The X-Files

Just a routine background check.

Now, to the best of your knowledge, has Mr Wisnowski ever used any illegal drugs?

Which illegal drugs?

Yeah. In the time that you worked with Ms Ermentrout,

did you find her to be a trustworthy person?

Punctual, huh? Punctual... is good.

No. No, ma'am. This is just a routine background check.

Mr Garber is not in any legal trouble whatsoever.

Yeah. OK. Thanks for your time.

Maybe if we get lucky, next time they'll let us clean toilet bowls.

- Are you ready to quit? - No.

That would make way too many people way too happy.

Scully.

I'm on my way.

Called into Kersh's office. Just me.

JUSt you?

Don't forget your toilet brush!

No. No, ma'am, not you.

- Agent. - Sir.

Dana Scully, this is Agent Peyton Ritter with the Bureau's New York office.

- Agent Ritter. - Hi.

Show her what you have.

Our office is currently updating its case filing system.

While I was involved in this project,

scanning old crime-scene photographs into the computer, I came across this.

Margareta Stoller. Age: 57.

Cause of death: an overdose of nitraz...

Take a look at when they found her.

A neighbour called the police at 11:14pm.

Right. So, what's wrong with that picture?

The clock says that it's 45 minutes earlier. A clock can be wrong.

They certainly can. So I checked the Post from the following clay.

These are straight from their photo files.

Hmm. Almost an hour and a half later.

Two different negatives, same photographer.

The guy's name is Alfred Fellig.

He's rattled around Manhattan for years,

apparently a stringer for the wire services and an on-call guy for NYPD.

And you suspect this man Fellig? You think that Mrs Stoller wasn't a suicide?

This guy's into takin' pictures, right?

So I'mthinkin': what if he poisons this woman,

then snaps a few of her dead body,

then winds up back in the same apartment an hour later

after Midtown North calls him over to do the job?

That's quite a theory.

Yeah. The thing is, he might have done it on more than one occasion.

I've sifted through probably 2,000 of his police photos.

These three have measurable solar shadows.

- Since we know each location... - You know the time of day by the shadows.

Right. And with it, these three are looking every bit as hinky.

You have another suicide, a heart attack, and an obvious murder

for which another man was convicted.

There's no consistent MO.

There's no consistent anything.

I could sure use your help.

Agent, could you step outside, please?

Sure.

I'd say he has a promising career ahead of him.

So did you... at one time.

With your expertise in forensic pathology, you'd be an asset to this investigation.

It would be more challenging than running background checks.

Agent Mulder and I will begin immediately.

Agent Mulder's a lost cause. I'm taking the chance you're not.

It's you and Ritter.

Do not let me down.

- Mulder? - Hmm?

- What are you doing? - Bein' nosy.

Eatin' my heart out. You're going on an X-File.

- It's not an X-File. - That's not what I read.

Murder by telekinesis? Maybe a shamanistic "death touch"?

The Muslim superstition that to photograph someone is to steal their soul?

Thank you. All very helpful.

So they're splitting us up, huh?

No. This is a one-time thing.

Who told you that? If you do a good job, they won't stick you back here.

Right?

Agent Scully, we're all set.

Peyton Ritter, this is Fox Mulder.

- It's a pleasure to meet you, Fox. - Pleasure to meet you, Peyton.

- We should get going. - Off to New York.

Alfred Fellig. What can you tell us about him?

What's to tell? He's one of 10,000 people here who have a licence to piss people off.

He doubles as a crime-scene photographer for your precinct.

Yeah, he comes in, snaps the picture.

Keeps to himself.

There's not much personal information there.

There's not supposed to be. It's just a yearly renewal form.

Would you happen to know when the original background check was done?

Here he is again. Yearly renewal dating back to January 1970, but still no original.

I think I've got it.

1964.

Old-timer.

- Anything interesting? - Maybe.

- What are you doing? - Take a look at this.

1996...

'87... '85... '73...

The guy's a regular Dick Clark.

I don't know what to say.

Other than the fact that he's always been a geezer, this looks like a dead end.

Help! Help! Somebody call the police!

- What do you want? Are you crazy? - (car honking)

Please help me! Lady, please! Help me!

Man, what do you want from me, man?! Oh, man, no!

The prints are Alfred Fellig's.

Positive match - right off his 1964 background check.

I slipped them into the SAFIS database.

First thing this morning - boom - up they came.

You're thinking this is Fellig's work?

The wound measurements match with the knife.

- He got pretty sloppy in his old age. - What's this?

- A whole lot of blood. - Yeah, I got that.

- It's pretty clear he took a second victim. - Where's the second body?

- They found Fellig. - Where?

Home, watchin' TV. They're bringin' him in now.

Check, check...

January 4th, 11:36am.

15th Precinct, Manhattan.

Agents present: Dana Scully and Peyton Ritter.

- Initial interview with... - (door opens)

...Alfred Fellig.

Hello.

You're a photographer.

I've seen some of your work. You specialise in some pretty dark subject matter.

You're around death a lot. It must fascinate you.

Am I boring you, Mr Fellig?

Ask me a question already.

All right.

Why are you always Johnny-on-the-spot every time somebody dies?

You're always there to take the picture. How?

I have a... a nose for news.

Mr Fellig, your fingerprints were found on a murder weapon at a crime scene.

Could you give us a full accounting of your activities last night?

The Bronx. I was on a job.

I saw some jibone stealin' a kid's tennis shoes.

He chased me. Ran off.

He ran off?

Some unidentified murderer?

I guess I could identify him.

Your fingerprints were found on the knife.

- (grunts) - How did they get there?

He left the knife behind. I guess I touched it... briefly.

Why would you do that?

Were you injured, Mr Fellig?

You seem to be in pain.

Were you attacked?

We found other blood at the crime scene,

and, when we have it tested,

I'm wondering if we're gonna learn that it's yours.

- I got cut some. - May we see?

May I help you?

Hey.

Hey. Take Mr Fellig to get his blood drawn.

And photograph his back, too.

Hey, I'm confused. I thought we were tryin' to bust him, not look for reasons to let him go.

I thought we were looking for the truth.

- Scully. - Hi. My name is Fox Mulder.

We used to sit next to each other at the FBI.

How's your X-File 00min'?

Mulder, it's not...

We haven't made much headway.

We arrested Alfred Fellig, and we just released him.

- What about the stabbing? - How do you know about that?

I told ya, I'm nosy. Why are you lettin' him go?

We pulled another set of prints off of the knife.

They belong to a convicted murderer named Malcolm Wiggins.

And the fact that Fellig's blood was found at the crime scene tells me his story checks out.

At least, that particular story, anyway.

But you still think Fellig's a murderer?

I don't know what to think.

He's, uh...

unusual

As in, he plugs up like a cork when you stab him?

Where are you getting this stuff?

Ritter's been sending progress reports to Kersh.

My computer inadvertently intercepted a few.

He's got nice things to say about you, though... mostly.

Why don't you let me do a background check on Fellig?

- Mulder... - It's what I do now. I'm gettin' good at it.

I'm parked around the block.

Fellig's asleep. I haven't seen him move in over four hours.

Have a lovely evening.

Mr Fellig, open up, please.

Explain this.

What?

You took that photo an hour before police arrived.

You then covered up that fact by photographing the scene again.

I don't think I remember that one.