Chapter 578: A Frustrating Case Closed
Mahong left the homicide team, but David White is still there. He was previously in the Anti-Terrorism Team, but later, due to Jimmy and Mahong being seconded one after another, Hughes brought him over from the Anti-Terrorism Team to temporarily handle cases in the homicide team. After that, he stayed, but Jimmy was transferred to fieldwork, so the two of them actually didn't work together for long.
Now that Jimmy is about to take over this explosion case, David White will naturally follow Jimmy to handle it together. He must have already been informed in advance about his future assignments, so he didn't feel any resistance to Jimmy asking him to go out for investigation together, simply showing a sense of holding his duty before leaving.
Jimmy and David arrived outside the bakery where the explosion occurred, and it was still cordoned off, police lines taped around, with the doors and windows sealed to prevent anyone from tampering with the scene inside.
This was an apartment building, with the ground floor used for commercial purposes, while the residents had a separate entrance on the side to get inside.
Due to the explosion case, the vicinity had been cordoned off, and now, after several days, workers were still conducting structural inspections of the building, which should have been arranged by the insurance company.
Jimmy entered the bakery, checked in the back kitchen, and compared the explosion detection and diagrams in his hand to ascertain the detonation point.
In the corner of the wall, there was a fan wreckage. Technicians speculated that the fan's wire short-circuited, causing sparks that ignited the flour dust. No chemical explosive residues were detected in the explosion remains here.
From the explosion itself, it indeed seems quite reasonable, but Mahong never closed the case precisely because the concentration needed for a dust explosion is very high, under normal circumstances, such a kitchen couldn't possibly have such a dust concentration.
The explosion completely wrecked the kitchen, with kitchen utensils deformed and scattered chaotically around, the large oven deformed as well, and items like trays were either deformed or damaged, showing that the explosion was quite intense.
Even when Mahong and the team inspected last week, they couldn't find a reason for the dust concentration exceeding limits, so they had to put it aside for now.
Jimmy: "David, did you investigate the families of the three deceased last week? Their friends and relatives."
David nodded: "We did investigate, but didn't find anything unusual. Except for the boss's nephew, who was released from prison just a few months ago, the other two chefs haven't had criminal records for many years, their latest records being over a decade old. Do you also suspect someone deliberately staged the explosion scene here?"
Jimmy: "Yes, everything else can be explained as an accident, but this dust concentration is really hard to explain."
David: "This is also the only doubt here; otherwise, the case would have been closed long ago. How do you intend to investigate?"
Jimmy: "Let's see if they have any enemies. If not, that's better. If they do have enemies, someone capable of using a dust explosion wouldn't be an ordinary person."
David: "At least the current investigation hasn't found anything. The identities of the two deceased chefs are quite clean, and Benjamin Scott was previously imprisoned for burglary, so theoretically, he shouldn't have such enemies either."
Jimmy: "Let's go back and investigate further. By the way, did you check the warehouse in the back?"
David: "We conducted a general check; it contained reserves like cream, butter, and flour, but nothing unusual."
Jimmy: "Alright, let's head back to the office."
David chuckled, accompanying Jimmy as they left the scene.
Having examined the scene, Jimmy made some speculations. He was familiar with hotels and conducted numerous investigations. They have professionals who can arrange special requests, such as making deaths look accidental.
However, such professionals typically target special assassination tasks arranged by others, usually targeting wealthy or specially identified individuals. What needs attention in an ordinary bakery like this?
He just used Heart Eye Observation and didn't find a hidden room or similar spots in the bakery. The only part not severely damaged by the explosion was the warehouse in the back. They checked it out, and although it was affected, quite a bit of the materials seemed unscathed.
Back at the office, Jimmy pulled out all the records of the three deceased, checked their relatives, and found nothing unusual. The bakery owner, Jeffrey Adams, was also squeaky clean, apart from some traffic fines, without any other criminal record.
The only one who had been to prison, Benjamin, also had only one imprisonment record, without additional criminal records.
This case seemed very bizarre. Even though there was a sense of something wrong, they just couldn't find any clues. Jimmy also confirmed there were no previously discovered supernatural phenomena at the scene.
After pondering over this vexing case for two days, Jimmy visited the families of the bakery's deceased and the owner, yet gained nothing.
Eventually, under David's persuasion, he abandoned the case because without closing it, the insurance company couldn't complete the loss assessment and structural inspection, leaving many pending. Though Jimmy was eager to search for clues, he couldn't procrastinate indefinitely.
In the end, he could only submit the case closure report based on the explosion cause provided by the testing center, thus shelving the case.
Having the first case after returning to fieldwork conclude unsatisfactorily left Jimmy frustrated, yet helpless. All he could do was go to the bar after work for a couple of drinks, and chat with Isaac and Woody to unwind.