02. The Dogs of Riga

2 parts of 55 minutes each - First broadcast: 06.11.2004 

Part 1: Two smugglers discover a lifeboat with two dead young men on the high seas. Fearing discovery, they tow the boat close to the coast and anonymously alert the police in Ystad. Inspector Wallander and his team are faced with a mystery. Where did the two men come from, who killed them and then put them in this lifeboat? When it turns out that they are two criminals from Latvia, Major Liepa from the Latvian state police rushes in. Wallander and Liepa become friends, although he can't help noticing that this major seems to know more than he wants to admit. The somewhat peculiar major keeps a meticulous eye on his briefcase, which contains a red document folder. Wallander takes a look and is surprised to see that Liepa seems to be carrying his own will around with him. The major returns to Riga to continue his investigation and Wallander is glad to finally be able to devote himself to his family affairs. But then he receives the news that the major has been found murdered shortly after his arrival.

Part 2: After the mysterious murder of Major Liepa, Wallander rushes to the crime scene in Riga to help solve the case. There he meets his Latvian counterparts Putnis and Murnieks, who are less than cooperative. The deeper Wallander delves into the case, the clearer it becomes that he is being deliberately obstructed in his investigations. At a secret meeting with people from the Latvian underground movement, he learns that the police force is still infiltrated with secret service agents from the Russian mafia. Wallander is also prevented from making contact with Baiba Liepa, the major's widow. Wallander knows that Baiba plays a key role in the case and, with the help of the Latvian underground movement, a meeting with the widow is arranged. Baiba is certain that her husband had to die because he knew too much about the machinations of the Latvian police. Baiba also tells him that her husband's evidence documents can be found in the state police archives. In a spectacular, dangerous operation, Wallander penetrates the police archives; unfortunately without any results. The subsequent investigations lead Inspector Wallander deeper and deeper into a barely comprehensible conspiracy of invisible forces, in which he seems to lose his faith in justice. Then, by chance, a friend of the Major finds the red document folder he is looking for. Together with Baiba, with whom Wallander begins a love affair, they try to convict the perpetrators, a life-and-death operation ...

© Photo: Nille Leander