I'm not a genius detective

Chapter 140 Three Knives to the Heart
The crime scene was in the suburbs, which was a bit far away, requiring more than half an hour to get there.

The two drove there.

Other colleagues from the squadron and the technical squadron are also on their way. Including Captain Ji Bowei and others, the local police station has already taken preliminary control of the scene and is just waiting for the criminal investigation team to arrive.

Han Ling sat in the passenger seat, took out his phone to check the calendar, and said, "Today is the Torch Festival, it's not auspicious for anything."

Tong Feng: "You still believe in this? Wait, what's the Torch Festival?"

Han Ling: "It's written on the calendar, August 4th is the Torch Festival, I think it's a festival for ethnic minorities, to drive away disasters and evil spirits."

Tong Feng: "What's the use? We don't get a holiday."

Han Ling: "Can't you show some respect for traditional culture?"

Tong Feng: "Not interested. What's going on over there? How did they die?"

Han Ling shook his head: "I don't know. Brother Zhou only said that a murder occurred. It should be confirmed that he committed the murder."

Upon hearing this, Tong Feng sighed, "Sigh, I'm busy again. What are these guys doing? What can't be solved with the law? Why do they have to kill people?"

The forensic doctor hasn't arrived yet. Since Fangzhou says it's a murder case, it means the local police station has directly ruled out accidents and suicides. The signs of homicide at the scene must be very clear and there's no dispute about it.

Based on experience, it is estimated to be a violent murder.

Only violent murders leave obvious external traces; other types of murders generally require a forensic autopsy to determine.

“Sometimes, the law really can’t solve problems,” Han Ling said. “People are alive, but the law is dead. It can only prohibit certain behaviors and cannot provide absolute fairness. In the eyes of some people, certain things are more important than life itself.”

Tong Feng agreed: "Yes, you're right. If the law can't give them fairness, they can only put down the law, pick up weapons, and fight for fairness themselves."

Such situations are relatively rare; what we encounter more often are conflicts of hatred and interests.

The vehicle arrived at the scene of the crime during the chat.

This is a remote, rural area. The car is parked by the roadside, and there is a river down the road.

The colleagues who arrived first had already set up the vehicle-mounted searchlights and started illuminating the area. The cordon had been set up long ago, and there were no onlookers in the vicinity.

The technical squadron and Ji Bowei and his team arrived one after another.

Without exchanging pleasantries, everyone immediately got to work. Investigators and police officers from the local station learned about the reported case, the forensic doctor conducted a preliminary autopsy on the body, and trace evidence was examined in the surrounding area in a grid pattern.

Han Ling and Tong Feng approached the body, took a look, and confirmed the deceased's basic information.

Male, short hair, no glasses, around thirty to forty years old, wearing a light yellow T-shirt, jeans, and casual leather shoes.

Blood and wounds were concentrated on the left chest, and three stab wounds from sharp blades could be seen on the surface.

This is what we can see on the surface; the rest will depend on the results of the forensic autopsy.

Han Ling bent down and stared at the heart wound for a while, then suddenly thought of the murder case in Languang District that Tong Feng had mentioned before.

A woman had been stabbed three times in the heart.

The corpse in front of me also had three cuts.

The frequency of homicides is not that high. It is almost impossible for two cases to have the same modus operandi within two months, unless the murderer is the same person.

"No way?"

Tong Feng clearly also connected the case to the Languang District and had a bad feeling.

The cases that criminal police officers least want to encounter are serial murder cases. These cases bring extremely high pressure to solve and impact social security. Moreover, they are often accompanied by considerable difficulty in investigation.

When you're involved in a case like this, the detectives involved won't get a good night's sleep for a long time.

"Don't jump to conclusions yet, wait for the autopsy."

Han Ling said something and turned to Ji Bowei's side. At this time, the person who reported the case was also called over.

The two men who reported the incident were friends. They had planned to go night fishing by the river, but before they even reached the riverbank, they saw a body lying on the ground, which terrified them so much that their legs went weak.

Luckily, there were two of them, which gave them courage to rely on.

It makes perfect sense that the fisherman found the body.

This place is so remote and deserted that no one usually comes here, especially at night. Only fishing enthusiasts who are willing to climb mountains and wade through rivers for a few fish will appear.

While expressing their gratitude, the criminal police officers in the squad also need to register the basic information of the person who reported the crime in detail to prevent the situation from escalating into a "thief crying 'stop thief'" scenario.

Of course, this situation is almost nonexistent. It's impossible for the murderer to stay at the scene to call the police, calmly wait for the police to arrive, and answer their questions.

"We can't come here anymore...we'll find another place." One of the anglers was still shaken. He only said he would fish somewhere else in the future, but he didn't say he would stop fishing altogether.

For anglers, quitting fishing is just as difficult as quitting smoking.

After confirming that the information provided by the person who made the report was complete and accurate, and that there was nothing else that required the person's cooperation, Ji Bowei let the two leave.

At the scene, only police officers from the local police station and the branch office remained.

When a murder occurred, the head of the local police station personally went to the scene, bringing only four people with him. Recently, the anti-prostitution campaign has been in full swing, and all police stations are very busy and short-staffed.

"Old Ji, you're going to be busy again. There's also a crackdown on prostitution. I'll try to spare some people." The director seemed to be quite familiar with Ji Bowen.

