National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 745 - 688 Brainstorming

Chapter 745: Chapter 688 Brainstorming

Jiang Yuan’s dinners were always sumptuous, and as mealtime approached, Li Haochen, Cui Xiaohu, Liu Cheng, and Cui Qishan, among others, would show up uninvited.

This group of criminal investigators was essentially the main force in the "Rainy Corpse Case." Those who didn’t come, like Tao Lu and Huang Qiangmin, were mostly concerned with administrative roles, taking the lead in meetings but waiting for news when it came to actual work.

As usual, Jiang Yuan provided a variety of beers, while the chefs went all out preparing over a dozen appetizers for everyone to enjoy while chatting.

Since the house was newly reacquired and Jiang Yuan hadn’t had time to renovate, he had bought a large round table that could seat more than a dozen people in advance. At this moment, everyone had replaced the chairs with arms with small round stools, and after a bit of squeezing, they all found a seat.

The conversation quickly turned to the case at hand.

Li Haochen, who had been preparing for a while, started, "I asked Tao about the latest progress, and the current suspect, He Wei, also has financial issues. He’s taken out a lot of loans, and even mortgaged his villa a second time. If the banks pressure him to repay now, even selling his villa wouldn’t cover it."

"Someone living in a villa has financial problems?" Mu Zhiyang put down his chopsticks while pairing beer with meat and asked, "Where did all his money go?"

"His wife probably asked the same thing," Xiao Si commented leisurely while sipping his beer.

"Mainly prostitution," Li Haochen said. "He liked to visit prostitutes even before the divorce, and after it, he became even more unrestrained. Combined with the division of assets from the divorce and a downturn in his business, his expenses are now exceeding his income."

Xiao Si nodded, "His wife surely inquired about it."

"Prostitutes are too expensive, and it’s such a low return on investment," Cui Qishan muttered, then shook his head and added, "That could indeed be a motive for the conflict stemming from prostitution expenses."

"It’s possible, but probably not," Li Haochen said seriously, treating today’s discussion as a rare opportunity. "From the murderer’s perspective, the cost of prostitution wouldn’t be a last-minute negotiation but rather a firm figure agreed upon at the start. If there were dissatisfaction midway, it’s unlikely they would bring someone home to resolve it—it’s too dangerous. Just one message from the other party would lead to endless trouble."

"People familiar with the victim would have reported the matter to the police long ago; it wouldn’t have dragged on till now," Liu Cheng agreed.

"Even a serial killer knows that murder is dangerous," Mu Zhiyang said with a click of his tongue. He was experienced and could say to many of the younger officers, "I’ve caught more serial killers than you’ve had relationships."

"However, financial issues are a fundamental problem. A murderer short on money, even an experienced one, is bound to slip up," Li Haochen said, looking at Liu Jinghui. "Observing He Wei, he still seems to have a strong will to survive, and it doesn’t make sense for him to let himself slide into a financial crisis."

His main goal that day was to brainstorm with Liu Jinghui, of course, if Captain Jiang could provide technical support, that would be the best.

Liu Jinghui was naturally willing to discuss the matter. He racked his brain and said, "You make a good point. Prostitution isn’t a simple matter, and Beijing’s villas are expensive, right? He could mortgage his for at least ten million. If he paid a little attention to his spending, it’s impossible for him to burn through that much money. If he noticed financial trouble, a normal person would pause and reevaluate... Does he have a sexual addiction?"

"It’s abnormal but not to such an extent," Li Haochen said. "After all, he’s been in business; how could he lack any sense of money? I also asked his ex-wife; during their divorce, she took the cash, jewelry, stocks, and other liquid assets, leaving the house to He Wei. They even agreed in writing to leave it to their child in the future. Could it be for this reason that he decided to spend all his money?"

"Started killing thinking he might eventually get caught, so he decided to spend all his money?" Liu Jinghui continued thinking aloud, taking a big gulp of beer before adding, "If that’s the case, it actually shows he values money. And you need even more money once you’re in jail. If he were thoughtful, he should understand this."

Cui Qishan was getting impatient with the back-and-forth reasoning and said, "Why not just check his accounts? Spending millions in just two or three years, not all of that could have gone to prostitutes. Let’s speak frankly off the record, whether you pay by the day or by the service, who could last three years and spend ten million like that?"

The group nodded in agreement.

Following his team leader’s train of thought, Xiao Si still sounded skeptical, "Maybe he doesn’t just call one at a time..."

Cui Qishan looked at the young Xiao Si with disdain, "For a crafty old dog like that, you can’t handle even one. You think he’s calling two or three at a time? Every day? He’s sick."

