S08E07 - “The Defector” - Plot

Act One

A man (Soon-Teck Oh) comes ashore in an inflatable raft met by another man (Robert Lee) who asks to see what the man brought ashore with him. The first man shoots the second man dead but takes the gun and fires two shots: one into the sand and the other into his arm. He then replaces the gun into the second man's hand.

Later, McGarrett arrives on scene meeting Danno who identifies the dead man as Lew Kameka who was a known foreign agent. Chin recovers his gun: two shots fired. McGarrett tells Chin to scour the whole area for any scrap of evidence that can be found. McGarrett wants to know "who our unscheduled visitor was".

In his office, McGarrett talks to Jim (Lee Stetson) who is a commander in the Navy and willing to cooperate as Danno stands by. McGarrett suspects they're dealing with espionage and wants to know what the Navy has going on that would attract foreign agents. Jim tells them it could be any number of projects. Danno states they know about some offshore testing going on and it's not too far from where someone came ashore and killed Kameka. They share photos with Jim of Kameka and his girlfriend Carol Stone (Mary Ann Chinn) and Jim tells them it's a contract. He'll need to talk to the civilian in charge who on a ship and he's not taking any calls. McGarrett wants Danno to concentrate on Carol: "I wanna know the extent of Kameka's operation, his contacts, and whether she's tied in". He then tells Jim they can go: to the ship for a face-to-face, even if he needs a special clearance!

McGarrett and Jim arrive at the ship where they look for Dr. Ormsbee (Pat Hingle). Once they find the cranky cigar smoking kook, McGarrett recognizes him immediately from when he won his Nobel Prize. Dr. Ormsbee says he got it a decade after he should have after explaining he's been in a "security womb" for three years. Dr. Ormsbee is a gruff: he demands to know why McGarrett is disturbing him because he sees no connection with his project and "the grubby, psychopathic fantasies of espionage". Dr. Ormsbee is a complete ass telling McGarrett he won't turn over any information about his project and he will not cooperate at all in the murder investigation. McGarrett informs him of Five-O's jurisdiction, which Dr. Ormsbee couldn't give a crap about effectively kicking McGarrett off the ship. However, McGarrett threatens to haul Dr. Ormsbee into Five-O if any connection is found between the dead agent and his project. As Dr. Ormsbee leaves, a seal is heard but Dr. Ormsbee claims it is his smoker's hack!

Dr. Ormsbee returns to his hotel room to have the first man walk up behind and call him by name! Dr. Ormsbee recognizes Chaing Li as an old friend he hasn't seen for almost 12 years. Chaing tells Dr. Ormsbee he snuck out over "the border inside a bale of cotton goods" then hid in a freighter for two weeks before coming ashore in an inflatable boat. He asks Chaing if he's kept up with his work and he has, as physics exists in other parts of the world too.

At 'Far East Tours,' Danno and Chin pay Carol a visit after she takes care of a group of customers. Once they introduce themselves, they inform her that Kameka is dead, which puts her into shock. They ask if she knows of anyone who would want him dead and how long she's known him. She can't think of anyone who would want to kill him but she's only known him six or seven months. Kameka was an advertising account executive but she claims to not know if he was involved in anything else. Carol breaks down, Danno and Chin leave knowing they're not going to get anything else out of her offering to return at a later time. She nods just before they leave. After they walk out, Carol goes to the office: she tells a pair of men about the Five-O visit and to contact Thatcher (Ben Jaus) to tell him to stay close to his phone.

Act Two

At Dr. Ormsbee's hotel room, Chaing laments about returning to his home country because less than a year after returning, he was forced in "developing missile-guidance systems. Base launchers. Ballistics". After Chaing realized his mistake, it took nearly a year to reach out to Dr. Ormsbee. The problem they face is Chaing is defecting, "a political refugee" and he has nothing to offer the U.S. as he is simply seeking "sanctuary". Dr. Ormsbee assures Chaing he will get that but Chaing tells him about what happened on the beach, claiming self-defense.

Jenny (Peggy Ryan) buzzes into McGarrett's office as Dr. Ormsbee has arrived to see him. Dr. Ormsbee walks in wanting McGarrett to solve a problem for him: Dr. Chaing Li, one of the top mind in physics, wants to defect. McGarrett tells him it's a State Department issue but Dr. Ormsbee doesnÕt want to deal with "The Department of Red Tape". McGarrett realizes right away the "scientific refugee" is the killer they're looking for. Dr. Ormsbee repeats what Chaing told him: self-defense. Dr. Ormsbee lists the guarantees for Chaing: "no prosecution for his act of self-defense, resident status in the United States, and no working over by any American Intelligence apparatus". McGarrett calls it a "big order" for a murderer. McGarrett tells Dr. Ormsbee that if Chaing turns himself in, he'll se what he an do but Dr. Ormsbee isn't satisfied with that answer and gets up to leave. McGarrett warns him he's becoming an accessory to murder but Dr. Ormsbee tells McGarrett if he plans to arrest him, he needs to contact the Department of Defense. McGarrett has had enough Dr. Ormsbee attitude and games warning the important people can be held the same as anyone else and he'll do that while looking for Chaing. Dr. Ormsbee has yet another surprise: Chaing is willing to commit suicide before becoming "a political pawn". McGarrett agrees to meet but Dr. Ormsbee picks the meeting place. In the meantime, McGarrett will contact Washington to see what guarantees can be made. After Dr. Ormsbee leaves, McGarrett calls Danno in: he wants Danno to locate Chaing but not to grab him as McGarrett explains what just happened. Danno leaves as McGarrett buzzes Jenny to call Jonathan Kaye in Washington.

