“I estimate the suspect is male, around forty years old, about 1.74 meters tall, and has a bit of a hunchback.” Brian Hall spoke confidently.

“How do you know that?” Lily Turner looked puzzled.

Brian Hall pointed at the footprints on the ground.

“With just a few footprints, you can tell all that?” David Thompson was a bit skeptical.

“Brian Hall, do you know about footprint identification?” Paul Bennett guessed.

“I know a little.” Brian Hall nodded. “There’s a certain ratio between a person’s foot length and their height. If you know the length of the footprint, you can estimate the approximate height.”

“What about the age? Can you figure that out from the footprints too?” Lily Turner asked.

“Judging age is a bit more complicated. It requires a comprehensive analysis based on foot shape, stride characteristics, gait features, and so on. This involves step angle, step width, stride length, foot lift weight, pressure marks, lift marks, push-off marks, step marks, dig marks, and so forth.” Brian Hall rattled off the information as if it were engraved in his mind.

“Brian Hall, you’re throwing out so many terms, you’re making my head spin. Can you put it simply?” David Thompson was a bit confused.

“The simplest and most common method is the pressure mark judgment method. Pressure marks are closely related to gender, age, height, and body type. The younger the person, the more the forefoot’s heavy pressure area shifts forward; the older the person, the more it shifts backward and outward.” As Brian Hall spoke, he squatted down:

“Look at this footprint. The forefoot’s heavy pressure area has shifted outward and backward, the pressure is lighter in the front and heavier in the back, lighter on the inside and heavier on the outside. The heel’s pressure area is large and obvious, often showing pick and scrape marks. Based on my experience, I’d estimate the person is around forty years old.”

“So how do you know the suspect is hunchbacked?” Lily Turner asked.

“That involves the physiological characteristics of the human torso. When viewed from the side while standing upright, the head and neck should fall straight on the shoulders, and the curvature of the spine should be within the normal range. If it exceeds the normal range, it’s a hunchback, which affects walking posture and the center of gravity on the foot.” Brian Hall explained.

“So how can you tell from the footprints?”

“Mainly by analyzing the relationship between the intersection point of the forefoot’s virtual point line (the back point) and the center line of the footprint. If the back point is on the center line, the torso is normal; if it’s shifted inward, it usually means the chest is thrust out; if it’s shifted outward, it usually means a hunchback. The further outward, the more pronounced the hunchback.” Brian Hall looked every bit the academic.

“What’s a virtual point line intersection?” David Thompson still didn’t get it.

“Brian Hall, you’re being way too technical. Where did you learn all this?” Lily Turner thought back—she didn’t remember learning anything this advanced in police academy.

Whether you believe it or not, just hearing these terms sounds impressive.

“I’ve read some materials on footprint identification recently and picked up a few insights.” Brian Hall replied perfunctorily.

Paul Bennett shook his head slightly. Footprint identification is a very complex field. There aren’t any systematic textbooks yet, and it requires a lot of observation, data, and experience. If it were that easy to learn, he would have mastered it already.

Not just their criminal investigation team—even in the entire Shandong Provincial Public Security Department, there might not be many people who truly understand this skill.

You’re just a young guy, and after reading a few materials, you claim to have insights?

What a joke.

“Captain Bennett is wise. Brian Hall is still wet behind the ears, so don’t take him too seriously.”

David Thompson chuckled. It looked like he was undermining Brian Hall, but in fact, he was helping him out.

Providing false or incorrect clues means taking responsibility.

“Brian Hall’s analysis and his predictions about the suspect’s height, age, and hunchback won’t be included in the official investigation for now, but they can be used as a reference. If we come across someone who fits the description, we’ll question them.” Paul Bennett said.

“Ahem…” Brian Hall cleared his throat. This was his first time using the future police badge’s skill, and he wasn’t sure if it was reliable.

Just then, a middle-aged man hurried over. “Hello, Captain Bennett. I’m the director of Qindao Brewery, Mark Foster.”

“Mr. Foster, I was just about to ask you a few things.”

Mark Foster handed over a cigarette. “Go ahead.”

“No need for the cigarette. Don’t contaminate the scene.”

“Right, right.”

“Mr. Foster, how much exactly was stolen from your factory?” Paul Bennett asked.

“A check for eight hundred thousand, and over three hundred thousand in cash.”

“How many people work at your factory?”

“More than two hundred.” Mark Foster was taken aback. “Why do you ask?”

“Based on the current clues, the suspect is very familiar with the brewery. We suspect it might be an employee or someone who used to work here.” Paul Bennett briefly explained the situation.

“Mr. Foster, is there a high turnover rate at your factory?” Brian Hall followed up.

“Quite a few. Just this year, more than a dozen temporary workers have left.”

“With over two hundred employees, plus those who have left, it’s going to be tough to investigate.” Lily Turner sighed.

Paul Bennett frowned. This situation was indeed tricky. If it dragged on, the suspect could get rid of the stolen cash, tools, and shoes, which might break the chain of evidence and make it impossible to close the case.

“Mr. Foster, is there anyone with a hunchback at your factory?” Brian Hall asked hopefully.

Without hesitation, Mr. Foster replied, “Yes.”

“How do you remember that so clearly?”

Mark Foster stroked his chin. “A male employee who left last week had a noticeable hunchback.”