You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 401

You Have Been Defended – Episode 401

Someone saw the pocket watch.

Kang Min-jae and Tae-shik seemed disappointed by the man’s answer, but as for me, seeing the letters floating above his head, I felt like I had moved one step closer to the pocket watch.

“I see.”

But I couldn’t just come out and say, ‘I know you saw it, so just tell me everything.’

“Since you come here often, please contact us if you happen to find it.”

I said, handing him my business card.

The man hesitated before taking the card.

“Oh, and can I get your contact information?”

“Huh? Why?”

The man asked, startled like a child caught doing something wrong.

I hadn’t even asked if he still had it, but I already felt like I had found the answer.

I shrugged and replied.

“Since you come to Hwagun Reservoir often, I might need to contact you if I have any questions.”

“Ah…”

The man reluctantly gave me his phone number.

I pressed the call button right there.

The call was connecting, but I couldn’t hear any ringtone or vibration.

“What’s going on?”

“Ah, ah…! I recently changed my number, and I must have mistaken it for my old one, haha, hahahaha.”

[Lie]

The man hadn’t expected me to actually call, so he was caught giving a fake number.

The man, looking noticeably flustered, gave me the number again.

When I pressed the call button, the phone rang this time.

“If you find the watch, or if you witness someone else finding it, please report it to the police immediately.”

“Ah, yes.”

“If you don’t report it and keep it, it’s considered embezzlement of lost property. You could face up to one year in prison or a fine of less than 3 million won [approximately $2,300 USD].”

The man flinched at my words.

He’s someone who saw the pocket watch, and when I asked for his number, he gave me a completely different one.

This is suspicious.

“You don’t happen to have that pocket watch, do you?”

When I asked, the man shook his head and shouted.

“No, I told you I don’t!”

[Lie]

Found it, my watch.

“I’ll be going now. I hope you find your watch.”

The man quickly left the scene.

Kang Min-jae, also sensing something strange about the man, tilted his head and asked me.

“Why is that guy reacting so strangely?”

“I think that guy has the watch.”

“Why?”

“When I pressed the call button on the number he gave me as his old number, he looked noticeably flustered. It seems like he gave me just any number on purpose. And when I mentioned embezzlement of lost property, he flinched… It’s suspicious. Even if he doesn’t have it now, I think he’s at least involved.”

Kang Min-jae slowly nodded.

“Well, his face turning pale was a bit strange.”

“Let’s call off the search here today. Digging into that man will be better than digging in the ground here.”

I said, looking at Tae-shik’s employees who were diligently sweeping the beach with metal detectors.

* * *

I had given that man a scare with the embezzlement of lost property charge, so I often called the Hwagun Police Station to check if a pocket watch had been reported.

But the answer was always that there was no such lost item.

“Hasn’t a pocket watch been reported?”

Kang Min-jae, also curious about the news, came to my room several times a day to ask for updates.

But I had nothing to say other than that there was no progress.

I thought that persistently telling the man, ‘I know you have it, so give it back,’ could backfire, so I hadn’t called him yet.

“Lawyer, I’m going out for a bit.”

Kang Min-jae suddenly appeared and said as I was getting water from the water purifier.

“Where are you going?”

“Someone I know said they’re in front of the office and asked to meet. I’ll be back soon.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll be back.”

Kang Min-jae bowed and left the office.

* * *

He left the office and headed to a nearby cafe.

It seemed his companion hadn’t arrived yet, so he ordered two Americanos [a type of coffee] and sat down at a relatively quiet table in the back.

About 10 minutes later, the cafe door opened and Heo Min-woo appeared.

Kang Min-jae waved at Heo Min-woo.

Heo Min-woo saw it, smiled, and came closer to sit down.

“What brings you here, Lawyer Kang?”

“I have a favor to ask.”

“Is it a personal favor? I don’t see Lawyer Cha.”

Heo Min-woo said, looking around.

Kang Min-jae lowered his voice and whispered.

“I thought the lawyer wouldn’t like it, so I came out alone secretly.”

“Does the lawyer not like you leaving the office?”

“No, it’s not that. It’s our case, and he doesn’t like asking others for help…”

“Ah… I see. What is it? If it’s something I can help with, I should definitely help.”

Kang Min-jae wasn’t used to doing things behind Cha Joo-han’s back, so he glanced at the cafe entrance, worried about being caught.

“We’re looking for something right now.”

“Looking for something?”

“Yes. It’s the SD card that Lee Jung-chan left behind.”

“Lee Jung-chan, are you talking about the deceased politician Lee Jung-chan?”

Kang Min-jae nodded.

“Why are you looking for that?”

“As you know, Lee Jung-chan was originally going to hand over information about Wooshin’s corruption to our lawyer. But he was killed by Wooshin.”

“That’s right. I saw it on TV.”

“But recently, his son Lee Se-hyung asked us to visit him in prison, and he told us where the information was.”

Heo Min-woo’s eyes widened in surprise.

Kang Min-jae chuckled softly.

“I was surprised too.”

“So? Did you find the information?”

