Han Bin nodded, agreeing to Liao Pingsi's suggestion. This suggestion was standard and nothing new, so Han Bin did not have much hope.
"What does everyone think about the Z symbol on the victim's neck?"
Wang Xiao said, "I've seen a foreign movie called Zorro. This movie tells the story of the middle of the sixteenth century, when warlords and bureaucrats ruled the country and the people had no way to make a living. The masked hero Zorro worked hard to eradicate the evil tyrants.
This Zorro has a special trait. He likes to leave a Z symbol on the bad guys, which is very similar to the situation on the victim's body.
Also, the foreign name of Zorro in the movie is Zorro, which means fox in the Huayuan language. And the nature of a fox represents cunning.
I'm guessing that the killer left this symbol on the victim's body as a tribute or imitation of Zorro. "
Han Bin stood up and wrote a Z on the whiteboard. "I've seen the movie Zorro when I was young. Using a phrase from our country, it's called enforcing justice on behalf of the heavens. The killer felt that Zhang Haonan was a bad guy, so he used his own method to judge and punish him.
This is in line with the victim's method of death. From the current situation, the victim was already under the control of the killer before he was killed. It would be easy for the killer to kill him. He could just use a sharp knife to cut his throat or use a rope to strangle him.
However, the killer didn't choose these simple methods. Instead, he chose a more complicated and ritualistic method, using cigarettes to suffocate the victim to death. Although cigarettes aren't good for health, they aren't poisonous. Most people in the country smoke, and one cigarette or even a few cigarettes aren't enough to affect a person's safety.
In order to kill the victim, the killer made him smoke dozens or even hundreds of cigarettes. This greatly increased the difficulty of the crime and the risk of exposure. From this point, the killer's ritualistic method is very strong, and it does seem like he's enforcing justice on behalf of the heavens.
But then again, although it's immoral for the victim to smoke in the elevator, he isn't considered a vicious person. The killer's method of punishment is a bit extreme. If he were convicted according to this standard, many people would become the killer's target. "
Han Bin took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, then continued, "There's another possibility. The murderer didn't really want to enforce justice on behalf of the heavens, but to cover up his real motive for killing. Zorro was just a cover he found to interfere with the direction of the police's investigation."
After Han Bin finished speaking, Wang Xiao echoed, "Captain Han's analysis is very comprehensive. I also think that we should start investigating the victim's relationship with the surrounding people. There is no hatred in this world for no reason, and it is even more impossible to kill someone for no reason. There must be a reason behind this murder.
From the available evidence, the smoke was likely to be the direct cause of the murder. Of course, it's also possible that it's just a cover as Captain Han analyzed. "
Han Bin looked at Zu Dawei, who was sitting at the back. "Zu Dawei, you used to work for the Criminal Investigation Unit of the South District Sub-Bureau. There was a murder case in the South District in the summer of 2018. There was a Z-shaped symbol on the right side of the victim's neck. Do you remember it?"
Zu Dawei replied, "Yes, I also participated in the investigation of this case. Unfortunately, because of the lack of key clues and evidence, the case has never been solved, so I have a deep impression of it. The case was committed on August 21st, and it was named Case 821. "
Zu Dawei had not participated in the scene investigation of the Rong Yuan Sub-District. Han Bin had given him a file with some relevant information, and Zu Dawei had already read it. "The Z-shaped symbol on the right side of the neck of the victim, Zhang Haonan, is very similar to that of the victim of the 821 case. In fact, it could even be said that they are identical. However, the way they were killed is somewhat different.
Zu Dawei sighed. "Actually, I don't really want to think about this case. The murderer's methods were very cruel, and the victim died a terrible death. It wasn't just me … Many old police officers were shocked when they saw the scene.
The victim died in her own home. Her tongue was cut off, and her mouth was gagged. In the end, she suffocated due to excessive blood loss. The victim was in great pain before she died. In order to break free from the rope, her skin and flesh were torn. "
Wang Xiao said, "According to your description, the victim should have made a lot of noise before she died. Didn't the neighbors hear anything?"
"The victim's family was from a village in the city. They dug a cellar in their yard, and the body was found in the cellar. The victim was a female, and she was tied to a chair. When the family found her body, it was already two days later, and the body was already smelly."
Han Bin asked, "What was the reason for the victim's death?"
Zu Dawei was silent for a moment. "At that time, there were two theories. The victim was a little old, and when people from the same village got together, they liked to gossip about each other. There was a girl from the same village who was still in high school at that time. She was pregnant, and after an abortion, she stayed at home to recuperate.
This was not something to be proud of. The girl's family kept it a secret, but no one knows how the victim found out about it, and the news spread in the village.
After the girl heard it, she felt ashamed and didn't even dare to leave the house. Her parents and relatives also couldn't hold their heads up high. This incident caused quite a stir in the village.
Later, the girl couldn't take it anymore and jumped down from the three-story building. Her life wasn't in danger, but she was crippled. Many people in the village said that she killed the girl.
Not long after, the victim was killed by cutting off her tongue. The right side of her neck was cut into a Z pattern. "
Zu Dawei paused for a moment to organize his words. "Another theory is that there was another reason for the victim's death. The murderer killed the victim in this way to cover up the real reason."
Han Bin asked, "This case hasn't been solved for a long time. Why hasn't it been handed over to the Municipal Bureau?"
Zu Dawei hesitated for a moment. "The situation of the case was a little complicated. We caught a major suspect, and we always wanted to find enough evidence to convict him. At that time, the hope of solving the case was relatively high, and the leader of the branch felt that we had the ability to solve the 821 case.
However, the result of the investigation was contrary to what we wanted. We found the evidence, but it wasn't enough to convict the suspect. Instead, it proved the suspect's innocence. At that time, the investigation was also stuck in a dead end. It had been a long time since the crime happened, and many clues for the case were lost. "
Han Bin listened very carefully. After Zu Dawei finished, he glanced at everyone. "After listening to the 821 case and comparing it to the Rong Yuan case, what do you think?"
Liao Pingsi said, "These two cases seem to be committed in different ways, but in essence, they're both punishing the victim. The victim of the 821 case liked to gossip, so her tongue was cut off. The victim of the Rong Yuan case liked to smoke in public, so she died from the smoke. To borrow a phrase from Master Jin Yong, they're both 'giving people a taste of their own medicine.' "
Zhao Ming said, "Connecting these two cases, it reminds me of a movie called 'The Seven Deadly Sins.' I'm not sure if anyone has seen it before."
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