The room suddenly felt colder, so Mu Zhiyang hurriedly stood up to toast everyone to lighten the mood while thinking unconsciously: Such matters shouldn’t just be taken at Cui Qishan’s word, it might be good to ask Liu Wenkai later. He’s been in public security for so many years, he may not have eaten the chicken, but he has certainly seen the chicken run.

"Let’s continue discussing the case," Liu Jinghui said as he pulled out the leather notebook he always carried and made a note. "Looking into the finances is one aspect, but I believe there’s even greater hope in exploring interpersonal relationships. To imitate a crime, he must have a model, and once we resolve who that is, we’ve essentially solved the core issue of the case."

"The serial killer is most likely male. Given the method of murder and the way the bodies are disposed of, he is extremely confident, even somewhat arrogant, and probably older, likely having had success in certain fields..." Li Haochen had limited time and conducted a brief psychological profile before turning to Jiang Yuan and asking, "Captain Jiang, what do you think?"

Jiang Yuan thought for a moment and responded, "He’s likely male. If the body was moved by one person, the killer must be physically strong, able to carry a person for dozens of meters, and still have the energy and strength to clean up the crime scene... Beyond that, I can’t really tell."

"In that sense, He Wei actually fits the profile of the killer quite well," Mu Zhiyang remarked, recounting how He Wei had managed to shake off two police officers with a twist of his body when he was arrested at the scene.

The police officers who regularly worked on the front lines, especially those tasked with arresting serious felons, might not be masters of combat, but they certainly met physical standards and had certain skills and focus. Since He Wei could shake off two officers, it was clear his physical condition far surpassed that of an average person, which perfectly fit the requirement of being physically strong.

"If we use that as a basis, there aren’t many people in He Wei’s social circle who fit the bill," Liu Cheng said more casually, considering the setting.

"Indeed. He Wei’s father is already deceased, his son is still young—maybe we could consider some weaker ties, like classmates or fellow fitness enthusiasts?" Li Haochen suggested, looking over at Liu Jinghui. Clearly, he had already considered this issue.

Liu Jinghui, in turn, looked at Liu Cheng and said, "There must have been some intelligence assessment done previously when investigating this case."

The so-called intelligence assessment can be understood as collecting information through various channels like criminals. Just as ordinary people don’t know where to buy drugs, some are more thoroughly and comprehensively knowledgeable about illegal websites than the cyber police, which isn’t strange at all.

The police often receive information that cannot be obtained through normal investigations, through deeds reported in prisons and detention centers, and via special informants, among other means.

Liu Jinghui’s question was essentially asking if multiple people could have been involved in the crime.

Generally speaking, serial killers tend to work alone because keeping secrets with multiple participants is challenging, but now that an imitator had emerged and people were even considering a master-disciple relationship, the possibility of multiple perpetrators was not out of the question.

For criminals to remain tight-lipped over several years, not boasting while drunk with excitement, not mentioning it out of anger or fear, and not taking advantage of any benefits or emotions gained from the crimes, is in fact, extremely difficult.

In the years before DNA testing, many serious cases were solved in this way. Especially in cases like robbery or aggravated rape, the victims might not even report the crime, but the suspects eventually couldn’t help but speak of it themselves.

People on the fringes of the criminal world are actually very sensitive and intelligent in this respect; living life on the edge makes it hard to refuse a bonus "life-saving coin."

Some would even go home at night and meticulously record such information, noting time, place, and characters involved, waiting for the day they might be caught and use it to barter for their freedom.

Liu Cheng naturally nodded in agreement to Liu Jinghui’s question, adding, "We have done an intelligence assessment, and quite in-depth at that."

"In that case..." Liu Jinghui’s voice trailed off as he rubbed his hands together and smiled, "We’re really looking at two aspects here: personal relationships and financial issues. I think we can add a small item—information exchange. We don’t need to elaborate on the first two, but regarding information exchange, since He Wei was arrested suddenly, could it be possible that his phone or other electronic devices still contain a browsing history, records of communication?"

"We could also look for things like his membership cards... gyms, clubs, and so on. These could all be tools for him to contact people," Li Haochen said, visibly excited by the rare opportunity for intellectual collaboration.

Buzz.

Liu Cheng’s phone rang.

"It’s from Tao," Liu Cheng said, and quickly went to the balcony to answer the call.

After a minute, Liu Cheng returned, looking at the tableful of expectant eyes and announced, "He Wei is showing an intent to confess, but he is asking for the person in charge of the special investigation team, as well as the investigating officer who found him, to be present. The interrogator suggested that Captain Jiang and Tao participate in the interrogation, as it might be helpful."

Both Liu Jinghui and Li Haochen, who were good at reasoning, frowned simultaneously. Based on the current conditions, was there a risk that our brainstorming was in vain?