in dry blood, but there's no blood around him, which means he wasn't killed here.
He's been dragged through the undergrowth and then strung up with this.
Looks like a four-meter tow rope to me.
I'll need your details.
An address? Uh, yeah I I don't actually have an address.
You can find me at the homeless shelter in Charing Cross.
What about a mobile number? What I really need is for you to come in and make a statement.
Do you think you can manage that? Yeah.
Sometime this morning maybe? Sure.
- Tire tracks.
- Too wide for a car.
Something like a transit van? Right let's prioritize CCTV and AMPR on the roads around here.
Find the van, there's a good chance we'll find the killer.
It's quite something to hold a dead body up and suspend it from that branch.
It's hard work on your own.
Do you think we're looking for two people? It's a strong possibility.
You know, the staged suicide is absolute key.
The killer is saying, "Look at me.
"Look what I've done.
" Well, since we've got sod all to I.
D.
the victim, I'd better do a press appeal.
Thought you'd have heard.
- What's he doing here? - Who's that? Detective Inspector Bradford.
Isn't he on compassionate leave? Not anymore.
- Rob.
- Gov.
You sure you're ready for this? 100%.
Detective Inspector.
Is it "welcome back"? It is.
- When did you decide? - Called the super yesterday.
Who's this? Trainee Detective Constable Billie Fitzgerald.
- Sir.
- Pleased to meet you, Billie.
Right, Sergeant, what have we got? Oh! You nearly gave me a heart attack.
Tom's not answering his phone.
Well, he'll be snoring.
I don't know where he is.
I think we should phone his mum or the police.
What's Tom gonna say when he turns up? Right? He's gonna go mad.
I suppose.
Hey.
It's gonna be all right.
I wish I had your confidence.
Thanks for holding the fort.
No problem.
The missing persons inquiry.
Have they made any progress? Not that they've told me.
And you? What do you think? Well, I'm convinced she's alive.
Why wouldn't she call? I don't know.
Maybe she's not in her right mind.
So you think she had some sort of breakdown? Does that mean you you saw the signs before she went missing? It means I haven't given up hope.
What do you think? About the D.
I.
's wife.
I think she's dead.
Pick up.
Right, Rob.
Where are we at? The victim was covered in cuts, the fact that none of these cuts appear to be defensive wounds, plus the redness we've seen on his wrists indicate that he was bound at the wrists and then slashed repeatedly with a knife.
Now, the coroner suspects cause of death is heart attack rather than bleed-out.
So, in other words, the guy was terrified.
The killer or killers they wanted the body to be found.
The staged suicide gives it a kind of theatrical flourish.
Killers? Well, it's highly unlikely one person could have hauled the victim up on their own.
Right, let's just get back to basics, shall we? Any progress on an I.
D.
? Not yet.
All we've got is this very distinctive tattoo.
"My love will be yours always.
" Somebody must be missing him.
The body of a man in his 20s was found early this morning.
He was five feet, 10 inches tall, short blond hair, and blue eyes.
He also had a distinctive tattoo on his left upper arm.
If this description means anything to you, you think you might know this person, please contact the police immediately.
Yeah, police, please.
So who is he? Tom Pryce.
24 years old.
Runs his own tech start-up.
Something to do with bikes.
His fiancée hasn't spoken to him since yesterday morning.
He's the right height and coloring, and he's got a tattoo on his left upper arm.
His mother's an MP.
Kirsten Pryce.
- Do you want me to talk to her? - No.
Go and see the girlfriend.
Take Billie with you.
We need to be sure he's Kirsten Pryce's son before we talk to anyone else.
Boss.
If this lad's an MP's son I know.
It's a nightmare.
I'm Detective Sergeant Vivienne Cole, and this is Trainee Detective Constable Billie Fitzgerald.
Can I ask, when did you last see Tom? Yesterday morning when we were both leaving for work.
Um, I'd stayed the night.
You don't live here? Tom and I are engaged.
I live in Chiswick with my parents.
Did you sleep here last night? No, he'd arranged to meet a couple of old mates from uni.
Do you have contact details for Tom's mates? - Yeah, somewhere.
- Sorry, this is ridiculous.
I guarantee you Tom is just sleeping it off on someone's sofa.
Does he make a habit of staying out all night? No.
When was the last time you saw Tom? Same as Olivia.
Yesterday morning.
Olivia, can you describe Tom's tattoo to me? I can show you it.
Olivia, I'm so sorry, but I need to tell you that Tom's tattoo is identical to a tattoo on the body that was discovered this morning.
Are you sure it's Tom? We can't be sure until we've done forensic tests.
Let's make absolutely certain, hey? Before we do anything else.
Can Can we just stay here for a bit, 'cause, like, Olivia's still in shock? We need you both to tell us everything you can about Tom.
It's cool.
I'm fine.
What do you reckon about the flatmate? He really didn't want to come with us.
No, he didn't.
- The tattoos match.
- Right.
Until I've spoken to the mother, I need this totally locked down.
Got ya.
Inspector, I can't imagine what's so urgent that you would have me called out of committee.
The body of a young man was found early this morning.
We have reason to believe it was your son, Tom.
Reason to believe? We're waiting for a DNA match to be absolutely sure.
