The Forensic Doctor Better Than a Detective-Chapter 603 - 337: A High-Level Task Force Operation!
She did not continue, but the questions in her eyes said it all.
The office fell into a brief silence.
Both of them were lost in thought, but neither could understand why this seemingly ordinary old case suddenly garnered such attention.
Jiang An noticed and gently tapped the table to draw their attention: "Senior sister, senior brother, look here."
He opened the case file to the crime scene photos and explained in detail again the two key doubts he had pointed out to Mr. Ma earlier.
......
As Jiang An explained, Wan and Zhang Yean’s expressions gradually shifted from confusion to shock.
Wan’s lips trembled slightly, as if he wanted to say something but couldn’t.
Zhang Yean fell into deep thought, her fingers unconsciously pressing against her temple, clearly trying to recall the details from back then.
"Are you saying... there’s something wrong with the body?"
Wan finally found his voice, but it was still full of disbelief.
As a detective with years of experience, he knew all too well what this meant—if there was an issue with the body examination in a homicide case, the entire case conclusion could be overturned.
Zhang Yean also slowly raised her head, her eyes becoming exceptionally sharp.
"This case was examined jointly by Forensic Doctor Wu and the provincial experts at the time."
"You say there is an unusual discoloration on the back... This requires very solid evidence to support."
Jiang An nodded solemnly: "One more critical question, is the body still preserved?"
Wan immediately replied, "According to regular procedure, in cases where the family has strong suspicions, the body would be preserved for a long time."
"Families would go to great lengths to demand the truth to be uncovered."
At this moment, Jiang An suddenly remembered the business card the old man left in the morning.
He took out the slightly old card, the phone number still clearly visible.
"I’d better confirm this."
Saying that, he picked up his phone and dialed the number.
The call connected quickly, a weary and aged voice answered, "Hello, yes?"
"Hello, this is Jiang An from the Criminal Investigation Unit."
"Oh, Officer Jiang!"
The old man’s voice suddenly became excited, "Is there any news? Is the case progressing?"
Jiang An could feel the eager anticipation from the other end of the line.
He tried to speak steadily, "I’d like to confirm, is your son’s body still preserved?"
"Yes! It’s still at the funeral home!"
The old man’s voice suddenly raised by eight octaves, "Because there has been no closure on this matter, we’ve insisted on keeping it!"
"Officer Jiang, will the body be re-examined?"
The old man spoke faster and his voice began to tremble.
Those calloused hands were probably gripping the phone tightly, tears perhaps welling up in his cloudy eyes.
In the past, countless visits to the authorities yielded only perfunctory responses.
But today, finally, a different response had come.
"Sir, the department has decided to reopen the investigation into this case, with me appointed as the deputy head of the task force." Jiang An stated solemnly.
The other end of the line fell into a brief silence, only the faint sound of static could be heard.
After a long while, the old man’s restrained sobbing came through, "Officer... Officer Jiang... thank you... thank you so much..."
The old man spoke haltingly, his voice choking up, almost unable to form words.
Jiang An’s eyes could not help but well up.
He took a deep breath and said with determination, "Sir, please rest assured."
"We will thoroughly investigate this case. No matter the outcome, we will give you a clear account."
"Alright... alright..."
The old man struggled to keep his emotions in check.
"I believe in you, I trust Officer Jiang... on behalf of the whole family... thank you..."
"It’s our duty to do so."
Jiang An responded softly, while inwardly clenching his fist.
After hanging up, Jiang An took a deep breath, and the office fell into a brief silence.
He slowly raised his head, his gaze firm: "Senior brother, senior sister, it’s now confirmed that the body is still there."
"This is a crucial breakthrough. As long as the body is well preserved, we’ll have a chance to uncover the truth again."
Zhang Yean and Wang exchanged a glance and saw the same determination in each other’s eyes.
Zhang Yean spoke first, her voice low and powerful: "Junior brother, now that you are the deputy head of the task force, this case has been brought to such a high level."
