warrant on his mother. So how do you want to handle this?”
“We need to go in strong,” Mac said. “If our guy is in there, he could have some friends hanging around or even inside and they’ll be strapped. So a show of force, vested up, coming in heavy is the way to go.”
“Then that’s what we’ll do,” Younkers replied and he pulled out a map and spread it across the trunk of his Crown Victoria. “Lupo’s space is in the middle of this building,” he said, pointing to a building sitting at the bottom of a U-shaped office park. There was a two-lane street, small grass and sidewalk median and then parking lot in the front of the building with a narrow service driveway that wrapped its way around the back of the building. Younkers then pulled out another sheet that had the building’s interior layout. Lupo was in the middle of the three spaces for the building. The doctor’s office space was thirty feet wide by sixty feet deep. There was a front door and one on the back side. The internal layout that Younkers had was for the space’s previous tenant, which was a small machine shop. The front thirty feet of space was occupied by a small reception area and two interior offices, one on each side of the hallway leading to the back which was an open space, presumably what had been the machining area. “My guess, Detective McRyan, is that if he’s doing surgery in there, it’s in the back, as the front offices look a little small for what he’d likely need.”
Mac nodded as he soaked in the interior map.
“We have twelve people here,” Younkers said. “I’d say we go in with six in the front and six in the back.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
“You ready then?”
“Lead the way,” Mac answered.
Everyone geared up, pulling on their vests and making a quick check of their weapons. Mac let Younkers take the lead in an unmarked with another detective. Mac and Wire followed in his Yukon and the others fell in behind and the motorcade made its way over to Lupo’s office.
While Mac and Wire were driving down from Boone’s to the rendezvous point at the ice arena, the background on Lupo arrived on Mac’s phone. Wire read out the background as Mac drove. Lupo was a surgeon until he was fired for violating hospital policy in New York City to save a patient. That was six years ago. From that point forward, he maintained his medical license but was not part of a medical practice with a clinic or surgical facility.
“He didn’t even retain privileges anywhere?” Mac asked.
“Doesn’t look like it.”
It appeared from his history that it was after his firing that he discovered off-the-books doctoring and the concierge practice. Mac suspected that if they started digging into his financials they’d find the concierge work was reported for tax purposes and served as a cover for the off-the-books work, which may have well been more lucrative, especially if he was now charging six figures for surgical services. Presumably that kind of money would keep the gangbangers and dope dealers away and you’d only be dealing with discreet people with serious cash and no desire to be discovered.
Riley and Rockford were with the group going around the back and Younkers let them go on ahead into the industrial office park and work their way behind Lupo’s building. Once in position, Younkers did as planned and gunned it for the front door, pulling his Crown Vic right to the front door. Mac came in on Younkers’s left and Double Frank and Paddy to his right. The Eden Prairie detective walked right to the front door and started pounding. The door was tinted black. It was impossible to see inside and there was no interior light visible. After ten seconds there was no answer, then Younkers pounded on the door again and this time yelled, “Michael Lupo! This is the Eden Prairie Police Department, we have a search warrant!” Younkers knocked again and Mac shared a look with Wire. They’re inside getting ready for us. Mac pulled his Sig Sauer out of his holster.
Then the front door opened and Riley stuck his head out, “What’s new, guys?”
“What’s going on in there?” Younkers asked.
“The good doctor tried to evade you out the back where he fell into our loving arms,” Riles reported with a smile. “Rock has him in cuffs in back. So come on in.”