But you're sure enough to come here and tell me that my son is dead.
Yes.
How did it happen? The investigation is at the very early stage.
There are limits to what I can discuss.
What I mean, Inspector, is did Tom take his own life? No.
No, he didn't.
Why do you ask that? When Tom was 12 years old, his father hanged himself.
Tom came home from school and found his dad hanging from a tree in the back garden.
I'm sorry.
I didn't know.
We haven't had time to do background checks.
Your son didn't kill himself.
So he was murdered? Tom Pryce's father killed himself.
Tom found him hanging from a tree in the back garden when he was 12.
So that gives us a strong indication that the killer knew Tom, knew his background.
And that tells us what at this precise moment? Well, it helps us a build a profile of the person or persons that we're looking for.
Let's just stick to the nuts and bolts, shall we? What about tracing the van? Uniform patrol reported seeing a man driving a white van near the scene in the early hours.
He was using his phone.
They signaled for him to hang up, he complied, so they drove away.
Could be our killer.
With any luck, we'll find the van on CCTV.
Tom's phone? No sign of it, but his mobile provider are sending us over his data.
Right, I'll be downstairs doing the emotional appeal with the mother.
How did she take the news? Stoic, so far.
But I have a feeling that won't last.
Might take a while to sink in, the fact that somebody deliberately staged her son's suicide.
I decided to spare her that detail.
For now.
Is that wise? She's gonna find out.
Let her get used to losing her son first, before we fill her in on the full horror.
That woman has the right to know.
Tom Pryce's uni mate, Martin Tanner, hasn't heard from him in weeks.
But Tom goes out with Martin all the time, they saw each other last Saturday.
Not according to Martin.
How has Tom's state of mind been recently? Fine.
A bit stressed out running his own company and a bit wound up about the wedding.
Kind of distant, but fine.
Why would he lie to me? So, you last saw him yesterday morning when he was leaving for work? Yeah.
I had the day off, so I didn't go into the office.
So, what did you do? Just mooched around the flat.
All day? And all night.
So, you work for Tom, yeah? I work I work with Tom.
The app was my idea.
But it's Tom's company? He's the one with the trust fund.
If anyone has any information that could help this investigation, please contact the incident room as soon as possible.
Tom's a bright, popular lad.
I can't imagine why anyone would do this to him.
As his mother, I'm asking that if anyone has any information, to please, please come forward.
Thank you all very much.
It doesn't matter who I am.
They're not telling the truth.
He was hanging from a tree.
Can I see him? I can arrange that through the coroner's office, of course, but I need to warn you that your son has been severely disfigured.
You need to think about what your last memory will be.
Sorry.
Mrs.
Pryce, you're a public figure.
Have you been targeted on social media lately? No more than any other female MP.
What about in person? No, nothing I can think of.
You said your son came to see you yesterday at the office.
Was it just a social call? He just turned up out of the blue.
Did he make a habit of doing that? £700 went missing from petty cash.
And you think your son took it? I can't be sure, but there was something wrong with him, I know there was.
Tom's been acting weird for the last couple of months.
He's gone from workaholic to barely turning up at the office.
I think he's been cheating on Olivia.
Who with? I don't know but I've heard him lying to her about where he's going, like, who he's seeing.
But c-can I go? 'Cause I've told you everything I know, and I should really talk to the people at work.
I spoke to Tom's PA.
He told her he'd sacked Jamie.
- When did he tell her that? - Yesterday morning.
Interesting.
You know, he is really keen to get out of here.
What do you want to do? Let's find out what he's playing at.
What a surprise.
He's come straight home.
What you said, Sarge, about the D.
I.
's wife being dead No, ignore me.
I don't know anything.
That didn't take long.
In a hurry, Jamie? I thought you were going to the office.
Yeah, I'm on my way there now.
I'm going to caution you, Jamie, so that I can search you.
What? Jamie Bentham, I'm arresting you on suspicion of the murder of Tom Pryce.
This is mental.
You do not have to say anything Get after him! Right, get onto PolSA.
Let's search his flat.
Come on.
Tell us again what you did last night.
Uh, stayed in, watched telly.
We're looking at your phone, local CCTV.
If you left the flat, we'll find out.
I went to the pub.
- On your own? - With Tom.
- And? - And we had a drink.
We're gonna test the cash and the envelope for DNA.
Will we find a match to Tom? Did you steal the money from Tom? Right, he sacked me.
Told me I had to find somewhere else to live.
Why? I don't know.
Search me.
Right, he's been acting weird lately.
What was he doing with 700 quid in cash? I don't know.
Right, look, we're in the pub, he's gone to the loo.
I've seen the envelope sticking out his jacket, so I've had a look, seen the cash, and just stuffed it down my jeans.
Like, I figured he owed me.
Like, the app was my idea.
What happened next? Uh, he come back.
Uh, he went crazy.
Uh, started accusing me of taking it.
Which you denied? He was half-cut.
He didn't know if he was coming or going.
Okay, so you're in the pub, you had a fight.
What happened next? He left.
Well, do you know where he went? No.
He got in a white van and they drove off.
Whose van? Not a clue.
Have you seen him get into it before? - No.
- What make was it? I don't know.
Transit? Okay, Jamie, this is really important.
