Chief Marquez sends Frank and the player to investigate a freight train that crashed against a truck left on the tracks, derailing it. Once in the scene, they find the severed head of Manny Sanchez, the truck driver, impaled on a spit.
Tropes:
- Academic Athlete: Tiffany used to be a great athlete and grade A student before an accident took her parents away and she became a drug addict.
- Addled Addict: Tiffany Dunn, a meth addict who looks absolutely wrecked and even fell in love with the victim just because he gave her drugs. Fortunately, you convince her to turn her life around in the Additional Investigation by joining a rehab center.
- Agent Scully: Downplayed. Despite thinking that Spangler is playing a prank on the Police Department with his alien story, Chief Marquez can't help but also believe it has something to do with the supposed alien she meet when she was a child.
- Astonishingly Appropriate Interruption: Colonel Spangler interrupts Frank when the latter suggests making a call to discover why the train was derailed.Frank: Good point, <Player's Name>. We still don't know why Manny's truck was left on the train tracks. Maybe we should call-Colonel Spangler: Hold it. No phone calls will be necessary, <Player's Name>. I'll tell you everything.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: Tiffany fell in love with Manny and even married him because he was the first person that treated her with love... by giving her meth.
- Blackmail: Manny tried to blackmail his sister Rosa (who is a legal Mexican immigrant) into working for him with his drug-dealing business because he had sent money to her. For this reason, Rosa filled an illegal immigrant report against him.
- Call-Back: Colonel Spangler reappears as a suspect.
- Classified Information: During the main investigation, Colonel Spangler refuses to tell you why he made the train crash, though he agrees to tell you during the Additional Investigation.
- Cliffhanger: The case ends with Hannah informing that Spangler left you a message, telling you to go to the Pacific Area Space Agency's launch pad if you want more answers about the alien he supposedly freed.
- Crying Wolf: Chief Marquez is incapable of believing Colonel Spangler ordered the train to be derailed so he could help an alien escape, as he's known for lying to protect his secrets (e.g. the Weather-Control Machine of Jazz Town).
- Curse Cut Short: The player interrupts Frank before he can insult Russell.Frank: Don't get smart with me, blondie. <Player's Name> and I are working all day while you're sitting around on your-What, <Player's Name>? I'm not bickering!
- Dead Guy on Display: The killer left the victim's head impaled on a spit as a warning to other "outsiders" about coming to the United States.
- Drugs Are Bad: One of this case's themes. The victim was a drug trafficker which got him killed by a racist border patrol because of it, and Tiffany had her life wrecked after becoming a meth addict despite having a promising future ahead of her. Fortunately for the latter, you convince her to join a rehab center.
- Gratuitous Spanish: One of the killer's traits is that they speak Spanish, which Russell deduces after you find a threatening message left by them in said language. As such, you hear many of your suspects speak in Spanish.
- The Illegal: The victim was an illegal immigrant from Mexico who tricked the border patrol on letting him through. When said border patrol found out he was an illegal who was making drugs, he killed him.
- Is This a Joke?: Chief Marquez' reaction when Colonel Spangler tells you that the reason why he derailed the train was to help an alien escape.Colonel Spangler: Listen carefully, I'm only going to say this once: there WAS an alien on that train and I DID help him escape!Chief Marquez: An alien on the train? That's very funny Spangler, but the joke is wearing thin.
- It's All My Fault: Tiffany became a drug addict because her parents were killed during a car crash after they went to pick her from school since she was staying late.Tiffany: You don't understand. It's my fault they're dead! ME! If it wasn't for me... I don't deserve a second chance.
- Marriage of Convenience: Frank is convinced that Manny only married Tiffany because he wanted to acquire an US citizenship.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business:
- Even Frank notices how strangely nervous Spangler gets when you tell him Manny was murdered, and we later discover him and the victim knew each other.
- Judge Dante, who's normally a silly Cloud Cuckoolander, begins Timothy Chubbles's hearing in a very serious tone, outright ordering Chubbles to speak when he's spoken to and not before. It's implied that it's because Chubbles is an unrepentant racist who tries to claim that he did Pacific Bay a favor by killing Manny, which the judge finds abhorrent.
- Off with His Head!: The victim was killed by being decapitated with a machete.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Manny was killed by Timothy Chubbles, a racist border patrol who called him "a beaner" and grouped him and all other Mexicans as criminals who didn't deserve to cross the border, hence why he left Manny's head as a warning.
- Recovered Addict: At the end of the case, you convince Tiffany to join a rehab center.
- Shirtless Scene: At the start of the case, Frank is seen without his shirt on since he just took a dip on the pool.
- Shout-Out:
- The case has a handful of references to Breaking Bad.
- The victim, Manny Sanchez, is a parody of Tuco Salamanca.
- Gustavo Salamanca is a parody of Gustavo Fring, and his surname comes from Hector Salamanca.
- Timothy Chubbles says "You think a good guy like me could break bad?"
- In the Drug Lab scene, there is an ad reading "Better Call Paul".
- The case has a handful of references to Breaking Bad.
- Sitcom Archnemesis: Frank and Colonel Spangler show shades of this during the case.Frank: Well, Colonel Spangler, our paths unfortunately just keep crossing.Colonel Spangler: Oh, Detective, I despise it as much as you do.
- Skewed Priorities: Gustavo Salamanca, the owner of the truck, is more concerned about its destruction than the fact its driver has been murdered.
- Took a Level in Kindness: Despite still being a bit rude, Colonel Spangler becomes more humble and cooperative in this case, offering to work with the Police Department and even telling you some top secret information about why he ordered the train to be derailed.
- Track Trouble: The case starts with a train being derailed due to a truck being left on the tracks by the victim, and we later learn that it was Colonel Spangler who asked him to do it, since a supposed alien was being transported by said train and he wanted to let it escape.
- The Unintelligible: Frank becomes this while wearing a gas mask when raiding the victim's meth lab.Frank: Hfao alkjdkfl...What? You can't understand me with the mask, <Player's Name>? Well, we'll see who's the idiot when you get poisoned!
- White-Collar Crime: During the Additional Investigation, you arrest Gustavo for laundering money from drugs business.
