National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 666 - 610 Techniques

Chapter 666: Chapter 610 Techniques

Pang Jidong brought a subordinate, took a late-night flight in spring, and arrived in Changyang City the next morning. They got into the Alphard that Jiang Yuan had sent and instantly fell into a deep sleep.

Early in the morning, at the start of the workday for Zoumadao Police Station, Pang Jidong had already appeared at the entrance ahead of time. His rank as a first-grade police supervisor was quite conspicuous.

"Captain Pang. You’ve had a hard time coming all this way. Was everything smooth?" Jiang Yuan, hearing that the Alphard was arriving, had left home early to go to work.

"Smooth, smooth," Pang Jidong shook hands with Jiang Yuan, expressing his thanks, "I’m really happy that Captain Jiang could remember me..."

Jiang Yuan said, "I always felt that I didn’t explain Legal Botany clearly enough. I happen to have some time lately. If you’re willing, I can go over it with you again."

"Willing, willing!" Pang Jidong said repeatedly.

At the Luojin City Bureau, he had already started developing ways to solve cases using forensic botany by inviting and utilizing some botany professors. Although it was a bit troublesome, for cases that had absolutely no leads, forensic botany provided an opportunity.

Jiang Yuan had recently come to understand some of Pang Jidong’s methods, which was why he had thought of him this time.

From Jiang Yuan’s point of view, although teaching Pang Jidong was a bit troublesome, once Pang Jidong acquired the relevant knowledge, he truly used it.

Furthermore, as the captain of the fourth team of the criminal police brigade of the Luojin City Bureau, his official duties allowed him to utilize this knowledge, which was also a very important point.

For the nimble-minded younger generation, like Wang Chuanxing, even if they learned how to use forensic botany, how to connect with relevant botany professors, and how to apply it to cases, they still had much to learn about these extracurricular skills.

"Let’s go inside first, I’ll introduce you to the station director here," Jiang Yuan pulled Pang Jidong inside and said as they chatted, "I’ll buy your return tickets later – no need to be polite with me."

Pang Jidong chuckled awkwardly, "That would be really embarrassing. Mainly, it was because I left in a hurry, but I can claim the expenses when I go back."

Director Tan quickly came out to greet them.

Officially, Pang Jidong was here to support Zoumadao Police Station.

The captain of a provincial city criminal police brigade coming to support a county-level police station was a method of support that even Tan Jing himself had never heard of. He was actually quite curious and wanted to see what kind of extraordinary powers a senior police officer from another province like Pang Jidong possessed.

Everyone sat down in the conference room, and they saw Pang Jidong respectfully place Jiang Yuan in the seat of honor and then quietly started asking questions.

His manner and expression were like that of an apprentice to a master, despite Jiang Yuan being younger.

Thinking this in his heart, Tan Jing maintained a smile on his face.

After a while, Liu Wenkai also hurried over from the detective squad, and along with the members of Jiang Yuan’s Accumulated Case Team and the personnel from Zoumadao Police Station, everyone began discussing the case concerning diesel thieves.

Tan Jing stood up to introduce the situation, saying, "Based on the cases we’ve cracked before, there are two types of diesel theft gangs. One has a rather loose organizational structure, forming partnerships on an ad hoc basis before committing crimes, making them difficult to completely eradicate. The other type forms a stable gang after long-term cooperation. Generally speaking, a stable gang has a higher capability and potential for destruction."

"From what we’ve observed so far, a diesel theft gang usually has at least one oil tanker. An oil tanker is a modified vehicle, often stolen, with just a few being purchased ’backdoor’ vehicles. They mainly use older high-end imported cars with an engine life of over 20 years. The rear seat and trunk are all modified into fuel tanks that can hold over 600 liters. As for the price, an oil tanker currently costs around 10,000 yuan on the market."

"Another aspect is the underground oil depot. ’Oil depot’ may be a bit of an overstatement; most are just a truck, and having a slightly more private or remote warehouse counts as large scale. Those who deal in the stolen goods usually use 200-liter oil drums for the oil, selling it for around 1,200 yuan, in cash transactions. The purchased oil is then sold to some regular customers, at a price about one to one and a half yuan cheaper per liter than the market price," he said.

Jiang Yuan and the others listened carefully.

The methods of operation that Tan Jing introduced were, to an extent, considered valuable secrets among thieves 100 years ago. Nowadays, there were still some barriers to entry.

However, Tan Jing was very detailed in his explanations, and it did not take long for Jiang Yuan and the others to catch up with the progress.

Liu Wenkai then asked, "How does this underground oil depot operate? Through phone calls?"

"Phone, WeChat, Telegram, anything goes," Tan Jing counted on his fingers, adding, "Generally, after the diesel thieves send a message, they go to pick up the oil. If someone wants to buy, they go and deliver it, just providing this middleman service."

Liu Wenkai’s expression sharpened, "That means, if I were a diesel thief, and I stole 600 liters today, I could call the fence directly to trade the oil on the spot, and then continue stealing oil?"

"In theory, yes," Tan Jing paused before continuing, "But that’s too much of a hustle. The average diesel thief probably wouldn’t want to tire themselves out like that."

Liu Wenkai also smiled, then seriously said, "So, isn’t our core in catching the diesel thieves about nabbing the fences?"

"There are many fences, and these days, it’s a struggle. Just buy a small truck or operate an ’oil tiger’; this business can be undertaken by anyone," Tan Jing replied.

Pang Jidong slowly nodded, saying, "So, essentially, the diesel thieves could also switch to buying oil. But for the buyers, how do you find people willing to purchase the oil?"

"There are plenty of truck drivers at service stations willing to buy cheap oil," was the reply.

"It doesn’t impact them directly, so they don’t feel it," Pang Jidong commented, adding, "It’s like when your bike gets stolen, and then you buy stolen goods to get it back."

Coming to an understanding, Liu Wenkai said, "So, catching the fences is also useless?"

"You’ll never finish catching them," said Tan Jing.

This kind of problem is generally only completely solved when there is a specialized campaign from above.

On a day-to-day basis, given the staffing of the police stations, securing their territory is already a challenge, let alone achieving a thorough resolution.

"Let’s just catch a few to take a look," Jiang Yuan suggested after listening to their discussion, proposing a simple plan.

Tan Jing hesitated, saying, "I’m just worried about alerting them by rustling the grass."

"As soon as we start investigating, there’s a chance we might rustle the grass," Jiang Yuan wasn’t too bothered by this concern and turned to Pang Jidong, "What do you think?"

"I was wondering how we could apply forensic botany," Pang Jidong said hesitantly.

"Do we need to?" countered Jiang Yuan.

Pang Jidong chuckled, saying, "It would be best if we could. Do you have a plan in mind?"

"Not really. We’ll just play it by ear," Jiang Yuan remarked as he began to select cases.

After some thought, Pang Jidong also picked up a case file and began to read it carefully.