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

“Okay,” Zhang Kai nodded. By this time, the organs on the autopsy table had been arranged and repositioned, and the autopsy scene had been initially cleaned up. He took off his sterile gloves and rubbed his slightly sore shoulders. From 9:10 p.m. to 1:30 a.m., he had been working on the autopsy for more than four hours with high concentration, meticulousness and rigor throughout, without any slackening. Even the experienced Zhang Kai felt a little tired, but his eyes remained firm because he knew that the end of the autopsy was not the end of the forensic work, but the starting point for providing key support for solving the case.

Xiaolin also removed her sterile gloves and quickly organized the dissection logbook and camera, initially organizing and archiving the dissection photos and records. At the same time, she cleaned the dissection table and tools, and disinfected the tools again to ensure the cleanliness and standardization of the dissection site. "Teacher Zhang, the dissection logbook and photos have been organized, the dissection tools have been disinfected, the dissection site has been initially cleaned, and the samples are ready and waiting for the laboratory staff to come and receive them."

Zhang Kai walked to the autopsy record book, carefully reviewed it, and checked every detail, including the physical examination, wound analysis, internal organ examination, sample collection, preliminary estimation of time of death, and preliminary determination of cause of death. He confirmed that the record was accurate, complete, without omissions or errors, and then signed the autopsy record book to confirm its accuracy, noting the end time of the autopsy: 1:35 AM. "The record is accurate and the signature is complete. Next, we await the preliminary test results from the laboratory, and at the same time, we compile the preliminary autopsy conclusions to report the preliminary findings of this autopsy to Captain Lu—Captain Lu has been closely monitoring the case's progress and is certainly waiting for our news."

“Understood, Teacher Zhang!” Xiao Lin nodded, sat down next to Zhang Kai, and said while sorting through the samples, “Teacher Zhang, through this autopsy, we have preliminarily confirmed the cause of death and the time range of death, as well as the characteristics of the murder weapon and collected various samples. However, there are still two key issues that have not been resolved: First, the identity of the deceased is still unconfirmed. Although we have collected the deceased's DNA, fingerprints, and hair samples, there are no comparison results yet, and the deceased's body surface has no distinctive features, making it impossible to preliminarily determine their identity. Second, no clues have been found that directly point to the suspect. Although we have confirmed the characteristics of the murder weapon and the approximate height and build of the murderer, we have not extracted any DNA, hair, fibers, or other physical evidence from the body, making it impossible to further identify the suspect.”

“You’re absolutely right,” Zhang Kai nodded slightly, speaking in a steady tone. “These two questions are also the core difficulties in solving the case right now. What we forensic doctors can do is provide the most scientific and accurate cause of death, time of death, and characteristics of the murder weapon through precise autopsy analysis, to support the investigation team in screening clues, identifying suspects, and confirming the identity of the deceased. As for confirming the identity of the deceased, we need to wait for the DNA sample comparison results and match them with the information on missing persons. The search for clues about the suspect needs to be combined with the characteristics of the murder weapon and the height and build of the murderer that we provide, along with physical evidence such as footprints, cigarette butts, and metal buttons collected at the scene. The investigation team will conduct further screening, and we forensic doctors will cooperate fully and provide professional support.”

After a pause, Zhang Kai continued, "In addition, there are a few points that need to be reported to Captain Lu: First, the deceased had no underlying medical conditions, ruling out sudden death caused by illness. The cause of death is clearly a ruptured left ventricle and a ruptured upper lobe of the left lung, resulting in excessive blood loss. There were no other fatal injuries or signs of poisoning (to be further confirmed by laboratory tests); Second, the murder weapon was a single-edged carbon steel knife, approximately 12 centimeters long and 0.8 centimeters wide, with a sharp edge, no nicks or wear. The perpetrator's height is estimated to be between 178 and 182 centimeters, of medium build, possessing some knowledge of human anatomy or experience in committing crimes. The perpetrator may have premeditated the crime and was mentally stable; Third, the preliminary time of death is estimated to be between 8 PM and midnight three days ago. Based on the degree of digestion of the stomach contents, the deceased's last meal was between 5:30 PM and 9:30 PM three days ago. The exact time of death needs to be further confirmed by laboratory tests; Fourth, all collected samples have been sent to the laboratory for expedited testing. Preliminary test results are expected within 6 hours, and a complete test report is expected within 24 hours."

"I will organize these key points and report them to Captain Lu in your favor," Xiao Lin quickly noted down the key points Zhang Kai emphasized. At the same time, he said, "Teacher Zhang, I have another question. The deceased was not wearing shoes, and there was only a small amount of mud on the soles of his feet, which is consistent with the muddy ground at the scene. This suggests that the deceased may have been stabbed at the scene, or was brought to the scene by the murderer and then stabbed. Moreover, the deceased may not have walked for a long time before his death. What do you think this reflects?"

“This detail is very important,” Zhang Kai pondered for a moment, then analyzed in a serious tone, “The deceased was not wearing shoes, and there were no obvious calluses or blisters on the soles of his feet, only a small amount of mud. This suggests that the deceased may not have been engaged in manual labor or outdoor work before his death. It is also possible that he was brought to the scene after being controlled indoors by the murderer, or that he was stabbed by the murderer near the scene and did not have time to put on shoes. In addition, the deceased had no identification documents or personal belongings on him, which may have been deliberately taken by the murderer to hide the deceased’s identity and prevent the police from identifying the deceased through identification documents and thus tracing the murderer. Combined with the scene investigation, the farmhouse has been vacant for a long time, the transportation is remote, and there is little activity. The murderer may have chosen this place randomly, or he may have been familiar with the environment and knew that few people went there and it would not be easy to be discovered. This further suggests that the murderer may have premeditated the crime and considered it very carefully.”

“Understood, Teacher Zhang,” Xiao Lin said with a sudden realization, adding Zhang Kai’s analysis to the key points of the report. “We will also report these analyses to Captain Lu to provide a reference for the investigation team in their search for clues.”

At 1:50 a.m., the laboratory staff arrived at the forensic identification center. Xiao Lin checked the number of samples and labeling information with the laboratory staff. After confirming that everything was correct, the sample handover procedures were completed, and all 28 collected samples were transferred to the laboratory. The laboratory staff stated that they would strictly follow the requirements, expedite the testing work, and provide feedback on the testing progress as soon as possible.

After the sample handover was completed, Zhang Kai and Xiao Lin organized the relevant autopsy data, including the autopsy record book, autopsy photos, sample collection list, and sample handover procedures. They then went to the Criminal Investigation Detachment's office area—Lu Chuan and some members of the investigation team remained at their posts, awaiting the preliminary results of the forensic autopsy and the progress of the laboratory tests. (End of Chapter)