My Calling Is Profiler [EN]: Chapter 600

Park Do-joon approached the wine bar, Bobar.

“We’re still preparing to open,” the woman behind the counter said, her tone sharp. Instead of replying, Park Do-joon presented his ID, placing it on the bar’s surface.

“Another cop. I already gave you everything.”

Park Do-joon clicked his tongue, noting her obvious annoyance. ‘I bet I don’t even need to look.’ He figured the police weren’t after evidence of innocence, but rather the video footage. They likely just took it and passed it along; it wasn’t their achievement.

“I’m here regarding the Jo Ah-min case.”

“I handed over the data. I don’t know anything else.”

In truth, there wasn’t much to know. It was a wine bar, so there was no reason to delve too deeply. But the situation itself spoke volumes.

“Does Jo Ah-min keep anything here?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking if Jo Ah-min has any alcohol she stores here.”

“Well, there is…”

“What is it?”

“Why do you ask?”

“Investigation. Or should I get a warrant and come back this evening?”

The implication was clear: a warrant served in the evening would likely scare away customers. Understanding the not-so-subtle threat, the owner sighed deeply, disappeared into the back, and returned a moment later.

“There are two bottles here.”

“One whiskey, one wine.”

“Yes.”

“She must come here often.”

As Park Do-joon anticipated, Jung Yi-yeon tilted her head, curious about his statement.

“Detective, how did you know that?”

“Wine is different from other alcohol. It begins to change the moment it’s opened.”

He elaborated, “Wine’s flavor evolves as it oxidizes, hence the use of decanters to intentionally expose it to air. However, you can’t just leave it open indefinitely. Unlike distilled spirits, wine contains organic matter, causing it to spoil relatively quickly once opened.”

“So, the general rule is to finish the wine in one sitting.”

“However, if you can’t finish it, you can temporarily reseal it and store it in a wine refrigerator. But even then, its lifespan is limited, so it’s best to drink it as soon as possible.”

“Huh? Wait, then…?”

“Right, she’s been here recently. Doesn’t quite add up, does it?”

“It doesn’t make sense.”

The incident had occurred some time ago. No matter how well you store wine, it can’t last forever. The fact that she had alcohol being stored there suggested she’d been back after the incident.

‘If I directly ask if she came again, she’ll deny it.’ Knowing this, Park Do-joon subtly rephrased his question.

The owner, caught off guard, missed the nuance.

“When did she last come?”

“…….”

“Should we really confiscate the wine?”

The implication was clear: confiscated wine wouldn’t be handled with care, and they couldn’t complain if it spoiled. After all, it was confiscated.

“Okay! Okay!” The woman sat down, visibly irritated, opened another bottle of wine, took a sip, and said, “It’s been a week.”

“Very recently.”

Jung Yi-yeon frowned. This was, after all, the place that had initially led to the alleged rape. Victims, especially those of sexual assault, generally avoid places that trigger memories of the event.

“Isn’t it normal to avoid this place?”

“Exactly.”

Jung Yi-yeon clicked her tongue at Park Do-joon’s words. They had been so focused on the events of that night that they hadn’t considered the possibility of her return.

“This would definitely raise reasonable suspicion in court.”

“There’s more to it than that. Owner, what did Jo Ah-min drink on the day of the incident?”

“Huh?”

“It wasn’t clear in the video.”

The video only showed Jo Ah-min leaning on Nam Ji-sung as they left. But Jo Ah-min had consumed alcohol here before that.

“Is that important?”

“It’s important. You need to tell us what she drank.”

“She drank wine. Denero 2012.”

“How much does that cost?”

“It’s 360,000 won [approximately $300 USD] at our store.”

“Jo Ah-min paid, right?”

“Yes.”

“Huh?”

Jung Yi-yeon suddenly realized something. They hadn’t considered the payment aspect.

“Is payment important too?”

“Of course. If someone treated you to a 360,000 won drink, wouldn’t you feel inclined to reciprocate in some way?”

“Ah, I see.”

“And there are a lot of scams where women get men to pay for expensive drinks.”

The owner bristled at this.

“Don’t compare us to those scammer bastards.”

“I’m not saying you are. I’m just saying that kind of scam is common.”

It was a fairly old tactic: women approaching men at nightclubs or bars, then leading them to expensive establishments and racking up exorbitant bills. The police had investigated such schemes numerous times.

“Most men are aware of it. So, if the bill exceeds a certain amount, they call the police to verify it first.”

Because they suspect they’re being tricked into an absurd scam.

“360,000 won is a reasonable price for that wine. A soldier’s salary is limited, but she didn’t hesitate. Why would she?”

“The woman paid.”

“That’s right. Considering Jo Ah-min’s family background, 360,000 won isn’t a significant amount of money for her.”

“This is significant evidence.”

The fact that a woman treats a man is a crucial factor in legal proceedings. While it doesn’t automatically imply consent to sexual relations, it does suggest goodwill towards the other person.

