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

At the same time, they also extracted three strands of hair, two of which were brown and one was black, all of which looked like human hair. In addition, they found a small piece of torn cloth on the weeds at the edge of the pit. The cloth was black and made of synthetic fiber, consistent with the black fibers extracted earlier, and most likely came from the same garment. The torn cloth was about the size of a fingernail, with irregular edges, and looked like it had been torn by the weeds. Yang Lin carefully picked up the torn cloth, put it in a sealed bag, and marked it.

After completing the examination of footprints and minor physical evidence, Yang Lin and Yang Sen expanded their investigation to include the dirt roads and barren slopes surrounding the farmland, focusing on tire tracks. They knew that the perpetrator would most likely have used a vehicle to transport the body to this remote farmland, and such a vehicle would inevitably leave tire tracks on the dirt roads or barren slopes. These tire tracks could reveal information such as the type, model, and wheel size of the vehicle, providing crucial clues for identifying the suspect's vehicle.

The two followed the narrow dirt road beside the farmland, starting from the entrance and gradually extending towards the barren slope at the end. They carefully observed the surface of the road, searching for tire tracks. The dirt road was covered with gravel and weeds, making it quite rough, but some tire tracks could still be seen. However, most of these were tire tracks left by villagers' farm tricycles and electric vehicles, and they were rather messy. They needed to carefully distinguish and eliminate irrelevant tire tracks in order to find any suspicious ones.

Holding a flashlight and a magnifying glass, Yang Sen squatted on the dirt road, carefully observing each tire track. He noted down information and identified the types of tire marks. "Most of these tire marks are from agricultural tricycles; they're small and the treads are longitudinal. Some are from electric vehicles, which are narrower," Yang Sen said slowly after a moment of careful observation. "These are probably tire marks left by villagers traveling between farmland and barren slopes, unrelated to the case. We need to find those tire marks that don't belong to the villagers' usual vehicles; those are most likely left by the murderer when transporting the body."

Yang Lin nodded and said, "That's right. Most of the villagers in Qinjiagou make a living by farming. Their usual means of transportation are farm tricycles and electric vehicles. Cars and vans rarely enter the village, especially in this remote farmland. So, if we find tire tracks from cars or vans, it is highly likely that they were left by the murderer, and we must pay close attention to them."

The two men continued their investigation along the dirt road, focusing intently on every tire track. After more than half an hour of meticulous searching, they finally discovered a suspicious set of tire tracks about 100 meters from the entrance to the farmland. These tracks were distinctly different from those of the farm tricycles and electric vehicles commonly used by the villagers. The wheels were approximately 18 centimeters wide, the treads were horizontal and clear, and there were two sets of tracks arranged parallel to each other, spaced about 1.5 meters apart. Clearly, these were left by a four-wheeled vehicle, most likely a car or van.

"Found it! These tire tracks are very suspicious!" Yang Sen's voice was filled with excitement as he quickly gestured for Yang Lin to come and take a look. Yang Lin strode over, squatted down, and carefully examined the suspicious tire tracks with a magnifying glass. He slowly said, "Indeed, these tire tracks are very suspicious. The tires are about 18 centimeters wide, with horizontal grooves. The two sets of tire tracks are parallel and about 1.5 meters apart. They should have been left by a small car. Moreover, the depth of the tire tracks is about 1 centimeter. Combined with the softness of the dirt road, we can deduce that the car weighs about 1.2-1.5 tons, which is a common family sedan, such as a Jetta or Santana."

“Furthermore, these tire tracks are relatively fresh. They haven’t been washed away by rain or covered by other tire tracks, indicating that the vehicle that left these tire tracks was here recently. It’s highly likely that the murderer left them while transporting the body,” Yang Lin continued. “Moreover, judging from the direction of the tire tracks, the car drove from the barren slope at the end of the dirt road towards the entrance of the farmland, and then from the entrance of the farmland towards the village. Obviously, the murderer used this small car to transport the body to the side of the farmland, then buried the body in the pit, and then drove the car away from the scene.”

“Also, look, this set of tire tracks is a bit messy, and there are obvious signs of stopping,” Yang Sen said, pointing to one spot on the tire tracks. “Here, the tire tracks overlap, and they are slightly deeper than in other places, indicating that the vehicle stopped here. It’s highly likely that the murderer stopped here, then unloaded the body from the vehicle and transported it to the pit to bury it. We’ll first take photos of these tire tracks, make rubbings, and record the relevant information. Then, we’ll continue the investigation to see if we can find more tire tracks or other clues related to the means of transportation.”

Subsequently, Yang Lin and Yang Sen divided the work. Yang Sen was responsible for taking photos of the suspicious tire tracks from different angles to ensure that every detail was clearly recorded. Yang Lin was responsible for carefully using a tire track rubbing tool to extract the tire tracks, transferring the tracks completely onto rubbing paper, placing them in a sealed bag, and marking the extraction location, time, and person. At the same time, the two carefully observed the details of the tire tracks, recording information such as the width, tread pattern, and spacing of the tires to help them identify the type and model of the vehicle later.

After taking rubbings and extracting the suspicious tire tracks, Yang Lin and Yang Sen continued their investigation along the dirt road towards the barren slope, expanding their search area for other suspicious tire tracks or clues related to transportation. After more than an hour of meticulous investigation, they discovered another set of tire tracks about 50 meters away from the first set. This set of tire tracks was identical to the one they had found earlier, clearly left by the same small car. It was highly likely that the murderer left these tracks while fleeing the scene, further confirming that the murderer used a small car to transport, dispose of, and bury the body. (End of Chapter)