Attending ex-girlfriend's wedding, arresting the groom's officer on the spot

Wang Shuai signaled his team members to slow down and try not to make any noise. When they arrived at the door of room 502, Wang Shuai knocked lightly and said in a low voice, "Zhang Huaide, open the door. We are from the property management and have come to check the water pipes."

There was no response from inside the room. Wang Shuai knocked on the door again and said, "Zhang Huaide, are you home? If there's a problem with the water pipes, it will affect the downstairs neighbors." After about 30 seconds, a series of dragging footsteps came from inside the room, and then the door was opened a crack. Zhang Huaide poked his head out, looking at Wang Shuai and the others outside the door with a wary gaze: "Property management? There's nothing wrong with my water pipes."

The moment Zhang Huaide opened the door, Wang Shuai recognized him immediately; the scar on his left eye perfectly matched the man in the surveillance footage. "Zhang Huaide, we're from the Municipal Criminal Investigation Division. You're suspected of intentional homicide. Please come with us!" Wang Shuai quickly showed his police ID and signaled his officers to take him into custody. Upon seeing this, Zhang Huaide's expression changed drastically, and he abruptly tried to slam the door shut.

The prepared team members immediately braced their feet against the door and forcefully pushed it open. Seeing this, Zhang Huaide turned and ran towards the bedroom, attempting to escape through the window. "Don't move! We'll shoot if you run again!" Wang Shuai shouted, leading his team to chase after him into the bedroom. Zhang Huaide reached the window and was about to open it when the team members rushed forward and tackled him to the ground. With a "click," handcuffs were firmly fastened to Zhang Huaide's wrists.

"Why are you arresting me? I didn't kill anyone!" Zhang Huaide lay on the ground, struggling desperately and shouting. "Whether you killed anyone or not, the branch will investigate and find out when we get there. Now, please cooperate with our work and don't resist!" Wang Shuai said coldly. The team members forcefully pulled Zhang Huaide up from the ground and escorted him out of the room.

By this time, a crowd of onlookers had gathered downstairs in the residential area. The second team of officers was maintaining order and guiding the crowd away. Wang Shuai, escorting Zhang Huaide, quickly weaved through the crowd and put him into a police car waiting at the entrance of the residential area. The police car sped away from Heping Residential Area, heading towards the Municipal Criminal Investigation Detachment.

During the transport, Zhang Huaide's emotions gradually stabilized, but he remained silent, his eyes filled with fear and unease. Wang Shuai sat beside him, attempting initial psychological counseling: "Zhang Huaide, we have conclusive evidence that you murdered Zhang Fenglu. If you confess now, you can still seek leniency. You and Zhang Fenglu were from the same hometown and even shared an apartment together. Why did you kill him?"

Zhang Huaide remained silent, turning his head to the side, unwilling to answer Wang Shuai's question. Wang Shuai did not press further; he knew that once they reached the interrogation room at the detachment, faced with irrefutable evidence, Zhang Huaide would eventually confess.

At 4 p.m., the police car arrived at the Municipal Criminal Investigation Detachment. Officers escorted Zhang Huaide out of the car and took him directly to the interrogation room. Before entering the interrogation room, the officers, in accordance with regulations, conducted a body search of Zhang Huaide, confiscated his cell phone, keys, and other items, and placed him in handcuffs.

The interrogation room was dimly lit and the atmosphere oppressive. Zhang Huaide was led to an interrogation chair and sat down, his hands strapped to the armrests. Wang Shuai and another experienced interrogator sat opposite him, notebooks, pens, and relevant evidence materials laid out before them. "Zhang Huaide, name, gender, age, occupation, address, please state them," Wang Shuai began, his tone serious.

Zhang Huaide lowered his head and answered in a low voice: "Zhang Huaide, male, 49 years old, security guard, residing in Room 502, Unit 2, Building 3, Heping Community, Xingfu District."

“Do you know why we arrested you?” Wang Shuai asked. Zhang Huaide remained silent, his fingers constantly fidgeting on the armrest of his chair, appearing extremely nervous. “We have solid evidence. The night before the incident, you were wearing a green jacket, followed Zhang Fenglu into a blind spot in the surveillance cameras behind the Xingfu residential area, murdered him, and dumped his body in a drainage ditch in the Jianshe Road community.” As Wang Shuai spoke, he placed Zhang Huaide's surveillance footage from the Huimin Supermarket, a footprint comparison report from the scene, and a green fiber composition test report, one by one, in front of him. Upon seeing this evidence, Zhang Huaide visibly trembled, lowering his head even further. Wang Shuai continued, “You and Zhang Fenglu were from the same hometown, even shared an apartment for eight months, and worked in adjacent areas. What deep-seated hatred could have driven you to commit such a heinous act? Was it because you owed gambling debts and were refused a loan by Zhang Fenglu? Or was there some other reason?”

Upon hearing "gambling debts," Zhang Huaide's body trembled again. After about five minutes of silence, he finally raised his head, his eyes filled with despair, and slowly said, "I killed Zhang Fenglu... I'm so sorry..."

Wang Shuai felt relieved and signaled his team members to take notes. "Tell me in detail why you killed him? How did you kill him? Explain the whole process clearly."

Zhang Huaide took a deep breath and slowly recounted what had happened: "Zhang Fenglu and I are from the same town. We came to the city to work a year ago. Since we were both security guards and knew each other well, we rented a house together. Zhang Fenglu is introverted and easy-going, and he usually takes good care of me. Half a year ago, I owed a large gambling debt and was being pressured by my creditors, so I borrowed money from Zhang Fenglu. At the time, Zhang Fenglu advised me to stop gambling and said that gambling never ends well. He only lent me 5000 yuan, telling me to pay off part of the gambling debt first and figure out the rest myself."

"And then? Did you borrow money from him again?" Wang Shuai asked.

“Yes.” Zhang Huaide nodded and continued, “5000 yuan is not enough to pay off my gambling debts, and the creditors are still urging me every day. I went to Zhang Fenglu to borrow money again, but this time he resolutely refused to lend me any. He even said he would tell my parents back home and ask them to do something about me. I was very angry at the time, feeling that he was not loyal enough and did not help his fellow villager in his time of need. From then on, I harbored resentment towards him and felt that he looked down on me.”

"Two months ago, Zhang Fenglu took 2 yuan from home and lent it to Qin Bao. Did you know about this?" Wang Shuai asked.

“I know,” Zhang Huaide said. “I overheard Zhang Fenglu talking to Qin Bao on the phone and that’s how I found out he had 2 yuan. I was even angrier then. He wouldn’t lend me the money, but he lent it to a stranger. I felt like he was deliberately targeting me. From then on, I had the idea of ​​killing him and taking his money to pay off my gambling debts.”

"So you started tracking him, figuring out his patrol routes and times?"

“That’s right,” Zhang Huaide said. “I knew he was in charge of night patrols, and his patrol routes were relatively fixed, with many areas being blind spots for surveillance. I started tracking him half a month in advance, figuring out his patrol times and routes, especially the drainage ditch behind Building 3 in the Jianshe Road community. That area is a blind spot for surveillance and rarely visited, making it ideal for committing crimes.” (End of Chapter)