Animal Detective

Chapter 344 Accidental Drowning
Lishan Branch.

The three of them went straight to the Criminal Investigation Brigade office, and upon entering, they bumped into Qian Hao.

I met the deputy captain of the Criminal Investigation Brigade of Lishan Branch Bureau before when we were on a special task force.

Upon seeing Shen Xin, Qian Hao's small eyes widened in surprise, his eyes shining, and he warmly invited the three of them to sit in his office.

He immediately summoned Captain Gao Kun.

"Old Gao, this is Shen Xin, the kid I always talk about with you."

Qian Hao gave Gao Kun a wink and pointed to Shen Xin as an introduction.

Gao Kun is in his early forties with a square face. Perhaps due to the high intensity of his work, he looks older than his age, and when he smiles, his forehead wrinkles are quite pronounced.

He was very friendly and invited Shen Xin to sit down, then said, "I know, I've heard Sun Zhao talk about you quite a bit."

"Captain Sun?"

Shen Xin was taken aback. Were the two of them very familiar with each other?

Seeing Shen Xin's confusion, Qian Hao said, "Didn't your Captain Sun say that he and Captain Gao are related?"

The three of them widened their eyes simultaneously; they really didn't know that.

Gao Kun explained with a smile, "I'm kind of like your team leader Sun's cousin-in-law."

It turns out that Gao Kun's wife was his cousin, whom he met through Sun Zhao's wife at a matchmaking event he attended at the municipal bureau.

Gao Kun continued, "Besides, the police dogs you trained have all been on the 7 o'clock news and become hero dogs. How could I not know you?"

Shen Xin felt a little awkward listening to this.

Tian Kui is more famous than I am.

And when the topic of police dogs came up, unsurprisingly, Qian Hao took the opportunity to ask if Shen Xin had promised him at the task force's celebration party that he would train a few police dogs for the Lishan branch.

He's been waiting for this.

Shen Xin thought to himself that he had promised not only the Lishan branch, but also other branches, and quickly said, "Captain Qian, the police dogs are in training. I estimate they will be delivered soon."

Of the thirty-six Heavenly Generals he had chosen, he only selected the first batch of ten police dogs.

The rest are still receiving training at the police dog base.

Li Jiahui would occasionally send her messages to update her on her training progress.

It shouldn't be long before they're delivered to the various branch offices.

"Oh, that's wonderful!" Qian Hao exclaimed with delight.

Gao Kun was also overjoyed, and said that he would find a place to treat Shen Xin to a good meal at noon.

Even if they said they wouldn't bother the police dogs, just because Shen Xin and the other two were Sun Zhao's men and had come to their territory, they still had to be treated well.

The two then turned around and asked Shen Xin what dishes he liked to eat.

"I can do it."

Shen Xin quickly steered the conversation back to the unsolved case.

I never expected Sun Zhao and Gao Kun to have such a relationship, which makes things even easier.

"The aquarium case from 16?"

Upon hearing Shen Xin mention the case, Gao Kun's expression changed, and the smile on his face slowly faded.

Qian Hao's expression also became somewhat unnatural as he glanced at Ding Yuwei.

Clearly, when Ding Yuwei came to the branch office to look at the unsolved case files, he was unaware that Ding Yuwei had her eye on this case.

Shen Xin observed both of their reactions.

"Captain Gao, Captain Qian, don't overthink it. We haven't said we're going to reopen the investigation of this case yet; we're just getting a feel for the situation first."

When Shen Xin first heard Ding Yuwei mention this case while they were having barbecue, he immediately suspected there might be something wrong with it.

Sure enough, Hou Shishi, the key figure, was killed in the accident before the investigation was even over.

With her death, many things remain unknown.

The Lishan branch of the Public Security Bureau summoned her twice, and Ding Yuwei said that they also put her under a lie detector test.

Clearly, the Lishan branch has not completely ruled out her as a suspect.

However, the police released Hou Shishi after both summonses, which gave Lin Zenghui's mother a signal that the police believed Hou Shishi was not a suspect.

At this time, Ye Xinyi became obsessed with the idea that Hou Shishi had killed her son, so she ran her over with her car.

She wanted to avenge her son.

Now, if Shen Xin reopens the investigation and finds out that Hou Shishi was the one who killed him.

That would make things complicated.

Ye Xinyi is currently awaiting execution.

Hearing Shen Xin's tone, Qian Hao came to his senses and immediately said, "Shen Xin, we're not stopping you from investigating this case."

“I’m aware of the details of this case. Some unexpected events have occurred, making it impossible to confirm certain aspects, but overall the facts are still clear, it’s just that…”

Before he could finish speaking, Gao Kun raised his hand to interrupt him.

Gao Kun looked calm and said, "Shen Xin, don't have any concerns."

"Let me be frank. When we were investigating this case, our criminal investigation team was criticized by our superiors because Hou Shishi was hit and killed by the victim's family."

What should have been one life ended up being three.

Although it has nothing to do with the criminal investigation team, since this result was caused, it will definitely be subject to criticism.

Gao Kun continued, "In that case, just like you said, let's understand the situation first, and then we can discuss any thoughts or questions we may have."

"And Shen Xin, don't feel guilty just because you think reopening the investigation will affect us."

"There's no need. Investigate it as it should be investigated. In the end, I think Director Zhao is right. A case is a case. It's hanging there, and there will eventually be a result."

“You’re quite capable at solving cases, kid. Sun Zhao has praised you to me a lot. If you really help us close this case, I’ll have to thank you.”

Shen Xin nodded in agreement.

It is said that Zhao Hongjie gave the order to establish an office to solve unsolved cases, and to investigate unsolved cases in various branches.

