Chapter 72: Chapter 72: 110? There is premeditated murder.
"Moreover, although throwing objects from heights has become a criminal act, it only applies to cases that cause serious consequences. If there’s no damage or injuries, the most one might receive is a fine of 500 yuan or simple detention."
Afterward, He Bimin continued. As a property manager, he often dealt with incidents involving high-altitude littering and was therefore quite familiar with this criminal law. Usually, not to mention the difficulty of finding the litterer, even if they did find them, their property management’s approach was mostly to downplay the issue and issue a warning. Even if the case was handed over to the police station, at most, the person would be fined and released in a couple of days.
"Didn’t expect you to know the criminal law so well?" Qin Mu looked at the property staff shirking responsibility and couldn’t help but sneer.
The property manager in front of him was actually correct. High-altitude littering, when it caused no harm, was always handled this way. It wasn’t even considered an attempted crime. Only when it caused damage was one sentenced to up to a year in prison. But... he was mere steps away, nearly killed by a beer bottle. He simply couldn’t sleep tonight without putting that person behind bars!
He took a deep breath. Staring at He Bimin, he said in a firm voice, "Whether they get sentenced is not for you to worry about. I remember there are surveillance cameras inside the district. Since this incident occurred here, I demand to review the footage to identify the floor from which the object was thrown."
He Bimin looked at him, hesitating. But after pondering, he still led him to the property center’s surveillance room and had someone pull up the footage from the time of the incident.
Typically, the main thoroughfares and intersections within a residential district were equipped with internal surveillance. It served to protect the residents’ personal safety, preventing illegal criminals and strangers from intruding. For example, the building where Qin Mu resided, Building 10, was situated right at the crossroads. A camera was installed at the intersection directly opposite.
However, after retrieving the surveillance footage, they indeed saw a beer bottle plummeting at a terrifying speed. But the angle at which the surveillance was shot primarily captured pedestrians coming and going on the road. Even though it did catch that moment, the footage only showed the latter part of the bottle’s trajectory as it fell from around the height of the fourth floor. The floors above the fourth weren’t within the camera’s range.
"Mr. Qin, as you see, the surveillance can’t cover an entire building. Even if we review the footage, we can only rule out the range of four households, unable to pinpoint the person who threw the object." He Bimin looked at Qin Mu. He then advised earnestly, "Since no harm was caused, I suggest we let it go..."
The reputation of the Mountain and Water Garden’s property management was very good in Jin City. To protect their image, they didn’t want to blow this matter out of proportion. If people knew that someone in the district they managed was guilty of high-altitude littering, no one might buy the properties developed by their real estate company in the future.
"Let it go?" After hearing this, Qin Mu responded with annoyance.
He Bimin replied with a wry smile, "As you saw, there are 26 households here in Building 10, Unit 2. Our property staff can’t possibly knock on each door to inquire, right? And even if I do ask, they might not even respond to me."
Qin Mu looked deeply at the property manager. He had completely given up on the idea of asking the property management to assist with the investigation. Their attitude was clear; they didn’t want to escalate the situation. They wished for him, the victim, to swallow his grievances. But in this second life, he only wanted to live freely, as he pleased. As for those without manners, he would not let any of them off the hook, having encountered them.
"You don’t need to handle this matter anymore," he snorted coldly. In the presence of He Bimin, he picked up his mobile phone and dialed 110.
"Hello? Yes, I need to report a crime. I’m at Mountain and Water Garden. I’ve encountered what I believe to be an attempted premeditated murder. I’m unharmed, and I have also preserved the weapon..."
He Bimin’s face filled with shock as he watched Qin Mu call the police. He quickly said, "Mr. Qin, this is just an object thrown from a high altitude, how could it be... premeditated murder?"
Qin Mu glanced at him. He said coldly, "How is it not premeditated murder? I was nearly hit by it; how can I be sure that the other person didn’t intentionally calculate the timing and landing spot to throw the bottle from above? What if the person intends to harm me again? Shouldn’t I call the police?"
He Bimin was taken aback. Qin Mu’s response left him without a retort. Indeed. From the surveillance video, He Bimin could clearly see that the bottle was only thirty centimeters away from Qin Mu at the time. The bottle had shattered into more than thirty pieces. The impact was unimaginable. If Qin Mu had taken a step faster, the consequences would truly have been unthinkable.
But still... "There’s no need to involve the police..." He Bimin spoke with a hint of complaint and caution. The arrival of the police would greatly damage the reputation of their property management.
Qin Mu glanced at him. He turned his back and looked at the beer bottle fragments collected by the property management staff. Before coming to see the surveillance, he had instructed the property staff to collect the fragments scattered on the ground while wearing gloves. Although some pieces were surely missed, the main fragments were all there. Fingerprint comparison would definitely be needed later on.
WEE-WOO WEE-WOO—
「Fifteen minutes later.」
Two police cars arrived at the Mountain and Water Garden District, stopping at the property center.
"Why are you here too?" Upon seeing Qin Mu, Captain Shen was somewhat surprised.
"Captain Shen, I’m the one who called in this police report," Qin Mu said with a smile as he greeted his old acquaintance.
Shen Dao was taken aback and asked directly, "You’re the one who reported the premeditated murder? Someone used a bottle as a weapon, precisely calculating your path to try to kill you?" This information had been relayed to him by the operator who took the call. So, after receiving the message, he personally led the team to respond. They arrived at Mountain and Water Garden as fast as possible. But unexpectedly, he encountered Qin Mu.
"Officer, it’s not premeditated murder. I think this is just a case of an object being thrown from a high altitude..." Seeing the situation, He Bimin hurriedly stepped forward to explain. Throwing objects from a high altitude and premeditated murder are two different matters. If it were to be classified as premeditated murder, and it became known that their community housed a murderer... Who would dare to buy apartments from their developer in the future? The resale rate of their community’s apartments would also drop significantly. Thus, he hurriedly explained the causes and consequences in detail.
After listening, Captain Shen’s expression didn’t soften. Instead, he requested to view the surveillance footage from that time.
CLANG!
In the surveillance video, at precisely 8:27:13 PM, the beer bottle crashed thirty centimeters in front of Qin Mu without error. It broke into more than thirty fragments.
After the surveillance footage finished playing, He Bimin continued to argue, "Officer, although the scene was a bit frightening, since there were no casualties or property damage, this can’t be considered murder, right?"