Diary of a Criminal Investigator-Chapter 327: Spattered Bloodstains

The case briefing meeting lasted for about an hour and a half.

To be honest, the work done by the Qinzhou City Criminal Investigation Team was extremely meticulous.

Some doubts raised by the members of the major case squad were already thought of here, and they had been verified, but no useful clues were found.

"Does anyone have any suggestions for what’s next?"

"Director Li, let’s first go to the scene and take a look."

"Yes, let’s go to the scene first."

Lu Chuan nodded in agreement. Even though the scene was from a week ago, it still had high investigative value.

No matter how many photos the Qinzhou City Criminal Investigation Team took, it wouldn’t be as effective as seeing the scene in person.

The experts in the major case squad each had their own methods, and going to the scene was everyone’s first choice.

As for Lu Chuan, he might need to conduct a detailed second crime scene investigation.

Theoretically, it’s impossible for the killer not to leave any traces at the scene.

It’s just that these traces may be very concealed in some situations, and even if the killer intentionally cleaned the scene, there might be fewer traces remaining, but never none.

Li Donglin meant that the major case squad should have gone to the scene immediately, as listening to a report on the scene would be more beneficial than anything else.

"Alright, Captain Qin, please arrange for the major case squad to be taken to the scene."

"Director Li, I brought some equipment with me when I came over. It’s all in the car, so I’ll drive myself."

This time Lu Chuan didn’t drive his own car; he used the team’s ten-year-old Land Cruiser.

The last time he came to Qinzhou to handle a case, he realized some equipment was not fully available here, so Lu Chuan brought some portable ones over.

Otherwise, his crime scene investigation might be hindered.

"No problem, do you need us to send a driver?"

"No need, I’ll drive myself."

Half an hour later, at Qinzhou International Apartments.

"This apartment was completed five years ago and is considered a landmark building in Qinzhou. Its surveillance facilities are relatively well-established, but we checked everything and found nothing suspicious."

Outside the apartment, after getting out of the car, Wang Song searched for surveillance positions on the building.

"Is there a surveillance layout and construction drawings of the building?"

"Yes, they are in the archives, I’ll have someone bring them over."

The apartment property manager was very cooperative and seemed quite experienced, having been assisting the Qinzhou City Criminal Investigation Team for a week.

"Our judgment is still most likely that the perpetrator is someone within the apartment building."

Qin Hui pointed to the apartment entrance: "There are surveillance cameras in the elevators, at the entrance, and in the underground parking garage and other public areas throughout the entire apartment building. After committing the crime, it’s not likely the criminal could leave the surveillance range if they intended to escape."

"So after the crime, the perpetrator should actually be hiding within the building."

Wang Song nodded subtly.

Qin Hui’s analysis was very reasonable; being appointed as the head of the Criminal Investigation Team, he certainly wasn’t just a figurehead.

The Qinzhou City Public Security Bureau wouldn’t have someone clueless in this position.

"Additionally, none of Wang Min’s specific acquaintances entered or left the apartment that day."

"Let’s head inside first."

Inside the building, there were four elevators.

"This apartment is a tower structure, and all four elevators can reach the floor of the deceased’s residence."

With four elevators serving twenty-five units, the entire tower is constructed around these four elevators from an architectural standpoint.

The crime took place on the seventh floor, in apartment 708.

"This floor houses eighteen units. The crime occurred at 9:30 pm on the 31st, and the soundproofing of the deceased’s room was average. However, the apartment rented by Wang Min had no neighbors on either side."

"Everyone on this floor is our key investigation target, especially the six single males, but..."

No need to say "but," Qin Hui and his team investigated for a week, but no suspects were identified. It was evident that the individuals on this floor probably had no suspicion.

However, Qin Hui’s words actually contained a lot of information.

For example, whether the perpetrator acted impulsively or premeditatedly when targeting the victim.

Killing someone often involves making noise, especially when involving coercion.

So, whether the perpetrator deliberately chose Wang Min and knew in advance that there were no neighbors renting on either side is crucial intelligence.

"How did the perpetrator enter the room?"

Wang Song asked another question.

"Not sure, but there was no trace of forced entry on the door lock. It is speculated that either Wang Min was deceived into opening the door, or the culprit used a key."

A moment later, the elevator stopped on the seventh floor, and everyone exited the elevator.

"The corner ahead is apartment 708."

At this time, Lu Chuan did not advance first, as the body had long been removed, and inside were traces left by the Qinzhou Criminal Investigation Team’s examination.

Many things were no longer in the state they were immediately after the crime occurred.

"Here is where the blood flowed out at that time."

The door was already open, and one could see that the threshold and the floor inside were on the same level, which is why the blood was able to flow out of the room.

A week had passed, and the blood inside was no longer bright red.

Everyone present was an expert in criminal investigation, and they all had some research on bloodstain patterns.

Normally, blood from a human body coagulates about three minutes after exiting the body.

It changes from a bright red to a dark red initially.

The blood from the human body is not a simple composite; it consists of various substances such as water, red blood cells, and platelets.

It is precisely the existence of these components that makes blood research a very valuable clue in criminal investigation.

A week had passed, and the bloodstains at the crime scene had long coagulated, now even transitioning from dark red to black, and even brown.

The seven members of the major case squad each donned gloves and foot covers, preparing to enter the scene.

Lu Chuan, as the crime scene investigator, was the first to enter.

Bloodstain Pattern Analysis is one of the most critical means of reconstructing the crime scene.

The dossier provided by Qin Hui contained descriptions of the reconstructed scene based on bloodstain pattern analysis.

There were spatter bloodstains on the wall next to the entrance, and traces of projected bloodstains remained on the floor.

The perpetrator injured the victim immediately upon entering.

However, judging by the shape of the bloodstains and the amount of blood, the victim was not severely injured at the doorway.

Based on the forensic report in the dossier, the deceased had bruising on the face, and the perpetrator probably used a blunt object or a fist to hit the victim’s head immediately after entering.

And used a sharp tool to chop, but no crucial parts were harmed.

Walking past the foyer, the same bloodstain patterns continued, including additional dripped blood on the floor.

"Drip height... less than one meter."

Blood can drip from different heights and will form drip-like stains, but the shapes of the droplets vary.

From around one meter or less, the edges of dripped blood are jagged.

But from beyond one meter to less than three meters, the edges of the droplets appear linear.

And when the height exceeds three meters, the fallen blood no longer forms droplets but rather appears dispersed.