1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 175 sounds real.
After leaving the fire station, Theodore and his group headed to the fourth precinct.

At Bernie's suggestion, they first went to see the deputy superintendent of the fourth precinct.

The deputy superintendent didn't give a long speech; he simply told them with a serious expression that the Fourth Precinct would cooperate fully and provide the necessary support.

He was reluctant to let the FBI get involved.

The Fourth Precinct is the precinct with the fewest requests for assistance among the seven precincts of the DC Police Department.

Unlike the Third Precinct, they are used to solving problems on their own rather than seeking help from the FBI.

Unless the case is extremely important and repeated attempts have yielded no results, or the case already falls under the jurisdiction of the FBI.

Since the firefighters are local government employees, this case does not fall under the jurisdiction of the FBI, but rather the local police department.

Moreover, only three days have passed since the case was filed, and they have only conducted a preliminary investigation into the suspect. They haven't even dug into the victim's detailed social relationships yet, and they are far from being at their wits' end.

The deputy commissioner believed that Detective O'Malley had acted too hastily.

However, he still agreed to the request to seek help from the FBI.

This is mainly because of Detective O'Malley.

Detective O'Malley had served under the deputy commissioner for many years, where he had demonstrated outstanding performance and distinguished service.

Their relationship is far more complex than simply that of superiors and subordinates.

Theodore stared at the deputy commissioner, wanting to say something, but Bernie cut him off.

Bernie knew Theodore very well and knew he would say something surprising, so he simply didn't give him a chance to speak and directly negotiated with the deputy commissioner on Theodore's behalf.

After leaving the deputy police commissioner's office, Theodore requested to speak with the medical examiner who had conducted the autopsy.

The fourth precinct's forensic lab was also underground, but it was nowhere near as luxurious as the third precinct's.

It shares a floor with the firing range and warehouse, but occupies less than a third of the space.

The cramped environment and the busy forensic doctors gave Theodore a feeling of being back in Felton.

The autopsy of Alan Brennan was performed by a thin, tall medical examiner with thinning hair, wearing glasses, and looking exhausted from the intense work.

When they arrived, the tall, thin forensic doctor had just finished an autopsy and was coming out of the autopsy room.

He washed his hands while explaining the autopsy results to his assistant.

While his assistant was taking notes, he glanced at Theodore and his three companions and asked them what their purpose was.

Detective O'Malley gave a brief introduction to both parties.

Perhaps because FBI agents are rarely seen here, the tall, thin medical examiner's gaze swept back and forth between Theodore and his two companions twice:
"What's with you?"

Detective O'Malley looked at Theodore.

Theodore asked him:
"Was the fracture in the left occipital bone of the deceased caused before or after the fire?"

The tall, thin forensic doctor's autopsy report was unprofessional, but he himself acted exceptionally professionally.

He immediately understood what Theodore meant, recalled for a moment, and then turned to ask his assistant to fetch the photos.

There aren't many photos, only a dozen or so.

This is far less than the number of photos taken during most forensic autopsies.

The tall, thin medical examiner dried his hands, looked at the photograph of the bone fracture, and handed it to Theodore.
"The injuries were sustained in the fire."

He paused for a few seconds, then leaned closer and pointed to the stains on the crack:

"The dent is dark red, which is a sign of injury sustained before death."

"But the staining was slight and not obvious. He must have died shortly after being injured."

The tall, thin forensic doctor flipped through the photos and then handed over another one:
"The fractured bone in the left occipital bone of the deceased was carbonized in a sandwich-like pattern."

"The outermost layer is deeply carbonized, while the inner layer is less carbonized."

"If the injury occurred before the fire, the carbonization around the bone joints will be deeper."

"And here."

He then produced a photograph taken before the autopsy:
"The scalp and muscles will spasm and contract after being hit, and after being burned, they will curl up at the edge of the fracture. That's the state."

He pointed to a dark spot in the photo for Theodore to see, and then pointed to other areas:
"If it were an earlier injury, it should look like this, here, and here."

Theodore stared at the photo for a while, then shifted his gaze to other photos.

He found that the forensic doctor was highly skilled and also very bold.

He probably didn't take any extra photos.

This operation struck Theodore as quite unusual.

He returned the photo to the tall, thin forensic doctor and asked again:

What was the deceased's condition after being struck?

