596: 'Running Scared'

Out on patrol with Sergeant Nikki Wright, PC Roger Valentine’s mood turns sour when the coffee he has just bought is splashed all over him as a speeding cyclist whizzes past. Roger jumps in the patrol car, determined not to let the cyclist get away, but Nikki forces him to quickly pull over when she sees young boy, Alfie Eagan who has been badly beaten.

After Alfie is taken to hospital, Nikki visits his mother, Frances, who has just discovered her house has been broken into. Stunned to hear about her son, she tells Nikki that they’ve recently had trouble from loan shark, Jason Dawes, after her estranged husband Carl ran up huge debts with him. Suspicions arise further when they realise no one seems to know where Carl is.

As the case continues, DCs Jo Masters and Stevie Moss question local homeless man Sammo Taylor about Lucas Walsh, another suspect in the case. Sammo explains that Lucas and Carl are both drug dealers and have started a turf war.

Later, officers are shocked when they break into Carl’s house and discover his body. Nikki realises that Alfie knows far more then he’s letting on and after breaking the news to him about his dad, she interviews him again. Alfie finally confesses to knowing the true identity of the murderer, but is protecting them. Can the sergeant persuade him to reveal the truth?