latelenovela Chapter 1376 Some Discoveries from the Anatomy
Chapter 1376 Some Discoveries from the Anatomy
The difficulty in solving this case far exceeded expectations. But the more complex the case, the more patience and meticulousness are required. He believes that as long as he focuses on the crime scene and relies on physical evidence, he will definitely find a breakthrough and bring the suspect to justice.
At 11:50 a.m., the hearse carrying the unidentified male corpse from the cornfield smoothly drove into the Forensic Identification Center of the Municipal Criminal Investigation Detachment. It was midday, and the corridor of the identification center was unusually quiet, with only the soft sound of the hearse wheels rolling over the ground. Forensic pathologist Zhang Lin was already dressed in full sterile autopsy gear, a light blue surgical gown covered by a waterproof apron, and a protective mask concealing most of his face, revealing only his sharp eyes. His assistant, Xiao Lin, was methodically preparing the autopsy instruments. On the instrument carts on both sides of the autopsy table, scalpels, hemostats, bone saws, measuring cups, and other instruments were neatly arranged. The ultraviolet disinfection lamps had just been turned off, and a faint smell of disinfectant still lingered in the air.
"Xiao Lin, first conduct the basic information collection before the external examination of the body, and record the general condition of the corpse." Zhang Lin's voice came through the protective mask, calm and clear. Xiao Lin immediately stepped forward and assisted Zhang Lin in removing the body from the body bag and placing it on a stainless steel autopsy table with a ruler. The body was still in the prone position when it was found at the scene, the blue overalls shirt and black trousers were covered with mud, and there were obvious tear marks on the collar and cuffs of the clothing, which was completely consistent with the scene investigation record.
"The deceased was male, estimated to be between 35 and 45 years old, 175cm tall, and weighing approximately 68kg." Xiaolin held a ruler and measured and recorded each part. "A large amount of soil was visible on the body surface, mainly concentrated on the chest, abdomen, limbs, and back. The clothing was tightly attached to the skin, and some soil had seeped into the clothing fibers. Rigor mortis had spread to all major joints, with a strength of level 4. The jaw, elbow, and knee joints were completely immobilized and could not be moved. Lividity was located on the back, buttocks, and back of the limbs, and was dark purplish-red in color. It did not fade when pressed, and no new livor mortis formed after changing the body position."
Zhang Lin nodded slightly, signaling Xiao Lin to continue. He then picked up a magnifying glass and carefully examined the body's surface features. "The cornea is severely cloudy, the pupil is dilated to 5mm in diameter, and the light reflex is completely absent; the conjunctiva of the eyelids is pale, with no bleeding points; the oral mucosa is cyanotic, the gums are undamaged, the teeth are neatly arranged, with no missing teeth, cavities, or obvious signs of tooth wear, so we cannot determine the specific age based on the teeth for the time being," Zhang Lin said as he observed. "Examine the body's surface for any obvious injuries, focusing on areas where fatal wounds might be present."
Xiao Lin immediately and gently wiped the dirt off the body with sterile saline solution, being careful not to disturb any traces. When she reached the chest, she suddenly stopped: "Teacher Zhang, there's something unusual here! There's an irregular wound about 3cm lateral to the left nipple on the deceased's chest!" Zhang Lin immediately leaned forward, focusing her gaze on the wound. After cleaning, the wound was clearly visible: it was about 3.5cm long and 1.2cm wide, with neat edges, one blunt and one sharp corner, smooth walls, no tissue bridging, and a small amount of dark purplish-red subcutaneous hemorrhage about 0.3cm wide around the wound.
“Typical characteristics of a sharp instrument wound,” Zhang Lin said confidently. “One corner of the wound is blunt, the other sharp, indicating that the weapon used was a single-edged sharp instrument, such as a dagger or fruit knife; the wound wall is smooth with no interstitial bridging, ruling out lacerations caused by blunt instruments; there is a subcutaneous hemorrhage zone around the wound, suggesting it was an injury sustained before death. Measure the depth of the wound.” Xiao Lin immediately picked up a probe and carefully inserted it into the wound. “The depth is about 8cm, and the probe can reach the tissue inside the chest cavity.” Zhang Lin added, “Note the direction of the wound; it slopes downwards and inwards, at an angle of about 30 degrees to the horizontal plane. This is valuable for determining the suspect’s position at the time of the crime and their height.”
The two then continued examining the rest of the body, finding no other obvious fatal wounds. However, they discovered two abrasions on the inner side of the victim's right forearm, measuring 2cm and 1.5cm in length respectively, with irregular, strip-like edges, presumably injuries sustained in resistance. "These two abrasions are fresh and formed around the same time as the chest wound, indicating that the deceased had engaged in a struggle with the suspect and attempted to resist," Zhang Lin stated. "We extracted exfoliated cells from the abrasion sites, sealed them, and sent them to the technical department for DNA testing."
After the external examination of the cadaver was completed, Zhang Lin signaled to Xiao Lin to begin the dissection. "Following standard dissection procedures, we'll begin with the thoracic cavity, focusing on the intrathoracic injuries corresponding to the chest wounds." Holding a scalpel, Zhang Lin made a Y-shaped incision along the midline of the cadaver's chest, from the suprasternal notch to the pubic symphysis. The blade made a slight "slicing" sound as it cut through the skin. The subcutaneous fat was approximately 1.8 cm thick, pale yellow in color, and showed no abnormal bleeding. He then dissected the subcutaneous tissue and pectoralis major and pectoralis minor muscles layer by layer, exposing the sternum and ribs. "No sternal fracture. There is slight subperiosteal hemorrhage at the wound location on the left 5th and 6th ribs, but no bone fracture," Zhang Lin noted as he dissected.
After sawing open the sternum and left ribs with a bone saw, the internal structures of the thoracic cavity were fully exposed. "There is a large amount of blood and blood clots in the left thoracic cavity, about 1500ml, while there is no blood in the right thoracic cavity." Zhang Lin gently picked up a blood clot with hemostatic forceps. "The blood clot is dark red and partially coagulated, consistent with hemorrhagic shock before death. Examine the heart and lungs." The left lung was slightly reduced in size due to compression from the blood, but there was no obvious damage to the surface; the heart was located on the left side of the thoracic cavity, the pericardium was intact, and after cutting it open, a small amount of blood was also visible in the pericardial cavity. There was a tear in the anterior wall of the left ventricle, corresponding to the location of the wound on the body surface, the tear was about 2.5cm x 1cm in size, and the edges were neat.
"The fatal wound has been found." Zhang Lin's tone was grave. "A single-edged sharp weapon pierced the left side of the chest, penetrating the chest wall and pericardium, and ruptured the left ventricle, causing a ruptured heart and massive blood loss, resulting in death. This perfectly matches the characteristics of the external wound. The preliminary cause of death is determined to be hemorrhagic shock due to a ruptured heart." Xiao Lin immediately recorded: "Cause of death: Rupture of the left ventricle due to a single-edged sharp weapon, resulting in hemorrhagic shock."
"Next, we will perform an abdominal dissection to check for any damage to the abdominal organs and estimate the time of death based on the stomach contents." Zhang Lin continued the procedure. After opening the abdominal cavity, there was no blood or fluid accumulation. The liver, spleen, kidneys, and other solid organs were normal in shape, without rupture or damage. Upon opening the stomach cavity, there was a small amount of semi-digested food residue, about 100g, mainly consisting of rice, vegetables, and a small amount of meat scraps. The stomach wall mucosa was smooth, without bleeding, ulcers, or signs of poisoning.
"The stomach contents are moderately digested; the food has partially liquefied, but its original form can still be identified," Zhang Lin analyzed.