The tall, thin forensic doctor frowned and thought for a moment:
"Based on experience, the most likely outcome is a brief loss of consciousness, or an inability to control one's actions, similar to being drunk."

Theodore pressed further, "How long will this process take?"

The tall, thin forensic doctor shook his head, indicating that the specific condition after being struck varies from person to person.

Some people may fall into a deep coma and even face life-threatening danger, while others may only experience a moment of pain or confusion and recover quickly.

Theodore pointed to the photo and asked if the weapon could be identified based on the bone fracture marks.

The tall, thin forensic doctor glanced at him, his lips moved, but he ultimately shook his head.

"No."

He pointed outside and emphasized:
"It's impossible for anyone to identify the murder weapon directly."

"At most, we can determine the shape of the murder weapon."

Bernie suspected that the tall, thin medical examiner had just been about to swear.

He picked up the conversation and asked about the shape of the murder weapon.

The tall, thin forensic doctor took several photos and looked them over repeatedly:

"Judging from the length and depth of the bone fracture, the murder weapon should be a long, blunt instrument."

"For example, wooden sticks or the like."

"The linear bone crack is quite clear, but it has not yet formed a comminuted fracture. It should have been hit only once or twice."

The tall, thin medical examiner told Theodore that they found charred wood at the site of the victim's fractures, suggesting that the murder weapon was most likely a wooden stick.

But he couldn't be sure.

Because multiple pieces of charred charcoal, burnt rags, and small stones and other debris were also found on the deceased's body.

Given the environment of the fire scene, it is not surprising that these items were found on the deceased.

Before leaving, Theodore's gaze lingered on the photograph in the tall, thin medical examiner's hand for a long time, and he asked if the examiner was interested in working for the FBI.

The assistant standing nearby was startled and stared at Theodore with wide eyes.

The tall, thin forensic doctor smiled, shook his head, and declined.

A detective happened to pass by and immediately came up and took the tall, thin forensic doctor away, claiming that there were parts of the autopsy report he didn't understand.

Unlike the third precinct, their fourth precinct has a limited budget, so it's not easy for them to hire such a highly skilled forensic doctor.

Theodore glanced at the tall, thin forensic pathologist's back and felt a little sorry for him.

Bernie coughed awkwardly, changing the subject:

"So the stick hit Alan Brennan on the head, he passed out, and when he woke up he was surrounded by flames?"

Theodore nodded:

"The deceased's breathing mask was on his chin, the helmet was left far from the body, and the fire axe remained in place."

"Based on the situation at the scene, it can be basically determined that the fracture of the left occipital bone was not caused by an accident such as being hit by a falling object, but by human intervention."

Detective O'Malley emphasized:

“That bitch deliberately hit Allen and then just left him there.”

"He deliberately wanted to burn Allen to death."

Theodore glanced at him:
"According to the forensic examination, the deceased likely encountered the perpetrator on the third floor or between the third floor and the location where the body was found, and was attacked by the perpetrator."

"The murderer swung his weapon and struck the victim's left occipital bone, causing a fracture." "The victim likely fell into a brief state of unconsciousness."

"The killer then moved him to a corner on the second floor and left."

"The fire spread rapidly along the stairwell and soon reached the deceased."

The group fell silent for a moment.

This means that the deceased may have been conscious after being burned.

Bernie, considering the circumstances of the crime scene and the deceased's profession, proposed a possibility:
“Alan Brennan was a firefighter, and he was also burned to death.”

"Could the murderer have done this on purpose?"

He suspects this is a kind of identification mark:
“Alan Brennan didn’t even pull out his fire axe; he was likely already unconscious when he was first struck.”

"If the killer's purpose was simply to kill, he could have simply killed Alan Brennan while he was unconscious."

Theodore looked at Bernie with some surprise.

This is a great idea, the kind of idea a profiler should have.

Although it was wildly wrong.

He felt somewhat relieved.

But he still shook his head:
"The fire was caused by an accidental short circuit."

"Short circuits are random; it's impossible for the perpetrator to accurately predict that a short circuit would occur and cause a fire."

"The weapon the murderer used to attack the victim was a wooden stick or similar object, not a knife or gun."

"This shows that the attack was sudden and unplanned."

"The deceased was burned to death at the corner of the stairwell on the second floor."

"This was not the point of origin of the fire, and the apartment only has this one staircase, making it very easy to be exposed."

After a pause, Theodore continued:

"The murderer did not kill the victim directly after attacking him, but instead burned him to death, which demonstrates the murderer's absolute control over the victim."

