Reborn in 97, I solved a cold case at the Municipal Bureau

Chapter 562 Ghost Footprints
In criminal investigation, bloodstains that cannot be directly observed with the naked eye and can only be revealed through professional technical means are often the focus.

It is called latent blood.

The reason for this type of bloodstain is usually that the murderer cleaned up the scene and wiped away the bloodstains, making them invisible to the naked eye.

These types of bloodstains require color recognition using techniques such as luminol before extraction.

This news gave Zhou Yi a much-needed boost, because he could only pin his hopes on the results of the on-site investigation.

Feng Xueqin originally wanted to go to the bureau chief to report the situation, but since Zhou Yi and Shen Jiale had returned, he naturally decided not to go for the time being.

We were supposed to have a meeting after returning from the scene, but we couldn't find Zhou Yi and Shen Jiale, so it was delayed.

Although it was called a meeting, it was really just a meeting in the criminal investigation team's office where everyone sat down to summarize and discuss the situation.

Because more than half of the personnel in the branch brigade were borrowed by the municipal bureau branch to investigate clues about the headless female corpse.

Everyone who came to the scene earlier was there, except for Yun Yao.

Yun Yao took Tian Yipeng's body back to prepare the preliminary examination report.

The deceased was named Tian Yipeng, a native of Yunshan County in Wuguang. He was a teacher in the fine arts department of Wuguang Art School and the head teacher of Class 1, Grade 2 of the fine arts major.

I got married five years ago. My wife's name is Ji Mengting, and she is a kindergarten teacher.

The couple has a daughter who just turned three years old this year.

Tian Yipeng's apartment, Room 404 in Sixi Third Village, is an old-style apartment building. It used to be a welfare housing unit allocated to employees of a state-owned enterprise, and the owner is Tian Yipeng's father.

Therefore, most of the residents in the community are former workers from the state-owned factory. According to the aunt next door, the house was given up by Mr. and Mrs. Tian as a wedding house for their son, Xiao Tian. After retiring, the elderly couple went back to live in the countryside.

The branch office is already trying to contact Tian Yipeng's family, but has not yet been able to make a clear contact.

What Zhou Yi cares about most is the situation of his wife and daughter, and whether they are safe.

It was the weekend, and it was summer vacation.

However, according to interviews with the surrounding neighbors, Ji Mengting and her child have been away from home for a while. They don't know where they went, but it is highly likely that they went back to her parents' home. Her mother usually takes care of the child for them.

The main purpose of the interviews with the neighbors was to ask if they had heard any unusual noises, such as arguments or strange sounds, from last night until this morning, when they last saw Tian Yipeng, and whether they had seen any suspicious people in the vicinity during this period.

As it turned out, these questions didn't yield any useful information. Instead, the neighbors chattered around, saying they often heard Xiao Tian and his wife arguing at home, sometimes even throwing things and making a lot of noise.

This contradicts the information Director Wang had previously provided, including some information mentioned in the statements made by Director Wang and Qin Chao after they were brought back.

In Director Wang's eyes, Tian Yipeng is a good teacher with a gentle personality and a serious and responsible work attitude. The leaders above also have a good impression of him.

Qin Chao also said that Teacher Tian has a very good personality, he rarely gets angry, and he often mentions his daughter during class.

Although people have two sides, and adults should indeed separate work and life.

But Zhou Yi felt that the division shouldn't be to this extent, since everyone has a temper.

Especially for teachers, it's sometimes difficult to maintain emotional stability when facing a group of unruly students.

The neighbors' claim of "often" is actually quite vague, as they cannot provide accurate times.

To find out what Tian Yipeng's true personality is, we need to talk to his wife, Ji Mengting.

Based on the on-site investigation, apart from ruling out any signs of Zhou Yi entering the house, no signs of forced entry were found on the doors and windows.

Multiple sets of fingerprints and footprints were extracted, and they need to be compared with Tian Yipeng's family members to see if there are any suspicious ones.