A murder has occurred in the jurisdiction, and the police station is to assist the criminal investigation team in the investigation. Ji Bowen nodded: "Let's see what the situation is like first."

After speaking, he came over to the corpse.

All four forensic doctors from the technical squadron were present this time. At that moment, Jiang Haichuan carefully turned the deceased's head over, revealing the wound on the back of the head.

Han Ling was also next to the body. The body had been lying flat, so he couldn't see the back of the head.

"Is this the primary crime scene?" Ji Bowei asked.

If a body is found in the wild, it should first be determined whether it was dumped.

Jiang Haichuan nodded: "Yes, judging from the bloodstains on the chest and the ground, the victim was killed here and has not been moved."

The key point is this: irregular contusions and lacerations were visible at the top of the head, with interstitial bridging, but no fractures. This indicates that the assailant controlled the force applied when striking the victim's head, and the weapon used was not lethal.

Ji Bowei immediately understood: "The injury to the back of the head was to knock the deceased unconscious?"

Jiang Haichuan: "That should be the case."

Ji Bowei muttered to himself, "First knock them unconscious, then transport them here, and stab them to death with a sharp weapon."

The entire crime was accompanied by violence, and it was most likely committed by a strong, able-bodied adult male.

"Is it three cuts?" he asked again.

Jiang Haichuan: "It's three cuts."

Having received confirmation, Ji Bowei turned to Hu Lihui standing beside him: "Old Hu, in that case in Languang District, the victim was also stabbed three times, right?"

Hu Lihui: "Yes, three stabs. The victim is a woman. The case has been going on for more than a month and it is still not solved. We haven't even found the suspect."

Ji Bowei frowned, his mind already starting to lean towards a series of cases: "The probability of two unrelated cases having exactly the same modus operandi is almost negligible."

Did the victim in Languang District have an injury to the back of their head?

Hu Lihui: I don't know that. It involves more details, which need to be kept confidential during the investigation.

Ji Bowei: "You guys keep investigating, I'll call Captain Feng."

To learn about murder cases in other jurisdictions, he needed the intervention of higher-level leaders; he couldn't directly call the Languang branch.

The autopsy continues.

Han Ling glanced around at the surroundings. The ground was covered with fine pebbles, making it virtually impossible for footprints to be found. There were no security cameras around either. If the forensic pathologists and forensic investigators couldn't find any biological information about the perpetrator at the scene, and the investigation into interpersonal relationships was also hampered, this case would be very troublesome.

Assuming this is a series of cases, if the Languang branch has not found the suspect, the Gu'an branch is probably in a similar predicament.

"Wound 1, fifth rib on the left anterior chest line; Wound 2, fourth rib on the left midclavicular line; Wound 3, sixth rib on the left anterior axillary line," Jiang Haichuan's voice rang out, and Yang Rui took notes.

After Jiang Haichuan had finished speaking, Han Ling asked, "Director Jiang, which one is the fatal wound? Or... are they all fatal wounds?"

Jiang Haichuan looked up at Han Ling, thought for a moment, and said, "They were almost simultaneous, both piercing the heart, and both were fatal wounds."

In fact, one stab is enough to cause acute cardiac tamponade and massive blood loss, resulting in extremely rapid death with a mortality rate approaching 100%.

Han Ling: "So, stabbing three times seems more like it was done with hatred in mind."

Jiang Haichuan did not respond to that statement. As a forensic doctor, he only cared about the corpse, the wounds, and the shape of the murder weapon. As for why there were such wounds, that was something for the investigators of the Major Crimes Unit to consider.

On the other side, Ji Bowei, who had been waiting for a long time, received a call from the Languang Branch. The two sides had an in-depth discussion about the two cases. Under the spotlight, Ji Bowei's face could be seen gradually turning ugly.

"Okay, we'll investigate first, and we'll contact you again after the autopsy report is available."

Merging cases requires extreme caution. A wrong judgment could lead to a serious deviation in the direction of the investigation, which would have a significant impact on the efficiency of the investigation and even judicial fairness.

There must be solid evidence, and it can only be done after obtaining approval from a higher-level leader.

After hanging up the phone, Ji Bowei returned.

Everyone looked over, their eyes filled with questions.

Ji Bowei was silent for a moment before saying, "The deceased in Languang District was knocked unconscious by a blow to the back of the head, and then moved to the wilderness where he was stabbed three times, each time in the heart."

He only mentioned the murder case in Languang District and did not comment on the connection between the two cases.

As the deputy captain of the criminal investigation team, he couldn't just casually utter the words "combining cases."

Serial killers rarely meet, so one must be extremely cautious.

Seeing this, everyone tacitly kept quiet, not daring to mention words like "possible consolidation of cases" or "serial murders," lest they be scolded.

"Expand the search area," Ji Bowei ordered.

"Yes!"

With powerful flashlights and specialized handheld lamps turned on, the group dispersed outwards from the location of the body, meticulously searching for any clues or physical evidence the suspect might have missed.

Ji Bowei arrived at the riverbank. The river was not flowing fast, so he considered calling for backup to thoroughly search the surrounding waters.

There was no murder weapon at the scene. Is it possible that it was thrown into the river?
If you have doubts, you must investigate.

(End of this chapter)