McGarrett returns to the project ship to find Dr. Ormsbee overseeing the outfitting of a pair of seals for the project. McGarrett tells Dr. Ormsbee a State Department official has agreed to meet Chaing and if can prove self-defense, he won't be sent back. Dr. Ormsbee says Chaing was shot before Kameka was killed but no one witnessed the altercation. They agree to meet a Hanauma Bay Lookout Point at 5:00 p.m. with McGarrett wanting the weapon used so tests can be run on it. Dr. Ormsbee agrees.

The message is delivered to Chaing at the hotel room. After Chaing reads the message, he makes a phone call to Carol about the meet. She, in turn, calls Thatcher with "the time and the location". Thatcher straps a case to his motorbike and takes off.

Duke (Herman Wedemeyer) walks into McGarrett's office telling hi the car's ready. McGarrett, Danno and Duke take off. Later, they arrive at the meeting with an HPD unit behind them. Dr. Ormsbee then shows up with Chaing who's grateful for the meeting. McGarrett tells Chaing he'll have to run himself in but there are no specific guarantees of safety. Just then McGarrett hears Thatcher's gun cock as the shooting starts with Chaing and Dr. Ormsbee taking cover behind the Marquis Brougham. McGarrett gives chase to the area where he spotted Thatcher but Thatcher takes off on his motorbike taking a very bumpy ride on the mountain. Danno and Duke join McGarrett knowing chasing over the terrain is useless. McGarrett wants an APB on the bike, as it appears he's heading toward Hanauma. The three walk back down to the meeting place where Chaing says, "they tried to kill me".

Act Three

McGarrett, Danno, Duke, Dr. Ormsbee and Chaing return to Five-O where McGarrett wants Chaing fingerprinted and his mug shot taken. Dr. Ormsbee loudly and rudely protests. McGarrett gives it right back explaining a formal hearing must be held and it's up to the DA to make the decision on whether or not to prosecute based on the evidence on hand. Dr. Ormsbee asks, "What evidence does he have to prove it was not self-defense?" McGarrett tells him to ask the DA.

Later, a telex arrives from Washington in Five-O with Danno ripping it off and taking it into McGarrett's office: there is no record of the prints lifted from Dr. Ormsbee's car including the Pentagon and FBI. Something is amiss as Danno points out, "it's impossible to get security clearance or even a visa without having prints on file in Washington" especially considering Chaing used to work on classified government projects. McGarrett floats a theory that the defector is actually an imposter. Danno wonders about the wound with McGarrett saying it was probably self-inflicted to give credence to his story. However, there's the Dr. Ormsbee factor: how well do they know one another? They met on various research projects but it has been over a decade since they've seen one another. An "elaborate plan" to find a look alike, give all the information he needed to pass himself off as the real Dr. Chaing who may or may not be alive in order to gain a front row seat to Dr. Ormsbee's missile test! Duke walks in with a list of phone calls made from Dr. Ormsbee's hotel room: one number for Far East Tour Company sticks out to Danno, it's where Carol works. McGarrett doesn't want to shake up things yet. He sends Duke to tail Carol, "I wanna know every move she makes". McGarrett wants to play things out to have Chaing present at Dr. Ormsbee's test and to bring Dr. Ormsbee in to let him know what's going on.

McGarrett leads Dr. Ormsbee into Five-O where Dr. Ormsbee continues to be obnoxious yelling at McGarrett. He refuses to believe Chaing is an imposter but McGarrett believes there's a way to prove it easily. He asks Dr. Ormsbee is there was a particular incident they would both remember but when there isn't one, McGarrett lists off things they might have done together. Dr. Ormsbee recalls, "we did go to a World Series game, 1962, Candlestick Park, San Francisco, the Giants and the Yankees. Chaing was a big Yankee fan". McGarrett wants Dr. Ormsbee to test Chaing asking him anything he can remember about the game working the questions into a conversation and should Chaing fail, don't let him know. Dr. Ormsbee agrees leaving the office.

Later, Dr. Ormsbee is riding in a Navy car with Chaing and the conversation turns to baseball with Dr. Ormsbee talking about Honolulu's Triple-A team. Dr. Ormsbee then brings up the Yankees with Chaing saying he's still a fan but maybe not quite as "rabid". Dr. Ormsbee continues, "boy, I remember that '62 series. The hysteria. The crowd. The look on your face when Ralph Terry walked out to the mound in the bottom of the first". Chaing says it still gives him chills. Dr. Ormsbee tells the driver to pull over so he can pick up some fresh cigars. Going inside, Dr. Ormsbee asks for a box of small cigars but also uses the pay phone! He calls McGarrett: Chaing failed and McGarrett isn't surprised. He tells Dr. Ormsbee to "play it cool" and they'll be on top of the situation from Five-O's end.

