What an absolute moron, even I could have figured out that I had just been rejected with that sentence, and I'm absolutely dense when it comes to picking up on clues or taking hints...
Also, that female detective is a moron, too. Fumio was speculating about what she might be doing while she's been gone, of course he'd use present tense, it's not like anyone's found Kurosawa dead somewhere and she now belongs in the past...
In fact, I'd be more suspicious about Kurosawa's friends all apparently having the same story and phrasing it in the past-tense, as if they know something about her that indicates she won't be coming back anytime soon. I'd be asking myself, are they really her friend? Did they have a falling-out over something? Have they kidnapped her, sold her off, killed her, something else that would ensure she won't be coming back to school again, and that's why they all spoke in past tense?