Did you see who was driving the van? No.
Sorry.
Why did Tom sack Jamie? They fell out.
Over what? Over money? The night before last, Tom Tom was out, and, um, I ended up drinking with Jamie.
And, um, he told me that Tom had been seeing seeing someone else.
They'd had a party, and I hadn't been there, and Jamie said Tom had been in his bedroom with some slapper.
When he told me, I was I was so hurt, so angry, so drunk I ended up in bed with Jamie.
Tom came home and he caught us, and he went crazy.
He told Jamie that he was sacked, and he told him he had to move out.
What happened then? I slept in the spare room, and in the morning Tom and I had a talk.
Was he still angry? No.
He was sweet.
He told me it was true that he'd had a girl in his room, but he swore they didn't sleep together.
He said his head had been all over the place and that he was gonna sort things out and get us back on track.
What did he mean by that? I wish I knew.
Excuse me a second.
Do you know where he is? You must know where he is.
No, no.
Come on, you're on duty.
I need to see the detective inspector right now! I'm Detective Sergeant Vivienne Cole.
Can I help? Can you explain this? Why would anyone do that? It's so cruel.
It's sick.
Your son was killed somewhere else.
What we found this morning was was window dressing.
Detective Sergeant.
A word.
Just give us a moment.
I told you I would speak with Kirsten Pryce, when I judged the moment was right! This is just like you, Vivienne.
You always know better than everyone else! Sir, you've got it wrong.
The sarge didn't tell Mrs.
Pryce about the fake suicide.
It's on the news.
It's all over the Internet.
I owe you an apology.
I would never go behind your back.
You don't think I should be here, do you? Well, since you ask, no.
Not while you don't know where your wife is.
Go home.
Look after your daughter.
Have you got any idea how hard this is? Waiting, day after day, hearing nothing? I need to be back at work.
Otherwise I'm gonna to go mad.
Well, this job isn't therapy.
You still have a duty to the public.
Thank you, Sergeant.
That'll be all.
Well done for talking Kirsten Pryce down off a ledge.
All in a days work.
Uh, any progress? Yeah, the search team have found cocaine, some pills, and what they think is a small amount of crystal meth in Tom's bedroom.
Well, well, well.
And the forensic pathologist found cocaine in both his nostrils.
So, what do we reckon? Using and dealing? Kirsten Pryce suspects Tom stole £700 from her office yesterday.
Well, his overdraft is huge, and his credit cards are maxed out.
Jamie reckons Tom's not been turning up for work, lying about where he's been going.
That's classic junkie behavior.
According to his fiancée, Tom said he was gonna sort everything out.
So maybe he stole the cash to pay off his drug debts.
Did Tom use drugs? Of course not.
We found drugs hidden in his bedroom and clear evidence that he used them in the hours before his death.
I mean, Tom could be moody but I never Do you take drugs, Olivia? Absolutely not.
Mm.
Do you recognize this bag? No.
We found it under the sofa at Tom's flat.
Are you sure it isn't yours? Totally.
The bag contained traces of a white powder, probably cocaine.
We're having it tested.
Well, go right ahead.
I mean, like I said, Tom and Jamie had a party.
Maybe somebody left it behind.
What do you think Tom had all that cash for? I don't know.
We're pretty sure that Tom was gonna pay off his drug debts.
But he couldn't pay them, could he? What, 'cause I took the cash? Is it my fault Tom's dead? Have you come to apologize? I was trying to spare you.
I need to ask Do you know if your son used drugs? I had my suspicions.
I even asked him, but he he denied it.
Is that why he stole the cash? To buy drugs? We think he was trying to pay off his debts, get himself clean.
Why didn't he just tell me he needed the money? Because he didn't want you to know he had a problem.
Sometimes the people closest to us are crying out for help, and we can't see it.
You're Y It's been bothering me all day.
You're that policeman.
The one whose wife is missing.
So we have something in common.
Sarah isn't dead.
You know that for a fact? She's missing.
The possibility that we might find her It's all I've got.
I envy you that.
We found the van.
Finally.
Yeah, CCTV near the pub gave us an index.
And AMPR have just picked it up near Whitechapel.
You coming? Get him out of there! Quick! - Control? - Go ahead.
This is D.
S.
Cole.
We need an ambulance urgent assistance.
Unconscious male.
It's a suicide note.
It says he killed Tom Pryce.
Let's pray he pulls through so we can do him for murder.
Who is he? Perry Evans, ex-army, nightclub doorman.
Convicted in 2015.
Served six months for dealing Class A drugs.
So Tom must have been intending to pay Evans off.
Can't imagine a guy like that would be happy if Tom turned up empty-handed.
I don't buy it.
Why not? Perry Evans is a petty criminal.
He's a low-level drug dealer and hired muscle.
This murder is complex.
It's creative, vindictive.
I mean, why would someone like Perry Evans go to all that trouble over a 700-quid drug debt? It doesn't compute.
Any news? According to the doctors, it's touch and go.
I found Tom's number in Perry's phone.
They spoke three times yesterday.
The last time was at 20 past 8:00 in the evening.
Setting up a meet outside the pub, presumably.
But there's something else.
Perry was on the phone 10 minutes before we found him, and he was calling the same number when uniformed patrol spotted him in the early hours.
