“Are you sure it’s not a lie?”
“I don’t think so. They said they even took pictures back then.”
“Took pictures? They were lucky not to get caught.”
“I was suspicious, so I asked, and they said they use a phone they bought directly from overseas.”
In Korea, phones make a ‘click’ sound when taking pictures, but that’s basically due to Korean law.
Of course, products sold overseas don’t have that shutter sound.
“But how did they know it was the same culprit?”
“They said they blacked out after drinking at the club and that they’re usually heavy drinkers. They said they can drink five bottles of soju [Korean rice wine] alone, even though they’re a woman. But it was the first time they’d lost their memory so completely.”
“Again?”
“After that, they said they woke up to find themselves dumped on the side of the road.”
“Hmm…”
Another incident occurred in the exact same way as the previous cases, complete with the use of date rape drugs at the club.
“So, I’m going to meet them.”
“Okay, go ahead. When are you meeting?”
“We’re meeting in Anyang in two days.”
“Alright. Call me immediately if anything happens.”
Kang Chang-soo nodded at the team leader’s permission.
Two days later, Kang Chang-soo left work much earlier than usual, claiming he was meeting the informant.
Of course, there was no informant.
The reason for the lie was simple: if Park Do-joon was right and someone was leaking information, it would get out immediately.
Sure enough, as soon as he left the police station, he was tailed.
‘So, this is how it is,’ he thought.
The reason he gave them two extra days was simple. It would give the other party time to actually do something.
Naturally, Park Do-joon had planned for that, so the other party was following him without knowing the situation.
-It seems someone is following you.
“Yes, it seems so.”
Kang Chang-soo swallowed hard while talking to Park Do-joon. He had expected the other party to move, but he couldn’t help but feel nervous.
Someone tailing him meant there was someone inside leaking information, and the team leader was definitely involved.
“What should I do?”
-Just go as planned. Turning back here would make them suspicious.
“Understood.”
Park Do-joon bit his lip after hearing that.
Then, Jung Yi-yeon, who was next to him, asked, noticing his expression.
“Is the detective coming?”
“He’s coming.”
“As a profiler, how do you feel at times like this?”
“Disgusted. Really disgusted.”
Corruption within the police force was expected. But seeing it unfold before his eyes was a different matter entirely.
It’s not that Park Do-joon doesn’t identify as a police officer. It’s just that his self-esteem as a profiler is higher than his pride as a police officer.
“So, what about me?”
“You need to act as the victim, like we discussed before.”
“You can’t trust other female officers?”
“No.”
Park Do-joon’s plan was this: first, leak information about a fake informant. Then, the other party, upon learning about it, would try to contact them to reach an agreement and cover up the incident.
“No one starts by trying to kill you right away.”
Unless they’re completely insane, the chances of someone like a politician deciding to kill you right away are very low.
“And their actions will change depending on that, right?”
“That’s right.”
If it’s Congressman Jeon Gu-wan’s son, they’ll try to negotiate. If not, someone else will try to negotiate. Most likely, it will be Jeon Gu-wan’s son, Jeon Bu-man.
“How do you know that?”
“I didn’t just leak the information randomly.”
When leaking the information, he mentioned seeing the face online. That means the face has been made public online before.
But most politicians’ children have never had their faces made public online, or if they have, it’s only been a small reveal.
“So, you’re saying it’s likely Jeon Bu-man?”
“Probably. And if we can catch him, we can definitely tie him to it.”
“But don’t we usually use female officers for this kind of thing?”
“Female officers… It’s too risky.”
In reality, this kind of work should be done by female police officers. But in the end, female officers are still part of the police force, and that would lead to them using force instead of reaching an agreement.
“And you know, it’s almost impossible for police officers to resist this kind of pressure.”
“Hmm, I guess that’s true.”
In reality, if pressure comes from a member of the National Assembly [Korean parliament] while holding a public office, you’ll be fired that day.
So, using female officers wouldn’t provoke them.
“But you’re a lawyer, so you don’t have to worry about that. Plus, your father has some influence in the legal world, so they won’t be able to use force to suppress you.”
“But even if I do that, it doesn’t mean I can get them involved, right?”
“You just need to accept the settlement.”
Jung Yi-yeon can’t put the culprit in jail in the first place. Because she’s not the real victim.
But the existence of that target alone is enough.
“I wonder who will come.”
Park Do-joon said, glancing at his watch.
***
“Hey, you crazy bastard!”
On the way to work.
Jung Yi-yeon screamed at the black car blocking her way.
“Do you want to die!”
She almost had an accident because of the car that suddenly cut in front of her.
But the man who came out of the car already knew about her.
“Ms. Jung Yi-yeon?”
“Who are you?”
“Can we talk?”
At those words, Jung Yi-yeon immediately tried to take out her phone to report him. Then, the man said urgently.
“I want to reach a settlement.”
“A settlement?”
“Yes, a settlement. I’m this kind of person.”
