Chapter 173
Chapter 173
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 173
Chapter Title: Confrontation with Detective Hong
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"We're heading out."
The drive would take about twenty minutes.
Their destination: Namyangju South Police Station.
Vroom.
The closer they got to the station, the heavier Kang Hyun's expression became.
No matter how you sliced it, Kang Hyun was a rookie prosecutor.
These were the police he'd be dealing with for the first time as the "lead prosecutor" on the case.
There might be a bit of a power struggle, and seniority hazing was always a possibility.
Coming from another agency, he figured it would be even worse.
"If there's a power play..."
Experience and tenure deserved respect. But if anyone tried to use that as a weapon to dismiss him, he'd have to put them in their place when it came to the investigation.
"Especially Detective Team 1, led by this Team Leader Hong Tae-ho—he's got tons of experience and has been in Namyangju forever."
The guy had a reputation as the kind of station detective prosecutors dreaded most, so the worry was justified.
But if you were going to run into someone like that eventually, the best answer was to face them head-on.
Step, step.
"Prosecutor! Sir! We'll escort you right away."
"Yes, let's move."
After arriving at Namyangju South Police Station and being shown to the large Detective Division 1 office, Kang Hyun sat in the spot set aside for private meetings.
Bang!
"...?"
Ha.
Waiting in the empty room assigned to Detective Team 1, Kang Hyun couldn't help but wear the expression of someone who saw it coming.
They surely knew he was coming, but in shuffled Hong Tae-ho, looking like he'd just rolled out of bed. And not even a hint of an apology.
"Whoa, if it isn't the famous Prosecutor Kang Hyun! Coming all the way to this humble outpost."
"...Hello. I'm Kang Hyun."
"No need to come to me personally like this."
"Pardon?"
"Haha, just kidding, kidding. Let's make this work from here on out!"
He wiped sweat on his own sleeve and stuck out his hand. A wide grin showing his buck teeth.
He extended it like he was Kang Hyun's superior, with that subtly uncomfortable attitude meant to get the upper hand.
"Yes, I'm short on time, so let's get straight to business."
"Come on! You prosecutors these days... I know you, Prosecutor Kang Hyun—you're a rookie, right?"
"That's right."
"Aw, a fresh-faced chick prosecutor. I've been at this 26 years already! Twenty-six."
"..."
"I know the investigation game inside and out. Teaming up with us on this case? You're lucky. Lucky! Heh!"
Kang Hyun could read his intentions from the way Hong Tae-ho swallowed phlegm noisily, leaned back in his chair.
His "just in case" hunch had turned into "yep, called it."
Sure, this kind of behavior was common in high-stakes investigations.
But he was completely dismissing Kang Hyun, reeking of contempt for the rookie prosecutor.
"You messing with me?"
Kang Hyun wasn't the type to play along or back down.
He'd rolled in these streets plenty himself.
And with a brain several—no, dozens of times sharper than the guy sitting across from him.
"Why haven't you identified the initial driver's personal information?"
"Come on... have some sweet coffee first."
"I'll ask again. The personal information?"
"Sheesh..."
"Personal. Information."
"Sigh, yes, yes, but that's..."
Whoosh.
The documents Team Leader Hong handed over weren't the driver's info—they were vehicle registry results from the licensing office.
"The A6 is a corporate vehicle. We asked the company, and they said it was hard to check who drove it that day, so it'll take some time."
"What? That doesn't make any sense... Wasn't there a driver at the scene?"
"Well, by the time we were piecing together the accident sequence, he'd vanished. We were swamped with cleanup."
Unbelievable.
Kang Hyun's minor worry had become reality.
The bastard who caused the massive accident and fled. A dead man walking if there ever was one.
Kang Hyun fired off questions rapidly.
"So this is a hit-and-run, right? What about the vehicle?"
"It was totaled and towed to a shop, but the corporation reclaimed it."
"Can't we just get the full vehicle from the corporation as evidence?"