Who was he talking to? Unregistered mobile.
Yeah? Great.
Yeah, I'll be right down.
The girl who found the body has finally turned up to make a statement.
Will I have to go to court? I mean, what if the killer targets me? We've got someone in custody.
You've caught them already? Take it from me You're not in any danger.
That's easy for you to say.
You've got a nice safe place to live.
Where are you gonna sleep tonight? How much do you need? No, I couldn't.
What, 20 quid? Can you make it 40? Yeah.
Thanks.
I-I'll pay you back.
No, I will.
If only 'cause it gives me a chance to see you again.
Cheers, mate.
Bye.
- Shift yourself.
- What's going on? They found an overlapping cell site on Perry's phone and Tom's phone.
They were both at some old railway arch in Clapham last night around 10:00.
- Think it's the murder site? - I'd put money on it.
Come here.
It's open.
Is that blood? I reckon so.
Okay, good work.
Rob's found the murder scene.
I-I'll stay here in case Perry wakes up.
Okay.
There's blood on the floor as well as the walls.
We're pretty sure he was tied to that chair.
Any proof that Perry Evans was here? Not yet.
Right.
Fingers crossed for CCTV, then.
He wants to talk to me.
Hello, Perry.
What you said in your note about Tom Pryce.
You said you killed him.
Is it true? Is it? I was lying.
SOCO have found significant blood evidence in Perry Evans' van.
It's been fast-tracked to the lab to see if it's Tom's.
If it is, then Then we've got our man.
David Bradford.
I'm sorry to hear that.
Yes, it is a very serious breach of protocol.
Yeah, I'll be sure to speak to her when she gets back.
Thank you for letting me know.
The hospital couldn't have been clearer No contact with the suspect until they gave the go-ahead.
But he beckoned me in to him.
I just took the opportunity to get his dying declaration.
Did you read him his rights? I didn't get time.
Then anything he's said is inadmissible.
Well, it's of interest, though.
We can't just exclude it from the inquiry.
Evans told me that he did not kill Tom Pryce.
Rob, can you come in and talk us through the evidence against Perry Evans, please? We have CCTV of Perry Evans' van going to and from the railway arch.
In this still, you can see clearly that Evans is the driver and Tom Pryce is in the passenger seat.
Being driven to his death.
According to the lab, blood evidence in the van matches Tom Pryce.
Well, I'm not saying that Evans isn't involved, but he he's a foot soldier.
He's not the ringleader.
That is pure speculation.
Okay, what about the unregistered mobile he keeps calling? - Who does that belong to? - I don't know.
You tell me.
And according to Rob, Evans would have struggled to string the dead weight of Tom Pryce's body up that tree.
I said it would be hard.
I didn't say it would be impossible.
Look, how come you're so certain that Evans didn't do this? Because he told me at the hospital.
- What, under caution? - No.
Thanks, Rob.
You are deliberately undermining me.
You're undermining yourself.
The lab have matched Perry Evans' DNA to the DNA found on Tom Pryce's body.
I just spoke to the hospital.
The consultants have been in and said Evans will pull through.
Let's prepare a file for the CPS.
Recommend they charge Perry Evans with murder.
He's making a mistake.
At the very least, Perry Evans has an accomplice.
It's a compelling theory, Sarge, but what you don't have is any actual evidence.
D.
C.
Brady.
Why won't the detective inspector listen to you? This is all about his wife.
You know, the truth is he made her life a misery.
I've got to show you something.
What should I do? Leave it with me.
I'll tell the detective inspector when the time is right.
I need to know who this man is and why he killed Tom.
His name's Perry Evans.
He's 31.
Ex-army.
Tom owed him money for drugs.
He murdered him over a drugs debt? That's how it's looking.
Why hang Tom's body from a tree? We haven't had a chance to talk to Evans yet.
He's in intensive care.
He was attempting to kill himself when we found him.
When he's fit, he'll be tried and punished for what he's done.
Right.
We're off to the pub.
Double celebration.
Case closed, and the detective inspector back where he belongs.
No excuses.
Yeah, I'll be over in a bit.
I-I've just got something I need to take care of.
- So how was the first day? - Eventful.
The sarge is amazing.
Yeah, she's a great detective, but watch your step.
The only person Vivienne cares about is herself.
I know I've been critical of the police in the past, but they've done a first-class job in tracking down my son's killer.
I hope you're coming for a drink.
First round's on me.
There's something you need to see first.
What's this? Do you recognize it? Looks vaguely familiar.
It was found under the sofa in Tom Pryce's flat.
So we've got a new lead? Yeah, but not in the Pryce case.
DNA evidence taken from inside the bag leads us to believe that it belonged to your wife.
It's Sarah's bag.
The question is, how did it end up at Tom Pryce's flat?
Help.
It certainly looks like a suicide.
Yeah, uniform aren't convinced.
I reckon they've got a point.
How come? Well, he didn't string himself up.
And I'm betting he didn't do that to his own face.
Sarge.
Rob.
And this is? Billie Fitzgerald.
Trainee detective constable.
I've just been transferred from CID.
Acting Detective Inspector Vivienne Cole.
Do me a favor.
Find out who discovered the body and get their account, yeah? So, definitely not a suicide? No doubt about it.
