Crime Library: Criminal Minds and Methods

"Maternal Instinct"

Friends in Low Places

Diana Hironaga was 40-year-old former performer in the porn industry who'd worked under the name Kiane Lee. When Moseley met her in the bar at the Hilton, Hironaga was working as a prostitute, trolling the video poker and slot machines for johns. She bought Moseley's international-man-of-mystery story hook, line, and sinker. She was especially impressed when he recruited her to help him execute Operation Dean and gave her $5,000 in cash from his "operational budget."

Her mission if she chose to accept it was to befriend Pati Margello and convince her to break up with Dean and leave Las Vegas. There was talk that if she helped Moseley pull this off, she might end up working for the CIA. Although Hironaga eagerly accepted the mission, she didn't get any further with Dean's girlfriend than Moseley had. Pati just wouldn't go away.

So Moseley decided to kill her.

Hironaga knew exactly whom to call. A pair of low-rent thugs, Ricardo Murillo, 37, and 25-year-old Joseph Balignasa, would do the job. Murillo was Hironaga's boyfriend and a convicted drug dealer. Balignasa was an unemployed dishwasher.

Moseley put Diana in charge of what he called "step five" of Operation Dean the murder of Pati Margello and flew back to Delaware. The master secret agent wanted as much distance as possible between him and the scene of the crime.

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