After investigating the clues in the lighting room, Senichi called out to Ayako and the other two, who were waiting on the lobby sofa, to leave the hotel and prepared to take them home.
On the way to the parking lot, Senichi and Conan deliberately slowed down their pace, falling behind Ayako and Ran, and he informed Conan about the clues he found in the lighting room.
To Senichi's surprise, Conan also gained something.
While waiting in the lobby outside the banquet, Conan saw Mr. Ishimoto's secretary, Yukiko Tanaka, meeting with an unfamiliar man with long hair.
This happened shortly after assassination, Yukiko Tanaka avoided meeting the other person in the crowd, making Conan suspect that there was something hidden in this encounter.
"For now, we can't confirm the relationship between the two or whether it is related to the case," Conan pondered, stroking his chin. "But I think it's a place worth paying attention to, along with the design of the lighting room..."
"Okay, stop thinking about it and let's go quickly," Senichi grabbed Conan by the arm. "Didn't you see both of them waiting for us?"
They hurried to the car and once the three of them were seated, Senichi started the car to take Ayako and the others home.
It's worth mentioning that although Ayako was a little scared at the party, she had already calmed down with the comforting words from Ran.
And Senichi's instinctive protection of her also warmed her heart.
So before going home, Ayako deliberately smiled and cheered on Senichi, which made him feel much more relieved.
As for Ran...
Well...
She was used to encountering such situations with her dad and her detective boyfriend, so when they got out of the car and said goodbye to Ayako and Senichi, she calmly took Conan's hand and went upstairs.
She had absolutely no pressure, and her mental recovery speed was at a maximum level and there was no psychological shadow whatsoever.
When Senichi finished sending the three of them and returned to the police headquarters, it was already late.
The city outside had quieted down, but when Senichi parked the car and entered the office, it was incredibly busy inside, as if it were not already past midnight.
People were coming and going in the office, everyone with serious and focused expressions, constantly working and engaging in conversations.
Due to it being a shooting case, the situation was severe, and the police couldn't allow an armed and dangerous person to roam freely. They couldn't afford to wait leisurely to investigate the case until tomorrow.
Moreover, the victim was a well-known senator, and assassinating a senator was a big deal that shook the entire society. Tomorrow, there would definitely be news headlines about this incident, and the police would face tremendous pressure.
Time was of the essence now. The sooner they could close the case, the faster they could quell the storm.
Naturally, Senichi couldn't just stand idle. He took a file and joined the investigation.
This wasn't anything else but going through the records of previous offenders and comparing them with the person in the photo.
It was a laborious task, one that required time and patience.
In this era, inputting data or photos into a computer and relying on the system to automatically scan and compare them with the criminal database was just wishful thinking. The technology couldn't keep up. Senichi had bought his phone only recently, so he would have to wait for the convenience of "automatic comparison" in the future.
Staying up late to search through the files, after a tiring physical labor, there was finally some progress. The person in the photo matched with a former offender.
Upon hearing this news, everyone's spirits lifted. The hard work in the middle of the night had paid off. It would have been frustrating if it had been all for nothing.
The suspect's name was Shiro Hiraoka, 35 years old this year, and he was a notorious criminal with a long criminal record.
He specialized in digging up secrets of big corporations and then extorting a large sum of hush money from them.
In the underworld, it was rumored that Hiraoka was a relentless person when it came to money. When he encountered someone who could be exploited, he would never let go, even earning himself the nickname "Piranha Hiraoka."
"If that's the case, it seems that President Ishimoto isn't as clean as he claimed to be," Senichi said with a playful tone. "He said he couldn't possibly offend anyone, but a smooth stone gathers no moss."
"Ah, I'm afraid President Ishimoto was caught by Hiraoka and blackmailed by him," Officer Megure nodded thoughtfully. "Based on President Ishimoto's personality, he probably wouldn't have compromised with him. So after getting angry, he decided to retaliate, which led to the previous murder..."
Hearing this, Senichi frowned. Although it made sense on the surface, it probably wasn't as simple as it seemed.
Furthermore, since Hiraoka was a seasoned repeat offender, he naturally had extensive experience and knew how to weigh the pros and cons.
If he really killed anyone who refused, he would have become a murderer a long time ago and wouldn't be enjoying his freedom like now.
The more experienced criminals who relied on their brains valued their lives and wouldn't simply go all out for one failed business deal.
Considering the various clues he had obtained from investigating the lighting room, Hiraoka seemed more like a smokescreen.
However, these were all speculations, and perhaps Senichi could get more concrete information from Hiraoka himself after arresting him.
After obtaining information about Hiraoka, Megure immediately initiated the arrest operation.
Teams of officers searched the possible hiding places of Hiraoka, and police cars sped through the night.
However, it wasn't until the next morning that an unexpected situation occurred.
Hiraoka was dead!
In the building where he had been hiding, he accidentally missed a step and fell down the stairs, resulting in his death from a fatal head injury.
After examining the fatal wound, it was determined that he had suffered a severe blow to the head, which caused his death.
At the same time, the handgun used to assassinate the senator was also found on his body.
With such evidence, it seemed conclusive that Hiraoka was the culprit who killed Senator Takada.
With his death, it appeared that the case had come to a close.
But the more this was the case, the deeper the doubts in Senichi's heart grew.
Because everything seemed too coincidental, making the possibility of a smokescreen even greater!
Therefore, upon receiving the news of Hiraoka's death, Senichi immediately rushed to the scene to find evidence that would prove that all of this was a scheme set up by the real culprit!!
Before the incident, Hiraoka was lured to the lighting room as a scapegoat by the real culprit.
So, when the senator died, he should have realized that he had been framed and falsely accused of assassinating the senator.
In such a situation, he should have tried to obtain evidence to prove his innocence and protect himself!
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