Who is The Professor from The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman: A Novel and what is their importance?

The Professor is a blind old man who runs a peepshow. Desiderio first finds the professor when he arrives in a city outside the capitol where the mayor has disappeared. Desiderio sees the man's show and will later make a connection between it and Dr. Hoffman. It is at this first meeting that Desiderio learns the Professor is connected to Dr. Hoffman. However, before Desiderio can learn more, the Professor and a couple of locals implicate him in a murder.