eurekapd Chapter 1273 Gathering Clues, Discussion and Analysis
Chapter 1273 Gathering Clues, Discussion and Analysis
Xiao Zhou answered the phone and said gently, "Ms. Liu, please calm down. We need to verify the situation further. Please provide a recent photo of Zhao Baotian. In addition, we need to collect your DNA sample and compare it with the deceased's DNA before we can finally confirm the deceased's identity."
Shortly after hanging up the phone, Liu Fang sent over a photo of Zhao Baotian. In the photo, Zhao Baotian was wearing a black coat and dark blue jeans, with clearly visible brown leather shoes, matching the clothing of the victim at the crime scene perfectly. Subsequently, Xiao Zhou arranged for team members to go to Liu Fang's home to collect DNA samples, and simultaneously contacted the landlord and employees of "Fashion Hair Salon" to further verify Zhao Baotian's information.
Xiaoli, an employee of "Fashion Hair Salon," told the police: "Two days ago, when Brother Zhao came to work, he was in a particularly low mood and told me, 'I've run into some trouble lately, and something might happen.' That afternoon, a man wearing a black hoodie came to the shop to see him. The two chatted in a corner for a while, and after they finished talking, Brother Zhao looked even worse. I asked him what was wrong, and he only said, 'Nothing, just an old customer, we're talking about some personal matters.' When I was leaving get off work that evening, Brother Zhao also told me, 'I probably can't come tomorrow. If the landlord asks, just say I'm not feeling well.'"
"What did that man in the black hoodie look like? Did he say his name?" Xiao Li pressed. Xiao Li thought carefully for a moment and replied, "He was about 170 centimeters tall, of medium build, and wearing a hat and a mask, so I couldn't see his face at all. He didn't say his name either. I only remember that he spoke in a very low voice, as if he was deliberately lowering his voice, afraid that others would hear him."
The landlord said, "I did mention raising the rent to Zhao Baotian, but he disagreed and we had a big argument. He said, 'My shop is almost going to go out of business, and you're raising the rent? Are you trying to kill me?' Two days ago, I saw him arguing with a man in front of the shop. He sounded like a customer, but I didn't hear what they were arguing about."
As these clues emerged, the connection between Zhao Baotian and the deceased became increasingly strong. At 6:30 a.m., the technical department delivered crucial news: "Liu Fang's DNA sample matches the deceased's DNA sample with a 99.99% match, confirming that the deceased is indeed Zhao Baotian! Furthermore, the sedative drug detected in the deceased's stomach was identified as 'alprazolam,' which is completely consistent with the medication Liu Fang described Zhao Baotian taking, further confirming the deceased's identity."
Hearing the result, the team members in the office all breathed a sigh of relief, and smiles finally appeared on their tired faces. "Finally found it!" Xiao Li slumped into his chair, rubbing his sore eyes, and said, "After staying up all night, it wasn't for nothing. Now I can finally get a good night's sleep, right?"
“Yes,” Xiao Zhao took out his phone and sent a message to his wife to inform her about the child’s situation. “Now that the deceased’s identity has been confirmed, the subsequent investigation has a direction. At least we know that we need to find the suspicious person in the black hoodie, as well as the customer and landlord who had a conflict with Zhao Baotian. If we investigate along these two lines, we should be able to find the suspect soon.”
Looking at Zhao Baotian's information on the screen, Xiao Zhou finally felt relieved. From 11 PM to 6:30 AM, over seven hours of intensive investigation, filtering through more than 1500 pieces of information, not only confirmed the deceased's identity but also eliminated the misleading lead of "Chen Feng." He picked up the phone and reported to Li Ming: "Team Leader Li, the deceased's identity has been confirmed. He is Zhao Baotian, a 38-year-old barber at 'Fashion Hair Salon' in the south of the city, 172 cm tall. Two nights ago, he said he was 'going to meet someone to discuss business,' and then disappeared after get off work. His last meal consisted of rice, chicken, and vegetables, and he also took the sedative 'alprazolam.' The family has confirmed these details, and the DNA comparison is also a perfect match. Current leads include: a suspicious person wearing a black hoodie approached him; he also had conflicts with customers and his landlord. The next step is to focus the investigation on these two groups to find clues about the suspect."
Li Ming's voice on the other end of the phone was filled with relief: "Great! You've worked hard. Now that the deceased's identity has been confirmed, the case investigation will be much easier. Please arrange for the team to rest for a few hours first, and then we'll have a meeting at 9 a.m. to plan the next steps. Don't let everyone get too tired."
After hanging up the phone, Xiao Zhou looked out the window; the sky was gradually turning a pale white. He knew that confirming the deceased's identity was only the first step in solving the case. Zhao Baotian's sources of conflict, the mysterious "man in the black hoodie," and the connection between Zhao Baotian and the Oriental Building—these could all be key clues. He organized Zhao Baotian's relevant information, highlighting keywords such as "investigate customers and landlords with whom Zhao Baotian had conflicts," "find the suspicious person in the black hoodie," and "verify Zhao Baotian's connection to the Oriental Building," in preparation for the morning meeting.
In the office, some team members were dozing off in their chairs, while others were eating instant noodles to replenish their energy. Looking at everyone's tired appearance, Xiao Zhou felt grateful: "You've all worked hard. Take a rest for a while. There's still a tough battle to fight in the morning."
Sunlight streamed through the office window, marking the start of a new day. Xiao Zhou knew that as long as he followed Zhao Baotian's leads, he would eventually find his killer, give the deceased and his family a just explanation, and expose the evil hidden in the underground parking lot of the Oriental Building.
The next morning at 9 a.m., as soon as the door to the Criminal Investigation Division's conference room closed, the air was filled with the heavy aroma of rustling papers and mingled coffee. On the long conference table, the case files for Zhao Baotian were neatly stacked according to categories such as "Crime Scene Investigation," "Autopsy Report," "Building Investigation," and "Identity Verification." Each document had colorful sticky notes attached to its edges, with keywords like "black hoodie," "alprazolam," and "customer complaint" standing out prominently in the morning light. Li Ming sat at the head of the table, his eyes bloodshot from staying up all night. He tapped the table lightly with his hand, his gaze sweeping over Xiao Yang, Zhang Lin, Xiao Wang, Xiao Zhou, and the others present—confirming the deceased's identity was only the beginning; clarifying Zhao Baotian's network of relationships, finding the customers and landlords with whom he had conflicts, and the mysterious "man in the black hoodie" were the keys to a breakthrough in the case.
“Everyone’s here. Report in turn according to your assigned roles. Start with Xiao Yang. Explain the supplementary details of the crime scene investigation thoroughly, especially those clues that can be linked to the suspect or the murder weapon.” Li Ming’s voice broke the silence of the conference room. Xiao Yang immediately stood up and projected the crime scene investigation map onto the screen. The red dot of the laser pointer fell on the key traces as he spoke.
"At the crime scene in the B2 underground parking lot of the Oriental Building, we discovered three core clues. The first is the connection between tire tracks and the vehicle: On the floor tiles between the body and the elevator entrance, we extracted a complete tire track of a compact car, 18 centimeters wide, with a horizontal tread pattern and moderate wear at the edges. After comparison, we found that it highly matches the tire characteristics of the Volkswagen Lavida model; a small amount of black rubber debris remained on the surface of the track, which is consistent with the possible vehicle characteristics of the 'black car with obscured license plate' that Xiao Wang had previously found. Moreover, the direction of this track completely overlaps with the route the car took out of the parking lot, suggesting that it was left by the suspect when he drove away after dumping the body."