Harrisonburg, a city in northern Virginia.
"At 9: 26 this morning, an explosion occurred at a gas station in Harrisonburg, Virginia. So far, 12 people have been killed and 27 injured. It is reported that this is already the seventh gas station attack in the past two months. Although the FBI has ruled out the possibility of this series of cases being terrorist attacks, but this serial killer known as the 'Gas Station Terminator' has killed 38 people so far and injured more than 100 people … "
The fire was basically under control, but the crime scene on the screen was still billowing smoke.
Todd turned off the news and looked at the team members sitting at the table. "He must have become one of the most talked about guys in the country, but how are we going to catch him?"
Todd was the new liaison. She was a black woman from CTU. JJ was on maternity leave and had left halfway through the case. Of course, JJ wanted to finish the case before leaving, but they had already taken over the case for more than half a month, and there was still not much progress. JJ's due date was less than a month away, and they did not want JJ to give birth to the child while she was out in the field.
Bruce looked out the window. At this time, they were at the police station in Harrisonburg. It wasn't noon yet, and many media outlets had gathered at the entrance of the police station, competing to broadcast the latest news about the series of cases. They were originally in Staunton, the place where the previous case occurred, and drove to Harrisonburg when they learned of the new attack. The distance between the two was less than an hour.
"What do we know now?" Rossi tapped the folder on the table in front of him with one hand. Based on the serial killer's number of crimes, it was really a thick book.
Morgan and Prentiss went to the crime scene, and Reid was pondering over the map. Bruce very consciously said, "The Unsub has committed seven cases of casualties. Of course, we know that he has done far more than that. More than three months ago, there were gas station fires in Kingsport, Bristow, and other places in Tennessee, but there were no casualties. We think he was still a rookie at that time, and those cases were just experimental products. As his number of crimes increased, his methods became more and more sophisticated, and the number of casualties increased. Until today's case, the number of deaths on the spot has reached 12."
Reid added, "The Unsub will leave a key ring at the scene with the same small tag on it. The tag has the word 'Tribute' printed on it. The material of the tag is thermally stable and non-flammable plastic. Its main component is rigid polyvinyl chloride. This material has …"
"Please skip this part, Doctor." Bruce was a little helpless. It was really amazing to have a doctorate in chemistry.
Reid, who was interrupted, glared at Bruce and continued, "The key ring printed with the word 'Tribute' has become a symbol of the Unsub. Since the first crime scene where he caused casualties, he would leave a key ring. Although we only found one of them two miles away from the explosion site, I think this is a symbol he gave himself after he matured."
Reid pointed at the map again. "Starting from Kingsport, Tennessee, through Blacksburg, Virginia, Roanoke, and now Staunton and Harrisonburg, we can conclude that the Unsub moved along Interstate 81. But the strange thing is, since before the two crime scenes, we have issued a warning to the cities along Interstate 81, asking them to deploy police forces at the gas stations along the route, keep a close eye on the gas stations, and arrest all suspicious people, but the attack still happened.
"According to the police, they had already checked the gas station before the crime, and there were no ignition devices installed. After the crime, there were no possible remnants of the ignition device found at the scene. This means that the murderer was there to start the fire, but isn't that a little too dangerous? Who knows, he might have accidentally blown himself up. Also, such a dangerous act like starting a fire at a gas station would have been seen and stopped by someone, "said Todd, who had just joined the team.
The atmosphere was a little quiet for a moment. This was what they couldn't figure out. Then, Hotch's phone rang. It was Morgan who brought back news from the crime scene. "We are now at the scene, and the fire is under control. Unfortunately, even if the gas station had surveillance cameras, they would have been destroyed. In fact, there is nothing left of the gas station. Also, the Unsub's symbol has been found at the scene, the same key ring."
"Dave, go to the hospital with Todd and ask the victims," Hotch said after he finished speaking. After the two nodded and left, he called Garcia. "Garcia, I need a list of the people who have spent money at this gas station in the past three days." The last case happened in Staunton three days ago.
"I've already done it. According to the credit card and gas card records of the past three days, there are more than 120 names in total. If it was cash or other transactions that didn't leave a trace on the Internet, I can't do anything about it," Garcia's voice came from the receiver.
"Compare the records of the gas stations at the previous crime scenes."
"Almost … There are still 52 names." Garcia was a little surprised. "That's more than I expected. It's almost half."
"That's not surprising. Interstate 81 runs along the Appalachian Mountains. Compared to Interstate 95, it is farther from the city. It is the main route for trucks to travel on the east coast of our country," Reid explained. Reid explained and continued, "Compare and check if any of these names have a criminal record of arson."
"Okay, I'm checking. The results are out. There are still three people left. I've already sent their information to you. Keep it up, Fighters. " Garcia was about to hang up when he exclaimed, "Oh, the list of casualties for this case has been sent to me. Two of them … One died in this case, and the other is an injured person."
"Garcia, give the names to Rossi. He's visiting the injured person. I'll inform the police," Hotch said as he hurried out of the office that the police station had given them.
Bruce and Reid were left behind. Bruce pushed the documents in front of him away and leaned back in his chair. "I don't think it's that easy."
Reid shrugged. "This is the only clue we have now. We all know that the motives for arson are generally divided into destructive, exhilarating, vengeful, hidden, extreme, and so on. Most arsonists are powerless. This type of person is introverted, timid, and neurotic. They don't vent their dissatisfaction in their daily lives. Instead, they accumulate in their hearts and eventually develop into strong paranoia. This is the origin of most arsonists. "
"The Unsub was able to leave a message at the scene, but only left his logo and nothing else. This should be caused by pure destructive exhilaration. We still haven't figured out how he committed the crime. This means that he is smart enough." Reid sat down and rested his head on his hand. "This is the type of criminal I hate the most —"
"Killing is not for intimidation, revenge, or to express any demands or political stance. It's just because they want to kill."
Bruce was a little guilty and didn't say anything. In the dimension, he had seen many people who killed because they were in a bad mood, or even because they were in a good mood or for other strange reasons. To put it bluntly, it was just because they wanted to kill. Xing Huan asked Huang Caiqin. Copy
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