McGarrett briefs Jim, the Navy Commander, on the latest. Jim isn't keen about waiving security and allowing the imposter at the test site but McGarrett points out they don't know who else is involved or even how many others are involved. However, Five-O has been investigating them for a while yet they haven't had enough to pull the ring in. Jim admits the Navy has heard "rumbles". McGarrett has a plan for Chaing to take the bait and lead them to the rest of the ring. Jim will try to get approval and if successful, they'll be watching Chaing like a hawk. McGarrett agrees that's a proper precaution but wants it done from a distance. As Jim is about to leave, McGarrett tells him Whitey Ford pitched in the opening game in 1962 for the Yankees!

Dr. Ormsbee and Chaing arrive at the project ship where Dr. Ormsbee has been working on a missile to specifically hone in on nuclear submarines. Dr. Ormsbee leads Chaing into the control room explaining the test will cover roughly 3000 miles with a launch off New Zealand to a simulated target. He explains they have to have a general location of the target or they may wind up taking out friendly submarines or even downtown Honolulu. Chaing asks how things are recorded with Dr. Ormsbee saying there is a capsule holding a "microcircuit" documenting all the flight's technological facets.

Act Four

On board the project ship, the test gets underway and is strictly monitored by the crew. Dr. Ormsbee says the missile "will be off our starboard quarter in exactly 17 minutes and 12 seconds". Meanwhile, the waiting game commences in McGarrett's office with Five-O and the Navy. McGarrett is certain Chaing won't leave the test site without the capsule as Danno wonders how he's going to grab it. Chin wonders if that isn't risky but McGarrett explains Dr. Ormsbee insisted on it while Jim says his people have orders to move in should something go wrong. The phone rings: the launch has happened and they all leave.

Back at the ship, Dr. Ormsbee gets a report from the radioman (Lawrence Ferrara) the missile has cleared the Fiji Islands on schedule as the crew continues its tracking. Meanwhile, Duke stays on Carol's tail as she walks out of her travel agency. McGarrett tells Duke to drop her because they can't take the chance of her spotting him. The tracking keeps up as the missile comes into the ship's radar range. Dr. Ormsbee and Chaing step outside, as splashdown will happen in less than two minutes. On deck, a seal works with its trainer to prepare to jump in to retrieve the missile: "miniature transmitter inside emits a high-frequency sound" and the seals have been trained to home in. After splashdown, the seal and trainer are out in an inflatable boat where the seal carries a hooking mechanism on its nose to put onto the missile. Once hooked up, the crew reel the missile in and bring it on board the ship. The capsule is removed by a Navy Lieutenant and handed over to Dr. Ormsbee who steps back inside with Chaing. Chaing makes his move pulling a gun on Dr. Ormsbee demanding the capsule and the shore boat. Dr. Ormsbee hands over the capsule but Chaing's imposter doesn't give his real name even as they go back on deck. They board the shore boat as the radioman calls Commander Jim Hudson reporting the movements with McGarrett and Danno listening in.

On shore, Dr. Ormsbee takes over the driving as the imposter keeps calling the shots. They pass Chin who begins following them, radioing McGarrett the location and direction. McGarrett and Danno pick them up shortly after Chin cuts off keeping Commander Hudson informed. At the same time, Dr. Ormsbee discovers his friend is dead due to being "uncooperative". The imposter asks how bothersome it was for Dr. Ormsbee to not figure out he wasn't the real Dr. Chaing Li. The imposter explains he was picked from among a thousand candidates because he looked like Dr. Chaing Li and only in a few months had all of his mannerisms and speech patterns down. Dr. Ormsbee warns the imposter things aren't over yet.

Carol is at a house telling her crew she wants the house closed and all evidence of their work destroyed. They are to return to their lives and this may well be the last mission they complete. Dr. Ormsbee and the imposter arrive at the house with McGarrett and Danno not far behind. McGarrett calls for a red alert with a silent approach at 5691 Kalanianaole Highway. Inside the house, Carol takes the capsule trying to figure out how to open it. Dr. Ormsbee is all too happy to tell them how to open it because it's empty! It was switched prior to be handed over to Dr. Ormsbee. Meanwhile outside, Five-O, the Navy and HPD show up! Dr. Ormsbee escapes out the house as the agents scatter but it's not enough. McGarrett and Danno break in arresting the two women found right away. Commander Hudson and the Navy take in two male agents making a run for the beach as the imposter goes back into the house. As McGarrett searches, he eventually finds the imposter dead from cyanide poisoning. McGarrett walks back to Carol telling her they'll cancel her reservation. "Book her, Danno, murder one". As they walk out, Dr. Ormsbee thanks McGarrett in his own obnoxious way. "You're welcome".