Reborn in 97, I solved a cold case at the Municipal Bureau

Chapter 301 Iron Police
"I...I've lost my wallet," Zhang Xianglan said in a panic.

"Look again."

"I looked, I remember putting it in my pocket," Zhang Xianglan said as she rummaged through all her pockets.

"Damn it!" Zhou Yi cursed inwardly. Just what I feared had come to pass.

Zhang Xianglan went to Anyuan to apply for the cremation of Li Youqiang, so she must have relevant documents for both her and Li Youqiang.

My ID was in my wallet, but the wallet was stolen, so I can't file a report.

Zhang Xianglan not only lost time and money on train tickets, but also had to go back to Hongcheng to reissue her documents.

However, Li Youqiang had already taken his ID card with him. If he wanted to reissue his household registration book and marriage certificate, he would have to go in person with his ID card.

But they don't have ID cards, and it's impossible for them to go in person.

Therefore, this is an extremely devastating thing for Zhang Xianglan right now.

Although I just caught a thief, it was because I happened to see him, so naturally I couldn't let him go.

He had no intention of catching a thief on the train; after all, that was the job of the railway police.

But now that Zhang Xianglan's documents have been stolen, that's a completely different matter.

"I remember putting it in my pocket, how could it just disappear?" Zhang Xianglan said, her voice trembling with tears.

People around looked over and started chattering, saying, "Did it fall off because you were running too fast when you got on the bus?"

"Could it have been stolen?"

How much money is in your wallet?

Zhang Xianglan knew what not having identification meant. While crying, she rummaged through her bag and took out everything inside.

Zhou Yi said, "Don't worry, I'll figure something out. First, tell me about the situation from when you started getting your ticket checked until you sat down in your seat."

Zhou Yi was almost certain that the thief who stole the wallet was in the car.

Because when he checked the tickets, he didn't rush to squeeze into the crowd. When he let Zhang Xianglan get on the train first, there weren't many people left behind.

Zhang Xianglan was at the very back of the ticket check line, so the probability of her being robbed was very small.

It must have been stolen by someone while the train was passing through the crowded carriage.

Zhang Xianglan spoke incoherently and incoherently, but Zhou Yi still managed to roughly make sense of her.

Their seats were in the fourth carriage. Zhang Xianglan asked the staff on the platform for directions before boarding the train. She boarded through the door between the fifth and fourth carriages.

When I boarded the train, there weren't many people around; most of them were putting their luggage in the carriage.

Their seats were at the end near the third carriage, meaning they had to pass through most of carriage number four.

After sitting down, she didn't move around anymore, just kept looking out the window, waiting for Zhou Yi.

Therefore, the most likely place for a wallet to be stolen is within the short distance of about ten meters from the boarding door to the seat.

There are two possibilities for the thief: one is that someone in the carriage stole the item while Zhang Xianglan was passing by.

Another method involves walking towards Zhang Xianglan from the opposite direction, stealing as they pass by, and then heading towards carriage number five.

Zhou Yi leans more towards the second possibility: the pickpockets on the train are definitely mobile criminals who take advantage of the chaos when boarding and alighting, as well as when people are using the restroom, to steal.

If you're sitting down, there's no need to target someone in the same carriage so quickly. If the victim discovers the theft too soon, it will alert other passengers and make it more difficult to commit the crime later.

"From the time you entered the carriage until you sat down, did you bump into anyone?" Zhou Yi asked. "Think carefully."

Zhang Xianglan's eyes were red, and she frowned, trying desperately to remember: "It seems like someone bumped into me and said sorry, and then he stepped aside to let me pass first."

"Is this person male or female? How old are they? Do they have any distinguishing features?"

"It was a man, he looked to be in his thirties, but I don't remember what he looked like."

Zhou Yi frowned. He was a man in his thirties. This was like finding a needle in a haystack.

“Oh, I remember now, this person has a strange smell in their breath,” Zhang Xianglan said.

"What's that smell? Smoke?"

“No…” Zhang Xianglan thought for a moment and said, “The taste is a bit like…mint…but stronger than mint, and a bit like alcohol, but not quite…I can’t really describe what it tastes like.”

Hearing her description, Zhou Yi guessed almost exactly what she meant.

This smell is most likely from betel nut.

Besides the distinctive smell, people who chew betel nuts also have some other notable characteristics. Their cheeks become more developed due to long-term chewing, making them more prominent than those of ordinary people.

"Don't worry, I'll try to find your wallet."

"Really?" Zhang Xianglan asked incredulously.

"You should rest for a while," Zhou Yi said, standing up.

In the past, green trains mostly had face-to-face seating with a small table in the middle, one side had three seats and the other side had two seats.

Zhou Yi and his companion bought two seats. Opposite them sat an elderly couple who looked like simple, hardworking people; their fingers were dark, rough, and covered in calluses.

"Don't worry, little sister, if all else fails, have your brother ask the train driver. I have some oranges here, have one," the woman comforted her, probably referring to the train staff.

