civil forensic

Chapter 1319 Suspicious Clouds Over the Prison

Chapter 1319 Suspicious Clouds Over the Prison

A gentle breeze swept across the Taihe River, bringing a touch of coolness.

The river water rippled gently, lapping against the anti-corrosion wood on the riverbank.

Along the riverside road near the school, some waterfront platforms have been built in areas with gentle water flow. These platforms are almost level with the river water, and during the summer flood season, they are often submerged.

Several students, dressed in light clothing, sat by the river, posing and enjoying the harmony of the wind and water. A girl with fair skin took off her shoes and put her white feet into the river, letting them sway with the waves. A gentle smile appeared on her face as her best friend took a series of 12 photos of her.

Cao Chujun, the captain of the Third Brigade, led the suspects back to the crime scene. After watching the suspects complete the identification process, he whispered to Wen Ming, who was standing next to him, "Was the place where the victim fell into the water upstream from where they took the photos?"

“Yes.” Wen Ming was also there to come and identify the scene of the suspect’s arrest. After replying to Cao Chujun, he specifically added, “It’s also within the area of ​​the location where the suspect fell into the water, as determined by Captain Jiang. The center point is only a few dozen meters away.”

"It's accurate enough. In fact, it's too accurate. But I'm not talking about determining the location where the body fell into the water," Cao Chujun said, then gestured with his lips and explained, "I mean, the spot where the girl was rinsing her feet is where the body flowed down."

"Maybe."

"The water flow is so slow here, the body is very likely to have hit this protruding platform." Although Cao Chujun was old and didn't know much about forensic techniques, he was extremely experienced.

Upon seeing this, Wen Ming nodded and said, "That's possible. After the deceased fell into the water, he was definitely not in good condition. If he was drifting with the current, he would either have floated down from where the girls were washing their feet, or he might have hit that platform, spun around, and continued to drift downstream... These girls probably didn't expect that a body had just floated past the spot where they were taking pictures not long ago."

Wan Baoming from the Criminal Investigation Center had always been very concerned about Jiang Yuan's case. Hearing the two men's conversation, he immediately perked up and came over to examine the case: "Although it's not the same river as before, it should still have flown through it."

"Wouldn't the body leave DNA if it hit this platform?" Cao Chujun nodded and turned to ask Wan Baoming, "If we can get DNA by scanning it, it will supplement the chain of evidence."

“That’s true.” Wan Baoming felt it wasn’t easy. Algae and the like could easily damage DNA, but it was unnecessary to tell Cao Chujun, an old criminal police officer, and besides, what if it really was true?

Without further ado, Wan Baoming beckoned over two people and told them to wipe their faces on the edge of the waterfront platform to see if they could get DNA. He specifically instructed them, "Be nice to the girl taking the photos, don't scare her."

Two minutes later, a clear scream shattered the tranquility on both sides of the Taihe River.

The one who uttered the earth-shattering high note was the girl who had her feet in the water and was swimming back and forth.

The group of students initially didn't care what the police were doing, much like how some onlookers watch a group of people fighting with weapons. When the students were taking photos, they not only ignored the police's actions but also considered using them as a backdrop to take some pictures to post on social media.

However, watching the spectacle is one thing, but the corpse is another.

The thought that their feet had just touched a corpse not long ago sent shivers down the spines of the students.

A smug smile crept onto Cao Chujun's lips.

……

Back at the police station, Cao Chujun took the lead and went to find Jiang Yuan first.

As expected, the squad leader, Yu Wenshu, was talking to Jiang Yuan.

The investigation phase of the previous case has ended, and it's about to be sent for testing. At this time, Yu Wenshu would run to Jiang Yuan's side whenever he had a spare moment, just like a Czech wolf when it's almost mealtime. It's not just that he's afraid of messing things up, but he also feels like he's losing out if he eats late.

When Cao Chujun entered, he first talked about the on-site testimony, which received unanimous praise from everyone. Then he told the story of cleaning the waterfront platform.

