My Calling Is Profiler [EN]: Chapter 115

“Even young people have a hard time finding it. Do you think older people would know?”

Of course, they don’t. That’s why Bitcoin exists as an investment, but its value as a tangible asset is incredibly low.

“But can’t you find it with money?”

Kim Seong-han spoke, dumbfounded. But Park Do-joon pointed out something he hadn’t considered.

“Where?”

“Huh?”

“Where are you talking about? Where can you find it as a cash asset?”

“Doesn’t the exchange do it?”

“Of course, the exchange provides a minimum amount of assets. But it’s literally the minimum. In the first place, those exchanges don’t have enough money to exchange it for cash assets.”

“They don’t have money?”

“Let’s say one Bitcoin is worth 50 million won [approximately $37,000 USD]. If someone has 1,000 and asks to withdraw it in cash, the required cash asset is 50 billion won [approximately $37 million USD]. How much Bitcoin do you think is currently being traded in Korea?”

“Ah…….”

No matter how many assets the exchange has, it can’t have 50 billion won. No, in the first place, if you try to convert all the assets of the traded Bitcoin into cash, even a major bank would have to prepare for bankruptcy.

“Bitcoin is a financial asset. It’s good for criminals to hide their criminal proceeds, but there are limits to converting it into cash assets.”

No country has officially recognized Bitcoin as an asset. Even if they did, they wouldn’t exchange it for cash assets.

“If the criminals are old, there’s no way they can use it.”

They don’t know where to use it. Kim Seong-han’s expression turned thoughtful.

“So, you’re saying the criminal is young.”

“Ugh, it’s not like there’s only one or two people with grudges.”

When you run a large company, it’s inevitable to make enemies. Even if you act based on common sense, someone will think that you’ve suffered a loss just because you’re a large company.

Of course, Park Do-joon had no choice but to frown at that.

“What are you talking about? Grudges?”

“The police said there might be a grudge?”

Park Do-joon shook his head.

‘Does every case come down to grudges?’

It’s half right and half wrong. When a crime occurs in Korea, the first suspect is often someone with a grudge. In fact, the police prioritize investigating people with grudges.

“There won’t be a grudge.”

“No grudge? No, why?”

“It’s not ‘no, why,’ but…….”

“They said someone is trying to screw us over because of a grudge?”

“That’s only half right.”

If someone wanted to harm the other person because of a grudge, they would have disclosed the fact that poison was spread to the media or the public, not the company.

What could be a more powerful revenge than that?

“But the other party told the company. Of course, there may be a grudge, but only to the extent that their own interests are prioritized—a kind of coincidental feeling, not trying to retaliate against us with a grudge.”

‘This is why the investigation is going in the wrong direction.’

Since the investigation is being conducted on people with grudges, the direction of the investigation is naturally specified, and no suspicious people are found no matter how much the police investigate.

‘It’s a common mistake the police make.’

It is a chronic habit of the police to make presumptions and investigate according to those presumptions. In fact, in the infamous Hwaseong serial murder case, the real culprit was suspected.

However, the police released the criminal because of personal friendship, saying that he was not the kind of person who would do that, and instead tortured the wrong person, demanding that he admit his guilt.

These presumptions were the biggest reason for ruining the investigation.

“There may be no grudge, or if there is, it won’t be very big. However, there is a high possibility that they know the distribution process well.”

“They worked with our company?”

“Yes, otherwise they wouldn’t be able to find the timing to spread the poison without being noticed.”

“Ah!”

At those words, Kim Seong-han nodded, agreeing that it could be true. But that didn’t mean everything was understood.

“So, the goal is money.”

“Yes, the profile is different for each case, but in the case of food contamination in such companies, the goal is usually money.”

There are hardly any such cases in Korea, but they often occur in the United States. And in almost all cases, the purpose is to extort money through threats.

“Probably the same is true for them.”

“Them too? Did you just say ‘them too’? So, you’re saying there are multiple criminals?”

Kim Seong-han was surprised and asked back. The police didn’t say there were multiple criminals.

“Yes, if there were only one or two people, contamination should have occurred in one or at most two places, not four.”

“Only that much?”

“The biggest problem in a criminal group is solidarity.”

The worry that the other person might betray them. And such fear is an inevitable suspicion in a criminal group.

The reason why criminal organizations constantly emphasize loyalty is because there is no such loyalty.

“If the goal is money, it will probably be in the form of one or two people being attached to guys who don’t know much about distribution.”

So, accidents are unlikely to happen in more than two places. But they deliberately caused accidents in four places at the same time.

“That’s not just for the purpose of strong intimidation against us.”

“Not strong intimidation?”