“The information is stored as an SD card inside Lee Jung-chan’s pocket watch, but it wasn’t among the items recovered. So we reported it to the police and checked the reservoir for lost items, but it’s not there. But we found out that a man picked up the watch, or somehow has it. To be exact, it’s not certain that the man has it, but there’s a high possibility.”

“Then that would be embezzlement of lost property.”

“Yes. Our lawyer also pressured the man by mentioning that, and he seemed a bit scared, but we haven’t heard from him yet.”

Heo Min-woo, listening to Kang Min-jae’s words, smiled as if he knew what favor he was going to ask.

“Then should I go and give him a good scare?”

“Yes, I would really appreciate it if you did. It’s very important information, and the lawyer seems to be worried about how to get the watch from that man. But if Officer Heo helps, it’ll be quick.”

Heo Min-woo nodded.

He had been wanting to repay Cha Joo-han for the help he had received, and this seemed like a good opportunity.

“Leave me the man’s contact information. We’ll look him up and go to his house.”

Kang Min-jae gave him the man’s contact information.

“Okay. I’ll be going then.”

Heo Min-woo wrote down the contact information on his phone, finished the remaining Americano in one gulp, and was about to get up but sat back down.

“But if I find it, what are you going to tell Lawyer Cha?”

“We’ll have him take it to the Hwagun Police Station and have them contact Lawyer Cha from there.”

“You’re smart.”

Heo Min-woo patted Kang Min-jae’s shoulder and got up.

And after they went their separate ways, he found out the man’s personal information.

His name was Lee Man-ho, and he was 49 years old.

His home wasn’t under the jurisdiction of the Gangnam Police Station, but it wasn’t far from there.

Heo Min-woo waited until 7 p.m.

Judging by Lee Man-ho’s age, he was still likely working, and he thought he wouldn’t be able to meet him if he went too early.

“I should get going now.”

“Where are you going again?”

When a fellow officer asked, Heo Min-woo ruffled his hair and replied.

“To do something rewarding.”

Heo Min-woo drove to Lee Man-ho’s house.

The traffic was heavy due to the rush hour, and it took him an hour to travel a distance that would normally take 30 minutes.

Lee Man-ho’s house was in a villa [a type of housing complex] that looked a bit old.

“This is it.”

He parked the car in a vacant parking space and went up to Lee Man-ho’s house.

And he rang the doorbell.

─Who is it?

A middle-aged woman’s voice was heard from inside.

Heo Min-woo replied in a deliberately stern voice.

“I’m from the police station.”

─The police station?

The middle-aged woman, who appeared to be Lee Man-ho’s wife, asked in surprise.

Heo Min-woo replied again.

“Yes. Could you open the door?”

Then the door opened just enough for a face to barely fit through.

“What’s the matter…?”

“Is Lee Man-ho here?”

“Yes, that’s me. Is there something wrong…?”

Lee Man-ho approached from beside the woman who had opened the door and asked.

“I’m from the police station.”

Heo Min-woo said, showing his ID.

“We received a report that Lee Man-ho acquired an expensive item and didn’t report it.”

“…….”

Lee Man-ho turned pale in an instant.

He suddenly remembered what Cha Joo-han had said at the reservoir.

[If you don’t report it and keep it, it’s considered embezzlement of lost property. You could face up to one year in prison or a fine of less than 3 million won.]

Did that lawyer report him?

If so, how did he know he had it?

It was true that he had shown a lot of embarrassment at the time, but that didn’t prove that he had the pocket watch.

Then someone else…?.

Did someone see him pick up the pocket watch?

Lee Man-ho felt his fingertips turning cold and looked at Heo Min-woo with trembling eyes.

“You may or may not know, but possessing a found item without reporting it is considered embezzlement of lost property. If you have it, give it to me now. Then I’ll let it go. There are often people who don’t know it’s a crime and don’t report their findings.”

When he first acquired the watch, he had dried it well and taken it to a gold shop.

It looked like an expensive watch, and he intended to sell it and pocket the money.

The price quoted at the gold shop at that time was 8 million won [approximately $6,000 USD], even considering it had been submerged, and Lee Man-ho was keeping the watch in order to get it appraised at another gold shop in case he could get more.

But if the police intervened, and even launched an investigation, they might find out that he had acquired the watch and even had it appraised at a gold shop.

Then he would really be guilty of embezzlement of lost property….

“I… I was too busy with work and forgot to report it. If I give it to you now, will I not be charged with that crime?”

Heo Min-woo nodded at Lee Man-ho’s question.

“Yes. Sometimes people don’t know and do that, so the watch’s owner has reported it as lost to the police, so we can return it right away. Give it to me.”

Lee Man-ho quickly went into the master bedroom and brought out the pocket watch.

And he handed it to Heo Min-woo and asked.

“If I give it to you now, I won’t be investigated separately, right?”

“It seems like you didn’t know, so I’ll let it go this once. Don’t do it again in the future.”

“Yes, yes. Of course.”

Heo Min-woo took the pocket watch and put it in a small zipper bag.

“I’ll be going now.”

“Take care.”

Lee Man-ho said, bowing.

Heo Min-woo, who came down the stairs with an indifferent expression, smiled as he looked at the pocket watch in the zipper bag.

And after getting into the car, he called Kang Min-jae.

─Officer Heo! What happened, did you find it?