My Calling Is Profiler [EN]: Chapter 619

“There are grenades, mortars, and missiles.”

While explosions can kill, that’s generally relegated to machines, not individual people.

“It’s not like we’d plant a bomb on the street and wait for it to go off.”

With anti-tank and anti-personnel mines readily available, there’s little reason to plant a stationary bomb and wait for the opportune moment.

“In modern warfare, demolition’s goal isn’t primarily killing, but infiltration and destruction.”

“Infiltration and destruction?”

“Exactly, which is why I consider myself an expert.”

The police are already intensely investigating Hong Chang-sik’s movements. But they haven’t yet located where the bomb was planted.

“Killing someone with a bomb isn’t particularly effective in this day and age.”

In modern times, deaths from explosions are more often considered collateral damage, not the main objective.

“So, even if someone died, there’s a good chance the bomber wouldn’t even realize it.”

“Is that a significant factor?”

“Huge. Look at the U.S., which conducts warfare using drones; the resulting damage is considerable.”

Drones allow the U.S. to strike targets in the Middle East safely, without putting their own personnel at risk. However, the rate of discharge applications from soldiers serving in drone operations is surprisingly high.

“Causing the death of a defenseless target can inflict a greater psychological toll than one might expect.”

The same applies to bomb disposal experts. Their training focuses on destroying key enemy infrastructure, not killing people. Of course, even that is increasingly being handled by missiles.

“The important thing is this: he has a history of intentionally killing someone. And considering the military’s operational structure, that’s highly unlikely.”

As Park Do-joon spoke, Lee Ji-soo felt increasingly confused. There were simply too many variables. While profilers consider various factors when making assessments, this felt excessive.

Considering this many variables, especially on an international scale, makes the potential target pool too broad.

“Are there other factors we should consider when making this kind of judgment?”

“The underworld. More precisely, we should assume he has access to the black market. It’s unlikely the client provided the equipment directly.”

Park Do-joon paused, then stated his conclusion.

“Considering all that, the most likely origin is Southeast Asia.”

“Southeast Asia?”

“Yes.”

They use Western weapons, and in Southeast Asia, a region with widespread poverty, money holds immense value. Furthermore, law enforcement is weak in certain areas, with gangs holding considerable power.

“And the Philippines is the most probable location.”

“The Philippines?”

“Yes.”

Vietnam is a traditional ally of China, essentially part of the same communist bloc. In contrast, the Philippines has a long history of U.S. influence and continues to receive substantial support.

“Security isn’t great, and there are a high number of murders and other incidents.”

Moreover, personal information isn’t well-protected, making it relatively easy to conceal one’s identity.

“So, the culprit is Filipino?”

“Didn’t I mention that? The image of blond-haired, blue-eyed Americans is a stereotype perpetuated by movies and television.”

The U.S. is a multiethnic country. While films often feature white or Black people, there are also large populations of Hispanic descent (Mexican, Brazilian, etc.) and Asian descent.

Therefore, in the U.S. and Europe, people often identify themselves by their ethnicity before their nationality, such as Filipino-American or Korean-American.

Because of this diversity, you can’t determine someone’s nationality based solely on their skin color.

“But is it possible for a Filipino to carry out something like that in the U.S. or Europe?”

“It’s certainly possible. The U.S., or rather the U.S. military, is facing a persistent manpower shortage.”

To address this, the U.S. employs various recruitment strategies. Can’t read or do basic math? The military provides internal education programs covering everything from multiplication to reading. Too overweight to enlist? They send recruits to preparatory training camps to lose weight.

“A training camp for the training camp?”

“Yes, that’s how severe the U.S. military’s shortage is. Some even suggest removing marijuana from the list of enlistment restrictions.”

One of these strategies involves recruiting foreigners. Unlike Korea, the U.S. military is an active combat force. Instead of simply serving for 18 months like in Korea, they deploy personnel worldwide, including to active war zones like Iraq and Afghanistan.

“So, the U.S. has a policy of granting citizenship after a certain period of military service.”

“Ah!”

The U.S. military isn’t the only one with such policies, but they’re probably the most effective at utilizing them.

“If someone of Filipino descent joins the U.S. military and serves, they’re likely to receive training in explosives.”

After receiving professional demolition and infiltration training and completing their service, they are free to leave.

“But the U.S. doesn’t allow just any criminal to enlist, right?”

The U.S. is known for denying entry even for minor criminal records.

“Yes, that’s true. But as I mentioned, the Philippines is notorious for its weak security.”

It’s not just the high crime rate. The police are so incompetent and corrupt that arresting perpetrators for past crimes is nearly impossible.