On-site identification is a crucial part of criminal cases. Successfully completing it not only benefits prosecution and trial but also encourages the investigation. Just like the logic of "why help if you didn't do it?", the logic of on-site identification is "why do you know so clearly if you didn't do it?"

The story about cleaning the waterfront platform was just for fun. Even Yu Wenshu, after hearing it, was thrown out of the serious atmosphere and laughed and scolded, "Old Cao, you're being disrespectful to your elders. You're bullying me a bit."

Cao Chujun chuckled a few times, making everyone happy, and then casually said, "Just giving them a heads-up. This generation of young people is too quick to mistake people for good people. We're a group of people armed and with criminal suspects, afraid that another one might pop up, but they're all thinking about which angle to post on social media."

"The social order is much better now, it's different from your time," Yu Wenshu said with a smile.

"I wouldn't dare do it again, it's not like all the bad guys are dead." Cao Chujun took off his equipment, rubbed his neck, and said, "When I was a criminal police officer 40 years ago, there were murders, robberies, kidnappings... Every bus in Changyang City had thieves, and more than one. They would pull out knives as soon as they spotted someone. Back then, the kid who stabbed someone to death was younger than me. I remember there was one who slashed a young girl's face and was sentenced to 10 years. He's been out for a long time."

Yu Wenshu continued, "Things are different now. Not only has the way of social governance changed, but the situation we face is also different. For example, in the case I just gave to Director Jiang, the victim died in prison. There was surveillance footage, but no one came and went, so we couldn't find the murderer."

He steered the conversation toward a new case, and Cao Chujun immediately cooperated, though he was also somewhat surprised: "Did a fellow inmate do it? How did he die?"

“There were no external injuries. When he was found, he was in a corner of the cafeteria, his lips were cyanotic, and he was breathing rapidly. He died before he could be taken to the hospital.” Yu Wenshu said with a serious expression, “The procuratorate has already intervened, and the prison is also extremely anxious, so they came to Director Jiang for help.”

"Not really. But this case does seem a bit strange. With such good surveillance in prisons these days, if the murderer escaped, shouldn't the victim be guaranteed to die? Giving them a chance to be taken to the hospital is quite unprofessional." Jiang Yuan casually started the conversation while waiting for Huang Qiangmin's confirmation.

Yu Wenshu smiled bitterly: "People in prison don't necessarily have experience in killing, let alone be professionals. Some people are bold, it's innate, but killing isn't that easy."

As they were talking, Huang Qiangmin finished his call, returned with his phone in hand, nodded to Cao Chujun to say hello, and then plopped down next to Yu Wenshu, saying, "This case is not simple. The prison is definitely negligent. The deceased had been imprisoned for two years and was a fraudster with no prior record of violent crimes. According to them, he hadn't made any enemies. If you look at it that way, it's impossible to explain why he died."

Huang Qiangmin: "Secondly, the victim had a good daily record, so he was qualified to work in the canteen, which is a good position in prison. He had more free time than others. But if this was prepared to kill him, then the identity of the murderer is troublesome."

Yu Wenshu nodded slowly: "Old Qin was only transferred there last year, so he was actually worried... But no matter what, Old Qin supports our handling of the case, and the procuratorate also wholeheartedly agreed when he asked Jiang Yuan to come."

"If we go there now, can we get all the surveillance videos?" Huang Qiangmin immediately asked a test.

"Old Qin guaranteed it to me," Yu Wenshu said without hesitation, "At the very least, Jiang Yuan will be able to see everything."

Huang Qiangmin then looked at Jiang Yuan and said, "If that's really the case, I think we can give it a try. However, if we can't see the surveillance footage, or can't see all of it, we can just turn around and leave. Is that okay?"

“No problem. I’ll go with you personally.” Yu Wenshu was even more worried about problems than Huang Qiangmin, so he immediately mustered his troops and joined Jiang Yuan’s team.

(End of this chapter)