A student found murdered in a playground turns out to have been a drugs mule, and Pete is put out when DS Roz Kelly is brought in from the drugs squad to help. Jim is determined to help when a girlfriend from his teenage years turns up with a problem.
When an elusive sex attacker strikes again, Newton Park is under pressure to catch him before another attack occurs. Natalie's work and home life is thrown into direct conflict when she discovers that her brother has lost his job and has turned to stealing cars for a living.
Jim's father Bernie Oulton and Bill Gentle reinvestigate an old murder case, when new evidence suggests that the man who was convicted, and who has since died in prison, was innocent. Jackie Brown and Jodie Finn hunt for money that has gone missing from a recently dead man's mattress.