He took out his business card.
Jung Yi-yeon opened the window slightly and received it.
“A lawyer?”
“Yes, I am.”
“What is a lawyer doing? You should contact the company.”
“I want to handle it quietly.”
“…….”
“I’ll give you a generous settlement, so please give me a chance.”
Even as he said that, he didn’t move the car. And before she knew it, another black car approached and parked right behind her.
Blocking her from turning the car around and escaping.
Of course, it wouldn’t be impossible to escape since it was a main street.
‘But there’s no reason to escape here,’ she thought.
Jung Yi-yeon had already heard the situation from Park Do-joon.
The decision was quick.
“I’ll call and say I’m going to be late for work.”
“Thank you.”
“It could be dangerous, so let’s meet in a public place.”
***
Soon after, Jung Yi-yeon was able to meet with a lawyer who introduced himself as Park Hwang-do at a cafe on the main street.
“So, you want to reach a settlement with my client?”
“Yes. The name is…”
“It’s a secret. I know who you people are, but I can’t reveal it rashly.”
“…….”
“How did you know?”
“Pardon?”
“I only told a trustworthy detective. There’s no way he would have told you. How did you know I was in charge of the case?”
“I can’t say.”
“But you still want to reach a settlement? That’s absurd.”
Jung Yi-yeon said coldly.
But Park Hwang-do kept asking to reach a settlement in response to Jung Yi-yeon’s words.
‘It’s clear that this side has a favorable position,’ Park Do-joon thought.
In the plan, Kang Chang-soo met not the victim but the lawyer who requested it.
If Jung Yi-yeon was the victim, things would become more complicated.
But even that gave the other party the problem of the illegality of the approach.
‘The other side doesn’t know this side. Then that means the detective is right… These sons of bitches,’ Park Do-joon thought.
Park Do-joon thought they were still committing the same crimes. But there’s no way to prove it.
‘But if you think in reverse, the story changes,’ he mused.
Park Do-joon didn’t try to prove it. Instead, he thought of another way.
When choosing victims, rapists usually fall into one of two categories. One is the obsessive rapist. One is the rapist who rapes to relieve sexual desire.
Obsessive types are obsessed with a specific person, raping the victim and claiming it’s love. This usually happens between lovers.
‘But this is rape for sexual gratification,’ Park Do-joon realized.
It doesn’t matter who the other person is, as long as they can prove their sexual desire and power. Usually, rape crimes that occur within a company or indiscriminate rape are this type.
Park Do-joon judged this to be the latter. And as expected, if they’ve been committing crimes until now, they don’t know the victim’s identity.
They can’t know.
What’s urgent for them is the relief of sexual desire, not the other person’s information.
“Let’s reach a settlement. I’ll give you a reasonable price.”
Lawyer Park Hwang-do only said those words. With this, one thing became clear.
‘Right now, the other side doesn’t know who the victim is,’ Park Do-joon concluded.
So, they’re trying to reach a settlement for now.
“In the first place, I don’t think you even know our client’s identity, so what kind of settlement are you talking about?”
When Jung Yi-yeon subtly poked at him, Park Hwang-do averted his gaze. It was the moment when it became clear that he didn’t know her identity.
“And how can I reveal my client’s information when I don’t know what you’re going to do?”
“What are you going to do?”
“You’re a family that’s been in politics for generations, right? How do I know what kind of retaliation you’ll take later? Don’t you think so?”
“Ah, we have no intention of retaliating.”
“I’m sure the lawyer wouldn’t. But what about the congressman or the congressman’s son?”
Park Hwang-do couldn’t say anything in response to Jung Yi-yeon’s words. Because what she said was right. Even if he said he wouldn’t retaliate, they would eventually retaliate if they wanted to.
He didn’t say anything because of that thought, but Jung Yi-yeon was convinced as she watched him.
‘Oh, the detective is really right,’ she thought.
She subtly included specific information, not all information. A politician who has been in politics for generations and his son.
But even though she leaked that information, the other party didn’t deny it or respond.
‘So, Jeon Bu-man was right after all?’ she wondered.
It wouldn’t make sense for the other party to come out like this if that wasn’t the case.
‘Okay, it’s time to make a move,’ she decided.
Park Do-joon taught her to entice the other party by throwing information one by one. Jung Yi-yeon, who didn’t have much experience as a lawyer yet, didn’t know this.
But Park Do-joon knew all of that, and thanks to that, she got all the necessary information.
“If our client is to be safe, Congressman Jeon Gu-wan must lose his power. Don’t you think so?”
“What did you say?”
“Isn’t that right? It seems like his son has been kidnapping and raping women for years, and it seems like the police know about it too.”
“No, who is saying such ridiculous things? There’s no reason for Congressman Jeon Gu-wan’s son to do that?”
Finally, the real name came out. Even so, he denies it, but it’s a denial of the crime, not a denial of the person.
A Professional Profiler