sjar Chapter 1288 Electric Tricycle
Chapter 1288 Electric Tricycle
As night deepened, the lights remained on in the Criminal Investigation Division's office. The team members were organizing today's investigation materials, preparing for tomorrow's work. Looking at the descriptions of suspicious individuals and screenshots of electric tricycles on the table, Xiao Wang silently resolved that no matter how complex the case, he would persevere, giving the deceased and his family closure and ensuring justice was served.
The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Xiao Wang led his team to the Criminal Investigation Detachment parking lot. As per Li Ming's plan, their primary task for the day was to track down the suspicious electric tricycle. According to the technical department's identification, the vehicle had the license plate "Jinpeng" and the last four digits of its license plate were "36," which became their most definitive lead.
“We split into two groups. One group went to the ‘Jinpeng’ electric vehicle dealership in the suburbs to check the information of owners who purchased this brand of electric tricycles within the past six months and whose license plate numbers end in ‘36’. The other group went to the vehicle management office to retrieve the registration records of ‘Jinpeng’ brand electric tricycles throughout the city, focusing on vehicles with license plate numbers ending in ‘36’. At the same time, we contacted the traffic police department to assist in investigating the driving trajectories of such vehicles around Beishan Park in the past week.” Xiao Wang stood beside the vehicle, assigning tasks to his team members, still clutching the blurry screenshot of the electric tricycle surveillance camera in his hand. “Remember, you must verify the owner’s identity information and vehicle characteristics, especially details such as whether the cargo bed has a tarpaulin and the color of the vehicle. We cannot miss any suspicious persons.”
The two teams quickly set off, with Xiao Wang personally leading the group to the "Jinpeng" electric vehicle dealership. The dealership was located in a hardware market on the outskirts of the city. It had just opened, and the staff were wiping down the electric vehicles on the display stand. "Hello, we're from the Criminal Investigation Division. We'd like to check if any of the 'Jinpeng' brand electric tricycles sold in your store within the last six months have a license plate ending in '36'? Also, we need the owner's name, contact information, and address." Xiao Wang showed his police ID and handed the staff a screenshot from the surveillance footage.
The salesperson took the screenshot and examined it carefully: "This is a classic model we sold last year. The truck bed can be fitted with a tarpaulin, and many customers who haul goods choose it. As for the license plate ending in '36', let me think... I think a customer named Zheng Bin bought one last month with the license plate ending in '36'. The truck bed was blue, and it had a black tarpaulin attached, which looks very similar to the one in the screenshot!"
"Zheng Bin?" Xiao Wang's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked the clerk to pull up the sales records. "Please give us his information, including his contact information and address." The clerk quickly pulled up the records on the computer: "Zheng Bin, 35 years old, lives in Heping Community in the eastern suburbs, his phone number is 138xxxx5678. He bought the car on the 15th of last month, and the payment method was full payment. At the time, he said he would use it to transport building materials."
Xiao Wang immediately dialed Zheng Bin's number. After a few rings, the phone was answered, and a hoarse male voice came through: "Hello? Who is it?"
"Hello, is this Zheng Bin? We are from the Criminal Investigation Division. We would like to ask you about the 'Jinpeng' brand electric tricycle you bought last month, with the license plate ending in '36'. Have you driven it around Beishan Park recently?" Xiao Wang tried to keep his voice gentle to avoid causing the other party any panic.
Zheng Bin was silent for a few seconds on the other end of the phone, then suddenly raised his voice: "My car? My car was stolen a week ago! I even reported it to the police! Have you found the thief?"
"Your car was stolen?" Xiao Wang's heart skipped a beat, and half of his initial hope was instantly extinguished. "Don't panic, tell me slowly. When and where was your car stolen? What was the police report number? Did you tell the police any details about the vehicle, such as the tarpaulin or the color of the body?"
“A week ago, around 7 a.m., I parked my car on the roadside near the entrance of Heping Residential Area to buy breakfast. When I came back, I found that my car was gone!” Zheng Bin’s voice was filled with anxiety. “I went to the local police station to report the crime that day. The report number is A2025xxxx123. I told the police that the car was blue with a black tarpaulin, and the license plate ended in '36'. There was also a red shovel in the truck bed, which I used to haul building materials!”
A red shovel! Xiao Wang's heart skipped a beat. The shovel found at the scene was red, and the wooden handle was cracked! "You have another red shovel in your car? Is the wooden handle of that shovel cracked?"
"Yes!" Zheng Bin said confidently, "Last week when I was hauling cement, the shovel accidentally hit a corner of the wall, and the wooden handle cracked. Before I could even fix it, it was stolen! What happened? Did something happen to my vehicle? Is it related to the case?"
Xiao Wang didn't answer directly, but said, "We need to verify the situation with you in person. Are you home now? We'll come over to you." Zheng Bin quickly said, "Yes! I'm not at work today, I'm at home in Heping Community. Come on over, I'll find the police report and show it to you."
Half an hour later, Xiao Wang and his team arrived at Heping Residential Area, where Zheng Bin was already waiting at the entrance. He was wearing a gray T-shirt and jeans, looking haggard with bloodshot eyes. "Officer, you've finally arrived! What happened to my car? Was it used for something bad?" As soon as Zheng Bin saw Xiao Wang, he rushed forward to ask, gripping Xiao Wang's arms tightly with both hands.
"Please don't get agitated. We need to confirm if what you said is true," Xiao Wang reassured him, following Zheng Bin into the Heping residential area and to his residence. Zheng Bin's home was a two-bedroom apartment. Some building material samples were piled up in the living room, and a brand-new shovel sat in the corner. "This is the shovel I bought after my car was stolen. The previous red one was indeed stolen from the car," Zheng Bin said, pointing to the new shovel. He then took a copy of the police report from a drawer and handed it to Xiao Wang. "Look, this is the police report receipt from the station. It states the time and characteristics of the vehicle theft, which matches what I just described."
Xiao Wang took the alarm receipt and carefully checked it. The alarm time was 8 a.m. a week ago, and the vehicle characteristics were "blue 'Jinpeng' brand electric tricycle, with the last two digits '36', equipped with a black tarpaulin, and a red shovel in the truck bed with a cracked wooden handle", which perfectly matched the characteristics of the shovel found at the scene and the vehicle characteristics in the surveillance screenshot!
"After your car was stolen, did you receive any suspicious calls or messages? For example, did someone offer to redeem it, or see your car?" Xiao Wang continued to ask, trying to find more clues. Zheng Bin shook his head and sighed: "No, I've been waiting for news from the police station all week. I even went to the nearby scrap yards and used car markets to look for it, but I didn't see my car. I'm just a building materials hauler; I haven't offended anyone. I don't know who would steal my car."
Xiao Wang then inquired about Zheng Bin's whereabouts over the past week, especially the afternoon and evening of the day the body was discovered in Beishan Park.