He's been murdered.
But why bother to make it look like he killed himself? I hear you found the body.
Can I get your name? Amber.
Amber Saunders.
Amber, can you tell me what happened? Yeah, um I was just cutting through the park, and and I caught sight of something in the trees, and he was just, um He was just hanging there and Sorry.
You've had a terrible shock.
Don't be.
I.
D.
? No phone, no wallet, nothing.
He is covered in dry blood, but there's no blood around him, which means he wasn't killed here.
He's been dragged through the undergrowth and then strung up with this.
Looks like a four-meter tow rope to me.
I'll need your details.
An address? Uh, yeah I I don't actually have an address.
You can find me at the homeless shelter in Charing Cross.
What about a mobile number? What I really need is for you to come in and make a statement.
Do you think you can manage that? Yeah.
Sometime this morning maybe? Sure.
- Tire tracks.
- Too wide for a car.
Something like a transit van? Right let's prioritize CCTV and AMPR on the roads around here.
Find the van, there's a good chance we'll find the killer.
It's quite something to hold a dead body up and suspend it from that branch.
It's hard work on your own.
Do you think we're looking for two people? It's a strong possibility.
You know, the staged suicide is absolute key.
The killer is saying, "Look at me.
"Look what I've done.
" Well, since we've got sod all to I.
D.
the victim, I'd better do a press appeal.
Thought you'd have heard.
- What's he doing here? - Who's that? Detective Inspector Bradford.
Isn't he on compassionate leave? Not anymore.
- Rob.
- Gov.
You sure you're ready for this? 100%.
Detective Inspector.
Is it "welcome back"? It is.
- When did you decide? - Called the super yesterday.
Who's this? Trainee Detective Constable Billie Fitzgerald.
- Sir.
- Pleased to meet you, Billie.
Right, Sergeant, what have we got? Oh! You nearly gave me a heart attack.
Tom's not answering his phone.
Well, he'll be snoring.
I don't know where he is.
I think we should phone his mum or the police.
What's Tom gonna say when he turns up? Right? He's gonna go mad.
I suppose.
Hey.
It's gonna be all right.
I wish I had your confidence.
Thanks for holding the fort.
No problem.
The missing persons inquiry.
Have they made any progress? Not that they've told me.
And you? What do you think? Well, I'm convinced she's alive.
Why wouldn't she call? I don't know.
Maybe she's not in her right mind.
So you think she had some sort of breakdown? Does that mean you you saw the signs before she went missing? It means I haven't given up hope.
What do you think? About the D.
I.
's wife.
I think she's dead.
Pick up.
Right, Rob.
Where are we at? The victim was covered in cuts, the fact that none of these cuts appear to be defensive wounds, plus the redness we've seen on his wrists indicate that he was bound at the wrists and then slashed repeatedly with a knife.
Now, the coroner suspects cause of death is heart attack rather than bleed-out.
So, in other words, the guy was terrified.
The killer or killers they wanted the body to be found.
The staged suicide gives it a kind of theatrical flourish.
Killers? Well, it's highly unlikely one person could have hauled the victim up on their own.
Right, let's just get back to basics, shall we? Any progress on an I.
D.
? Not yet.
All we've got is this very distinctive tattoo.
"My love will be yours always.
" Somebody must be missing him.
The body of a man in his 20s was found early this morning.
He was five feet, 10 inches tall, short blond hair, and blue eyes.
He also had a distinctive tattoo on his left upper arm.
If this description means anything to you, you think you might know this person, please contact the police immediately.
Yeah, police, please.
So who is he? Tom Pryce.
24 years old.
Runs his own tech start-up.
Something to do with bikes.
His fiancée hasn't spoken to him since yesterday morning.
He's the right height and coloring, and he's got a tattoo on his left upper arm.
His mother's an MP.
Kirsten Pryce.
- Do you want me to talk to her? - No.
Go and see the girlfriend.
Take Billie with you.
We need to be sure he's Kirsten Pryce's son before we talk to anyone else.
Boss.
If this lad's an MP's son I know.
It's a nightmare.
I'm Detective Sergeant Vivienne Cole, and this is Trainee Detective Constable Billie Fitzgerald.
Can I ask, when did you last see Tom? Yesterday morning when we were both leaving for work.
Um, I'd stayed the night.
You don't live here? Tom and I are engaged.
I live in Chiswick with my parents.
Did you sleep here last night? No, he'd arranged to meet a couple of old mates from uni.
Do you have contact details for Tom's mates? - Yeah, somewhere.
- Sorry, this is ridiculous.
I guarantee you Tom is just sleeping it off on someone's sofa.
Does he make a habit of staying out all night? No.
When was the last time you saw Tom? Same as Olivia.
Yesterday morning.
Olivia, can you describe Tom's tattoo to me? I can show you it.
Olivia, I'm so sorry, but I need to tell you that Tom's tattoo is identical to a tattoo on the body that was discovered this morning.
Are you sure it's Tom? We can't be sure until we've done forensic tests.
Let's make absolutely certain, hey? Before we do anything else.
Can Can we just stay here for a bit, 'cause, like, Olivia's still in shock? We need you both to tell us everything you can about Tom.
It's cool.
