America: The Gear-Up Detective

"You still remember?" Rod asked the black manager.

At least two months have passed, and most people wouldn't remember such a trivial matter. I was just asking casually out of sheer curiosity.

Surprisingly, we actually made a discovery.

The Black manager shook his head and said, "Because it left a deep impression on me at the time."

I can't remember exactly how long it lasted, but it was an afternoon.

A woman looked at the shelves for a long time, bought a suitcase, and then asked for a lot of ice packs.

Of course, that's not the point. What impressed me most was that she was arguing with another customer at the time.

She overturned a lot of our shelves at the time, and she was also very difficult to communicate with...

The manager stopped mid-sentence. Rod looked at the manager. "Why did you stop? What's wrong?"

"Oh God," the manager continued, "there were so many people at the time, and she was very emotional."

In the end, to avoid making a big fuss and affecting our business, I simply waived her fee for the ice pack.

"When you mentioned ice packs, it reminded me of someone. I haven't encountered such a person in a long time, which is why I remember it so clearly."

Rhodes stroked his chin. "I understand. Do you remember what she looked like?"

The manager thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I only remember that she was Asian. From what I heard her say, she seemed to be of Korean descent."

I'm sorry, I don't really remember what it looked like.

The manager continued, "However, she paid with a credit card, and her information should be available in the purchase records."

Rhodes nodded, then handed over his business card, saying, "It's alright, just remember to call me if you think of any new leads."

A few minutes later, the manager exported all the records for this suitcase.

Rod took the record and drove to another Walmart.

......

Two hours later.

Police Department, meeting room.

Rod walked into the conference room with two purchase records in his hand.

Everyone else had arrived and was just waiting for Rod.

"So, did you find anything else?" Hank asked impatiently.

Rhodes nodded. "There are indeed some clues, but we need to confirm them."

What about you? What have you discovered?

Hank gave a wry smile. "Before we left, Connor told us that the autopsy report showed the time of the murder was two months ago."

However, Walmart's surveillance footage is only kept for 30 to 45 days.

We had no choice but to check the purchase records, hoping to find something.

Jose held up the file folder in his hand. "Fortunately, this suitcase wasn't sold in large quantities, so it should be easy to find."

Rhodes nodded. "Then it seems your situation is the same as mine..."

They then produced purchase records from two Walmart stores.

Several people sat together and began to compare the buyers one by one, investigating the most suspicious buyer.

Rod's investigation naturally focused on the Korean man who caused trouble, as mentioned by the first black manager.

However, since the manager couldn't remember the exact time, Rod could only slowly search through these records.

Because the Black manager remembered that the purchaser used a credit card, Rod exported all the records that could be found about the purchaser.

Then he checked one by one, searching for information on these buyers, and soon Rod made a new discovery.

There was a person who, in addition to buying the large suitcase at the first Walmart Rhodes went to, also bought the same style and size suitcase at a Walmart near San Pedro Bay, where Hank and his friends went.

The purchases took place just one day apart.

These buyers are likely connected to the case.

Therefore, Rod easily found out the specific information of the buyer who purchased the suitcase twice.

Rhodes first reviewed the suspect's information, then addressed the group still searching:

"Guys, I think I've made a discovery, a clue that could help identify those two kids."

The group looked up at Rhodes.

Hank asked directly, "What's going on?"

Rod projected the suspect information he had found directly onto the screen.

On the conference room screen, a photo of an Asian woman with a kind expression and a slight smile was projected onto the screen by Rhodes.

Anna couldn't help but look at Rhodes and asked in a low voice, "Is it her? What makes her a suspect?"

Rod shook his head and told everyone what the black manager had said back then.

She continued, "Her suspicion is currently uncertain."

However, according to the information we have now, she has a daughter and a son.

Their ages were exactly eight and six years old, respectively.

Rod paused for a moment. "Don't you think it's too much of a coincidence?"

"Is it possible... that these two children are the same two children who were murdered?"

He Sai was somewhat incredulous, refuting Rod's speculation: "You mean, a mother killed her two children? In such a cruel way?"

He then offered his speculation: "Another possibility is that the murderer coerced or killed the buyer for some other reason."

Then, to silence them, they killed the two children?!

Rhodes shrugged, offering no rebuttal; that was one possibility.

This may not explain why the mother bought two large suitcases from two different supermarkets.

Connor thought for a moment, "We can't let any clues slip by. Jose, check and see if you can find out the identities of these two children."

Now that we've identified the suspected victim, we'll have the forensic team compare the information with the dental records.

Jose nodded, then picked up the laptop and his fingers flew across the keyboard.

A few minutes later, Jose looked up, his tone enigmatic, "Found her, Kim Yu-rin, that's the name of the mother of the two children, a Korean-American."

Her husband passed away from esophageal cancer six months ago, leaving her to raise their two children alone.

They then moved to a neighborhood in Wilmington, north of San Pedro Bay.

Connor nodded. "Rhodes and Jose, you two go find this Kim, find the dental clinic for her two children, find the files, and confirm her identity."

At this point, Anna asked, "Since we suspect that the two murdered children are Jin's children, why don't we just ask to see her two children?"

There is no record of her two children going missing in the police system...

Connor shook his head and explained, "We can give it a try."

But if... if it really is true that these two children met with some misfortune, then Kim is highly suspicious.

Or perhaps, Jin Yulin herself has already met with misfortune?

In short, we can first confirm the identities of these two children.

Solving cases is not something that can be done overnight; it must be done step by step.

Anna nodded and said nothing more.

Rod looked at Hank.

The two then got up and headed to the community where Jin Yulin lived.

Inside the car, Hank sat in the driver's seat and drove towards his destination.

Suddenly, she asked, "Do you think Jin is a prime suspect?"

Hank was an experienced detective, and when he questioned Rhodes, he already had the answer in his heart.

Rod sat in the passenger seat and did not answer.

He was using virtual imaging to simulate various possible scenarios.

However, no matter how the simulation is conducted, based on the existing clues and intelligence, this mother remains the prime suspect.

Hank sighed, and the two remained silent for the rest of the journey.