The crackdown on organized crime began with the arrest of the mother-in-law.

Chapter 1459 Suspect Liu Jun

"Immediately verify the authenticity of this white van!" Xiao Zhou ordered. The team members checked the vehicle identification number and discovered that the white van did not belong to Liu Jun, but was a stolen vehicle from a neighboring city three months prior. The owner had reported the theft, but the vehicle had not been recovered. This discovery further confirmed Liu Jun's suspicion: he stole the vehicle and used Zhou Qiang's license plate to conceal his true identity while disposing of the body.

Meanwhile, the team members investigating Liu Jun's social connections also made progress. Liu Jun's neighbors reported seeing him return home around 10 PM on October 25th, wearing a black jacket with minor stains, carrying a black plastic bag, and looking flustered as he entered the building. "He usually comes home quite loudly, but that day he was very quiet, as if afraid of being discovered. Also, his jacket looked a little wet, which I found strange, since it hadn't rained that night," a neighbor said. The team members also learned that Liu Jun had been frequently going out late at night recently, returning with a faint smell of blood. He explained that it was from "getting it on his hands while handling pork," but the neighbors found this unusual, as Liu Jun had never exhibited this behavior before.

To further solidify the evidence, Xiao Zhou arranged for his team to conduct a secret investigation of Liu Jun's residence and "Junji Meat Wholesale Department." In the backyard of Liu Jun's wholesale department, the team discovered an abandoned warehouse. The warehouse floor showed obvious signs of cleaning, but professional luminol testing revealed a large amount of blood residue. Subsequently, in a trash can in the corner of the warehouse, the team found a bloodstained kitchen knife and a black jacket. The size and material of the knife perfectly matched the murder weapon recovered from the scene, and preliminary testing of the black jacket's fiber composition showed a high degree of consistency with the acrylic fiber sample recovered from the scene.

"The evidence is conclusive. Apply for the arrest warrant for Liu Jun immediately!" After receiving Xiao Zhou's report, Li Ming signed the arrest warrant without hesitation. At 6:11 AM on November 1st, before dawn, Xiao Zhou led 10 investigation team members to Liu Jun's residence to carry out the arrest. The team members quietly approached the apartment building where Liu Jun lived, set up an ambush at the entrance of the building, and then one of the team members knocked on Liu Jun's door under the pretext of "checking the water meter."

"Who is it? What's with checking the water meter so early?" Liu Jun's impatient voice came from inside, followed by the sound of dragging footsteps. The door had barely opened a crack when Xiao Zhou and his team rushed in, pinning Liu Jun against the wall. "Police! Don't move!" Xiao Zhou shouted, pulling out an arrest warrant. "Liu Jun, you are under arrest on suspicion of intentional homicide!"

Liu Jun was stunned by the sudden arrest. He initially tried to resist, shouting, "You've arrested the wrong person! I didn't kill anyone!" But when he saw the arrest warrant in the officers' hands, as well as photos of the kitchen knife, black jacket, and other evidence collected at the scene, his resistance gradually lessened, and his eyes filled with panic and fear. The officers quickly handcuffed Liu Jun, put him in a police car, and conducted a thorough search of his residence. In the bedroom closet, they found a pair of sneakers stained with mud and a small amount of blood, which, upon comparison, perfectly matched the footprint samples collected at the scene.

At 8:00 AM, Liu Jun was escorted to the interrogation room of the Municipal Criminal Investigation Detachment. The interrogation room was dimly lit and the atmosphere oppressive. Li Ming was personally in charge, Xiao Zhou was the lead interrogator, and Xiao Yang was observing and recording Liu Jun's expressions. Liu Jun sat in the interrogation chair, his hands cuffed to the table legs, his head slightly lowered, fine beads of sweat on his forehead, his eyes darting around, avoiding eye contact with the interrogators.

"Name?" Xiao Zhou spoke first, his voice deep and authoritative, carrying an undeniable sense of pressure. "Liu Jun." Liu Jun's reply was soft, trembling slightly. "Gender? Age? Occupation?" "Male, 42 years old, works...works in meat wholesale." Liu Jun's voice trailed off, his body trembling slightly.

"Where were you from 8 PM on October 25th to 2 AM on October 26th? What were you doing?" Xiao Zhou went straight to the point, his gaze fixed on Liu Jun's face, giving him no chance to evade the question. Liu Jun's body stiffened visibly, and after about a minute of silence, he slowly raised his head, his eyes flickering, and said, "I... I was handling goods at the wholesale department, and I went home to sleep around 10 PM. I didn't do anything."

"Handling goods?" Xiao Zhou sneered, pulling out a CCTV screenshot and placing it in front of Liu Jun. "This is CCTV footage from 9:05 PM on October 25th, at the alleyway behind the Heping Road vegetable market. Is the person driving the white van in that video you?" Liu Jun's gaze fell on the screenshot, his face instantly turning pale, his lips trembling, unable to speak. Xiao Zhou continued to press, "And this one, from 11:20 PM, CCTV footage from the convenience store on the south side of Heping Road. Is that white van with a deformed left rear bumper and the last three digits of its license plate '376' you driving? Do you dare say you were handling goods at the wholesale market at the time?"

Veins bulged on Liu Jun's forehead, his hands clenched into fists so tightly his nails almost dug into his flesh. He remained silent for a long time before finally managing to speak with difficulty: "Yes... I was driving, but I was just passing by, I didn't do anything illegal." "Passing by?" Xiao Zhou pulled out another photo, a picture of a bloodstained kitchen knife found in Liu Jun's wholesale warehouse. "This kitchen knife, it's yours, isn't it? The bloodstains on it, after DNA testing, match the DNA of the deceased Zhang Tao perfectly. You still dare to say you were just passing by?"

Upon hearing the name "Zhang Tao," Liu Jun's body trembled violently, his eyes filled with terror. Xiao Zhou pressed his advantage: "We detected a large amount of blood on the floor of your wholesale warehouse. After testing, it was confirmed to be Zhang Tao's blood. You murdered Zhang Tao in the warehouse, dismembered his body, drove the stolen white van with Zhou Qiang's license plate, and dumped the body along Heping Road, right?"

Liu Jun's mental defenses completely collapsed. He abruptly lowered his head, covered his face with his hands, and let out a suppressed sob. After about five minutes, he slowly lowered his hands, his face covered in tears and sweat, and said in a hoarse voice, "It was...it was me who killed Zhang Tao...I didn't mean to, he forced me to..."

Under Xiao Zhou's persistent questioning, Liu Jun finally confessed to the entire process of murdering Zhang Tao. It turned out that two years prior, Zhang Tao had purchased 52000 yuan worth of pork from Liu Jun's wholesale store, agreeing to settle the payment within a month. However, when the deadline arrived, Zhang Tao refused to pay, citing "quality problems with the goods." Liu Jun repeatedly visited to collect the payment, but Zhang Tao always made excuses, leading to numerous arguments between the two. Over the past two years, Liu Jun had contacted Zhang Tao almost every month to demand payment, but Zhang Tao consistently refused, even threatening Liu Jun, "If you keep pressing me for payment, I'll have someone deal with you."