I'm fine.
What do you reckon about the flatmate? He really didn't want to come with us.
No, he didn't.
- The tattoos match.
- Right.
Until I've spoken to the mother, I need this totally locked down.
Got ya.
Inspector, I can't imagine what's so urgent that you would have me called out of committee.
The body of a young man was found early this morning.
We have reason to believe it was your son, Tom.
Reason to believe? We're waiting for a DNA match to be absolutely sure.
But you're sure enough to come here and tell me that my son is dead.
Yes.
How did it happen? The investigation is at the very early stage.
There are limits to what I can discuss.
What I mean, Inspector, is did Tom take his own life? No.
No, he didn't.
Why do you ask that? When Tom was 12 years old, his father hanged himself.
Tom came home from school and found his dad hanging from a tree in the back garden.
I'm sorry.
I didn't know.
We haven't had time to do background checks.
Your son didn't kill himself.
So he was murdered? Tom Pryce's father killed himself.
Tom found him hanging from a tree in the back garden when he was 12.
So that gives us a strong indication that the killer knew Tom, knew his background.
And that tells us what at this precise moment? Well, it helps us a build a profile of the person or persons that we're looking for.
Let's just stick to the nuts and bolts, shall we? What about tracing the van? Uniform patrol reported seeing a man driving a white van near the scene in the early hours.
He was using his phone.
They signaled for him to hang up, he complied, so they drove away.
Could be our killer.
With any luck, we'll find the van on CCTV.
Tom's phone? No sign of it, but his mobile provider are sending us over his data.
Right, I'll be downstairs doing the emotional appeal with the mother.
How did she take the news? Stoic, so far.
But I have a feeling that won't last.
Might take a while to sink in, the fact that somebody deliberately staged her son's suicide.
I decided to spare her that detail.
For now.
Is that wise? She's gonna find out.
Let her get used to losing her son first, before we fill her in on the full horror.
That woman has the right to know.
Tom Pryce's uni mate, Martin Tanner, hasn't heard from him in weeks.
But Tom goes out with Martin all the time, they saw each other last Saturday.
Not according to Martin.
How has Tom's state of mind been recently? Fine.
A bit stressed out running his own company and a bit wound up about the wedding.
Kind of distant, but fine.
Why would he lie to me? So, you last saw him yesterday morning when he was leaving for work? Yeah.
I had the day off, so I didn't go into the office.
So, what did you do? Just mooched around the flat.
All day? And all night.
So, you work for Tom, yeah? I work I work with Tom.
The app was my idea.
But it's Tom's company? He's the one with the trust fund.
If anyone has any information that could help this investigation, please contact the incident room as soon as possible.
Tom's a bright, popular lad.
I can't imagine why anyone would do this to him.
As his mother, I'm asking that if anyone has any information, to please, please come forward.
Thank you all very much.
It doesn't matter who I am.
They're not telling the truth.
He was hanging from a tree.
Can I see him? I can arrange that through the coroner's office, of course, but I need to warn you that your son has been severely disfigured.
You need to think about what your last memory will be.
Sorry.
Mrs.
Pryce, you're a public figure.
Have you been targeted on social media lately? No more than any other female MP.
What about in person? No, nothing I can think of.
You said your son came to see you yesterday at the office.
Was it just a social call? He just turned up out of the blue.
Did he make a habit of doing that? £700 went missing from petty cash.
And you think your son took it? I can't be sure, but there was something wrong with him, I know there was.
Tom's been acting weird for the last couple of months.
He's gone from workaholic to barely turning up at the office.
I think he's been cheating on Olivia.
Who with? I don't know but I've heard him lying to her about where he's going, like, who he's seeing.
But c-can I go? 'Cause I've told you everything I know, and I should really talk to the people at work.
I spoke to Tom's PA.
He told her he'd sacked Jamie.
- When did he tell her that? - Yesterday morning.
Interesting.
You know, he is really keen to get out of here.
What do you want to do? Let's find out what he's playing at.
What a surprise.
He's come straight home.
What you said, Sarge, about the D.
I.
's wife being dead No, ignore me.
I don't know anything.
That didn't take long.
In a hurry, Jamie? I thought you were going to the office.
Yeah, I'm on my way there now.
I'm going to caution you, Jamie, so that I can search you.
What? Jamie Bentham, I'm arresting you on suspicion of the murder of Tom Pryce.
This is mental.
You do not have to say anything Get after him! Right, get onto PolSA.
Let's search his flat.
Come on.
Tell us again what you did last night.
Uh, stayed in, watched telly.
We're looking at your phone, local CCTV.
If you left the flat, we'll find out.
I went to the pub.
- On your own? - With Tom.
- And? - And we had a drink.
We're gonna test the cash and the envelope for DNA.
Will we find a match to Tom? Did you steal the money from Tom? Right, he sacked me.
Told me I had to find somewhere else to live.
Why? I don't know.
Search me.
Right, he's been acting weird lately.
What was he doing with 700 quid in cash? I don't know.
Right, look, we're in the pub, he's gone to the loo.
I've seen the envelope sticking out his jacket, so I've had a look, seen the cash, and just stuffed it down my jeans.
Like, I figured he owed me.
Like, the app was my idea.