"If the killer was a serial killer who specifically targeted firefighters, he should have carefully chosen a location, set the fire himself, and attracted the firefighters to the scene."

"The perpetrators usually disguise themselves as trapped people and wait for firefighters to rescue them."

"To avoid actually being burned to death, the murderer would choose the best location in advance and prepare an escape route and equipment."

"Once the firefighters arrive, the assailant will catch them off guard and launch an attack using a pre-prepared weapon to ensure that the firefighters are rendered unable to fight back with a single blow."

"Then place the firefighters in a location that is neither easily discovered nor easily observable, thus making the firefighters appear to be in an accident."

"After admiring their masterpiece, the murderer would disguise themselves as a rescue worker, or an injured or trapped person, to evacuate the fire scene."

Bernie looked at him, his expression becoming complicated.

Billy Hawke was also looking at him, his mouth slightly open, looking quite surprised.

Detective O'Malley then asked Theodore directly:

What you're saying sounds pretty true.

Theodore glanced at him and steered the conversation back to the case itself:
"But the findings at the scene of the death do not match any of these."

"The deceased's death should be considered a random, accidental event."

"He encountered the murderer at the fire scene, and the two may have had a conflict. The murderer then picked up a wooden stick and injured the victim."

Detective O'Malley interrupted Theodore:

"Alan won't get into conflicts with anyone!"

“You have never seen him.”

"If you've ever spent time with him, you'll understand that someone as kind-hearted as him would never get into conflict with anyone. It's simply unimaginable."

"He has always been a kind-hearted person who loves to help others since he was a child."

"His mother was always worried that he would suffer a loss."

“Sometimes he’s like a forgetful fool. No matter how much others bully him, as long as they ask him for help, he’ll immediately forget about being bullied and run over to help.”

Theodore stared at Detective O'Malley for a few seconds, then gave a perfunctory nod.

The group arrived at the parking lot, intending to talk to the suspect.

Detective O'Malley asked Theodore who he planned to start with.

Theodore thought for a moment and said:

"Apartment manager."

The apartment manager, who is also the owner of the building, is named Walter Reed. He is 52 years old and a portly man.

He lives in room 101.

The deceased, Alan Brennan, lived in room 201, just upstairs from the landlord.

Walter Reed had been a widower for many years and had never married, but he had a girlfriend who ran a laundromat.

After his apartment burned down, Walter Reed moved in with his girlfriend.

Theodore and his friends went to the house of Walter Reed's girlfriend.

When they arrived, only Walter Reed was home.

He was wearing loose pajamas, his chest was exposed, his hair was a bit messy, and he looked somewhat decadent.

Upon meeting Detective O'Malley, Walter Reed asked him:

"Have you caught the bitch who killed Allen?"

Detective O'Malley shook his head, pointed to Theodore and his two companions, and introduced them.

Walter Reid seemed somewhat surprised to learn that all three were FBI agents.

Bernie asked him, "How are Alan Brennan's relationships with his neighbors?"

Has anyone had a conflict with him recently?

Walter Reed shook his head repeatedly:
"No one will have a conflict with Alan Brennan."

"He's just a nice guy."

“I have never seen him argue with anyone since he moved into the apartment.”

Theodore felt there was something familiar about what he was hearing and turned to look at Detective O'Malley.

Walter Reed was still praising Alan Brennan:
"You'd be hard-pressed to find another person as purely good as Allen."

He told Bernie that there was a period when the apartment rooms were not available for rent, and it was Allen who helped him advertise and attract tenants.

Billy Hawke asked him, "How did he advertise?"

Walter Reed smiled:

"Alan told me to tell the tenants that there are firefighters in the apartment and that they can go to him for help if they have any problems."

"This led new residents to believe that he was the apartment manager."

Bernie asked him, "Is he advertising for you for free?"

Walter Reed paused for a moment, then nodded:
"To thank him, I voluntarily lowered his rent."

“He refused and insisted on paying me the original price.”

Theodore couldn't stand it anymore and interrupted:

When was the last time the apartment's electrical distribution box was inspected?

Walter Reed shook his head:

"I am not very sure."

"Hays is in charge of all of this."

Theodore thought for a moment: "Robert Hayes?"

Walter Reed nodded: "Yes. He's an electrician, and he helps with repairs occasionally."

(End of this chapter)