“360,000 won for a bottle is definitely not a small gesture.”

Who said it? Goodwill is up to pork belly [a Korean saying implying goodwill has its limits]. Of course, it depends on the situation, but the level of goodwill towards the other person is definitely visible to some extent in monetary terms.

“I don’t think she’d just say goodbye after buying him something so expensive.”

As Jung Yi-yeon tilted her head, Park Do-joon turned to the owner.

“Do you have another bottle of the same wine?”

“Yes.”

“May I see it?”

Reluctantly, the owner retrieved a bottle. Park Do-joon examined the label on the back. Wine import laws required specific information to be printed in Korean and affixed to the bottle.

“The wine has 12% alcohol.”

“Yes? 12%?”

“That’s not very high. Wine isn’t a high-alcohol beverage to begin with.”

Of course, you can get drunk on it. But to become completely insensible after drinking it? Sharing just one bottle of 12% wine?

“It’s not enough to make you completely insensible. But she also drank at the bar.”

“That’s why I say the taxi ride is important. If she was that drunk, it would have been obvious when she took the taxi.”

“Aha!”

But according to the available evidence, she was fine from the taxi to here.

Even until she left here, she was fine.

“Since you’re a regular here, you probably know. How much can Jo Ah-min drink?”

“She’s a strong drinker. Wine barely affects her, and she needs to drink about half a bottle of whiskey on the rocks to get a little tipsy.”

“Wow.”

On the rocks is a way to drink only ice and alcohol, without mixing water or anything else.

It’s a way to enjoy high-alcohol drinks like whiskey as they are, and if she drinks about half a bottle of that, she’s a real heavy drinker.

“That whiskey is based on the whiskey she kept?”

“Yes.”

Park Do-joon examined the whiskey bottle, checking the label on the back.

“It’s 34% alcohol.”

“Wow?”

If she can drink half a bottle of 34% alcohol on the rocks, she can’t possibly get drunk on just half a bottle of 12% wine.

“I don’t know how much she drank at the bar, but she probably didn’t drink much.”

That’s something that can be testified to by the women who went with her at the time. And if Jo Ah-min is a heavy drinker as the owner says, her friends would know that.

“You’re challenging the claim that she was drunk and insensible.”

“Right. And if she wasn’t drunk and went out voluntarily, the story changes from then on.”

No matter how much Jo Ah-min claims she was raped, if they prove that she wasn’t drunk and went out voluntarily, even a military court wouldn’t easily convict him of rape.

“Even this much is definitely advantageous in court…”

“That’s right. The problem is that this isn’t the end.”

Park Do-joon smiled wryly.

Third hearing.

Wolkwang diligently presented the information Park Do-joon had gathered.

They obtained statements from friends attesting to Jo Ah-min’s high alcohol tolerance, located the taxi driver who had driven her that night and secured his testimony that she was fine until she exited the cab, and received confirmation from the bar owner about her regular patronage and heavy drinking habits.

The military prosecution couldn’t conceal their dismay. If everything had proceeded as planned, a conviction would have been easily secured, and a 10-year sentence would have been handed down without difficulty.

But evidence of innocence was surfacing from all directions, placing them in a precarious position.

Nevertheless, they couldn’t afford to give up. They had been tasked by Jo Han-seop and Park Woon-tae.

And to fulfill those obligations, they had to persist with their claims.

“So, the point at which her mind changed was when she entered the motel?”

Park Do-joon, on a date with Jung Yi-yeon, asked in disbelief upon hearing this.

“That’s right. It’s ridiculous.”

They went to the motel together, but not to have sex.

“It’s absurd, but legally, it’s a valid point.”

Even if they’re having sex, they have to stop if she asks them to stop. Otherwise, it’s rape.

“Since there’s too much contradictory evidence from outside, they can’t refute it, so they’re shifting the focus to the inside, where there’s no way to disprove their claims.”

“That’s right.”

Park Do-joon stroked his chin, lost in thought.

“I don’t know what it is, but there must be a compelling reason why they need to stick together at all costs.”

“Probably? Ugh, annoying! Why are they doing that? I don’t think it’s just because they’re embarrassed.”

“Well. But who’s benefiting from this?”

“Huh? What do you mean? You said both families are benefiting?”

“Ah. That’s right. But there’s almost never an ideal 50/50 profit distribution in terms of who benefits more.”

Someone benefits slightly more, while the other inevitably benefits less.

“So, depending on whether the prosecutor’s family or the judge’s family benefits more, we can determine who’s in more of a hurry.”

Park Do-joon said this and shook his head.

“Well, that’s not the immediate concern. It’s a problem for later, perhaps?”

“Right? It seems like we need to somehow block the pressure coming from that side to win this.”

No matter how hard Wolkwang tries, even if Park Do-joon analyzes the psychology as a profiler, there’s no way to prove or disprove what happened inside the motel.

“If that’s the case, there seems to be only one way.”

“What is it?”

“We need to tear the two groups apart first.”

Park Do-joon said with a long sigh.