Is That a False ID

Reminded by Kobe Ichi's words, the Bald Man suddenly recalled someone very suspicious.

This suspicious person was none other than the official named 'Rigeki Tougiban' who had come to the museum the previous day under the pretext of inspecting security measures and inquired about various safety precautions.

Of course, it was not his behavior or demeanor that raised suspicions.

Rather, it was his ID that seemed dubious!

The Bald Man suddenly remembered a detail.

The photo on Rigeki Tougiban's ID looked exactly the same as him, even their hairstyles were identical.

The problem lay with this exact resemblance.

ID photos are typically valid for several years.

How could someone's appearance match their ID photo so perfectly?

Unless the photo on the ID was just taken.

And the photo couldn't have been taken more than three days ago.

If it were just the matter of Rigeki Tougiban's photo resembling his actual appearance, the Bald Man wouldn't have been too suspicious.

After all, it was possible that Rigeki Tougiban had recently lost his old ID.

The one he showed the Bald Man yesterday was a newly issued replacement.

But the Bald Man remembered clearly.

The ID cover Rigeki Tougiban showed him was quite old, and the paper with the photo, name, and position inside was slightly yellowed, indicating it had been used for a long time.

The photo was new, taken within three days, but the ID itself was an old one that had been used for a while... what's going on?

"Fake ID!?" the Bald Man thought with a sinking feeling.

He had figured it out.

The reason he felt Rigeki Tougiban looked familiar when he saw him was because he had actually met Rigeki Tougiban before!

The person who had bumped into him at the restroom entrance and helped him up was none other than Rigeki Tougiban.

This was no coincidence.

Because when he got home that night, he discovered his police ID was missing!

That bump must have been an opportunity for Rigeki Tougiban to steal his police ID.

Piecing everything together, the Bald Man had a rough idea of what happened.

Steal a police ID, impersonate an official to obtain the museum's security measures, and then carry out the theft...

Thinking about it, the Bald Man couldn't help but swallow hard.

He never imagined the museum theft would be connected to him.

And not just connected, but deeply related, because the criminal had left right under his nose, and he had let the criminal go with his own hands.

This was a serious dereliction of duty!

At this moment, the Bald Man was agonizing over whether to reveal his findings.

If he revealed it, this was a serious mistake on his part, and because of his mistake, a major incident had occurred. Once his superiors found out, he would undoubtedly face severe consequences.

But if he didn't say anything, the chances of solving the case would be extremely slim, because this was a crucial lead. Even if he didn't say anything, the case might still be cracked, and his superiors would still find out about his serious mistake.

Sensing the Bald Man's strange expression, Kobe Ichi instinctively asked, "What's wrong? Did you think of someone suspicious?"

"I..." the Bald Man hesitated for a while, but eventually gritted his teeth and said, "Not just suspicious, I think it's him!"

Hearing this, Kobe Ichi immediately perked up. "Who?"

The next second, the Bald Man came clean.

He recounted everything that had happened that day in detail.

After listening, Kobe Ichi was stunned.

"You're saying... he first bumped into you and stole your ID, then replaced the paper inside the cover with a forged one he had prepared earlier, and immediately impersonated an official to obtain all the museum's security measures?"

This thief's audacity was truly astonishing!

But soon, Kobe Ichi was relieved.

A thief daring enough to target a museum must have a lot of nerve.

Ordinary petty thieves would be content with stealing money or phones.

Someone bold enough to plan a museum heist must be a master criminal of the highest caliber.

For such a person, nothing would seem surprising.

With this crucial lead provided by the Bald Man, the case became much easier to solve.

Kobe Ichi even wondered if they could apprehend the criminal before sunset that very day!

"Do you remember what time you encountered that criminal?"

"Around 11 AM!"

"Good, someone pull up all the surveillance footage from after 11 AM yesterday."

...

In no time, all the surveillance footage from after 11 AM the previous day was retrieved.

The Bald Man clicked the mouse, finding the footage from the camera facing the restroom entrance.

He slowly dragged the progress bar.

The footage showed him walking quickly towards the restroom, clutching his stomach.

The next second, someone came out of the restroom and bumped straight into him, knocking him to the ground.

Seeing this, the Bald Man paused the video by striking a key on the keyboard.

He pointed at the person who came out of the restroom.

Since the camera was facing the restroom door, it had captured his full face.

"It's that person!"

"Are you sure it's him?" Kobe Ichi asked.

Without hesitation, the Bald Man gave a definite reply.

"No doubt, 100% that's him. I got a good look at his face when he showed me his ID yesterday!"

Hearing this, Kobe Ichi waved his hand and told an officer nearby, "Notify the tech department to identify the person in the surveillance footage, and report back as soon as you have the results."

Then, Kobe Ichi resumed playing the video.

The subsequent footage corroborated the Bald Man's account.

Slowing down the playback, one could clearly see the police ID in the Bald Man's shirt pocket being stolen.

After stealing the ID, the person cautiously looked around, and seeing no one nearby, he hid in a corner to tamper with the ID.

Afterwards, he deceived the desk officer into giving him a tour of the museum.

And because of the ID, the officer didn't suspect him at all.

In fact, the officer spent a full half hour showing him around the museum.

"No wonder he knew the museum so well... That's a unique way of casing the place. Most people would sneak around, but you just waltzed in bold as brass and tricked an officer," Kobe Ichi said with a cold laugh.

At this point, Kobe Ichi felt that the task of solving the case was practically complete.

From the moment he saw the Bald Man's police ID being stolen on the footage, he could basically confirm that the person captured was the thief who had stolen all the museum's exhibits.

With the identity confirmed, all that remained was to make the arrest.

Arresting someone should be easy, right?

This is the information age, with surveillance cameras everywhere!

It would be difficult not to be caught on camera.

In no time, "Chief Kobe, we've identified the person in the surveillance footage. Here are all the details."

...

At the Amanzi Hotel.

"Knock, knock, knock"

A knocking sound came from the door...