Both lines of clues broke, and the case suddenly fell into a dead end.

Whose DNA data was in that condom?

This question became the key to solving the case.

The victim's phone was not found, and much of the information on the messaging apps was only stored on the phone. The police did not know how many people she contacted there.

Thus, the criminal investigation team turned their attention once more to the remaining phone numbers.

It seemed that taking shortcuts wouldn't work. Li Xiang and his team had no choice but to verify the identity of each phone number's owner the hard way, collecting their biological samples to compare their biological information.

This task was tedious, and everyone in the criminal investigation team was involved—some contacted by phone, some conducted inquiries, and some collected biological samples.

Another week passed before this task was basically completed.

What remained was to enter all their biological samples into the database, waiting for the final comparison results.

Three more days passed, and good news finally came from the database: one of the data points matched.

"Great, persistence pays off; the case is finally coming to light."

Zhou Man happily brought the comparison results to the office. The person who last interacted with the victim was finally revealed.

"Zhang Lihui, a taxi driver, 37 years old this year."

"This person is highly suspicious. Request an arrest warrant."

"Yes."

The criminal investigation team immediately split into two groups. One group immediately used the taxi company's vehicle location system to lock onto the car Zhang Lihui was driving, while the other group promptly applied for an arrest warrant. Once they pinpointed the suspect Zhang Lihui's exact location, they would immediately apprehend him.

Because strong evidence of Zhang Lihui's biological sample was found at the crime scene, the arrest warrant was quickly approved.

Li Xiang's side also quickly pinpointed Zhang Lihui's location through the taxi company's positioning system. The criminal investigation team immediately notified the traffic police team to intercept Zhang Lihui's vehicle while they headed for the target area.

At this time, Zhang Lihui seemed unaware that he was already being watched by the police. After dropping off a passenger, he was intercepted by several police cars, forced to stop by the roadside.

"Comrades, I'm just driving a taxi. I didn't do anything wrong, did I?"

"Whether you did something wrong, you'll find out once the criminal police come over."

About ten minutes later, Li Xiang and his team arrived, taking over Zhang Lihui from the traffic police, while also seizing his vehicle.

Before seizing his vehicle, Mao Ji and his team conducted a routine inspection of the taxi and found a bundle of nylon rope in the trunk.

"Li Xiang, come and see."

Upon hearing this, Li Xiang came to the trunk and immediately recognized the bundle of nylon rope: "This rope seems to be the same as the one on the victim's neck."

"I think so too. Let's take it back for testing."

This discovery further increased Zhang Lihui's suspicion. He was also taken back to the detention center.

Li Xiang and his team did not immediately interrogate him but sent the bundle of nylon rope for laboratory analysis.

The analysis results came out quickly,

The nylon rope found in Zhang Lihui's taxi and the one around the victim's neck were made of the same material.

The analysis result immediately reassured everyone. Li Xiang, holding the two analysis results, calmly walked into the interrogation room.

"Officer, is there some mistake? Why are you arresting me?"

Zhang Lihui had previously received a call from the police to come and assist with the investigation. He came, and this time was directly arrested, leaving him clueless about what had happened.

"Don't you know what you've done?"

"I really don't know!"

Seeing that Zhang Lihui would not admit his guilt until the evidence was undeniable, Mao Ji said, "Still being stubborn, I'll give you a hint: Where were you and what were you doing at 10 PM on April 25th?"

Upon hearing Mao Ji's reminder, Zhang Lihui thought for a moment and then was suddenly shocked: "I... It's not my fault; she asked to settle the fare with her body."

"Still making excuses. Do you recognize this bundle of nylon rope?"

"I recognize it. Miao Xiuhui put it in my car."

Mao Ji, hearing him still making excuses at this moment, was furious. He slapped the table and said, "Still making excuses at this time? I see you have no remorse at all. Did Miao Xiuhui have a death wish, giving you a rope to strangle her?"

"What? Miao Xiuhui is dead?" Upon hearing the news of Miao Xiuhui's death, Zhang Lihui was a bit surprised, then seemed to realize something: "No wonder she didn't respond to me."

But then, his expression changed again. In just a few seconds, his expression went from confused to shocked, then to understanding, and finally to anxious as he said, "Are you suspecting me of murder? I didn't kill anyone; I'm innocent. Officer, you have to believe me."

"We only believe in science. The forensic autopsy report shows that the victim's time of death was between 10 PM and 12 AM on April 25th. The cause of death was mechanical asphyxiation, and the murder weapon was a section of nylon rope, the same material as the one found in your car. How do you explain this?"

Many criminal suspects remain tight-lipped even in the face of overwhelming evidence, still claiming to be innocent.

Mao Ji had seen many such people and had become accustomed to it.

"I'm innocent. What on earth happened?"

"We're asking you. What on earth happened? Confess for leniency, confront for severity."

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