Because when he was being interrogated, I noticed he kept shifting his feet, and his shoes almost came off several times, which indicated he was wearing shoes that were too big for him.
I went to his interrogation room and said, "Mr. Huang Jiayou, you used to wear size 39 shoes, didn't you?"
"No, I've always worn size 40!"
"Stop lying. These videos, and this video here, show you at the craft factory and the Xinghe Bridge. You can't deny it!"
This was based on the comparison of surveillance footage from shoe stores with the two crime scenes, which I had meticulously verified, so there was no room for error. Yet, this guy still refused to admit it, saying, "The figure in these videos does resemble me, but no clear frontal shots were captured. There are plenty of people with my build, so how can you be so sure it's me?"
"Is it still meaningful for you to deny it? Your reactions alone tell me you're the culprit!" Before I could answer, Liu Yuning, standing beside me, retorted.
Huang Jiayou stared at both of us with disdain, his eyebrows lifting easily. "So, you police officers draw conclusions based on observation? Without evidence, do you think any of this can stand in court?" He displayed an attitude of utter confidence that we were powerless against him.
He crossed his legs. At this moment, he wasn't handcuffed, and his range of movement was not restricted. Until we could definitively identify the person in the video as him, we indeed had limited options.
Just then, Xie Chuchu suddenly sent me a message saying that the same type of yellow mud substance had been found at both crime scenes. A flash of inspiration struck me. I stood up and walked towards Huang Jiayou. Initially, he seemed unsure of my intentions, but before he could react, I forcefully lifted his foot and used a cotton swab to collect some mud and sand from the sole of his shoe.
However, when he understood what I was doing, Huang Jiayou didn't seem overly panicked. I knew he had likely changed his shoes and probably disposed of the ones he thought would incriminate him.
I took the sample outside to Xie Chuchu, then called Gao Mingqiang to come over. As soon as he arrived, he understood what I intended to do. But he pulled me aside, saying, "We don't have any real evidence. Isn't it a bit much to just break into his place?"
"Don't worry, I'll take responsibility if anything goes wrong!"
I instructed Liu Yuning and Xiahou to continue interrogating Huang Jiayou while I left the provincial hall with Gao Mingqiang. Following He Xin's tip, we found Huang Jiayou's dormitory. His residence was indeed not far from the two crime scenes, fitting perfectly within the normal range of criminal psychology.
I used a lock-picking tool to open his dormitory door. Once inside, my attention was drawn to the shoe rack. I compared all the shoes he had worn and found none that matched those from the crime scenes. He had indeed disposed of them. However, when I used an instrument to examine the floor, I discovered similar footprints in his living room. I took photos, and this was sufficient. I then used a biological sampling tool to extract some trace particulate matter from the floor.
Back at the provincial hall, I had Xie Chuchu re-examine the sample. The results confirmed that the soil originated from the area near the Xinghe Bridge in Guangming City. This meant that the first case at the craft factory was unrelated to Huang Jiayou, but he could not escape responsibility for the Xinghe Bridge incident. However, once we cracked one case, he wouldn't be able to avoid confessing to the others.
The moment I re-entered the interrogation room, I was able to handcuff Huang Jiayou. Sensing the shift in circumstances, he began to panic.
I held up the lab report and said, "I'm not trying to trick you. The physical evidence you wanted is now in my hands. You can't deny it this time, can you?"
I placed the report in front of him. He looked at it with a look of horror and disbelief. After a long pause, he closed his mouth, shut his eyes, seemingly resigned. He didn't want to confess, so he adopted a strategy of complete silence.
I looked at him helplessly. I had encountered criminals like him before. I said, "Given your situation, you're probably thinking of taking all the blame, aren't you? I know there was more than one person involved in this crime. There must be someone behind you. If you say nothing now, others can get away scot-free, and you'll bear the most severe responsibility for them. You should understand the consequences quite clearly!"
Upon hearing this, Huang Jiayou raised his neck. It was evident that he didn't want to take the fall alone. He gave an embarrassed chuckle. "I was just a bit tired. I can speak now."
"Good. Cooperating with us is your best path forward. Seizing this opportunity, you can earn merit through your service. If we find other suspects with your help, there's a good chance your sentence could be reduced."
"Then Officer He and Officer Liu, you two must help me. I have a wife and children. I don't want them to never see me again."
Hearing this, Liu Yuning retorted, "If that's the case, why did you come out and do so many bad things?"
He looked embarrassed when this was brought up. His narrow chin moved up and down, his lips twitching unnaturally. "Actually, I didn't want to. Wasn't it all for their sake, to provide them with a better living environment? That's why I joined Brother Hong's group."
"Brother Hong? Is he your boss?"
"No, I heard he has superiors, but I don't know who exactly. I only know that we always meet in the warehouse behind Haodu Pier. I was indeed responsible for disposing of those dolls, and I also handled the body at the craft factory the first time. I originally brought these items from the pier because Brother Hong would bring the necessary props there for me to pick up."
Liu Yuning continued, "Do they often ask you to do this?"
"I wish they did often, but their missions aren't frequent. There's a period of time in between."
"How much money did they give you to risk your life for them like this?"
"One million per job. That's quite a lot, isn't it? I really needed the money for my family. My mother is also suffering from cancer and needs treatment."
In the past, I had encountered many criminals who, after committing crimes, would offer excuses such as a sick family member or business bankruptcy to try and deceive us. However, many times, when we investigated, we found most of these reasons to be false.
I didn't press on those points, but instead said calmly, "Besides the pier, do you know of any other locations?"
"No. He would only meet me at the pier. One time, I asked Brother Hong if he had anyone above him, and he told me himself that he wasn't the boss. That's when I realized their gang was quite large. Actually, when he gave me those body parts, I didn't know what they were. It was only after he left and I opened it that I was shocked. But for the sake of the money, I pushed myself to do it. After all, I didn't kill anyone; I just disposed of the body. That shouldn't be too serious, right?"