“So, would they commit bomb attacks in the Philippines?”

“No. Even then, they would have been caught by now. While security is lax, the Philippine government wouldn’t ignore a high-profile crime like a bomb attack.”

“Why not?”

“The break-even point isn’t limited to business; it applies here as well. It’s simply not worth the risk.”

To be precise, security is so poor in the Philippines that the cost of hiring someone to kill is relatively low.

In the Philippines, you can pay approximately 2 million won [about $1,500 USD] to have someone killed.

Contract killings, where someone on a motorcycle shoots the victim and flees, are common in the Philippines and Vietnam, and those countries lack the resources to catch the perpetrators.

There are relatively few CCTV cameras, and motorcycles are ubiquitous. You can easily steal one, use it for the crime, and abandon it. The motorcycle helmet conceals the face, making identification nearly impossible.

“So, realistically, they can’t carry out the job there.”

In contrast, Europe is highly sensitive to bomb attacks, and staying there would likely lead to detection.

“The best approach is to live comfortably in the Philippines with U.S. citizenship and travel around committing crimes.”

With U.S. citizenship, they won’t attract excessive scrutiny in most countries.

“But still…”

Lee Ji-soo’s expression showed her continued skepticism.

“The evidence suggesting he’s of Southeast Asian, or rather Filipino, descent is still weak, isn’t it?”

“It’s just a suspicion. And there’s one place where he could have planted the bomb. Surprisingly.”

“Yes?”

“Hong Chang-sik isn’t someone who just wanders around aimlessly, is he?”

Wherever Hong Chang-sik goes, it’s likely to be a location with at least some level of security.

“If they’re from Southeast Asia, they’ll stand out.”

“And?”

“There’s one place that’s an exception.”

Park Do-joon pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to her, pointing to a specific location.

“I received this as well. It’s Hong Chang-sik’s schedule, right?”

“That’s right. And here, you see a visit to a construction site, correct?”

“Could it be?”

“He spent a considerable amount of time at the construction site.”

Hong Chang-sik’s schedule indicates that he arrived at the construction site of the Daeguk Group’s new factory at 11 a.m. and remained there until 3 p.m.

“From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. That includes lunchtime. In that case, security personnel would likely have left their posts to eat.”

That short window of time would be sufficient to plant a bomb.

“But that was five days ago, wasn’t it?”

“The timer is up to them.”

And five days is ample time to leave the country without raising suspicion. Rushing might lead to mistakes.

“And even when you wash your car, you typically only clean the exterior and, at best, the interior.”

Hardly anyone washes the undercarriage. Therefore, if a bomb was attached there, it’s unlikely to be discovered.

“But this is Daeguk Group’s factory, isn’t it? What about security?”

Daeguk Group is a defense contractor, so it’s subject to stringent security measures from the outset.

“Of course, that’s the case when building the framework and erecting the building.”

At that stage, they might plant listening devices in the walls during construction.

“But this construction is a typical ground-breaking project.”

It’s literally a job of compacting and leveling the ground. It’s impossible to plant equipment that could pose a security risk at this point.

Hundreds of tons of soil are being removed daily, and even if you plant a listening device under that, it won’t function properly in the concrete.

“And at that point, they don’t prioritize security. And foreign workers are relatively inexpensive.”

The company overseeing construction will try to minimize costs, and naturally, there will be foreign workers among them.

“It wouldn’t be surprising if there were Southeast Asians among them.”

“Wait. That…”

“Where have you seen it before?”

Park Do-joon smirked.

“Criminals often believe they’re developing innovative methods, but that’s rarely the case.”

The reason for Lee Ji-soo’s surprise is simple: the method. It’s the same method Hong Woo-jong used when targeting Hong Geun-jong. The only difference is that the dog was replaced with a bomb.

“Given the situation, they would have tried to handle it themselves. But they wouldn’t have been able to devise an effective method quickly.”

And many people try to replicate past successes. The attack on Hong Geun-jong was quite successful, at least in terms of the attack itself.

However, it failed because Hong Geun-jong crawled under the car due to a very slight difference. Park Do-joon’s warning slowed his steps, and that difference of just a few meters changed the outcome.

“Did Hong Woo-jong learn from that?”

“It’s not unusual for criminals to learn from past crimes.”

“If they can just get the timing of the bomb right…”

“That’s not difficult.”

Hong Chang-sik was a meticulous man. He adhered to a strict schedule, and even a few minutes’ delay would result in a reprimand. If you have access to his schedule, predicting when he would enter the car wouldn’t be challenging.

Profiler