Chapter 21
"Mr. Moon Jeong-ho has requested to call a lawyer."
There was still no evidence that Moon Jeong-ho was the murderer of Young So-yeon.
However, the conviction was growing stronger.
Moon Jeong-ho was definitely involved in Young So-yeon's death.
"From now on, we will designate Moon Jeong-ho as a suspect in the murder case of Young So-yeon. Have you applied for the arrest warrant?"
In the 3rd team office.
At Juwon's words, Sergeant Kim Seok-ho nodded.
"Yes. The team leader just went to do that."
"Has the location of Mr. Gu Young-seok at the time of the incident been confirmed?"
Sergeant Kim Seok-ho handed Juwon the records received from Gu Young-seok's telecommunications company.
"It's confirmed that Mr. Gu Young-seok was at home. After talking to Mr. Moon Jeong-ho, he headed to the victim's house."
At those words, Gu Young-seok, sitting across from Sergeant Kim Seok-ho, shouted.
"I told you! That bastard killed her!"
Sergeant Kim Seok-ho, who had been glancing at Gu Young-seok's resentful face, asked Juwon.
"But if Moon Jeong-ho is really the culprit, why would he lie? Just by checking Gu Young-seok's phone location, it would be revealed that he was lying."
"There's still no evidence that Moon Jeong-ho is the culprit. He must have been confident, confident that he wouldn't be caught."
Juwon glanced at Gu Young-seok.
Gu Young-seok, who had been wearing a windbreaker just moments ago, was now in a short-sleeved shirt.
Juwon quietly spoke to Sergeant Kim Seok-ho.
"Did you send the windbreaker for examination too?"
"Yes. He hesitated a bit but handed it over right away. He said he had nothing to hide and told us to examine it..."
"Ah, I see. What about Young So-yeon's house?"
"We just collected all the bloodstains near the table and sent them to the National Forensic Service."
Sergeant Kim Seok-ho glanced at the watch on his wrist and continued.
"We need to get the arrest warrant for Moon Jeong-ho as soon as possible, so we made an urgent request."
"We need evidence that Moon Jeong-ho is the culprit."
"That's right. Ah, I also went through the materials transferred from Gangnam Station, but there was nothing. It seems like they didn't even start the investigation, concluding it was a suicide from the beginning."
At Sergeant Kim Seok-ho's words, Juwon let out a sigh.
'Sigh. Then where would the evidence be... No, is there even any? What if it's a perfect crime...'
Even though Moon Jeong-ho seems like the most likely suspect, there's no evidence, and the materials transferred from the previous investigative agency, Gangnam Station, aren't much help either.
It feels like the whole world is pushing us not to solve the case.
As Juwon sighed, Terra's voice came through.
[Mr. Juwon, there is no such thing as a perfect crime. At least not while I'm here. For now, interrogate Moon Jeong-ho and wait for the results from the National Forensic Service.]
'But what if the National Forensic Service doesn't find anything either?'
[That possibility is low. South Korea's forensic science techniques are highly advanced. No matter how small, they won't miss any clues left by the perpetrator.]
But then.
A voice came through that crushed Juwon's will to keep going.
"This warrant might not come through."
It was Team Leader Gu Jin-gu, who came in with a troubled expression.
"Why, Team Leader?"
"The warrant review, the judge who didn't issue a warrant last time for a special violence perpetrator is handling it. What do we do, Inspector?"
This is troublesome.
If the arrest warrant is denied, the search warrant is also likely to be denied.
[To prevent any potential hiding of additional evidence, Moon Jeong-ho must be detained.]
As Juwon sighed again, Terra spoke.
[Go to the judge in charge of the warrant.]
'What?'
[You need to get the warrant. Meet the judge.]
[Do you remember the paper you read a few days ago? The research on proving guilt in serious crimes through circumstantial evidence.]
A little later, in front of the Central District Court.
As he climbed the steep stairs, Juwon nodded.
It's not exact, but I vaguely remember it. It was a thesis that covered cases where the suspects' charges were acknowledged without direct evidence.
[According to known information, Judge Moon Jung-ho, who is in charge of the warrant, is a very objective person. He tends not to sympathize with victims nor despise perpetrators in the face of the law.]
"So, do we need that thesis?"
[Yes, I will now walk you through it so you can memorize it. It will help in persuading the judge.]
At that moment.
"Understood. Then let's conclude the interrogation here."
Gangjung District Court, Interrogation Room.
At the judge's words, Moon Jung-ho and his lawyer rose from their seats.
"Thank you for your time."
"Yes."
Leaving the dry words of the judge behind, Moon Jung-ho and his lawyer exited the interrogation room.
