My Calling Is Profiler [EN]: Chapter 189

Of course

Of course, Sinan is geographically close to China, but a body washing ashore is a different matter entirely. When you consider the currents, the time involved, and the likelihood of marine life scavenging the body in between,

the body is more likely to disappear than wash up. Yet, the local police seem to automatically assume any body found drifted from China.

They can determine the deceased’s nationality through DNA testing, but given the number of Chinese laborers in this area, it wouldn’t be surprising if some were murdered and their bodies disposed of.

In fact, despite the police announcing a crackdown on slavery and even warning slave owners by phone, they still found over 300 slaves.

It’s easy to imagine what would happen if they conducted a surprise raid in an area where so many slaves are found even after a public warning.

The fact that slave owners didn’t bother hiding their slaves despite the warning suggests they were confident the police wouldn’t punish them.

If they even suspected punishment, they would have hidden them at all costs.

“Let’s investigate after the DNA test results come back, okay?”

Watching the investigator wave his hand dismissively, Park Do-joon frowned but nodded.

“Let’s do that.”

He left without another word. Lee Ji-soo felt uneasy watching them.

“This feels like…”

“Like the gaze of criminals watching the police who’ve entered their territory, right?”

“That’s exactly it. I’ve never been inside a criminal organization’s territory, but I imagine this is what it would feel like.”

Lee Ji-soo nodded. The way the police were looking at them… Usually, police officers feel a sense of camaraderie simply because they’re police officers, regardless of where they’re from or what their specific role is.

They’re often called ‘family’.

That’s why they sometimes cover up crimes committed by fellow officers, which becomes a problem later on, but there’s a strong bond that connects police officers.

“But I don’t sense anything like that here.”

“No, there isn’t.”

The other police officers were looking at Park Do-joon and Lee Ji-soo as if they were a hostile organization, or like a rival group had come to their turf to spy on them.

“Of course, not all of them are like that.”

Park Do-joon glanced around. The officers subtly avoided his gaze.

“It’s work hours. That means the other police officers are probably busy with their own cases. But they’re out here watching us during work hours. What does that mean?”

“It means they have something to hide.”

“That’s right.”

Being police officers from a different region, there’s no reason for them to be this interested, and police officers don’t have time for that kind of thing.

Having an emotional connection is different from taking a personal interest.

But to come out and stare at Park Do-joon and Lee Ji-soo like this during work hours, when it’s not even their case?

“They’ve got a lot to hide.”

The situation was so serious that the Coast Guard requested a profiler separately, but the local police acted like gangsters more concerned with protecting their ‘turf’ than solving the problem.

“It would be a relief if they didn’t interfere, let alone cooperate.”

“I said from the beginning that this wouldn’t be an easy case.”

“Then how should we solve this problem?”

“Well, we just have to do our own thing, regardless of what they say.”

If they find solid evidence, they can request cooperation from other agencies, even if the local police aren’t on board.

No matter how tight-knit they are, they can’t stop or arrest personnel sent from higher police authorities.

“So, let’s just do our job.”

“But…”

Lee Ji-soo was a little intimidated by the unfamiliar situation and the hostile stares.

But Park Do-joon didn’t seem to care.

“Don’t worry. We just need to catch the culprit.”

“Do-joon, pork belly isn’t going to cut it for this.”

Seo Joo-won smiled as he flipped through the documents.

“I spent some money to get this from my classmate. You have to treat me to Korean beef [Hanwoo, a premium beef].”

“I’ll gladly do that.”

“Here you go. But aren’t they supposed to give this to you here?”

“It didn’t seem like that kind of environment. Besides, the official point of contact is the Coast Guard, not the local police.”

He wanted to review the autopsy records, but the Sinan police told him that since the Coast Guard was the official point of contact, he should ask them.

Of course, the local police conducted the autopsy, so the Coast Guard didn’t have that data.

So, Park Do-joon asked Seo Joo-won. Seo Joo-won secretly copied the data and brought it to him.

“The DNA test results show that the deceased is Korean.”

“I see.”

Park Do-joon handed the photos to Lee Ji-soo. Her face paled when she saw them.

“Ah, sorry. Is this your first time seeing something like this?”

“No, it’s not the very first time, but… that…”

“I’m not talking about the corpse itself.”

“Yes…”

As a police officer, she’d seen corpses during training, but those were intact.

She’d never seen a corpse with its head and limbs severed like this.

“This is still a mild case.”

“Yes?”

“In murder cases driven by intense hatred, or when bodies have been decomposing for a long time, they’re often unrecognizable.”

Park Do-joon flipped through the report.

“The cause of death is presumed to be overwork.”

“Yes, the victim shows severe malnutrition.”

“It’s like they were only eating carbohydrates to the extreme, right?”

“How did you know? You haven’t even seen that page yet?”

The information was at the very end. Seo Joo-won was surprised by Park Do-joon’s accurate assessment, even before seeing the relevant section.

“It’s a typical form of abuse in slavery cases.”

“Typical abuse?”

