National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 1263 - 1190: Small Factory

Chapter 1263: Chapter 1190: Small Factory

Huang Qiangmin and Yu Wenshu muttered to each other for a while. During this time, their expressions changed multiple times, but eventually, they firmly clasped their hands in cooperation.

The detectives, usually adept at gathering information from the minutiae of suspects, seemed collectively blind at this moment, each one bewilderedly going about their own business, or someone else’s, or simply putting on a show, displaying their natural acting skills.

It wasn’t until Huang Qiangmin followed Yu Wenshu back to Jiang Yuan that the band of detectives appeared utterly clueless.

"Jiang Yuan, this case is now yours," Yu Wenshu said, releasing Huang Qiangmin and tightly holding Jiang Yuan’s hand.

"Rest assured," Jiang Yuan replied with confidence.

Jiang Yuan’s Cold Case Squad was at its strongest, while the suspects involved in the theft of hazardous chemicals might have limited resources to dedicate to this case.

Criminal investigation is confrontational. For cases that must be solved, challenges can ultimately be traced back to the overall strategy. Resources count; the side with more resources naturally has a higher success rate. Of course, this success rate is akin to Pinduoduo’s approach, where even with stacks of resources, it can infinitely approach 100% but never actually reach it.

"I’m naturally at ease leaving it to you," Yu Wenshu said with a wink. "This is a new case, and I haven’t let anyone handle it. I won’t impose any deadlines for solving it, but since hazardous chemicals are involved, everyone is surely concerned. We need to solve it as soon as possible."

"Alright." Jiang Yuan agreed and added, "We’ll head to the scene now."

"Good! I won’t be joining you. I wish you success," Yu Wenshu encouraged a few others before hurriedly returning to resume the meeting.

Jiang Yuan did not dawdle and took a team to the crime scene by car.

Wei Shikan stayed behind in the command room, sitting alone in a corner, staring at a recently acquired test paper, his mind boiling over, repeatedly murmuring:

"What’s going on?"

"What happened?"

"Why am I doing math problems?"

"This symbol is so ugly."

...

The factory implicated is located near the Changdong Connection Line.

Along the line are various small machinery processing plants and small-scale chemical factories, along with a cement plant, producing a considerable amount of smoke and dust. With the constant passage of large trucks, it boasts quite the charm of a bygone industrial era.

"Even in Changyang, some places are like the Ten Li Foreign Field, while others are overwhelmed by PM10," Liu Wenkai remarked as he disembarked from the car and donned a mask.

"Captain Jiang is here," remarked Zhu Huanguang, the fingerprint expert from the Changyang City Bureau, stepping out of the factory wearing gloves.

Huang Qiangmin hissed, "I knew Old Yu wouldn’t be so straightforward. He said he didn’t send anyone over and handed the case directly to us, yet here you are, Lao Zhu. This is really too much!"

Zhu Huanguang chuckled, "As police officers, when do we ever speak the truth?"

Huang Qiangmin laughed, "You just included yourself in the insult."

"Not speaking the truth doesn’t really count as an insult." Zhu Huanguang turned back to Jiang Yuan and said, "I reported to Chief Yu, the scene wasn’t well-preserved, making the investigation difficult. I think he was anxious."

Zhu Huanguang had met Jiang Yuan during the fingerprint battle; he himself was one of the top fingerprint and trace inspection experts in Changyang City, if not all of Shannan Province. Previously, Zhu Huanguang was the pinnacle of fingerprints in Shannan Province.

Clearly, Zhu Huanguang’s declaration of difficulty was a primary reason Yu Wenshu came seeking Jiang Yuan.

"What’s the situation at the scene?" Jiang Yuan observed the surroundings as he slowly moved in.

"Mainly, the employees at this burglarized factory lacked awareness of preserving the scene. The stolen materials were originally stored in the factory, and when the warehouse manager noticed the shortage, they initially thought it had been shipped out, making several phone calls, resulting in several parties coming to check the situation. They subsequently called in more people to inquire, and then more came just to see for themselves..." Zhu Huanguang shook his head as he spoke, "We found dozens of footprints on the scene. There were footprints all around the entrance and exit of the warehouse, especially near the shattered glass."

Since Jiang Yuan’s double-digit achievements in the fingerprint battle, Zhu Huanguang had gained a thorough understanding of him. Over the past two years, Jiang Yuan and Zhu Huanguang had often overlapped in trace inspection circles, knowing each other’s capabilities well.

As a veteran of trace inspection, Zhu Huanguang’s fingerprint skills had reached the pinnacle of LV3, in excellent form, occasionally capable of breaking through to LV4 in a few of the longest projects.

