SPOILER ALERT! Do not read on if you have not watched the latest episode of ‘Line Of Duty’!
As ‘Line Of Duty’ reached its penultimate episode on Sunday (23 April), the net closed in on recent amputee DCI Roz Huntley, only for her to blow the case wide open again by getting her husband arrested for the murder of Tim Ifield.
But with 60 action-packed minutes still left to go, fans are speculating about what conclusion the series will reach, with theories floating about left, right and centre on who balaclava man is and what Roz’s link to him may be.
At the moment, the people of Twitter are overwhelmingly pointing the finger of blame at dodgy solicitor Jimmy Lakewell:
Jimmy was the only other person besides Nick Huntley who knew about Steve Arnott’s arrival at Nick’s office. If Steve’s attacker was not Nick, could it have been Jimmy who was the balaclava-clad assailant who pushed him down the stairs? But even if he was Steve’s attacker, it doesn’t necessarily mean he is the same Balaclava Man who killed Leonie Collersdale and kidnapped Hannah Reznikova.
While AC12 believe it is possible Roz was covering up for her husband Nick, one fan claimed she could have been having an affair with Lakewell, and has been covering for his crimes:
Any closeness to Jimmy would have given her access to knowledge about Michael Farmer, given he previously represented him during a sexual assault case. This would have enabled her to easily pin Jimmy’s crimes on him, and would explain why she is so determined to secure his conviction.
ACC Hilton’s shifty behaviour and determination to shut down AC12’s investigation into DCI Huntley continued to raise suspicions:
ACC Hilton is certainly not one to be trusted, and Matthew ‘Dot’ Cottan’s dying declaration from the end last series hinted at ring of corrupt officers. It could be that Hilton is ‘H’, who Cottan named, which would explain why he was so desperate to get his hands on the tape.
One fan believes that Lakewell and Hilton could be in on it together, with Hilton acting as a mole:
We know that he has already been giving Roz Huntley insider knowledge on AC12’s investigation and has also been getting PC Maneet Bindra to betray her team by supplying him with information. But has he also the missing link between Balaclava Man and Roz?
One interesting theory shared by a Daily Star journalist prior to the episode airing pointed the finger of blame at DS Neil Twyler - a member of Roz Huntley’s team who has largely gone unnoticed:
Given his increased presence in episode five, it is certainly a interesting take, but with DS Twyler providing information about Roz’s attempts to cover up the new forensic evidence from the recovery of Leonie Collersdale’s body, does this rule him out? Or is he simply trying to shift the focus of AC12’s investigation?
‘Line Of Duty’ concludes on Sunday at 9pm on BBC One. Catch up on the series so far on BBC iPlayer.