“Because the victim is seen as a slave. There’s no incentive to care for them properly. But Koreans are heavily reliant on rice. Even abusers who treat victims as slaves will try to keep them alive. The purpose of a slave is labor, and if they starve to death, that labor is lost. So, perpetrators in these slavery cases provide the bare minimum calories needed for survival. The cheapest options are rice and ramen [instant noodles].”

So, they have to feed them rice. To be exact, they only feed them rice. Rice isn’t expensive, you can eat it for a long time even with a small amount, and it’s easy to store.

In slavery cases, the diet is abnormally carbohydrate-based. Side dishes are usually just kimchi [fermented cabbage] or pickled radish.

“And providing such food is a way for them to justify their actions. They feed and house the slaves, deceiving their own conscience, and later even try to claim legal benefits. But the Korean judiciary recognizes that this doesn’t treat the other person as a worker. They feed and house them because they’d suffer financial loss if they didn’t. It’s not easy to find a slave these days.”

“Was that it? The nutritional imbalance is severe.”

“I expected it.”

“You’re still sharp, Park Detective. But will this case even be possible? Frankly, the police chief in this area is a bit…”

“Yeah, I know.”

Park Do-joon answered indifferently as he flipped through the documents. Lee Ji-soo tilted her head, confused by their conversation.

“Why the chief? Does he not like us?”

“No, well… that’s obvious. Judging from what he said back then, he’s a real piece of work.”

“A real piece of work?”

Lee Ji-soo, who didn’t know much about the salt farm slavery case, asked again, tilting her head. Park Do-joon, still looking at the documents, answered quietly without looking up.

“‘If they go out into the world, they’ll become homeless and a burden on society. We feed and house them, giving them a chance to live like human beings, but instead of being grateful, what is this?’ That’s what the police chief said. Well, he was probably a team leader back then, not the chief.”

“Yes? He said that openly?”

“He even told the reporters.”

“Isn’t he crazy? No, but he’s the chief now?”

“Yeah, now you see how bad the situation is in this area?”

“Wow.”

It’s an outright defense of criminals.

“Surprisingly, people who make these kinds of remarks often go unpunished.”

Park Do-joon said indifferently.

“No way.”

“It’s true. If you say something that aligns with the interests of the local community, you often get away with it. Remember that group rape case? A police officer said it was embarrassing for the neighborhood to report something like that.”

He even said it in a broadcast interview.

“It’s ridiculous. And then they make us do all sorts of things to improve the police image.”

“I know.”

The current reality of the police is that they make officers dance to improve their image, or they promote them if a good deed gets a little attention.

“You know about the ‘Policewoman Catches Robber’ case, right?”

“I know.”

“That perfectly reflects the ideology of the current police leadership.”

Catching a robber is the police’s inherent job, not something to be particularly proud of.

People might praise the police for catching a robber, but there’s no reason to promote them while boasting about it.

“That case… I was so embarrassed. I heard the arrest itself was later revealed to be a fabrication?”

“It was.”

People who read the article thought the policewoman used martial arts to single-handedly handcuff the robber. But the truth was… she discovered the robbery suspect, but called a male officer and only followed the suspect while relaying his location.

The male officers who actually fought the robber were completely erased from the narrative, and it was promoted as if the policewoman had fought alone and subdued the robber, until a reporter exposed the truth.

“That’s the reality. That’s how guys who talk nonsense become chiefs.”

Park Do-joon closed the document with a thud and handed it to Lee Ji-soo.

“It seems like it’s related to salt farm slavery.”

“How do you know?”

“Because that’s what it says in the autopsy records.”

To be exact, it doesn’t explicitly state that. But it describes the victim’s muscle development and nutritional status in detail.

“Moreover, according to records of slave life, they often suffer from severe protein deficiency.”

“So?”

“That’s unlikely to happen on a fishing boat. Because fish is a source of protein.”

“Ah, that’s right.”

Of course, they don’t eat sliced raw fish every meal or cook fancy seafood ramen like on TV, but they still eat the fish they catch.

“Also, due to the nature of the work, fishing boats usually have multiple workers.”

So, no matter how much of a slave owner someone is, they can’t realistically say, ‘You’re a slave, so you can’t eat meat.’

“All the workers in those places are usually outsiders too.”

“That’s right. A lot of outsiders come to work on fishing boats, right?”

“Because being a sailor isn’t easy.”

A lot of outside personnel come in, and a lot of outside personnel are replaced – that’s just the nature of being a sailor.”

My Calling Is Profiler [EN]

My Calling Is Profiler [EN]

천직이 프로파일러
Status: Completed Author: Native Language: Korean
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[English Translation] Delve into the captivating world of criminal psychology with 'My Calling Is Profiler.' He may not measure the ocean's depths, but he possesses an extraordinary gift: the ability to fathom the human heart. Witness the rise of a profiler who can dissect the minds of criminals with unnerving accuracy. But his talents extend beyond the realm of lawbreakers. Prepare to see the world through his eyes as he deciphers the hidden motives and intricate patterns that shape our reality. A thrilling journey into the depths of the human psyche awaits!

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