eurekapd Chapter 1215 On-site recounting of the murder
Chapter 1215 On-site recounting of the murder
Spraying the ground with luminol reagent instantly produced a pale blue fluorescence—a perfect match to the "size 43 Martin boot print" discovered in the earlier investigation. The stride length and width of the print were consistent with Zhang Baoshan's gait, and the reddish-brown soil clinging to the edge of the print was identical in composition to the soil inside the brick kiln. "What did you say and do after you met Li Kui?" Xiao Zhou pressed, the camera focused on Zhang Baoshan's face, capturing every subtle expression.
Zhang Baoshan's head drooped even lower, his fingers unconsciously fiddling with his handcuffs: "I told him the money was inside the brick kiln and asked him to come in with me to get it. He hesitated at first, saying it was too dark inside, so I lied and said, 'It's cool inside, and I'll talk to you about something,' and that's when he followed me in." He slowly walked into the brick kiln, the beam of the surveying light illuminating the path beneath his feet. "We walked in this direction for about 10 meters, then I stopped and told him not to call the police, and that the 2 yuan would be a bribe. But he said, 'This is illegal, I have to call the police,' and even took out his phone to dial 110."
He pointed to the east wall of the brick kiln, where there was a fresh scratch: "I panicked, so I took out a rope from the bag and, while he was looking down at his phone, I went around behind him and tied his hands behind his back. When he struggled, his back hit the wall, leaving this mark," Zhang Baoshan's voice was filled with fear, as if he had returned to that afternoon, "He shouted 'Let me go,' and I was afraid that someone would hear, so I covered his mouth with my hand and dragged him deeper into the brick kiln."
Technicians examined the scratches on the wall. Measurements showed the scratches were 30 centimeters long and 5 centimeters wide, perfectly matching the wear marks on the back of Li Kui's work jacket. Furthermore, the fibers extracted from the scratches matched the cotton blend of Li Kui's jacket. "How much force did you use when you dragged him? Did he resist?" Xiao Zhou continued to press. The camera panned across the drag marks on the floor—perfectly matching Zhang Baoshan's description of "dragging him 10 meters from the entrance into the depths." The width of the marks matched Li Kui's physique, and a small amount of grayish-brown hemp rope fibers remained at the edges.
“He resisted fiercely, kicking at the gravel on the ground and even trying to knee me,” Zhang Baoshan said, his body trembling slightly. “I had no choice but to take out the carbon steel knife from my bag, wave it in front of him, and say, ‘If you move again, I won’t be polite.’ He still wouldn’t cooperate, so I used the knife to slash his coat, trying to scare him. But he became even more agitated and struggled to escape.” He pointed to a pile of gravel on the ground. “I couldn’t hold him back, and he fell here, hitting his forehead on a rock and bleeding. When I saw the blood, I panicked, afraid he would run out and call the police, so I picked up a stone from the ground and hit him on the neck. He yelled and fell to the ground.”
Technicians sprayed luminol reagent near the pile of rubble, and the pale blue bloodstains clearly fluoresced, consistent with the blood loss characteristics of the "5x6cm subcutaneous hemorrhage on the left side of Li Kui's neck" identified by the forensic examination. The shape of the stones also perfectly matched the contact surface morphology of blunt force trauma. "What did you do after he fell?" Xiao Zhou's voice remained calm, yet carried an undeniable authority.
Zhang Baoshan's breathing became rapid, and tears slid down his cheeks: "I was afraid he would wake up, so I picked up a stone again and hit him in the chest twice more until he stopped moving... I squatted down next to him, listening to his heartbeat, and when I found there was no sound, I realized I had killed someone." He pointed to the spot where the body had been, where the soil had been disturbed, "I dragged his body here, covered it with the withered leaves nearby to try and hide it, and then grabbed the rope, the knife, his phone, and his wallet, and ran out as fast as I could."
Technicians extracted a small amount of blood from the "body location" identified by Zhang Baoshan. Testing showed it matched Li Kui's DNA perfectly, and the fibers remaining in the pile of dead leaves matched the material of Li Kui's sweatpants. "Where did you go after leaving the brick kiln? What did you do with the murder weapon and Li Kui's belongings?" Xiao Zhou followed Zhang Baoshan out of the brick kiln, and the camera panned towards the abandoned mining road.
“I first drove the rope and knife to the motorcycle on the mining road,” Zhang Baoshan pointed to the middle section of the mining road. “My red motorcycle was hidden in the woods there. I put the rope and knife in the motorcycle’s trunk, then went back to the brick kiln and threw Li Kui’s phone and wallet into the ditch next to it—the current there was strong, and I wanted the phone and wallet to be washed away so I wouldn’t find any evidence.” He paused and added, “After that, I drove to the construction section of the ring road, hid the motorcycle in an abandoned factory there, rode the motorcycle home, and only dared to drive the motorcycle back the next morning.”
Based on Zhang Baoshan's directions, technicians found traces of a motorcycle parked in the woods along the mining road. The tire tracks on the ground matched the tire treads of Zhang Baoshan's motorcycle perfectly. They also retrieved Li Kui's mobile phone and wallet from a ditch. Although the phone was damaged, the SIM card was still recognizable. The cash in the wallet was missing, consistent with Zhang Baoshan's confession that he "took it to pay off gambling debts."
The entire identification process lasted two hours. Every statement Zhang Baoshan made corresponded precisely to the preliminary on-site investigation and forensic examination results: the stones at the murder site matched blunt force trauma, drag marks matched footprints and the shape of the corpse, the location where the murder weapon was hidden matched the location where physical evidence was collected, and the location where the mobile phone and wallet were discarded matched the retrieval results. Even his mention of "Li Kui's forehead hitting the gravel" completely matched the forensic examination's finding of "a 3x4cm scalp hematoma on the right temporal region," without any omissions or contradictions.
As the identification process concluded and the officers lifted Zhang Baoshan up again, he suddenly broke free, knelt down facing the brick kiln, covered his face with his hands, and wailed, "I was wrong... I shouldn't have killed him... I'm so sorry to his family..." His cries echoed through the valley, but they could no longer bring back the life that had been lost. Watching this scene unfold, Xiao Zhou turned off his body camera, knowing full well that this identification had not only revealed the complete truth of the case but also irrefutably proven Zhang Baoshan's guilt, bringing belated justice to Li Kui's family.
As the police car drove away from Beishan, the morning mist had dissipated, and sunlight filtered through the trees, casting golden dappled patterns on the car. Xiao Zhou, sitting in the passenger seat, looked at the identification record in his hand; every detail was marked "matches the evidence." He took out his phone and sent Li Ming a message: "Zhang Baoshan's on-site identification complete. His confession details are completely consistent with the investigation and autopsy results; the chain of evidence is closed." Li Ming quickly replied: "Okay, thank you for your hard work. The case will be transferred to the procuratorate according to procedure."