"They say they already scrapped it."
"...What's the corporation's name?"
"KW Construction."
"...What?"
"KW Construction. Something wrong?"
"...Wow."
KW Construction.
Of all the times for KW Construction to pop up.
Something smelled off.
No other way to put it.
Kang Hyun shook his head at the eerie coincidence and pressed Team Leader Hong Tae-ho with more questions.
"What about the black box?"
"Sorry... the A6 you mentioned had no black box data."
"...Not surprised."
Ignoring Kang Hyun's incredulity, Team Leader Hong Tae-ho continued.
"Plate 01-ga-1357, A6—looks like it was driving with the black box chip removed. Oh man, what a hassle."
"What about other vehicles?"
"Angle-wise, we can confirm it was a white A6 initially, but nothing beyond that."
"Face?"
"Not visible."
"Intersection CCTV?"
"Obscured by smoke..."
Another wave of disbelief at the investigation's progress.
"They have zero intent to push this case. I didn't think it'd be this bad."
Kang Hyun couldn't sugarcoat it anymore and asked sharply.
"Are copies of the other vehicles' black box footage ready?"
"Hmm..."
Glancing slyly, Team Leader Hong Tae-ho handed over a USB with video files. Kang Hyun took it with a grim look.
"All the footage we've secured. We'll analyze it day and night to nail down the cause... but probably nothing there."
Whether they'd deliberately wiped it or it was truly gone.
"Probably nothing there" carried all kinds of implications.
Frustration fueling his focus, Kang Hyun spun his mind faster to grasp the case.
"Right now, we've got no choice but to call it an accident from simple operator error."
In other words, the police's stance was no prosecutorial authority, so they'd send it over—and the prosecution would drop it.
"If the police send it like this, the case drags on forever."
No prosecution.
Meaning, they'd wrap it up as an unfortunate accident with no one's fault.
That wasn't why Kang Hyun had taken the case.
Just then.
Slink.
Team Leader Hong Tae-ho leaned in close to Kang Hyun, a sly half-smile like he was about to cut a deal.
"So, what do we do? Shall we send it over with a 'no prosecutorial authority' opinion for now?"
"..."
What a sorry sight. Botch the job, then bury the case. Basically saying they'd investigate leisurely if the perp ever surfaced.
The police were trying to box in the prosecutor.
Even as a newbie, how much did they underestimate him?
"Ha."
Kang Hyun couldn't hold back the rising anger and shot to his feet.
As he stood, Team Leader Hong raised an eyebrow oddly.
"...What's up?"
"Right now. Make and hang witness posters at the intersection. Or do I need to tell the support team myself?"
"No, Prosecutor."
"Right. Now."
Caught off guard, Team Leader Hong's shit-eating grin twisted.
"...We'll handle it ourselves."
"When? In a few months?"
"No, right away this week..."
"Today."
"Well..."
Kang Hyun cut off Team Leader Hong's trailing words with firm orders.
"Commission the posters first thing, and have them up by midnight tomorrow. And gather every scrap of material related to the case that comes to mind."
He was police, she was prosecutor.
Forget power plays—roles were different, and he'd overlooked that.
In this situation, the tactless Team Leader Hong flipped Kang Hyun's anger switch again.
"...Prosecutor, these things aren't as easy as you think."
Tick, with a sour face.
Boom—Kang Hyun's rage nearly exploded.
"...Seems like you're misunderstanding something."
"...Yes."
"You messing with me?"
"Pardon?"
"Answer straight."
"Well..."
Team Leader Hong looked up at Kang Hyun with wide eyes.
Finally realizing he'd picked the wrong guy, he bowed his head in regret and straightened up.
Kang Hyun glared down and enunciated clearly.
"Namyangju building collapse case. Namyangju South Station Intelligence Report No. 21."
"Why bring that up...?"
"You handled it first at Namyangju South, right?"
"..."
"Answer."
"...Didn't the prosecution dismiss it?"