What happened next? Uh, he come back.
Uh, he went crazy.
Uh, started accusing me of taking it.
Which you denied? He was half-cut.
He didn't know if he was coming or going.
Okay, so you're in the pub, you had a fight.
What happened next? He left.
Well, do you know where he went? No.
He got in a white van and they drove off.
Whose van? Not a clue.
Have you seen him get into it before? - No.
- What make was it? I don't know.
Transit? Okay, Jamie, this is really important.
Did you see who was driving the van? No.
Sorry.
Why did Tom sack Jamie? They fell out.
Over what? Over money? The night before last, Tom Tom was out, and, um, I ended up drinking with Jamie.
And, um, he told me that Tom had been seeing seeing someone else.
They'd had a party, and I hadn't been there, and Jamie said Tom had been in his bedroom with some slapper.
When he told me, I was I was so hurt, so angry, so drunk I ended up in bed with Jamie.
Tom came home and he caught us, and he went crazy.
He told Jamie that he was sacked, and he told him he had to move out.
What happened then? I slept in the spare room, and in the morning Tom and I had a talk.
Was he still angry? No.
He was sweet.
He told me it was true that he'd had a girl in his room, but he swore they didn't sleep together.
He said his head had been all over the place and that he was gonna sort things out and get us back on track.
What did he mean by that? I wish I knew.
Excuse me a second.
Do you know where he is? You must know where he is.
No, no.
Come on, you're on duty.
I need to see the detective inspector right now! I'm Detective Sergeant Vivienne Cole.
Can I help? Can you explain this? Why would anyone do that? It's so cruel.
It's sick.
Your son was killed somewhere else.
What we found this morning was was window dressing.
Detective Sergeant.
A word.
Just give us a moment.
I told you I would speak with Kirsten Pryce, when I judged the moment was right! This is just like you, Vivienne.
You always know better than everyone else! Sir, you've got it wrong.
The sarge didn't tell Mrs.
Pryce about the fake suicide.
It's on the news.
It's all over the Internet.
I owe you an apology.
I would never go behind your back.
You don't think I should be here, do you? Well, since you ask, no.
Not while you don't know where your wife is.
Go home.
Look after your daughter.
Have you got any idea how hard this is? Waiting, day after day, hearing nothing? I need to be back at work.
Otherwise I'm gonna to go mad.
Well, this job isn't therapy.
You still have a duty to the public.
Thank you, Sergeant.
That'll be all.
Well done for talking Kirsten Pryce down off a ledge.
All in a days work.
Uh, any progress? Yeah, the search team have found cocaine, some pills, and what they think is a small amount of crystal meth in Tom's bedroom.
Well, well, well.
And the forensic pathologist found cocaine in both his nostrils.
So, what do we reckon? Using and dealing? Kirsten Pryce suspects Tom stole £700 from her office yesterday.
Well, his overdraft is huge, and his credit cards are maxed out.
Jamie reckons Tom's not been turning up for work, lying about where he's been going.
That's classic junkie behavior.
According to his fiancée, Tom said he was gonna sort everything out.
So maybe he stole the cash to pay off his drug debts.
Did Tom use drugs? Of course not.
We found drugs hidden in his bedroom and clear evidence that he used them in the hours before his death.
I mean, Tom could be moody but I never Do you take drugs, Olivia? Absolutely not.
Mm.
Do you recognize this bag? No.
We found it under the sofa at Tom's flat.
Are you sure it isn't yours? Totally.
The bag contained traces of a white powder, probably cocaine.
We're having it tested.
Well, go right ahead.
I mean, like I said, Tom and Jamie had a party.
Maybe somebody left it behind.
What do you think Tom had all that cash for? I don't know.
We're pretty sure that Tom was gonna pay off his drug debts.
But he couldn't pay them, could he? What, 'cause I took the cash? Is it my fault Tom's dead? Have you come to apologize? I was trying to spare you.
I need to ask Do you know if your son used drugs? I had my suspicions.
I even asked him, but he he denied it.
Is that why he stole the cash? To buy drugs? We think he was trying to pay off his debts, get himself clean.
Why didn't he just tell me he needed the money? Because he didn't want you to know he had a problem.
Sometimes the people closest to us are crying out for help, and we can't see it.
You're Y It's been bothering me all day.
You're that policeman.
The one whose wife is missing.
So we have something in common.
Sarah isn't dead.
You know that for a fact? She's missing.
The possibility that we might find her It's all I've got.
I envy you that.
We found the van.
Finally.
Yeah, CCTV near the pub gave us an index.
And AMPR have just picked it up near Whitechapel.
You coming? Get him out of there! Quick! - Control? - Go ahead.
This is D.
S.
Cole.
We need an ambulance urgent assistance.
Unconscious male.
It's a suicide note.
It says he killed Tom Pryce.
Let's pray he pulls through so we can do him for murder.
Who is he? Perry Evans, ex-army, nightclub doorman.
Convicted in 2015.
Served six months for dealing Class A drugs.
So Tom must have been intending to pay Evans off.
Can't imagine a guy like that would be happy if Tom turned up empty-handed.
I don't buy it.
Why not? Perry Evans is a petty criminal.
He's a low-level drug dealer and hired muscle.
This murder is complex.
