America: The Gear-Up Detective

Hank arrived at dormitory 704 shortly afterward.

After a brief introduction, Rod and Hank began searching Evelyn Brooks' bedroom.

The room on the right as you enter is Evelyn's room.

Because the room was locked, Rod had to go downstairs to find the dormitory manager to get the key.

Only then did the building manager learn that two detectives from the Murder Investigation Division had come to the building. After giving them the keys, they began to report the missing students to the school.

Liu Qingxi and Sienna accompanied the two into the room.

The bedroom was small, with a single bed against the wall, a single desk and a chair in front of the window on the left, a mirror and some cosmetics on the desk, a clothes rack full of clothes at the far end against the wall, and a basket at the foot of the bed with several white ballet costumes piled up.

There was nothing else besides that.

"Evelyn loves ballet. She says she's been dancing since elementary school and often works part-time with dance troupes to earn some living expenses," Sienna explained from the side.

Liu Qingxi later added, "She also joined a ballet club at school, and when she didn't have classes during the week, she would usually stay there and only come back in the evening."

Rod was a little puzzled. As a girl, was it too little to have just these things and clothes?

Liu Qingxi explained, "Evelyn's home is in Los Angeles, and she sometimes goes home to stay."

That's why we didn't notice anything strange even though we hadn't seen her for almost a week.

As she spoke, Liu Qingxi's eyes reddened again, and she looked somewhat remorseful.

Rhodes sighed, patted her on the shoulder as a gesture of comfort, and then nodded to indicate that he understood.

Then, they started searching for useful clues with Hank.

Mattress, under the bed, clothes hangers, baskets...

Until Hank started rummaging through the table drawers.

"Hey, Rhodes. We've found something here," Hank said, turning to Rhodes.

It was a long, thin strip of paper with a few words written on it, like a jotting-down note for fear of forgetting.

"At the train station, find Paul. $500-$1000 for three special items."

Hank looked at the words and whispered to Rod, "$500-$1000? It could refer to some kind of medication or medical expense. Young people these days..."

Rod understood what Hank meant: campus drug dealing...

Drug trafficking on American campuses is a distinctive feature of the country.

To some extent, it has become a "covert system" that infiltrates social circles and utilizes student networks, coinciding with the proliferation of deadly substances like fentanyl. For detectives, this is a very challenging case because the transactions are often hidden within seemingly ordinary university social activities.

How serious is this situation?

In 2010, New York police arrested five Columbia University students during an undercover investigation codenamed "Operation Ivy." Among them were a former vice president of the student council, a fencing team member, and a Gates Scholar. Their drug trafficking activities spanned three Columbia fraternities and multiple student residences. Within five months, they sold nearly $11,000 worth of drugs.

In 2015, a mass drug overdose incident occurred at Wesleyan University, resulting in more than 10 hospitalizations and two near-death experiences. The "Molly" drugs sold by the students involved tested positive for potent synthetic cannabinoids, causing multiple students to experience severe poisoning symptoms within a short period.

A drug trafficking network involving prestigious universities such as Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was busted in North Carolina. At least 11 of the 21 people arrested were college students or recent graduates. They used encrypted apps and electronic payments to conduct transactions involving thousands of pounds of marijuana and hundreds of kilograms of cocaine within fraternities.

......

Drug dealers often disguise drug transactions as part of college life.

Furthermore, due to the proliferation of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is dozens of times more potent than heroin, drug trafficking on campuses is far more dangerous and addictive than in the past.

In the United States, approximately 22 teenagers aged 14 to 18 die each week from illicit drug use. Of these overdose deaths, fentanyl is involved in up to 84% of cases.

Let alone a well-behaved girl like Evelyn, even Jesus himself would probably have to poke two holes in his palms to bleed out his drug addiction before he could get rid of it.

It wouldn't surprise Rhodes that Hank thought of this first, because that was also Rhodes' first thought.

After all, these damn drug dealers love to prey on innocent girls like Evelyn.

However, this is only a possibility, and more clues need to be sorted out and collected before the possibility can be turned into the truth.

The subsequent search revealed no other abnormalities.

With the consent of the two men, the rooms of the other two were searched, but no other clues were found.

With the consent of the person involved, the police can conduct a search without a warrant.

Rod closed the door and looked at Liu Qingxi and Sienna, who were sitting in the living room at some point, and said, "This dormitory will soon be taken over by the police and protected as a 'potential crime scene.' Do you have any other accommodations?"

Sienna Dalton nodded. She was also from Los Angeles, and although her home was a bit far from UCLA, at least she had a place to live.

Rod looked at Liu Qingxi, knowing she had nowhere to stay, and after a slight hesitation, said, "How about you..."

Before Rod could finish speaking, Liu Qingxi interrupted, "It's okay, I can just find a room at a nearby hotel, it's very convenient."

Seeing that Liu Qingxi insisted, Luo De did not try to persuade her further.

The two began packing their things.

Hank then took out a seal and sealed off room 704.

Fortunately, it was Saturday, and there were hardly any people in the dormitory building, so no one came out to watch the excitement.

Once downstairs, Rod briefly explained the situation to the administrator, left his business card, and then left the campus with Hank.

It was lunchtime, and after a quick meal of cheeseburgers, fries, and Coke with Hank, the two drove to the detective station.

Second floor, the meeting room for Team Six.

The group sat on either side of the long table.

Rhodes looked around but couldn't find Evan.

Hank, standing beside him, explained in a low voice, "Evan takes a day off every year on April 14th."

Rhodes nodded and didn't ask any further questions; he wasn't that curious.

Connor first looked at Jose and Jackson, signaling them to share the clues and information they had obtained.

Jackson spoke first: "Jose and I went to the parents' house of the missing Evelyn Brooks."

This case... well, how should I put it, was also a mistake on the part of the patrol officers who responded to the call.

Jackson paused and then began to explain:

"As early as the second day after Evelyn could not be contacted, her parents had already reported her missing to the police."

However, after a brief investigation, the responding patrol officers concluded that Evelyn had simply run away from home and didn't take it seriously, simply telling them to wait patiently and not to report it.

In the United States, all emergency calls are typically responded to by patrol officers in the respective jurisdictions. If they can resolve the issue, they do so; if not, they gather firsthand intelligence and then report it to the dispatch center, which then contacts the appropriate detective department.

Hank sighed and asked, "What evidence does that patrolman have to prove that Evelyn ran away from home?"