National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 400 - 400 367 The Chase

400: Chapter 367: The Chase 400: Chapter 367: The Chase “Captain Jiang.”

“Expert Jiang is here.”

At the hideout where the gang of three was holed up, detectives from Chi Yong City greeted Jiang Yuan one by one as they met.

People are just that pragmatic, especially the police.

When they encounter someone incompetent, everyone looks at him with eyes that scream “inept,” but when they meet someone truly capable of cracking cases, everyone’s attitude naturally softens.

The stronger the case-breaking skills, the more capable someone is, the softer everyone becomes around them.

The captain of the squad also quickly stepped out from inside the room, smiling like an ugly tangerine, and shook hands with Jiang Yuan from a distance, saying, “Expert Jiang, this should be the hideout of the three suspects.

We’ve done our best to preserve the crime scene…”

“Shall I examine the scene first?” Jiang Yuan asked as he started to put on gloves.

“Of course, of course,” the squad captain replied repeatedly.

Liu Jinghui also put on gloves, shoe covers, a head cover, and a mask on the side, the so-called “three covers and a mask,” and asked, “Have the identities of the suspects been confirmed?”

“Confirmed.

We also owe a debt of gratitude for the clues provided by you two,” the squad captain promptly acknowledged the help, then said, “The main suspect is probably a man about 1.8 meters tall named Xu Yang.

We found packaging from the Ma Family’s belongings, leftover ropes, and several blood-stained undergarments in the room.”

“Have you not found the murder weapon and overcoat?” These two items obviously carry more explanatory power.

The squad captain shook his head, “We haven’t found them inside the room yet, they must have been disposed of.”

“What’s the relationship between this Xu Yang and Ma Zhongli?”

“No relation,” the squad captain answered decisively.

At this, Jiang Yuan, Mu Zhiyang, and the others all looked over.

The squad captain spread his hands, somewhat embarrassedly saying, “So we have to thank you for finding that clue about the safe.

These three people, in terms of personal relationships, have little to no connection with Ma Zhongli.

If anything, it’s the guy with the knife, Fan Peng, who’s a local and somehow related to Ma Zhongli…”

“Then it must be him,” Liu Jinghui guessed an answer outright.

The squad captain, who was explaining the case, was taken aback and asked, “Why?”

“Because he has the strongest tendency to silence others.

Of the four people in Ma Zhongli’s family, two had their throats cut, and the female owner was stabbed several times.

Of course, it could also be explained that these two people saw his face or said something, but now with this layer of a personal relationship, Fan Peng’s suspicion greatly increases.”

The squad captain nodded silently; he could actually come up with the same reasoning, but he didn’t dare to be as certain as Liu Jinghui.

Now, with the fact of solving the case as support, one could imagine that behind Liu Jinghui’s confident reasoning, there must have been many unreliable deductions excluded.

In general, Jiang Yuan and Liu Jinghui had already proven their strength, so anything they did after that was haloed.

Jiang Yuan led the way into the hideout of the three.

This was a second-floor apartment in an old residential building with a history of over 30 years.

The exterior was made of pure cement, a drab gray, adorned with black stains, whose origins and circumstances of attachment were unknown.

The hallway was also wrapped in various types of cement, and because of the clutter stored there, it appeared cramped and dim.

Jiang Yuan directly had someone hold up the investigation light and first processed the traces on the door.

Inside the scene was a small one-bedroom, one-living-room apartment.

The entire space, including the bed, was filthy and in disarray.

Not only the kitchen by the entrance but also the linoleum on the floor had parts curling up—no doubt, the security deposit for the rental was non-recoverable.

Mu Zhiyang and the others entered and efficiently set up investigation lights, footprint lights, fingerprint lights, and so on.

The investigation equipment was mostly provided by Chiyong City, and their own investigators were simply waiting to go first, leaving the first round of the investigation to Jiang Yuan.

This was a stark contrast to their initial treatment.

Jiang Yuan quickly glanced at the interior scene then started walking across plank bridges set up on site, formally known as “rapid passage treadboards.”

In Chiyong City, they used folded metal treadboards that fit the name perfectly.

Metal treadboards might not have the pizzazz of acrylic ones, but they’re sturdy and durable, very much a middle-class choice for investigative equipment.