"Whatever support you need from us, just let us know."
She seemed ready to throw herself back into the battle.
Wan immediately chimed in, "Yes, this case has troubled the family for three years. If we can uncover the truth, it’s also giving them some closure."
Jiang An gratefully nodded, his gaze moving between the two: "Thank you for your support, senior brother and sister."
"I’d like to start with a field survey; some details need to be confirmed with my own eyes."
"I’m familiar with that." Zhang Yean immediately stood up, pulling car keys from her pocket.
"I participated in the site survey back then, and I remember the location clearly. We can head there now."
Fifty minutes later, the police car left the city and turned onto a country road.
The trees on both sides of the road grew denser, and the sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting flickering spots of light on the windshield.
Finally, the car stopped in front of an open field.
After getting out, Zhang Yean pointed forward and said, "This is the fish pond."
"It basically remains unchanged since the incident. I’ve heard that people used to fish here, but it was abandoned after the incident."
Jiang An stood by the pond, carefully observing the surroundings.
He noticed that the place was indeed very remote—the nearest houses were over a kilometer away, surrounded only by dense woods and patches of farmland.
This kind of environment made him unconsciously frown.
"In such a secluded place, what happened that night will likely be difficult to find eyewitnesses."
"The key to solving the case may lie entirely in physical evidence."
Wang nodded, recalling, "Several expert groups came multiple times back then and conducted various scene reconstructions."
"It was ultimately determined that the deceased drove his motorcycle under the influence and lost control on his way home, crashing into the pond."
He pointed to a small path to the north, "He came from that direction, which also aligns with the route home."
"Speaking of the motorcycle,"
Zhang Yean suddenly remembered something, "I remember the motorcycle is still held by the traffic police."
Jiang An crouched down, his fingers gently parting the weeds on the shore.
Three years of wind and rain had washed away the traces of the past.
He said in a deep voice, "Let’s carefully inspect the site first, then check the body at the funeral home, and lastly confirm the whereabouts of the motorcycle."
Zhang Yean walked to a spot based on her memory, pointing to the ground, "This is where the motorcycle’s tire marks started, diagonally crashing into the water."
"What about the water level at the time?" Jiang An asked.
"Slightly higher than now,"
Zhang Yean recalled, "After draining the pond, we found that the water was about 0.5 meters deep at the shore, but where the body floated, it was 2-3 meters deep, enough to cause drowning."
Jiang An’s gaze moved slowly along the shore, suddenly he asked, "Senior sister, has the slope of the shore changed over the past three years?"
Zhang Yean carefully surveyed the terrain, contemplating, "Basically unchanged, though rainwater might have smoothed the slope slightly."
"I remember the angle of entry was steeper back then."
This detail gave Jiang An something to ponder over.
He turned to Zhang Yean, "Senior sister, you’re a trace expert."
"Is there a difference in the traces when a motorcycle enters the water on its own versus being pushed?"
Zhang Yean’s gaze suddenly became focused, she crouched down, fingers tracing the dirt.
"There is a slight difference."
"When entering actively, the motorcycle is still running, it’s heavier, and the tire marks are deeper."
"And..."
She paused, "If it’s pushed in, there usually won’t be obvious brake marks."
"By the way, the motorcycle was in gear at the time."
"In gear?"
Jiang An keenly caught this detail.
"So, we deduced it might have been delayed reactions due to intoxication, coupled with failure to brake in time leading to the accident," Zhang Yean explained.
Suddenly, a crucial question flashed through Jiang An’s mind.
His voice unconsciously raised, "Senior sister, can you easily push a motorcycle while it’s in gear and not turned off?"
Zhang Yean immediately shook her head, "It’s nearly impossible, unless it’s downhill."
This answer made Jiang An’s eyes suddenly sharp.
His mind conjured the details from the scene photos—the subtle differences in the tire marks.