Bae Deok-gi didn’t understand those words. If it’s not intimidation, what is it?

There are as many as four places. If poison came out of as many as four foods, Samhan Group would probably collapse in an instant.

It is obvious that consumption of all foods produced by Samhan Group will virtually stop.

That being said, Samhan Group cannot sell it to consumers, nor can it donate it anywhere, so it must be discarded, and ultimately all factories will have to stop.

“And you’re saying that level of action isn’t strong intimidation?”

“People try to see all events from their own perspective. The analysis of Samhan Group’s situation is an analysis from the perspective of a businessman.”

If you are the chairman or a key member of the company, you know this ripple effect very well and can make such a judgment.

“But the average person won’t be able to think that far.”

“But aren’t they trying to ruin us?”

“If they were trying to ruin us, the threats would have been directed at the media, not the company. In fact, one of these threats is enough.”

Nevertheless, they deliberately injected poison into four places at the same time.

“That’s probably because they don’t trust each other, so they performed a kind of accomplice ritual.”

“Accomplice ritual?”

“Yes, they want to prevent someone from escaping. In fact, during the famous Makgafa incident [a reference to a real-life crime], they all killed the victim to become accomplices and shared the body. Also, they later forced the woman they were holding hostage to eat the body to make her an accomplice.”

If they become accomplices, none of them can report or accuse each other.

“The purpose of profit has surprisingly low solidarity.”

For example, what if one of the criminals asks for money on the condition that he accuses the other criminals? Probably one of them is likely to accuse. It’s much easier to secure profits after the accusation than to take risks and keep loyalty.

“Looking at that situation, there are probably four criminals.”

There is one ice cream and one bakery, but two snacks. That means two people worked in the snack distribution business.

In other words, they committed terrorism against the place where they worked.

“Are you inferring this far with just that?”

“This much is basic.”

“Ugh, you’re much better than the guys who say they don’t know.”

Kim Seong-han seemed to be calming down a little as he said that he could see the outline of the criminal little by little.

“By the way, where were the products found?”

“The snacks are in a neighborhood mart [small grocery store]. Ice cream is only distributed in ice cream discount stores, and bakeries are only distributed in bakeries.”

“Hmm. The criminals probably directly told you where they were distributed.”

“How did you know that?”

“If they hadn’t said it, they would have collected all the products and made a fuss, and the reporters wouldn’t have known about it.”

In other words, they have achieved the purpose of intimidation with minimal exposure of themselves.

“Huh.”

At those words, Kim Seong-han looked at Bae Deok-gi with a dumbfounded expression, and Bae Deok-gi smiled at that look.

“Didn’t you say he was trustworthy?”

“He’s trustworthy at least. He’s much better than the guys who say they don’t know because they don’t want to take responsibility or say they’ll do their best.”

Kim Seong-han nodded.

“I’ll talk to the National Police Agency and ask them to dispatch you. Can you help?”

“Gladly.”

Park Do-joon nodded.

‘I can’t just leave this kind of case alone.’

Even if the purpose is intimidation, they are humans who mixed poison. If it’s potassium cyanide or arsenic, a truly indiscriminate murder could occur.

‘I can’t just stand by as a police officer.’

Park Do-joon was determined to catch this criminal. But the situation started to get strangely twisted.

***

“Hey, you bastard, what are you doing here?”

When Park Do-joon arrived at Samhan Group again to work with the police, Han Seong-gi, who he didn’t expect, was there.

“Detective Han Seong-gi, what are you doing here?”

“I came because I was told to dispatch.”

“Yes? But I’m the one who asked for help here?”

“What are you talking about? They said they officially asked our department for help.”

“I know I was designated.”

“Bullshit. Who would call you?”

Park Do-joon frowned at those words. And Chairman Kim Seong-han’s face hardened when he saw the situation.

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know.”

“Wait a minute.”

Kim Seong-han immediately called his secretary to check the situation. Then, the secretary came up after a while with a very nervous look and explained the situation.

“So, you requested help, but you didn’t specify it; you just requested help?”

“Yes, Chairman. It’s our mistake.”

Originally, he was supposed to ask for Detective Park Do-joon of the Gwang域Profiler Team [Gwang域 is likely a regional designation, so translated as ‘Regional’], but by mistake, he asked for only one person from the Gwang域Profiler Team.

And Han Seong-gi, who was already cornered, applied with the expectation of how he could create a connection with a large company.

“This.”

At those words, Kim Seong-han frowned for a moment but soon shook his head to shake off his 잡생각 [jap-saeng-gak, meaning ‘雜 saeng-gak’, or ‘miscellaneous thoughts’].