As expected, Rod Det was not the murderer. His alibi was strong: he was drinking with friends at a bar the night Beatrice Santos disappeared.
Jubal contacted the local police station to retrieve the surveillance footage from the bar's entrance, confirming his alibi. Hannah then contacted his parole officer and had him sent back to prison. This bastard had been imprisoned for cybercrime in the first place, and now he had maliciously photoshopped someone else's social media photos and disseminated them online, a serious violation of his bail. His return was a legitimate offense.
Hannah and Aubrey weren't entirely unsuccessful, however. According to Rod Det, he had been holding a grudge after failing to hook up with Beatrice Santos, and had maliciously photoshopped the emojis to a notorious "incel" online chatroom.
"Incel," short for "involuntarily celibate," refers to men who believe they will never find a female partner.
Initially, it was a humorous, self-deprecating term, similar to the self-deprecation of singles who are often fed infidelity by couples.
However, as the subculture has become popular, the term has become synonymous with a sexist and misogynistic group of men.
These incels gather online to promote the idea that all women are inherently manipulative and exploitative. They refer to women they find sexually attractive as "Stacys" and sexually successful men as "Chads."
In their eyes, "Stacys" are both a source of desire and an object of ridicule. Stacys are attracted to "Chads" and regard them as nothing more than dirt on their shoes.
For example, Beatrice is "Stacys," looking down on the short, short, and poor Rod Det. Aquaman like Aubrey is naturally "Chads," waking up to a different beauty every morning.
In fact, Rod Det didn't just maliciously photoshop Beatrice Santos's photos into memes; he also uploaded her personal information, including her measurements, workplace, and address. Some of the information was real, some fake, and some contained malicious fabrications.
For example, he cursed her as a "bitch" and said she'd simply offered him a drink but was rejected. But if it were a handsome man driving a luxury car, Beatrice would throw herself at him.
Surprisingly, analysts at the operations center also found information about two other victims in the same chatroom, making it clear that the chatroom was where the killer was scouting for targets and gathering information.
This presented a thorny problem. Although this website was small, with fewer than 10,000 active users, everyone was anonymous, so no one would register using their real name.
Obviously, the judge was unlikely to issue a search warrant for this matter, as it involved privacy issues, and they were dealing with a serial killer, not a terrorist.
While the IT department's geeks could easily breach the website's firewall and obtain a list of logged-in IP addresses, doing so in this case was neither procedural nor necessary, and would likely prevent the case from going to court.
The only recourse now was to demand the website operator's cooperation, a daunting task Jubal assigned to Isobel as a minor test.
That evening, as Jack was about to return to his dorm room in the new Long Beach office for sleep, Jubal invited him out to a bar alone.
He took the initiative to order a glass of bourbon for Jack, but ordered a glass of iced lemonade for himself. After hesitating for a long time, he struggled to speak and made a request. "I'd like to ask for your help in investigating an old case."
Jack, who had already anticipated this, took a sip from the glass. "Is it related to today's case?"
Jubal looked hesitant. "I'm not sure. It was a rape and murder case I handled three years ago. A man named Kerry McMee raped and killed a young woman in Northern Westchester."
Jack probably knew why Jubal had looked so distracted during the day. "The tools and methods are the same as in today's case. They used wire tied to rocks to sink the body underwater, and the knots were tied with square knots."
Jubal nodded, feeling that talking to intelligent people was easier. "The cause of death was also the same: strangulation. The wedding ring was also missing."
He paused. "Actually, we didn't consider the missing ring a significant clue at the time."
Jack seemed thoughtful. "Three years ago, the murderer should not have been paroled so quickly, right? What are you worried about, a copycat? No, that guy just killed one person. Was the case very sensational in the local area or was there something special about it?"
Jubal covered his forehead with his hands, looking like he had a headache. "That's the problem. This case is not sensational, and there is nothing special about it. Moreover, the evidence is conclusive. We successfully matched the DNA left by the murderer in the body of the deceased."
Jack probably understood what he meant, but still spoke bluntly. "Do you think Kerry McMee might have been wronged? It wasn't him who raped and killed three years ago."
Jubal's eyes flickered. "No, I mean, okay, I did consider this possibility."
Seeing his guilty expression, Jack couldn't help but feel a little puzzled. False accusations are inevitable. Although he hasn't encountered one yet, it doesn't mean it won't happen in the future.
Police officers are human, and they make mistakes. Just follow the rules, and even if there are genuine issues, correct them promptly. Unless..."No, we were absolutely certain we had the right person. McMee was a drug addict with a history of violent crimes. He was lying when he was arrested, and the DNA evidence was irrefutable. Although his sister provided an alibi, it wasn't accepted in court."
Jubal mumbled a bunch of things, but it felt more like he was trying to convince himself.
"So... what exactly happened?" Jack could hear a hint of unbearable memories in his story.
"I was..." Jubal hesitated for a moment, then finally decided to tell it all. "I remember telling you about my drinking."
"Of course, I also remember you showing me your Alcoholics Anonymous badge. You told me you hadn't even had an Irish coffee since then." Jack remembered the small brass badge Jubal had shown him.
"A lot was going on during that time. My marriage was on the rocks, I was addicted to alcohol, and..." Jubal's face actually flushed slightly as he spoke.
"And what?" Jack suddenly felt his gossip ignite.
"And he cheated on me. Even though my ex-wife and I were already separated and our lives were a mess, but that still..."
It was clear that only Jack was drinking whiskey, while someone else was drinking lemonade on the rocks, but judging by their expressions, Jubal looked like the one who had been drinking.
"So you're now doubting whether these things affected your judgment at the time?" For a moment, Jack was even touched. This old man truly treated him as a true friend, willing to share such things.
Jubal had a frustrated look on his face, his voice full of bitterness, his fingers deeply inserted into his hair, "I'm not sure, but what if?"
Since he was so open-hearted, Jack naturally agreed very readily, "Okay, I'm willing to help. Give me the relevant case files tomorrow, as well as the video of your interrogation at that time. I will study it carefully and decide where to start.
Theoretically, there is indeed a possibility. After all, even if the other party's DNA is present in the body of the deceased, it cannot be 100% certain that he is the murderer, but I want to remind you of one thing."
Jack's face became serious as he spoke, "You have to think it over carefully. If you find out that Chris is the murderer in the end, There's something fishy about McMee's case. Your entire handling of the case will be scrutinized by the higher-ups. If they catch even a single flaw, your future with the FBI will be ruined.
It might be difficult for me to cover up for you in this regard, so you'd better report it to Ms. Moger in advance."
Jubal's expression relaxed as he spoke of this. "McMee has been sentenced to 30 years in prison and has already spent three years in a prison for serious criminals. If this is truly a mistake, it must be corrected as soon as possible and the culprit apprehended. Nothing else matters.
If you discover anything new, please inform me immediately and I will personally explain it to Dana."
(End of chapter)