Diary of a Criminal Investigator

Is it possible to directly arrest Song Junwu and reopen the investigation from back then?

It’s certainly feasible. The cases of Zhang Chi being murdered, Wang Yajuan being murdered are different from the disappearance of two people back then. As the legal representative of Green Rattan Jewelry, Song Junwu is definitely connected to this.

If Song Junwu is arrested now and something can be extracted from him during interrogation, then the case can be easily resolved. It’s even possible to solve the case of the eight skeletons discovered beneath the bridge.

But there’s another concern. What if nothing substantial is gained from interrogating Song Junwu upon arrest?

What do we do then?

Song Junwu, as the general manager of Songbei Mining Transport Company, must be a core figure at Songbei Mining. If there’s an issue with Songbei Mining, and we arrest Song Junwu, it’ll surely alert them.

Arresting Song Junwu without solid evidence is too risky.

Qin Yong recalled Song Jiangguo’s instructions to him to proceed boldly, but to be very cautious and make sure to have substantial evidence.

Qin Yong understood Song Jiangguo’s message: with evidence, everything can be addressed, no matter who is involved or at what level, it will be thoroughly investigated.

However, without evidence or with insufficient evidence, there is a risk of attack, especially considering the current status of the shareholders of Songbei Mining...

Evidence!

Song Junwu absolutely cannot be rashly arrested, otherwise the entire case will fall into a passive state.

Right now, while Songbei Mining might be somewhat alerted to our movements, it’s mainly limited to Ren Qiang’s car accident case.

The discovery of the bodies beneath Lion Mountain Bridge, they should already be aware, no, it’s not "should", they definitely are aware.

Our side conducts operations openly, while they hide in the shadows. In this case, it’s a disadvantageous situation.

However, from another angle, they still don’t know that we’ve already set our sights on Songbei Mining.

So from this point of view, we are in a favorable position, with them in the open and us in the dark.

The moment we arrest Song Junwu, this one advantageous position will be disrupted, and they’ll potentially do everything in their power to obstruct the investigation and, perhaps, even destroy unnoticed evidence.

Thinking it through, Qin Yong pondered these thoughts all within a few breaths’ time.

"Old Liu, I need you to work hard and overtime, strive to identify the remaining four skeletons as soon as possible."

There are still four unidentified skeletons among the eight discovered. Whether stronger evidence or a more favorable scenario can emerge is hard to say right now.

Perhaps more evident leads will appear that could assist in solving the case, potentially pointing directly to key breaking points.

Or perhaps nothing will turn up, and even their identities might remain unknown. Anything could occur.

Qin Yong is preparing for the worst-case scenario and will do everything he can to move toward the best possible result.

Returning to the office, Qin Yong sat alone, closed his eyes, and reflected.

The police have many means to solve cases. If every case strictly relied on mass deployment, sending officers everywhere to investigate for clues, then they might as well close the bureau.

"Have Zhang Bin come over."

Ten minutes later, Team 4’s leader, Zhang Bin, entered Qin Yong’s office.

"Captain Qin, you called for me?"

"Please, have a seat and let’s talk."

"Do you have spare capacity in your team?"

"Not an issue. The previous task you gave me is complete. Is there a new assignment?"

Zhang Bin’s Team 4 has very few members, only four people in total.

The Crime Scene Investigation office has roughly the same number of personnel.

Among these four members, only two are actual police officers, and the other two are auxiliary police.

But compared to typical auxiliary police, the wage of Zhang Bin’s Team 4 auxiliary police officers is very high, as they are special talents approved by the bureau.

"Can you monitor this person 24/7, any problems?"

"Boss, as long as we have the paperwork, there’s no problem with anyone!"

Qin Yong furrowed his brows at the current issue as he lacked the necessary paperwork.

"Start preparing your end, investigate the target’s situation, I’ll apply for the paperwork from above."

Zhang Bin immediately understood. However, without paperwork, he couldn’t act.

All eavesdropping equipment in the Criminal Investigation Team requires records for usage, and some records cannot be erased.

There’s mutual oversight among team members, and some equipment is networked.

Using such equipment for surveillance leaves traces. While these traces often go unnoticed, if discovered during inspections without proper paperwork, it’s a serious issue.

Qin Yong’s message was clear: surveillance requires preliminary data collection on the target.

This data collection process can’t be achieved through normal inquiry and investigation.

However, this process of data collection is distinct from standard surveillance investigation.

The duration can’t exceed seven days and the content is not particularly comprehensive.

Despite that, it still yields a lot of useful information.

If the paperwork gets approved during the preparation phase, the real surveillance operation can begin, with Zhang Bin ready to start at once.

If the paperwork isn’t approved in time, the subsequent surveillance operation can’t proceed, but the preliminary work would have been a necessary effort.

This offers a seven-day margin.

"Captain Qin, I’ll start the preparation and report to you immediately with any developments."

"Stay safe!"

"Don’t worry, I will!"

Obtaining the paperwork for surveillance, Qin Yong could naturally expedite the process, a call to the bureau would suffice for approval.

This matter doesn’t even require going through Song Jiangguo, as long as the surveillance target doesn’t exceed a certain level or range.

However, employing this surveillance procedure involves the risk of detection by the target.

General individuals wouldn’t notice such surveillance.

Even Song Junwu may not, but what about those behind him?

The car accident of Ren Qiang was known to them, with the news reaching them almost immediately. Could they somehow learn about surveillance activities through certain channels?

This situation is confined to the Criminal Investigation Team. Qin Yong had high confidence in maintaining secrecy, but involving the City Public Security Bureau...

Not to imply issues with higher-ups necessarily, but the more people know, the more likely leaks occur during discussions, a risk Qin Yong is unwilling to take.