America: The Gear-Up Detective

"The victim's name is... Park Yoon-chan, male, Korean-American, 31 years old."

"The specific time and cause of death will have to wait for the forensic results."

But there is one thing worth noting.

While I was investigating the victim's information, our police system popped up a notification.

Park Yoon-chan's parents reported him missing two days ago.

The speaker was José Martínez, in his thirties, of Mexican descent, who was primarily in charge of intelligence gathering for this case.

"Cool, a missing person case turned into a murder case."

"So, our Park might have already been submerged in the lake for two days?"

"Could it be a gang seeking revenge? You know, those street gangs love doing this kind of thing."

Michael Jackson said that this was the black man Rod first teased when he walked into the office.

"Jackson, you're overthinking it. Those gangs have designated dumping sites for bodies. Some don't even bother with proper disposal."

I think it was most likely a crime of passion.

Hank shook his head. He had seven or eight years of experience in the anti-gang task force and knew a lot about gang crimes, so he immediately retorted.

After a long discussion, various ideas emerged.

Although Rod was just an ordinary person in his previous life, with the hands-on experience he gained in the past month since his transmigration, plus the memories he inherited from the original owner, he is not exactly a novice in criminal investigation.

However, adhering to the principle of doing more and talking less, Rhodes simply sat aside and watched.

Finally, Captain Connor gave the order.

"Rhodes and Jackson, go to Park Yoon-chan's parents' house and find out the details."

Hank, you have an informant in the mob. Ask them what conflicts have happened recently.

Others...

......

Around noon, in Koreatown.

Koreatown is one of the most densely populated areas in Los Angeles. It is not only a center for Korean immigrants, but also a community for Latinos and other Asians, and boasts an extremely vibrant nightlife.

Of course, to put it another way, the nights here are extremely chaotic, filled with drugs, sex, and violence; someone dies almost every night.

A black Ford Explorer, without any paint, slowly drove in and stopped in front of a slightly old two-story wooden house.

"Based on the address left when the police report was filed, this is Park Yoon-chan's home."

Rod and Jackson got out of the car and took the opportunity to observe their surroundings.

This is a typical two-story wooden house in America, with a small yard in front.

Some tools were scattered haphazardly in the yard, but the lawn was neatly trimmed, indicating that the family usually pays attention to details and cleanliness, but they may not have had the energy to deal with these chores in the past few days.

Rhodes glanced around at the watchful eyes that seemed to be watching from all sides of the community.

"Watch out, Jackson. Your skin color is too conspicuous."

Koreatown is predominantly Asian, with very few Black people.

"What? Watch out, I'll sue you for discrimination."

The two have a good relationship, so this was clearly a joke.

Although he didn't seem to care, Jackson clearly perked up.

The two walked forward, "knock knock knock..."

Soon, an Asian woman in her fifties opened the door, her eyes red and swollen, with bloodshot veins.

Her voice was hoarse and tinged with doubt as she asked, "Who are you?"

Rod flashed the badge hanging around his neck. "LAPD, Murder and Robbery Division, Detective Rod, and this is Detective Jackson."

We need to investigate something concerning your son, Park Yoon-chan. May we go in and talk?

"Oh my god." The middle-aged woman looked very distressed, covered her face with her hands, and said something in Korean.

"Please come in. Have you found him?"

"Oh, of course, we found his body this morning," Jackson said calmly from the side.

......

inside the room.

Looking at Park Yoon-chan's mother sitting on the sofa, crying and sobbing, Jackson really regretted telling her about Park Yoon-chan's murder beforehand.

"Hey, ma'am, don't cry."

"We have a few questions to ask. You don't want the murderer who killed Park Yoon-chan to escape, do you?"

While comforting him, Jackson winked at Rod, indicating that since they were both Asian, it was Rod's turn.

Rod pretended not to see it and turned to observe the interior of the room.

The living room only has a TV, sofa, and refrigerator, as well as a large dining table, indicating that the living conditions are rather tight.

Near the entrance is a photo of three people. The one in the middle is Park Yoon-chan, and the woman on the right matches the woman crying inside the house.

"Is this Park Yoon-chan's father? Where is the rest of the family?"

Rod picked up the photo and pointed to the man on the left, trying to distract her from her crying, which made it impossible for him to ask her any effective questions.

Mrs. Park sobbed twice more, wiping away her tears, and said, "He went...he went to raise money."

"Raise money?"

"Yes, before we even called the police, we received... an extortion call demanding $100,000 from us! My God, where would we get that much money!"

This was information that Rhodes and his team had not previously obtained.

Jackson hurriedly asked, "Why didn't you mention this when you called the police?"

The level of importance attached to a missing person case and a kidnapping case is different. If the patrol officer who took the case had registered it as a kidnapping case, Park Yoon-chan might have been rescued by now.

But now is not the time to rub salt into the wound.

Mrs. Park stammered for a long time, unwilling to answer.

At that moment, the doorknob at the door opened.

Jackson instinctively drew his sidearm from his waist and turned to point it at the door.

"Damn it, these guys usually call each other brothers, but now that it's time, not a single one of them is willing to lend us money, damn it..."

A middle-aged man with an Asian face walked in, and he matched the person on the right in the photo; he was Park Yoon-chan's father.

As soon as Park Yoon-chan's father closed the door, he turned around and saw Jackson pointing a gun at him, a sight that terrified him.

Imagine two tall, burly men standing on either side of your wife, who is crying on the sofa, and one of them is pointing a gun at you.

Park Yoon-chan's father's legs went weak, and he knelt on the ground. "Don't kill me! We've already started raising money! Please don't hurt us!"

Upon hearing this, Rod and Jackson exchanged a glance.

A dozen minutes later, Park Yoon-chan's father, Park Ji-hye, changed his pants, sat on the sofa, and explained in a low voice.

Three days ago, we received a phone call.

It is said that Yunchan dumped chemical wastewater by the lake and was caught by the environmental protection bureau, who demanded a fine.

At first, we thought it was a scam and ignored it.

But a day later, they sent us a message using Yoonchan's phone, and that's when we found out—it was a kidnapping!

"Later, when we were about to call the police, we didn't intend to hide it, but they sent us a photo of Yoonchan's four fingers to threaten us, so we..."

Rod reached out and took Park Ji-hye's phone, then looked at the conversation between him and the kidnappers.

"Your son dumped illegal substances into the river, causing pollution. He must compensate for this and transfer $50,000 into this account, or we will do something to your son!"