In fact, looking at a place’s criminal investigation equipment can reveal a lot about the local economy and the importance placed on law enforcement.

A unit like Hu City’s 803 doesn’t discuss cost-effectiveness; they use whatever equipment is good and new.

If it no longer serves well, it’s either replaced or discarded without issue.

For units like Chiyong City, resembling middle-class households, everything must be about cost-effectiveness.

They buy only essentials and prefer durable goods that can last longer to save on replacement and maintenance costs.

And for units like those in Ningtai County, they’re like the poor families of the investigative system, always lacking everything and having to save up bit by bit just to buy the most necessary items, even if they know that something else would be cost-effective but too expensive, so they end up choosing the cheapest option.

It was only after Jiang Yuan left to solve cases elsewhere that the financial situation of the Ningtai County Bureau began to improve.

So, even though Huang Qiangmin wanted to keep Jiang Yuan, he could only send him out to break cases.

A few trace examiners from Chiyong City followed in Jiang Yuan’s footsteps, also paying attention to his actions.

Similar to forensic doctor Qiu Xing, the leading two among Chiyong City’s trace examiners could also reach an LV2 proficiency level.

This level is achieved through practice; if a municipal trace examination unit doesn’t have at least one LV2 examiner, their case-solving rate would be compromised within two years.

However, if there really were none, several clever young examiners could, through working case after case, potentially reach the LV2 level within a year or two.

Of course, it’s just a possibility; for example, Yan in Ningtai County, despite a lifetime of practice, still remains a strong LV1.

Jiang Yuan walked slowly along the treadboards, observing as he went.

Whenever he found traces on the side, he didn’t rush to collect them but first placed down a yellow indicator board.

It wasn’t until Jiang Yuan reached the far end of the room, where the bed was located, that he began to search for traces in earnest.

Most trace examiners start by illuminating the scene with various lights and then scanning for traces where the light falls.

It’s only in rare cases that examiners scan for traces inch by inch, as Jiang Yuan did during his secondary crime scene investigation.

Of course, most minor criminals do not receive such thorough attention.

This time, Jiang Yuan did not plan to scan so meticulously.

The primary reason was that the identities of the three culprits were already confirmed, and their fingerprints and footprints weren’t as valuable anymore.

The core task now was to find other clues that could aid the upcoming manhunt.

The trace examiners from Chiyong City also gradually dispersed, picking up traces that Jiang Yuan left behind.

Jiang Yuan observed more than he worked.

An LV4 crime scene investigator in such an indoor environment already constituted an overkill.

To fully utilize an LV4 crime scene investigation, it would require the scale of something like the Dangmen Stabbing Case – an outdoor setting, constant foot traffic, and a scene tampered with multiple times, causing traces to be indistinguishable or uncollectible.

For instance, in this annihilation case, the three culprits exhibited some caution at the crime scene, but once back at this temporary hideout, their cautiousness significantly decreased.

In fact, that’s the case with most criminals.

Many ponder the circumstances before committing the crime, designing methods and plans, but once they succeed, they let their guard down and become prone to mistakes.

Those who can maintain focus, exert prolonged intense concentration, self-control, and emotional stability, adhering strictly to their plans and flawlessly executing self-devised tasks, even in crime, tend not to commit such basic property crimes.

In the absence of much concealment, most of the traces didn’t even need to be collected by Jiang Yuan, who was even able to reconstruct the scene.

After looking for quite a while, at least twenty minutes, Jiang Yuan finally entered the bathroom and slowly squatted down.

“How old are the three culprits?” Jiang Yuan suddenly asked.

“In their twenties, the first is the oldest, 28, then 26 and 24,” Liu Jinghui, who was standing nearby, responded, “Does age relate to traces?”

“There are urine stains everywhere in front of the toilet bowl.

For three young men in their twenties, it wouldn’t be this bad,” Jiang Yuan pointed towards the area around the toilet.

The slight urine stains were almost covering the frontal three sides of the toilet bowl, clearly resulting from urine being sprayed erratically.

Liu Jinghui, a middle-aged man, was well-acquainted with this scene and instantly nodded, “Indeed, this person seems to have severe kidney deficiency.

Young, strong men couldn’t produce such a spread.”

“Give me a cotton swab.” Jiang Yuan adjusted his position and began to meticulously collect the urine traces around the toilet.