But Shen Xin was worried that there might be resistance from the various branch offices.

Ultimately, it was a case that hadn't been solved back then, but Shen Xin's team solved it.

I'm ashamed.

It would be best if Gao Kun could say such a thing and cooperate.

At that moment, Gao Kun personally led three people to retrieve the case files and physical evidence.

They even found a room for the three of them so that they wouldn't be disturbed.

After bringing in the physical evidence and obtaining the case file, Shen Xin was the first to open the file and examine it.

As Zhao Tianxing took evidence out of the evidence box, he continued the conversation he had had in the car.

"I still think it's unlikely that Hou Shishi is the murderer."

"For that reason, it's incredibly difficult for a girl like her to drown an adult male."

Ding Yuwei remained noncommittal and asked Shen Xin for his opinion.

Shen Xin didn't reply, and silently looked at the case file.

As for Zhao Tianxing's point of view, Shen Xin had already considered this after learning that Hou Shishi was present at the scene. First of all, Lin Zenghui was drowned.

Drowning can occur in only a few ways.

First of all, it was an accident.

For example, getting a leg cramp in the water.

But it's unlikely, because the temperature in the dolphin pool is suitable, and Lin Zenghui is an excellent swimmer, so it's not so easy for him to drown.

In the case of homicide, it would either be like Huang Weili's case.

Knock him unconscious and throw him in the water.

However, in such cases, forensic experts can detect it through an autopsy.

Drowsing after fainting is different from drowning after violent struggle.

Ding Yuwei said in the car that the autopsy found no similar findings, and Lin Zenghui had no blunt force injuries on his head.

That can only mean another situation.

For example, they held Lin Zenghui's head down and kept it submerged in the water.

But this possibility is actually even smaller.

The power gap between men and women is huge.

When a person is drowning, in the life-or-death moment, their struggle is extremely strong, and it is by no means something a woman can easily hold down.

Moreover, Lin Zenghui is not a landlubber.

The assailant pressed his head down, but he simply dove into the water and easily escaped.

There is only one possibility: the murderer also jumped into the water, struggled with him, strangled his hands, feet, and neck, and suffocated him underwater.

However, this situation will definitely leave restraint injuries on the body.

Shen Xin pulled out the autopsy report and examined it carefully.

Sure enough it didn't.

The autopsy report showed that Lin Zenghui had wounds on his body.

Scratches, bruises.

Especially his face, his nose had been hit.

These wounds should all be from Hou Shishi.

The records in the case file contain relevant information.

Shen Xin picked up Hou Shishi's photo.

An oval face, big eyes, a pretty girl.

She and Lin Zenghui met online and met in person a few times. Lin Zenghui was pursuing her relentlessly.

Lin Zenghui is quite handsome, has a sweet tongue, and is very eloquent.

Although my parents are divorced, our family is still financially well-off.

After making contact, Hou Shishi agreed.

But it was limited to being friends, and nothing more.

Her exact words in the transcript were that Lin Zenghui was very impatient and repeatedly suggested taking things further and having in-depth exchanges.

They would also find all sorts of excuses, such as going out to play, it was too late, and they wanted to stay in a hotel.

However, Hou Shishi is more traditional and feels that their relationship has not reached that point yet, so she keeps rejecting Lin Zenghui.

Then there's April 17th.

Lin Zenghui invited her to the aquarium, wanting to give her a surprise.

In her statement, Hou Shishi described how happy she was at first, as the two of them went into the water and were able to interact with the dolphins.

As they played, Lin Zenghui's hands and feet started to wander.

In the end, he took matters into his own hands, forcibly kissed her, and pulled down her underwear to have sex with her.

After struggling and shouting, Lin Zenghui finally gave up.

So the scratches, minor bruises, and the bump on Lin Zenghui's nose were all left by Hou Shishi during her resistance.

In addition to these wounds, Lin Zenghui had other injuries on his body.

For example, there are some faint bruises in certain parts of the body.

It's uncertain whether it was left when Hou Shishi resisted.

Most importantly, he also has bite marks on his right arm.

The autopsy report stated that the injury was caused by a dolphin bite.

This point is reflected in the case discussion records, and the Lishan Branch has discussed it.

They believe that after Lin Zenghui drowned, the dolphins in the dolphin pool tried to save him by biting his arm and dragging him to the surface.

But it ultimately failed.

This conclusion is reached because dolphins exhibit rescue behavior.

Shen Xin continued reading.

Shen Xin has certainly been to the aquarium.

It's located opposite the zoo, at the foot of Mount Li.

The dolphinarium, located at the deepest part of the aquarium, is a large, semi-circular building backed by a mountain.

There is internal surveillance.

However, Ding Yuwei had previously stated that Lin Zenghui had moved the surveillance camera himself to make things easier.

As for the outside of the dolphinarium, the front is completely covered, with no blind spots.

However, the back is incomplete.

Because the back is a mountain, which is the outer wall of the aquarium.

The wall is two meters high, made of wrought iron, and there is a possibility of climbing over it.

The external surveillance cameras can capture the employee entrance.

There is also a cargo entrance, which is where food is usually brought in when feeding the dolphins.

The record shows that the employee said the lock is usually not locked, even at night.

The employee entrance can be captured by surveillance cameras.

However, the freight route cannot be photographed.

In other words, there is a possibility that someone could climb over the wall and sneak into the dolphinarium to commit the crime.

For this reason, an investigation was also conducted into Lin Zenghui's social connections to find possible suspects.

But nothing was found.

However, judging from the case files, the conclusion reached by the Lishan Branch Bureau was still unexpected.

(End of this chapter)