CHAPTER 212: CHAPTER 154: JIANG AN’S DISSENTING OPINION

Wan drove the car straight to the open space in front of the building that caught fire.

At the moment, the building was surrounded by a circle of police tape.

Two officers from the local police station were on duty there, keeping watch.

Just as he got out of the car, Chen He and other officers quickly came over.

"Mr. Li! You’re here!"

"Mr. Chen, how is the investigation going on your end?"

Chen He replied, "We’ve retrieved all the surveillance footage from the entire factory."

"Before the fire broke out, there were no suspicious individuals found inside the factory."

"Moreover, no suspicious individuals were seen entering the entrance of the building."

Li Jian nodded and asked, "During the initial fire-fighting efforts by the security guard alone, was any unusual situation detected?"

Chen He shook his head. "After questioning the security guard, we confirmed that when he discovered the fire, the blaze was already intense."

Li Jian was somewhat curious.

He asked, "Wasn’t it said that the fire was very small initially?"

Chen He replied, "That security guard lied."

"According to the factory’s regulations, night guards must patrol once every hour."

"However, last night, the security guard only patrolled at 4:00 am."

"When he patrolled to that building, he already saw a raging fire."

"Therefore, he is not certain about the exact time the fire started."

After listening, Li Jian gently nodded.

Then, he asked, "Have Chen Minghao’s family members been found?"

Chen He replied, "Yes, they have been found!"

"Earlier, Chen Minghao’s wife, named Wu Juan, she and Chen Minghao were in a second marriage."

"According to Wu Juan, Chen Minghao had minor frictions with others in business, but there was no deep enmity."

"We also investigated people at Minghao Clothing Factory and found no major conflicts involving Chen Minghao at the workplace."

Li Jian asked, "So, through the initial investigation, no significant conflicts have emerged?"

Chen He nodded.

"Based on the current evidence, that’s the case."

"What was Chen Minghao’s whereabouts last night?"

Chen He answered, "Yesterday afternoon, Chen Minghao picked up his child and went home, told his wife he had a social event in the evening and wouldn’t be coming back home to rest."

"As for his whereabouts after leaving home, we are still investigating."

Li Jian said, "Make sure to speed up!"

Then he continued to ask, "Is there any extramarital affair involving Chen Minghao?"

Chen He replied, "According to Wu Juan, there is no extramarital affair."

"However, based on her manner of reply at the time, I suspect Chen Minghao may have had an extramarital affair outside, but Wu Juan didn’t disclose it to us due to keeping face."

Li Jian nodded.

"Good work."

At this moment, Jiang An’s phone rang.

"Hello!"

"Mr. Jiang, this is the Genetic Analysis Laboratory. We confirmed through genetic testing of the deceased and the suspicious relative that the deceased is indeed Chen Minghao."

"Got it! Thank you!"

After hanging up the phone, Jiang An said, "The identity of the deceased has been confirmed through genetic testing to be Chen Minghao."

A moment later, Chen He asked, "Mr. Li, have there been any findings from the autopsy?"

Li Jian replied, "From the autopsy, we’ve clarified the causes of death for both victims."

"The male victim Chen Minghao died from the fire, while the female victim died from mechanical asphyxia due to neck compression."

Just after Li Jian finished speaking, Chen He turned and looked at Jiang An.

Their eyes met, and Jiang An nodded.

"How could this be?"

"In the same place, one dies from fire, and another from asphyxiation?"

After some thought, Chen He conjectured, "Could this man have killed the woman, then committed suicide?"

"However, that doesn’t make sense either."

"Based on my conversation with Wu Juan, she mentioned they were going to Australia for a vacation next week, and they have a villa set to be delivered next month."

"Chen Minghao showed no signs of a suicidal tendency."

Instantly, everyone fell into silence.

Li Jian sighed, saying, "Indeed, this case seems extremely bizarre at the moment."

"Has the fire cause analysis report come through yet?"

Chen He shook his head.