In comparison, his other trace inspection techniques weren’t as noteworthy; some reached LV2, while others hovered around a high-level LV1. Hence, Zhu Huanguang seldom appeared at crime scenes, usually staying in the trace inspection office handling finished products.

This time, upon seeing Jiang Yuan come for reinforcement, Zhu Huanguang showed no hesitation, first laying out the situation he had investigated before saying, "Chief Yu called me. Since Jiang Yuan is taking over, I’m at ease with the handover..."

After Jiang Yuan was dressed and had inspected the scene, Zhu Huanguang did not hesitate to withdraw after the handover.

As one of Shannan Province’s top tier fingerprint experts, Zhu Huanguang was usually very busy. Even if the case involved highly toxic chemicals and fell under the jurisdiction of the Changyang City Criminal Police Brigade, he wouldn’t usually attend in person.

Jiang Yuan conventionally inspected both inside and outside the warehouse where the crime occurred.

"From the traces at the scene, it seems the culprit entered by breaking the first-floor window of the warehouse. Once inside, they opened the main entrance of the warehouse from within, using the warehouse’s cart for transport. The outermost lock of the warehouse is missing; it’s likely it was damaged and taken by the culprit."

After a sweep, Jiang Yuan shared his findings, then turned to Liu Jinghui and said, "Judging by the actions, it’s quite clean and efficient, but as far as a thief’s level is concerned, it lacks technical skill, they couldn’t even pick a lock."

The factory’s main lock posed little challenge to any competent habitual thief. For a skilled thief, picking a lock was simpler and more convenient than smashing a window.

"Not a habitual thief. A habitual thief would just take the copper strips. There’s no point stealing a warehouse full of materials, especially hazardous chemicals. He wouldn’t have a market for it," Liu Jinghui cautiously added, "Unless someone specifically ordered them, but that’s unnecessary."

"An inside job?" Jiang Yuan sought confirmation from Liu Jinghui.

"Probably an inside job," Liu Jinghui said. "Regular thieves wouldn’t know about this factory, and the payoff is too low. They’d need a vehicle to transport several hundred kilograms of copper strips and a few barrels of chemicals. What’s more, they’d have to know in advance that the factory was unguarded. Does this factory not have any security?"

Prompted by Liu Jinghui’s questions, someone quickly fetched the factory manager who was waiting nearby.

The manager shook his head, "No. We just finish for the day and that’s it. It’s the off-season at our site; keeping workers employed is hard enough. We had an elderly guard before, but he quit due to age, and it’s been tough finding a replacement, so we’ve been dragging this on for two years now."

"Do you have a list of current employees and those who have left?" Liu Jinghui asked.

"We gave you a copy earlier," the manager said but had another one prepared just in case.

With the list in hand, Liu Jinghui immediately felt some pressure, understanding why Yu Wenshu was so decisive.

Not just the current employees, which number over a hundred, but the list of those who left in the last two years exceeds 300 people.

"Why is your turnover rate so high?" Liu Jinghui frowned. Even limiting it to those who left within a year, it still numbered over a hundred. Screening so many people isn’t too hard, but it will definitely exceed the time target, especially since many former employees might have returned to their hometowns or moved to other cities for work, making them not easy to track down.

The factory manager lamented, "It’s so hard to recruit these days, especially since we’re a small chemical plant. Many people work a few days, find it unsatisfactory, and leave immediately. Plus, various agencies charge us to introduce people, and then during busy times, they poach them back..."

Liu Jinghui focused and asked, "So are there people not on this resignation list? Like those who came and went immediately, working just a few days?"

"If they settled their pay, they’d be on the list. Some only worked a day or two, or left the same day with their payments. If they didn’t settle their salary, we didn’t list them."

"Are the agency people listed? All of them?"

"Basically, they’re all listed. If they were sent, there’s a record because we have to pay the agency."

"So they’re probably not on the list?"

"They shouldn’t be."

Liu Jinghui was speechless for a moment. "Your management is really chaotic."

The factory manager lamented, resorting to an attitude of indifference, "We’re just a small factory; we really don’t have that kind of capability."

Liu Jinghui thought for a while and said, "Those people aren’t on the resignation list, but they should at least be on the employment list, right?"

"If they were paid, they’re on the list. Some only worked a day or two; if they didn’t receive any pay, then we haven’t listed them."

"And the people from the agency? Are they all listed?"

"Mostly, yes. We keep a record of those sent over, as we need to settle payments with the agency."

"So all of them are listed?"

"Yes, they should be."

Liu Jinghui was at a loss for words. "Your management is really too chaotic."

Faced with the criticism, the factory manager was helpless and said despondently, "It’s just a small factory, and our capability is indeed limited."

After a while, Liu Jinghui called two people to help search for the records, then turned to Jiang Yuan and said, "We need another approach."