Unfortunately, even with Hannah, a tree-climbing expert, the team was unable to find any more clues at the scene.
After the FBI took a round of photos, Lopez notified the local police that the blockade could be removed.
Not long after, Jiejie and Aubrey also arrived here through the border. They had previously gone to question Rosie Bantar, the girl who was traveling with the victim Lee Kern.
It seemed that they did not spend too much time on this task.
"You mean that girl just admitted that she was smuggling drugs across the border?" Jubal was a little surprised to hear Jiejie's story.
"It's not drugs, it's prescription drugs, insulin and other drugs purchased on behalf of others." Aubrey explained.
"We found her in a nursing home where many residents depended on her weekly medication purchases. So, after discussing it with me, Jiejie decided not to pursue the matter."
It sounds like a plot similar to "Dallas Buyers Club" or "Dying to Survive," but the prescription drugs Rosie bought weren't unapproved new drugs or cheap generics, but rather common prescription medications.
Unlike those cheap, high-volume painkillers, most common prescription drugs in the United States are priced outrageously.
For example, a bottle of the antibiotic "Ofloxacin," the common ofloxacin for eye and ear drops, costs $503.59.
After insurance reimbursement, the out-of-pocket cost is $16.04. Given the high health insurance coverage in the United States, there's also a generic version of "GoodRx" for the uninsured, which sells for $24.04 per bottle.
As for medications like insulin, the price difference between the United States and Mexico was once 20 times, meaning that an American with diabetes would need to spend around 30% of their disposable income on insulin each month to stay alive.
There are nearly 40 million such patients in the United States, nearly 10% of the total population.
Even Congress couldn't stand such outrageous prices, and they launched a wave of forced price cuts, forcing the three largest insulin manufacturers in the United States—Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi—to reduce their insulin prices by 70%.
However, there are countermeasures. These pharmaceutical companies soon began to launch so-called new insulins that only used new bottles, while gradually discontinuing the insulin products that had previously been reduced in price.
"So, those boys who cross the border with Rosie every week to Tijuana are actually her cover?" Jack quickly figured out what was going on.
An 18-year-old girl crossing the border alone frequently not only arouses suspicion but also poses a significant risk to her personal safety. Bringing along a frat boy who wants to hook up with her each time is a win-win situation.
"That's a smart move, but how did they separate?" Jack asked Jiejie.
"Lee Kern was drunk and vomiting violently in the alley behind a bar. The pharmacy was about to close, so Rosie had to leave him behind to buy medicine.
When she returned, Lee was gone. She assumed he had left on his own, so she hurried back to San Diego.
When we found her, Rosie didn't even know Lee had been murdered."
Jiejie is now a certified behavioral analyst with the BAU. No one believed an 18-year-old girl could easily fool her with her acting skills. After learning that Lee Kern had been murdered, Rosie took the initiative to provide a crucial clue.
"While they were drinking at the bar, Lee saw someone unconscious in the restroom with a small bag of cocaine in his hand, so he took it."
Aubrey gestured, "About the size of a sandwich bag. Rosie said she told Lee to stay out of trouble, then snatched the bag and threw it in the trash."
"Okay, the primary crime scene is likely near the bar. Lopez and his men have cordoned off the area. We need to conduct a dragnet search."
Jubal's spirits lifted. Less than 24 hours had passed since the crime, and there was still a good chance they'd find more clues nearby.
The bar Rosie mentioned was less than two kilometers from Plaza Delgado. Following the girl's instructions, Aubrey and Clay easily found the bag of cocaine in a trash can made from an oil drum outside the bar.
After pinching a pinch of powder and examining it carefully in the sun, Lopez removed his gloves. "It's not very pure, maybe 70 or 80 grams, but it would fetch quite a bit of money on the street. Could this be the cause of the boy's death?"
"Perhaps, but if the drug dealers had captured Lee and were trying to recover the drugs through him, wouldn't they have tortured him to extract a confession? Why would they have simply slashed his throat?"
Clay squatted on the ground, holding his nose as he continued to sort through the disgusting contents of the trash can, but unfortunately, he found nothing more.
Lopez shrugged. "I don't know, but I wouldn't be surprised if those bastards did anything. I'll go ask the bar owner."
"I'll come with you," Jiejie followed him into the bar.
Aubrey looked up at the alley leading to the bar's back door. "This is where Rosie and Lee separated. It was around 10:30 p.m."
He pointed to the vomit in the corner and led the group deeper into the alley.
"The bar would be bustling at that hour, and Lee's accident wouldn't have happened in public."
After winding their way past more trash cans, wooden pallets filled with empty bottles, and rusted oil drums, they arrived at a graffiti-covered dirt wall.
A swarm of flies and other insects reveled in the bloodstains splattered across the walls and ground.
Jack avoided the chaotic swirl of footprints and approached the wall to examine the bloodstains. "I think we've found the primary crime scene. These are typical arterial blood spatters."
Since they weren't investigating the case in their own country, they couldn't expect Mexico to provide a reliable forensic team. They had to do it themselves, donning gloves and pulling out evidence bags, and began collecting evidence. They
couldn't count on the footprints, but they would need to identify them and photograph them for evidence. They didn't expect to find the killer based on the footprints, but they could use them as incriminating evidence later.
The ground here wasn't concrete, but simply hardened sand. A long drag mark, mixed with blood, ended abruptly at the entrance of the alley, replaced by two tire tracks.
Jubal took a photo of the tire tracks with his phone and measured the distance between them. "The murderer drove the body away to the other side of the square, which explains how it was hung from the tree.
With the other end of the rope tied to the bumper, even one person could easily lift the body."
(End of Chapter)