Regarding the fingerprints, no particular anomalies were found, especially on the gas stove knob switch, where the complete fingerprint covering the top layer was confirmed to be Tian Yipeng's.

This indicates that Tian Yipeng was the last person to touch the gas stove.

However, some strange discoveries were made regarding the footprints.

Tian Yipeng's home was a one-bedroom apartment with a floor area of ​​about 50 square meters. Tian Yipeng's body was found on the bed in the bedroom.

During the on-site investigation, some fingerprints and footprints, under sufficient conditions, can be clearly distinguished by the order in which they were applied, thus allowing analysis of the movements of the perpetrator and the victim during the time period of the crime.

The current investigation has revealed two sets of footprints, one from the doorway to the bedside in the bedroom.

One pair is size 42, and the size and sole pattern match the men's slippers by the bed in the bedroom, indicating that they belong to Tian Yipeng.

Tian Yipeng's footprints were rather messy, with footprints left not only at the doorway, but also on the balcony, in the kitchen, in the toilet, and in the living room.

The other set of footprints was simpler; it was a set of size 38 footprints that appeared only on the other side of the path from the doorway to the bedside in the bedroom.

Judging from the direction and order of the footprints, the movement trajectory of this set of footprints was from the doorway to the bedroom, and then from the bedroom back to the doorway.

No trace of these footprints was found anywhere else in the house.

Moreover, the movement trajectory of this set of footprints does not overlap with the trajectory of Tian Yipeng's footprints at all.

Therefore, it becomes impossible to analyze and judge the sequence of actions.

No shoes matching the pattern of these footprints were found in the room.

It was as if it had been left behind by a ghost.

The ghost walked from the doorway to the bedside in the bedroom, looked at the person on the bed, and then turned and left.

When Zhou Yi heard about the footprints, he found it very strange and immediately asked for photos taken at the scene and a record of the footprints.

Shen Jiale also came over to take a look, but he paid more attention to Zhou Yi's reaction than the photos and records in Zhou Yi's hands.

No signs of struggle or ransacking were found at the scene.

On the bedside table was a pair of pants still wearing a belt, with the wallet inside intact.

After unlocking the bedside table drawer with the key hanging on his belt, he discovered that none of Tian Yipeng's belongings were missing.

Only two sets of fingerprints were detected on the bankbook, marriage certificate, and other items in the drawer. One set was confirmed to be Tian Yipeng's, and the other set should most likely be Ji Mengting's.

An inspection of the pot and gas stove in the kitchen revealed no signs of tampering.

Judging from the traces of porridge next to the stove, the porridge was overcooked, which led to the accident.

Therefore, apart from that set of strange footprints, the only remaining and biggest point of suspicion is the traces of blood that Feng Xueqin mentioned.

In both the living room and bedroom, some bloodstains were found. The amount was small and not fatal, but it was still much greater than the amount of blood loss from a normal injury.

Multiple blood samples have been collected for testing, but the results are not yet available.

The last thing left is the autopsy.

Under normal circumstances, the forensic doctor will conduct a preliminary observation at the scene and provide some important information, such as the time of death and the approximate cause of death.

After the examination, the body will be taken back, and a preliminary examination report will usually be issued within one to three days.

Then comes the autopsy, and a detailed formal report is prepared, including comprehensive toxicological tests and pathological slides. This process can take anywhere from a week to a month, depending on the complexity of the case and the available manpower.

The purpose of the preliminary investigation report is to enable the police to quickly file a case and determine the direction of the investigation.

However, only a formal report can be used as valid evidence and have legal effect in judicial proceedings. Logically, Yun Yao would usually verbally describe the situation on the spot, and if she had an assistant, like Song Yiming and Xu Nian, the assistant would take notes.

If not, then we'll see if the criminal investigation team will arrange for someone to record it.

But this time, Yun Yao actually wrote down the information she observed on the spot on a piece of paper.

Zhou Yi knew at a glance that the note was left for him by Yun Yao.