"You buried it, so they did. Ignoring prosecution intel?"
"...No, what."
"Namyangju South Intel got the quickest tip this year on Police Report No. 21. It went to Detective Team 1, and you buried the intel, delaying processing. Then Prosecution Criminal Division 1 dismissed it late. You thought they wouldn't know?"
Gasp.
Team Leader Hong Tae-ho looked shocked.
Indeed. Kang Hyun had gotten the intel from Prosecutor Park Min-seong.
He remembered Police Internal Report No. 21 and used it to corner Hong Tae-ho.
As Kang Hyun's fury rose, his mind raced. Hong Tae-ho could only stare up with bulging eyes, no rebuttal.
"If you don't want accountability, investigate this properly."
"Th-that... give me a chance to explain, Prosecutor."
"Explain?"
Fire lit in Kang Hyun's eyes.
"What, did the chief tell you to bury it? Overworked, so low priority and self-closed? Or took money to boost prosecution stats? Speak up."
"...S-sorry."
"The initial driver vanished. Post-accident flight under special hit-and-run laws. Simple flight leading to victim deaths? Life or five years up. But slack off? Traffic Crimes or Homicide—send with no-pros opinion, and you're done. Know how many died?"
"...A lot."
"A lot?"
"Sorry. As team leader, I haven't fully grasped..."
"Team leader, and you don't know the case?"
"Yes."
"You messing with me?"
"Well..."
The guy had a seriously warped idea of what a team leader did.
Kang Hyun felt the urge to kick the chair out from under him, like Prosecutor Park Min-seong had taught him once, but barely held back.
Instead, he crushed him with words.
"Criminal Procedure Act Article 195: Prosecutors shall investigate suspects, facts, and evidence when deeming crime suspected. Article 196: Investigators, from chiefs down to lieutenants, receive prosecutorial direction as judicial police."
"...I know."
"Watch yourself. I'm not like those soft prosecutors obsessed with their own paths. As I said, no-pros send, and per Prosecutors' Office Act Article 4 Paragraph 2, I'll direct investigation personally. Your head rolls first—get ready."
Snap.
Kang Hyun leaned in close; Hong Tae-ho recoiled in fear.
"I'll kill you. For any bullshit."
When a prosecutor's glare poured everything into the team leader, the guy was done.
Hard to believe this veteran cop faced a rookie on his first big case.
"...My mistake... overworked, wasn't ready for you... sorry..."
Team Leader Hong kept bowing.
Kang Hyun dialed back his anger a notch and issued cold, firm orders.
"...Criminal Procedure Act Article 196 Paragraph 4: Judicial police shall promptly send investigation documents and evidence to prosecutors. Before end of business today, copy all records so far and send to Namyangju Detectives Division 1. Relay driver's ID to me the second it's known."
"Got it."
"For 01-ga-1357 A6, trace its path that day as best you can. Move now."
Whoosh!
"Sir! Investigation starting now!"
Hong Tae-ho bolted, cops trailing behind. Still unsatisfied, Kang Hyun quickly left the station.
No ID on the initial accident driver. No black box, not even the vehicle left.
The police had done absolutely nothing—blank slate.
"Truly horrific."
But coming in person was a godsend.
Their investigation was so abysmal, waiting would've meant a month or two just for suspect ID.
So his next stop: the hospital where victims were rushed on the day.
Namyangju University Hospital.
"Prosecutor, this is your stop."
"Thanks."
"But... I hear Namyangju University Hospital hasn't coordinated with the prosecutors' office beforehand."
"Yes. I'll handle it. Wait here."
"...Good to know. Understood."
Click!
Kang Hyun hopped out fast and strode to the Namyangju University Hospital reception desk. Situation wasn't great, but his mind was crystal clear.
"Can't trust the police? Handle it myself."
Kang Hyun's decision.
Time to do something solo.
Tough choice, but beyond responsibility he'd claimed, his steps didn't falter.