"I haven’t received any feedback yet."

Just as he finished speaking, Li Jian’s phone rang.

The caller ID showed it was Mr. Lin from the Jiangcheng Fire Department.

"Hello, Mr. Lin!"

"Mr. Li, the formal fire investigation report is ready."

Li Jian was taken aback.

"It’s been less than 10 hours since the fire occurred, and you’ve already produced a written investigation report? Is it so fast?"

"Mr. Li, lives were at stake, so we produced the results as quickly as possible."

Continuing, Mr. Lin said, "I’ll briefly outline the content over the phone."

"Please go ahead!"

"From our analysis of the on-site fire situation, we found two points of origin at the scene."

"One was in the bedroom, and the other was in the office."

"Also, testing the samples taken from the scene, we found gasoline residues in the burnt remains."

"Gasoline?"

Li Jian asked in surprise.

"It’s confirmed there is gasoline residue."

"Moreover, the gasoline residue is quite significant, suggesting that gasoline might have been used as an accelerant."

Finally, Mr. Lin said, "From the fire department’s investigation point of view, we suspect arson rather than an accidental fire."

Pausing for a moment, Li Jian said, "Thank you, Mr. Lin."

After hanging up the phone, Li Jian turned and said, "The results from the fire department are in."

"Two points of origin were found at the scene."

"Also, gasoline components were detected in the samples taken."

"Gasoline?"

"Wow, it really is an act of arson."

"Could it be that this man committed arson and then suicide?"

Wan quickly said, "If that’s the case, can we close the case?"

"The suspect died during the investigation, the case is declared closed."

Li Jian glanced at Wan.

"You wish!"

"If the suspect indeed murdered and then committed suicide, I think this case could be more complicated than having a third suspect involved."

Chen He also said, "I agree with Mr. Li’s view, though a murder-suicide case sounds simple and logically not complex."

"However, proving such a case for us law enforcement is too complicated."

At this moment, Jiang An spoke, "Mr. Li, Mr. Chen, my thoughts are different from everyone else."

Li Jian nodded and smiled.

The earlier the investigation stage, the more he hoped to hear diverse opinions, as it helps expand investigative perspectives.

Taking a moment to organize his thoughts, Jiang An said, "First, the burning at the scene was extremely severe; I infer there must have been a large amount of accelerant in the room. The fire department has already concluded the accelerant was gasoline, so where did the gasoline come from?"

"Second, if the male victim murdered and then committed suicide, how exactly did he die?"

"Additionally, the smoke residue in the male victim’s airways is heavy, indicating he had strong vital signs when the fire broke out and was in the fire for an extended period."

"To slowly burn to death in the fire, such a method of suicide seems too cruel."

"Third, concerning the rib fractures on Chen Minghao, even though we can’t see the skin and muscle on the chest."

"Rib fractures indicate chest trauma while alive; under what circumstance did this fracture occur? How was it caused?"

"Could it be that these fractures resulted during a struggle with the female victim?"

"Key point, on the female victim only neck compression marks are visible, and no fractures are seen."

"Thus, based on these three aspects, I believe there are significant doubts concerning this case."

"Simply analyzing it as Chen Minghao murdering then committing suicide is clearly incomplete and imperfect."

After Jiang An finished, the others exchanged looks, expressions of contemplation appearing on their faces.

After a long time, Li Jian said, "What Jiang An mentioned truly makes sense."

"There are still unexplained actions within this case."

"Even if we deduce the suspect committed murder-suicide, then who is this female victim?"

"Why would Chen Minghao kill her, and carry out such an act in the bedroom of his own office?"

Finally, Li Jian solemnly stated, "For any case’s characterization and analysis, we must first eliminate reasonable doubt before making logical inferences, never jumping to conclusions."

"Thus, I think the questions proposed by Jiang An were quite valuable."

"Before drawing conclusions, we must clarify these issues."

"Whether murder-suicide or simultaneous homicide, we must figure out who this female victim is, and why she died."