"Time of death: Early stage, estimated within six to twelve hours."

"Judgment criteria: 1 - Rectal body temperature 31.5 degrees Celsius, indoor ambient temperature 32 degrees Celsius, body temperature drop of 0.38-0.69 degrees Celsius in the first twelve hours after death under the same ambient temperature."

"2 - Lividity, blood pooling causes patchy livor mortis on the lower part of the body, dark purplish-red, with gradually clear borders, but not obvious after pressing with a finger (Note: due to the high stability of carboxyhemoglobin in the blood)."

"3 - Rigor mortis, which has spread from small muscle groups to the upper and lower limbs, is a stage of systemic stiffness. Joint movement is significantly restricted, but it has not yet reached its peak."

"Preliminary cause of death: carbon monoxide poisoning."

"The cheeks, lips, nail beds, and conjunctiva of the eyes are cherry red."

"For details regarding livor mortis, please refer to item two regarding the time of death."

"The deceased had no obvious external injuries, no signs of violence, and no obvious injuries or secretions from the mouth or nose."

Zhou Yi looked at the note Yun Yao had left him and felt very grateful, as the note contained very detailed information.

On the other hand, they faced a dilemma, because the forensic doctor's initial on-site examination basically confirmed that Tian Yipeng died only from carbon monoxide poisoning.

It was either an accident or suicide; there were no signs of homicide.

The absence of signs of homicide means that no crime has been committed.

This will cause trouble for the determination and filing of the case.

"Captain Feng, do you have any guidance?" Zhou Yi asked politely.

Although he suspected that Tian Yipeng's death was directly related to the stabbing of Wang Xinkai, he had no evidence to prove it.

Therefore, it is impossible to request that the cases be processed together.

The case he was specifically assigned to investigate was the stabbing case. The gas poisoning case was theoretically the responsibility of the branch office, and he couldn't just take over the case right away.

Therefore, we need to see Feng Xueqin's attitude first before deciding what to say.

Upon hearing his question, Feng Xueqin immediately said, "Well... first of all, I would like to express my gratitude to Comrade Zhou Yi and Comrade Shen Jiale on behalf of our branch, the branch leaders, and our brothers."

"If it weren't for your timely discovery, the consequences of this incident would have been unimaginable."

Seeing his earnest words, Zhou Yi quickly and modestly said that they had just happened to run into each other.

"Then, regarding this case, based on the forensic doctor's opinion and the results of the on-site investigation, I believe it should be an accidental gas poisoning incident. There were no signs of burglary or robbery at the scene, nor were there any clear signs of homicide."

"Those with life experience know that porridge is very easy to boil over. The porridge mixed with steam will overflow from the pot, causing the fire below to go out, and then causing a continuous gas leak."

"I think the situation might be that the deceased got up early to cook porridge, but was a little sleepy, so he thought he would take a nap. As a result, the porridge overflowed, causing a gas leak. The deceased, who was still sleeping, did not notice and then suffered carbon monoxide poisoning. After all, in a confined space, carbon monoxide poisoning can cause a person to fall into a coma in just... ten minutes."

Most people present, including Shen Jiale, nodded in agreement, because based on the evidence collected so far, this was the most likely explanation.

However, Shen Jiale secretly glanced at Zhou Yi and found that Teacher Zhou did not react at all.

Feng Xueqin touched his bald head and said, "As for the two more suspicious points, the set of size 38 footprints and the potential bloodstains found in the living room and bedroom, I think they should both belong to Tian Yipeng's wife, Ji Mengting."

"The neighbors said they often heard the couple arguing fiercely, which shows that their relationship is not harmonious. Tian Yipeng may have violent tendencies and may have hit Ji Mengting during the argument. That's probably why the neighbors said that Ji Mengting and the child have been away from home for a while."

