Diary of a Criminal Investigator-Chapter 326: Case Report

In this era, anywhere a murder occurs, it’s not just a matter for one or two people or one or two teams.

In small places, like a county town, when a murder happens, besides the criminal investigation team heading to the scene, the entire county’s public security bureau has to step in.

At that time, there’s no distinction between police divisions; traffic police, administrative staff, even the dogs in the public security bureau have to take the field.

In short, there’s one concept: all resources are directed at solving the murder case.

The Qinzhou case, one could say, is one that even the entire Qinzhou City Public Security Bureau couldn’t solve, so it must be challenging, and very much so.

"I haven’t been to the scene yet, but I’ve seen the photos—it’s all blood. Logically, in such a scene, there should be plenty of evidence left by the perpetrator."

"But in this crime scene investigation, not even a single fingerprint was collected."

"Only a series of the victim’s own footprints; it seems as though no second person appeared at the scene besides the victim."

Wang Song has spent a lifetime crawling through the trenches of the front line, participating in the investigation of hundreds of serious cases, so it’s safe to say he has extensive experience in handling cases.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have stood out from so many criminal police officers across the province to be selected into the special task force set up by the provincial department.

He said it’s strange, that there are indeed some abnormal elements about that case.

The two spoke in low voices as the speech by Director of Qinzhou City Public Security Bureau finally came to an end on the podium.

"Finally, I’ll make a statement: the Qinzhou City Public Security Bureau will fully cooperate with Director Li and the task force in solving this case in the coming period."

"Wishing us a triumphant return!"

"This guy must have come from a clerical background, being able to talk like this?"

Wang Song, a frontline detective, couldn’t stand this kind of leadership, but unfortunately, there’s no choice.

"Captain Qin Hui, the task force’s office will be set up in the Criminal Investigation Team later; let’s start with a briefing meeting."

Li Donglin originally planned to set up the task force’s office at the Qinzhou City Public Security Bureau, as it’s closer to the hotel where they are staying, making it more convenient to travel back and forth.

However, after just having this meeting, Li Donglin changed his mind.

"Yes, Director Li, I’ll arrange it right away."

"Yes, yes, Captain Qin, the task force is now in your hands. You must ensure all logistical support."

Director Sun gave the orders once again.

Qinzhou City Criminal Investigation Team.

Li Donglin sat at the head of the table: "Captain Qin, please start with the details of the case."

"Yes."

Qin Hui, seated to the right of Li Donglin, turned his body and opened the projector.

"Seven days ago, that is, on May 31, the emergency center received a report of a murder at Qinzhou International Apartments."

"The caller was Wang Guozhi, a security guard at the apartment, who, while patrolling the building, discovered blood seeping from the door crack of the room rented by the victim. After knocking with no response, he called the police."

"This is a photo taken at the doorway after the Jingzhou Road Police Station arrived at the scene."

The basic work done by the Qinzhou City Criminal Investigation Team is still quite meticulous.

The response by the police officers at the time also complied with standardized procedures.

In the photo, there’s a puddle of blood, about the size of a person’s palm, under the door crack.

"The police officers knocked on the door at the time, and when there was no answer, they contacted the landlord through the apartment front desk and opened the door."

Next, the projection showed an extremely bloody scene.

Once the door was opened, the inside was almost entirely covered in blood. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Starting from the entrance, the walls, floor, and furniture were all splattered with sprayed and dripped bloodstains.

"The deceased was Wang Min, the tenant of the room, twenty-three years old. The fatal wound was on the neck, arterial severance, and she died from excessive blood loss."

"Forensic analysis found signs of assault on the deceased, but no perpetrator was captured alive."

"The crime scene investigation did not find any fingerprints or other information left by the perpetrator, only a set of the victim’s own footprints."

"In the week since the crime occurred, we conducted a thorough investigation of everyone in the apartment and the deceased’s social network, but so far, there’s been no breakthrough."

As Qin Hui described the case, Lu Chuan and others listened to the report while reviewing the files.

The crime scene photos provided a strong visual impact.

The bachelor apartment rented by the deceased was not large, only about forty square meters in area.

The entire room seemed to be covered in blood from the photos.

The entrance door, coffee table, walls, floor, TV, and other items all had bloodstains.

Moreover, the entire scene was chaotic, with the deceased lying in a star-shaped position on the bed, her clothes torn, and multiple knife wounds on her body.

"The knife wounds on the deceased’s abdomen... were they post-mortem wounds?"

Wang Song had already looked at the file yesterday and had studied it in detail.

"Yes," Qin Hui nodded, "The forensic doctor completed an assessment of the injuries on the body and reached that conclusion."

"Post-mortem wounds... the perpetrator not only assaulted the deceased but also kept stabbing the body after killing her. Was it to ensure death, or was it an act of revenge?"

"We speculate... it might be the first reason."

"Why?"

"Because the deceased’s social network is relatively simple. Wang Min was born in a rural area in the suburbs of Qinzhou City. After dropping out of high school, she worked as a salesgirl at her aunt’s furniture store."

"She used to live with her aunt, and it was only last year that she moved out to live in the bachelor apartment."

"Investigation confirmed that Wang Min didn’t have a boyfriend, and her social interactions were basically limited to the furniture store staff."

"These people have been meticulously investigated, and there’s no motive for revenge murders."

"Therefore, we believe the perpetrator stabbed again after the victim died to ensure she was killed."

Wang Song nodded, agreeing with Qin Hui’s explanation.

Revenge killings differ from ordinary murders.

In most revenge murders, there is often a long-standing conflict or enmity between the perpetrator and the victim.

This conflict and enmity might not be significant, but it generally simmers for a long time.

Common cases are those involving neighbor disputes or conflicts between colleagues.

Three years ago, Wang Song encountered a case where the perpetrator stabbed the victim over 70 times, completely gutting the person’s abdomen.

The motive for the murder was not complicated: the two families were neighbors, and it was all due to a fence dispute, where one occupied half a meter more of my land.

The discord simmered for over ten years, and then after an altercation due to drunkenness, a murder occurred.

"Captain Qin, I see there are a lot of footprints in the pool of blood on the ground; what about that?"

Qin Hui laughed wryly, "The footprints at the crime scene have been confirmed to be prints left by the victim’s shoes."

The victim’s shoes?

"The perpetrator left the scene wearing the victim’s shoes?"

"That’s correct. We also had someone analyze it, but footprints left by the perpetrator wearing the victim’s shoes make it difficult to pinpoint their identity."

Members of the special task force proceeded to ask questions about the details they had noticed, and Qin Hui responded to each.