Zhang Xianglan was in great pain, her eyes closed and brows furrowed. She waved to the older woman and said thank you. Zhou Yi walked to the connecting area between the carriages, took out his phone, and called the Third Brigade. Chen Yan answered the phone.

He told Chen Yan to contact the railway police at the train station and ask them to help search along the railway tracks.

There is a possibility that the pickpocket stole the wallet, took the money, and threw the ID and wallet out the window.

It hasn't been long since the train started moving, so there's no need to travel a long distance.

Moreover, railway police are certainly very familiar with this kind of thing; if pickpockets do this, they must know it.

However, Zhou Yi felt that the possibility was slightly lower, because the green trains all had face-to-face seating, and throwing a wallet out the window would be too obvious and easily noticed by others.

Unless everyone sitting at that window is an accomplice of the pickpocket.

However, this possibility is extremely low.

First, in the past, train tickets were sold manually, unlike later online ticket purchases where you can choose your own tickets. Ticket windows were set up in order, and while people could sit in a row, they were separated by aisles, not opposite each other. So this was impractical in real-world situations.

Secondly, pickpockets on trains aren't there for team building or leisure; they're there to work. Whether considering the ease of theft or the level of risk, it's impossible for a group of pickpockets to sit face-to-face together.

Unless they were planning to boost the railway police's performance and take them all down.

Therefore, Zhou Yi concluded that the stolen wallets would be kept by a designated person. This person wouldn't be responsible for actually stealing them, but only for disposing of the "stolen goods," so they could be well hidden.

After all, to catch a thief, you need to catch him red-handed; finding a wallet on someone is irrefutable evidence. But just finding money isn't enough, since everyone's money looks the same.

Zhou Yi glanced at his watch, worried that the person disposing of the stolen goods might get off at the next stop and dispose of them.

This bus doesn't originate from Hongcheng, nor does it only go to Anyuan. Hongcheng and Anyuan are both stops along the way, with several other stops in between. The next stop is Kangcheng, which is about an hour away.

If the pickpocket hadn't been found before then, it would have been impossible to recover Zhang Xianglan's wallet later.

Zhou Yi took a deep breath and walked towards the front of the car.

The train has a total of twenty carriages, with only three at the front and sixteen at the back, so naturally we have to start by checking the fewest.

But just going through all twenty carriages from beginning to end to look for suspicious targets would take at least half an hour.

Zhou Yi walked to the front of the car, then started walking back, observing the passengers on both sides.

He automatically ignores women, children, and the elderly, scanning them without stopping at all.

An adult male will linger his gaze for two seconds, taking a look at the other person's cheek.

He walked from the front of the train to the back, paying particular attention to men walking in the aisle and those staying in the connecting areas between carriages.

But surprisingly, they couldn't find this suspicious target.

Some people were clearly wary of him, but they didn't fit the characteristics of the target he was looking for.

After searching around, Zhou Yi was puzzled. Could it be that the person got off the bus right after stealing it?

That can't be right. I didn't see anyone leaving the ticket gate from the time I entered until I boarded the train.

Having no other choice, I checked the time and could only search from the back of the car back to the front.

When Zhou Yi had just opened the carriage door at the junction of carriages 15 and 14, someone blocked his way.

"Excuse me, could you please let me pass?" Zhou Yi said, moving to the side as if to let him pass.

Unexpectedly, the person also moved to the side, blocking Zhou Yi's way.

Just then, another person suddenly appeared behind him and grabbed his arm.

The person blocking his way grabbed his other arm and pulled him aside without saying a word.

"What are you doing? We've been watching you for a long time, you've been acting suspiciously!" one of them demanded sharply.

Zhou Yi immediately realized that he had encountered his colleagues. These two were probably plainclothes railway police officers on the bus, and he guessed that his walking around had aroused their suspicion.

"One of us, I am..."

Before Zhou Yi could finish speaking, another person shouted, "What do you mean 'one of us'? You better behave yourself!"

“You’re one of us. I’m from the Criminal Investigation Division of Hongcheng City Public Security Bureau. My ID is in the inside pocket of my coat. If you don’t believe me, take it yourselves.”

The two looked at each other, and one of them reached out to take it.

Then he took out Zhou Yi's police ID, and after the two looked at it, they immediately let go of each other's hands.

“Zhou Yi…” A person looked at the photo and name on the ID and compared it with Zhou Yi himself. “This name seems familiar.”

"Excuse me, Comrade Zhou Yi, we were just doing our duty," the man said, returning the identification to Zhou Yi.

Zhou Yi touched his left arm. Goodness, the person on his left had a strong grip.

"It's alright, I understand. My behavior did raise some suspicion," Zhou Yi said with a helpless smile.

"Are you on a mission or...?"

"Oh, that's right."

Just as Zhou Yi was about to explain the situation, the toilet door next to him suddenly opened.

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(End of this chapter)