"As for those size 38 footprints, I'm inclined to believe they belong to Ji Mengting. We found several pairs of women's shoes in the shoe cabinet by the door, all size 37, which must belong to Ji Mengting. Although they're one size off, anyone who's bought shoes knows that shoes from different manufacturers can have different sizes when they're labeled; some are larger and some are smaller."

"In addition, there are obviously fewer summer clothes for women and children at the scene, which means that Ji Mengting took them when she went back to her parents' home with the children. So these footprints are likely left by Ji Mengting when she went back to get something while Tian Yipeng was at work."

Feng Xueqin concluded, "Regarding these two points, we can confirm them by bringing Ji Mengting back and asking her."

At this moment, Shen Jiale couldn't help but ask a question: "Captain Feng, then why wasn't it Ji Mengting who killed Tian Yipeng?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Captain Feng, look, if those bloodstains were caused by Tian Yipeng hitting Ji Mengting, it means Tian Yipeng was extremely ruthless. Then Ji Mengting has every reason to hate him, right?"

"As for the fact that the doors and windows were intact and not violently damaged, that's because Ji Mengting didn't need to use violence to break down the door; she could just open it with a key."

Shen Jiale counted on his fingers and said, "We have the motive for the crime, we have the method of the crime, this Ji Mengting, she..."

Shen Jiale was speaking quite excitedly at first, but he suddenly fell silent at the end because he remembered Zhou Yi's judgment on Tian Yipeng's death.

He felt that since Teacher Zhou had already made up his mind about this matter, there was no need for him to try and show off his limited knowledge.

Feng Xueqin and the others were listening to his analysis because they felt that what he said was not entirely unreasonable.

Then suddenly she stopped talking.

Feng Xueqin looked up and saw that Shen Jiale was looking at Zhou Yi.

Therefore, it was assumed that this was Zhou Yi's opinion.

After all, many people in the branch office knew Shen Jiale and knew that his uncle was the deputy director of the branch office. In particular, veteran police officer Feng Xueqin had watched Shen Jiale grow up and knew that the boy did not have much experience in handling cases.

Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Zhou Yi knew it was about time to speak.

Feng Xueqin's view of the case as an accident is actually not entirely wrong.

Because he analyzed Tian Yipeng's death as an independent event, the subsequent routine investigation process involved questioning Tian Yipeng's parents and wife, investigating Tian Yipeng's social relationships, and confirming whether there were any economic or emotional disputes.

If no suspicious activity is found, a decision will be made not to file a case, which means it will be classified as a non-criminal case.

Tian Yipeng's death can basically be attributed to an accident.

Feng Xueqin's judgment was actually beyond reproach. For such accidental deaths without obvious signs of homicide, the facts could be ascertained through criminal investigation methods such as on-site investigation, examination, questioning of witnesses, collection of evidence, and identification.

This can only mean that the murderer had an extremely strong counter-surveillance awareness!

However, it is not without logical flaws!

Zhou Yi said, "Captain Feng, I think it's actually quite easy to determine whether Ji Mengting is a suspect. According to the preliminary judgment of the forensic doctor, Tian Yipeng's time of death was between six and twelve hours ago. We found him around noon, which means that Tian Yipeng's time of death should be between midnight and six or seven in the morning."

“If Ji Mengting went back to her parents’ home, where there are elderly people and children, it’s actually quite easy to confirm whether she left at that time and whether she has an alibi.”

“If she has an alibi, it means that although she may have a criminal motive, she does not have the means to commit the crime. If she did leave during this period and cannot explain her whereabouts, then as Brother Jiale said, she is a major suspect.”

Everyone nodded in agreement. At this point in time, it would indeed be easy to confirm whether a mother with a four-year-old child had left.

“But what I really want to say is not whether Ji Mengting is a suspect.” Zhou Yi changed the subject. He decided that even if he couldn’t combine this case with Wang Xinkai’s case now, he had to at least prevent the Fenghu Branch from making a decision on the nature of the case too quickly, thus putting them in a passive position.

"What I want to talk about are some issues that we might have overlooked!"

(End of this chapter)