It's creative, vindictive.
I mean, why would someone like Perry Evans go to all that trouble over a 700-quid drug debt? It doesn't compute.
Any news? According to the doctors, it's touch and go.
I found Tom's number in Perry's phone.
They spoke three times yesterday.
The last time was at 20 past 8:00 in the evening.
Setting up a meet outside the pub, presumably.
But there's something else.
Perry was on the phone 10 minutes before we found him, and he was calling the same number when uniformed patrol spotted him in the early hours.
Who was he talking to? Unregistered mobile.
Yeah? Great.
Yeah, I'll be right down.
The girl who found the body has finally turned up to make a statement.
Will I have to go to court? I mean, what if the killer targets me? We've got someone in custody.
You've caught them already? Take it from me You're not in any danger.
That's easy for you to say.
You've got a nice safe place to live.
Where are you gonna sleep tonight? How much do you need? No, I couldn't.
What, 20 quid? Can you make it 40? Yeah.
Thanks.
I-I'll pay you back.
No, I will.
If only 'cause it gives me a chance to see you again.
Cheers, mate.
Bye.
- Shift yourself.
- What's going on? They found an overlapping cell site on Perry's phone and Tom's phone.
They were both at some old railway arch in Clapham last night around 10:00.
- Think it's the murder site? - I'd put money on it.
Come here.
It's open.
Is that blood? I reckon so.
Okay, good work.
Rob's found the murder scene.
I-I'll stay here in case Perry wakes up.
Okay.
There's blood on the floor as well as the walls.
We're pretty sure he was tied to that chair.
Any proof that Perry Evans was here? Not yet.
Right.
Fingers crossed for CCTV, then.
He wants to talk to me.
Hello, Perry.
What you said in your note about Tom Pryce.
You said you killed him.
Is it true? Is it? I was lying.
SOCO have found significant blood evidence in Perry Evans' van.
It's been fast-tracked to the lab to see if it's Tom's.
If it is, then Then we've got our man.
David Bradford.
I'm sorry to hear that.
Yes, it is a very serious breach of protocol.
Yeah, I'll be sure to speak to her when she gets back.
Thank you for letting me know.
The hospital couldn't have been clearer No contact with the suspect until they gave the go-ahead.
But he beckoned me in to him.
I just took the opportunity to get his dying declaration.
Did you read him his rights? I didn't get time.
Then anything he's said is inadmissible.
Well, it's of interest, though.
We can't just exclude it from the inquiry.
Evans told me that he did not kill Tom Pryce.
Rob, can you come in and talk us through the evidence against Perry Evans, please? We have CCTV of Perry Evans' van going to and from the railway arch.
In this still, you can see clearly that Evans is the driver and Tom Pryce is in the passenger seat.
Being driven to his death.
According to the lab, blood evidence in the van matches Tom Pryce.
Well, I'm not saying that Evans isn't involved, but he he's a foot soldier.
He's not the ringleader.
That is pure speculation.
Okay, what about the unregistered mobile he keeps calling? - Who does that belong to? - I don't know.
You tell me.
And according to Rob, Evans would have struggled to string the dead weight of Tom Pryce's body up that tree.
I said it would be hard.
I didn't say it would be impossible.
Look, how come you're so certain that Evans didn't do this? Because he told me at the hospital.
- What, under caution? - No.
Thanks, Rob.
You are deliberately undermining me.
You're undermining yourself.
The lab have matched Perry Evans' DNA to the DNA found on Tom Pryce's body.
I just spoke to the hospital.
The consultants have been in and said Evans will pull through.
Let's prepare a file for the CPS.
Recommend they charge Perry Evans with murder.
He's making a mistake.
At the very least, Perry Evans has an accomplice.
It's a compelling theory, Sarge, but what you don't have is any actual evidence.
D.
C.
Brady.
Why won't the detective inspector listen to you? This is all about his wife.
You know, the truth is he made her life a misery.
I've got to show you something.
What should I do? Leave it with me.
I'll tell the detective inspector when the time is right.
I need to know who this man is and why he killed Tom.
His name's Perry Evans.
He's 31.
Ex-army.
Tom owed him money for drugs.
He murdered him over a drugs debt? That's how it's looking.
Why hang Tom's body from a tree? We haven't had a chance to talk to Evans yet.
He's in intensive care.
He was attempting to kill himself when we found him.
When he's fit, he'll be tried and punished for what he's done.
Right.
We're off to the pub.
Double celebration.
Case closed, and the detective inspector back where he belongs.
No excuses.
Yeah, I'll be over in a bit.
I-I've just got something I need to take care of.
- So how was the first day? - Eventful.
The sarge is amazing.
Yeah, she's a great detective, but watch your step.
The only person Vivienne cares about is herself.
I know I've been critical of the police in the past, but they've done a first-class job in tracking down my son's killer.
I hope you're coming for a drink.
First round's on me.
There's something you need to see first.
What's this? Do you recognize it? Looks vaguely familiar.
It was found under the sofa in Tom Pryce's flat.
So we've got a new lead? Yeah, but not in the Pryce case.
DNA evidence taken from inside the bag leads us to believe that it belonged to your wife.
It's Sarah's bag.
The question is, how did it end up at Tom Pryce's flat?