And just as the judge was neatly stacking the documents and about to stand up,
Bang!
The door opened.
And in came Juwon.
The judge's gaze briefly shifted towards Juwon.
But that was all. He then turned his attention back to the documents, packing them into a bundle. He then dryly greeted him instead.
"You're quite famous."
"Detective Lee Juwon from Gangjung Police Station."
"Yes."
The judge, who had tightly tied the bundle full of documents, finally looked up.
He seemed to know exactly why Juwon was here.
He opened his mouth.
"You're here because of Mr. Moon Jung-ho's arrest warrant, right?"
"Yes, regarding that, I have something to say..."
"It will be dismissed."
The truly emotionless, mechanical tone made Juwon's eyes widen.
"What?"
"His identity is clear, and there's no risk of him fleeing. He seems to be sufficiently remorseful. There's no reason to grant the warrant. Bring new evidence and request the warrant again."
The judge was firm.
Just as he was about to lift the tightly tied bundle, Juwon's words stopped him.
"Moon Jung-ho gave false testimony. If he's not the perpetrator, there's no reason for him to give such testimony."
"I know. But as the lawyer claims, it's highly possible that Mr. Moon Jung-ho was psychologically unstable and spoke randomly."
The judge's dry face looking at Juwon.
To not be biased and to control people's lives, one must be this cold.
The judge, holding the bundle, continued.
"If you're that suspicious, find other evidence. You know you can't request the warrant again with the same evidence..."
"The Supreme Court of Korea's precedents state that the proof of a crime does not necessarily have to be made solely by direct evidence."
"What...?"
The judge, holding the bundle in his right hand, frowned.
"That means, if indirect evidence is considered to have probative value in relation to the entire body of evidence, the fact of the crime can be acknowledged based on it."
The judge's sharp gaze looking at Juwon.
Then, the judge smirked.
Is he daring to talk about the law to a judge now?
The judge put down the bundle he was holding back on the table.
"Detective, you're right. But primarily, what should be prioritized is direct murder evidence..."
"Mr. Moon Jung-ho suspects Mr. Gu Young-seok of murder. And he came all the way to Gangjung Police Station, quite far from his home, to report it. A report mixed with lies. What reason would Mr. Moon Jung-ho have for that?"
The air in the room grew cold.
Not only is he bringing up the law in front of the judge, but he's also interrupting the judge.
Such a thing is unthinkable in a courtroom.
The judge, who had been glaring at Juwon for a moment, calmly opened his mouth.
"Just as I mentioned earlier, it's reasonable to say that, as the lawyer argued, he was so shocked by the victim's death that he couldn't think straight."
"So, you're saying he lied? Right in front of Goo Young-seok, who knew the truth? It was an intentional lie. He was trying to frame Goo Young-seok as the culprit."
But even a judge, who is supposed to be impartial, is still human after all.
It seemed like the judge had reached his limit, as his face contorted more severely than before.
"What are you doing right now, Detective?"
Did he dare come all the way here to teach the judge about the law?
Just as the judge's eyes were about to flare up, Juwon spoke up.
"It's also mentioned in the verdict of the daughter's cyanide murder case that happened in 2003. There was no direct evidence, but the first trial, the appeal, and the Supreme Court all found the defendant guilty. And that's not all. There was a similar precedent in 2017 as well."
"……."
"The structure of Moon Jung-ho's statement was false. He claimed to have truly loved his lover, yet there was no anger towards the perpetrator. We need to look at the entire case, not just Moon Jung-ho's testimony."
For a while, the judge remained silent after Juwon's words.
It was impossible to tell what he was thinking.
He just stared at Juwon with an unreadable expression.
But then, suddenly.
Rustle— Swish—
The judge began to untie the bundle he had tied up earlier.
"Judge, what are you……."
"Let's review it again."
"Huh?"
"But you, Detective, must also make an effort to find additional evidence. The judge in charge of the trial may be different from me."
Finally, the judge, who had sat back down, started pulling out all the documents.
"Let's also review the search and seizure warrant for Moon Jung-ho's communication records."
It seemed that Juwon's words had persuaded the judge.
"Thank you."
Juwon bowed his head, and the judge nodded.
Just as Juwon was walking out into the hallway, his phone rang.
It was a call from Sergeant Kim Seok-ho.
And as soon as Juwon put the phone to his ear, he heard Sergeant Kim's cheerful voice, which he had never heard before.
"Yes, Sergeant. What's……."
- We just got a call from the National Forensic Service. They found Moon Jung-ho's DNA in Yeong So-yeon's bloodstains! It's a thin strand of hair, but they even determined the time it fell out through root analysis. That bastard Moon Jung-ho is definitely the culprit!
