On the morning of February 11, suspect Zhu Yan was apprehended by the police. Photo by correspondent He Jianliang.
According to a report by Beijing News (reporter Wei Hua Qian), "You may escape the first day of the lunar year, but not the fifteenth," this saying almost seemed tailor-made for Zhu Yan, aged 28. In the early hours of New Year's Day, he hit a cleaner and fled the scene in his car. However, on the ninth day of the New Year, the fugitive hunting police officers found him, arresting him on the spot. Yesterday, Chaoyang Traffic Brigade disclosed that suspect Zhu Yan has been detained, and the case is still under further investigation.
At 5:53 AM on February 3, Ji Xuecai, a 49-year-old cleaner, was pushing a three-wheeled garbage truck from Baijia Village West to Dongdaqiao Oblique Street to transport the firecracker wrappers he had just swept up. At this time, an unlicensed black Audi suddenly drove south-to-north into oncoming traffic on South Sanlitun Road in Chaoyang District, throwing both Ji and his cart into the air. The flying three-wheeled garbage cart then collided with a parked "Beetle" small passenger car. Ji fell unconscious on the spot. After the incident, the Audi driver quickly fled the scene, while Ji was sent to Chaoyang Hospital for treatment. It was diagnosed that his left tibia and fibula were fractured.
At 6:00 AM that same morning, Chaoyang Traffic Brigade received an alert from the 122 Command Center and immediately rushed to the scene to handle the situation. Subsequently, the traffic management department specifically formed a special task force, mobilizing the most elite police officers from the Accident Division of the Traffic Management Bureau and the Accident Division of Chaoyang Traffic Brigade to carry out the investigation work.
At the crime scene, the investigating officers carefully examined various suspicious remnants. From the fragments of the rearview mirror and other debris left by the offending vehicle, they determined that the offending vehicle was a brand-new black Audi "Q5" model car manufactured after December 25 of the previous year. Thus, Beijing traffic police dispatched investigators to the Audi car manufacturer in Changchun City to retrieve relevant information, while simultaneously retrieving data on all black Audi Q5 vehicles in the city from the Vehicle Management Office, and tracing the travel trajectory of the offending vehicle along its approach and escape routes by retrieving surveillance footage.
Soon, the police retrieved a large amount of surveillance footage, using up two 500G hard drives. In order to quickly find clues within it, the investigating officers worked continuously in shifts. Within three days, each officer slept at most two hours, dedicating the rest of their time to monitoring the display screens, searching for any possible clues. Finally, on the fifth day of the New Year, following the direction from which the offending vehicle approached, the officers determined the starting location of the offending vehicle as a bar near Workers' Stadium.
Subsequently, the investigating officers went to the bar, narrowing down the range of individuals related to the offending vehicle, and conducted overnight investigations on relevant individuals, gradually clarifying the circumstances of the offender and his companions. Through detailed investigations of the offender's companions, it was determined that 28-year-old local driver Zhu Yan had significant suspicion of fleeing the scene of a major accident.
On the morning of February 11, the special task force apprehended Zhu Yan in a residential area on Chaoyang North Road, and recovered the offending vehicle at an Audi repair shop in Shiba Li Dian, Chaoyang District. Inside the car, they found a temporary license plate valid until February 5.
Upon investigation, it was found that prior to the incident, suspect Zhu Yan had consumed alcohol. The victim, Ji Xuecai, was a cleaner employed by the Nan Sanlitun Community in Chaoyang District. Currently, the case is still under further investigation and handling.