the great war, spencer reid [ 2 ]

066. twenty seven

"As you all know, this is the third machete attack in the streets of Washington D.C. in the last hour." Penelope says.

"We've been asked to form a joint taskforce with the Washington field office." Emily says. "They need a profile. It's our job to give it to them."

"What do we know so far?" Luke asks.

"There are 3 victims -- Charles O'Neill, Kary Karlsson, and Park Ji Sung." Penelope says. "First victim, Charles O'Neill, has already died from his injuries. The other two victims are at the hospital in critical condition."

"Witnesses described our attacker as an African-American male in his late 20s to early 30s." Emily says.

"It says here he was wearing a white bandana over the lower half of his face." Tara says. "That's curious considering he's taking no other precautions."

"Yeah, he's picked crowded city streets and heavily trafficked thoroughfares." Luke says. "This isn't exactly someone who's afraid of being seen."

"Maybe it functions as a mask, a costume, a way for our unsub to distance himself from his actions." Spencer says.

"Whatever the reason, I mean, it's all by design." Luke says. "This is somebody who wants to create a spectacle, maybe even send a message."

"What, you think he's gonna reach out to the media like the D.C. snipers?" Bedelia asks.

"Right now he's letting his actions do the talking." Spencer says.

"Let's talk about the machete." Luke says. "I mean, that's a brutal weapon. You got to get up close. It's messy."

"Well, from political uprisings to Jason Voorhees, the iconography is certainly vivid." Spencer says.

"Maybe that's his point?" Penelope suggests.

"But the anger involved in hacking a victim to death, it feels more personal than ideological." Luke says.

"Like this is some kind of vendetta." Bedelia says.

"We have a ticking clock, and 3 primary questions -- what does our unsub want, where is he headed next, and how is he selecting his victims?" Emily questions. "To that end, Reid, B, I need you two to work up a geo-profile. Luke, Tara, Penelope, you're on victimology. We have to figure out if these are victims of opportunity or if he's targeting them--" She stops for a moment. "Or if he's targeting them specifically. I gotta go." She hangs up.

+++

Emily walks into the tent and over to the Reid couple.

"From Noma to Trinidad to K Street." Spencer says. "In the broadcast of terms, our unsub is jumping from wealthy neighborhoods to poor neighborhoods, then back again."

"So he'd need transportation, something that would blend in regardless of the area, like a service van." Emily says.

"And given the time it would take to get from one neighborhood to the next, find his victims, plan his escape, et cetera, it's clear that he knows the city as only a local would." Spencer says.

"So he attacks, abducts, attacks, abducts, and so on." Emily says.

"Right now our best option is to set up a series of roadblocks. At the very least, we can disrupt his movements and maybe slow him down." Bedelia says.

"How are we on time?" Emily asks.

"8 minutes, 53 seconds." Spencer says.

"Coordinate with Metro P.D. Let's see if we can buy ourselves more time and get out in front of him." Emily says.