[Konnie] A Playful Puzzle

[Konnie]

This puzzle idea came to me last night when I was thinking of various crime scenarios for a story I'm working on. Hopefully that means it's creative, and not too easy.[\i]

[i]In a small town, five men are murdered identically within two days. Sheriff Gwen Jocko can find no connection; the men differed in race, age, and occupation. After weeks of investigating, another town resident Billy makes a smart observation at work and finally connects the victims. Through this, the Sheriff discovers motive, and everyone is shocked by the culprit's identity.

[old_wombat]

Well, having a bit of a criminal mind myself, I would say that the murderer is practicing his method and thus deliberately choosing unrelated victims. I would therefore warn Sheriff Jocko (who thinks of these names?) that the real "production" victim is yet to occur; and that he will also be seemingly unrelated to the previous five.

[Sundowner]

Would it help to identify the exact occupation of the town resident? Does he work for the government? In the law enforcement? Is he involved in the investigation himself?
Does he find a connection between the victims? or between some of them? Did he know some of the victims personally?
Relevant that it is a small town? Were the victims residents of that town? Did they live there already quite a while? Did their parents live there?
Are relatives of the victims (in particular, ancestors?) in any way relevant?
Did the murderer plan to kill exactly these five people? Was his motive: revenge? money? to get rivals out of the way?

[Mimino]

As you called it a "playful puzzle" .. is "playing" (in any possible meaning) relevant here?
Is any of the involved people, including the victims: a sportsman? a gambler? a theatre actor? a musician?

[Konnie]

Well, having a bit of a criminal mind myself, I would say that the murderer is practicing his method and thus deliberately choosing unrelated victims. No. I would therefore warn Sheriff Jocko (who thinks of these names?) Haha, I did. I always thought it was a funny last name. that the real "production" victim is yet to occur; and that he will also be seemingly unrelated to the previous five. No more will be murdered. Good thinking though.

Would it help to identify the exact occupation of the town resident? YesDoes he work for the government? Yes, and I'll get it out of the way that the murderer's female. In the law enforcement? Is he involved in the investigation himself? No.
Does he find a connection between the victims? Yes. or between some of them? Did he know some of the victims personally? Possibly,at least they knew of her. Relevant that it is a small town? SomewhatWere the victims residents of that town? Yes Did they live there already quite a while? Irrel Did their parents live there? Irrel
Are relatives of the victims (in particular, ancestors?) in any way relevant? No
Did the murderer plan to kill exactly these five people? YesWas his motive: revenge? No money? Partly to get rivals out of the way? No

As you called it a "playful puzzle" .. is "playing" (in any possible meaning) relevant here? Not really "playing". I would say the title isn't very helpful until we get more info.
Is any of the involved people, including the victims: a sportsman? a gambler? a theatre actor? a musician? No

[old_wombat]

Aha, much progress.
Is Billy a he or a she? wot about Gwen? Is that relevant to either, in the sense that would either of them being men had made any difference to the speed or the discovery of the murderer/motive?
Is the method of the murders relevant?
Is there something "special"about Billy that enabled her to make the smart observation?
Is the "shock" of the murderer's identity related to her occupation?
Is it worth exploring the hidden relationship between the five victims?
Will they ultimately be found to be "the same" or "similar" in some way that we haven't thought of yet?
Does any of this relate to any event that has happened in the past?
If we were to look at or talk to the five victims (well before they were killed, obviously), Billy, Gwen, or the murderer, would we notice anything unusual about them? Or about the town itself? (I always think of the possibility that these things are set in a Twilight Zone kind of place).

[Konnie]

Aha, much progress.
Is Billy a he or a she? He wot about Gwen? She Is that relevant to either, in the sense that would either of them being men had made any difference to the speed or the discovery of the murderer/motive? Probably not.
Is the method of the murders relevant? No, let's just assume they were shot.
Is there something "special"about Billy that enabled him to make the smart observation? Yes
Is the "shock" of the murderer's identity related to her occupation? Yes
Is it worth exploring the hidden relationship between the five victims? YES, although thinking of it as a "relationship" may be misleading."
Will they ultimately be found to be "the same" or "similar" in some way that we haven't thought of yet? Similar, yes.
Does any of this relate to any event that has happened in the past? Yes
If we were to look at or talk to the five victims (well before they were killed, obviously), Billy, Gwen, or the murderer, would we notice anything unusual about them? Probably not. If you discussed a certain topic with the victims (and they were comfortable with you) you might be able to see their connection. Or about the town itself? No (I always think of the possibility that these things are set in a Twilight Zone kind of place). Haha, nothing supernatural here.

[JuifErrant]

Was the special thing that enabled Billy to make the observation connected to his job? Did he possess some particular knowledge? About the victims? About people in general? Did he know something about the victims because he (as a part of his job) handled some personal items of theirs? (Like, for example, a postman who delivered their letters and would know with whom they were communicating)

Is the thing that unites the victims some common experience they had? A common acquaintance? Did they share some relevant views on a controversial question? If it was some common experience, was the murderer involved in it?

Did the murderer profit from the murder? Could only that particular person profit from it? Or would anyone profit from committing that criminal act?

[Sundowner]

Did I get it right that the town resident who gave the information to Gwen was female? or the murderer? or are they the same person?
Did the town resident find out a connection between the five victims? or just find out something that helped Gwen to establish the connection?
Does the town resident (may we call him/her Alex) work with public (or other) records or registers of people? if so: did he/she find the information there?
Am I right that the five victims (or some of them) are not related to each other by blood? not even unknowingly?
Does the connection something have to do with the circumstances of the birth of the victims? or with some event during their childhood? schools they attended relevant? earlier or current occupations? hobbies? friends/acquantances? places they visited?
Were these people killed to cover another crime? Were they (possible) witnesses of a crime?

[Konnie]

Was the special thing that enabled Billy to make the observation connected to his job? Yes Did he possess some particular knowledge? Yesish About the victims? Yes About people in general? Did he know something about the victims because he (as a part of his job) handled some personal items of theirs? Yes (Like, for example, a postman And yes! who delivered their letters and would know with whom they were communicating)

Is the thing that unites the victims some common experience they had? Yope A common acquaintance? No Did they share some relevant views on a controversial question? No If it was some common experience, was the murderer involved in it? Yesish
Did the murderer profit from the murder? Yes Could only that particular person profit from it? Most likely Or would anyone profit from committing that criminal act? Most likely not.


Did I get it right that the town resident who gave the information to Gwen was female? Billy the postman (male, but irrel) gave the information. or the murderer? No or are they the same person? No, and we can name the murderer Mary for more convenience.
Did the town resident find out a connection between the five victims? Yes or just find out something that helped Gwen to establish the connection? The connection established
Does the town resident work with public (or other) records or registers of people? if so: did he/she find the information there? See above answers.
Am I right that the five victims (or some of them) are not related to each other by blood? Correct not even unknowingly?
Does the connection something have to do with the circumstances of the birth of the victims? or with some event during their childhood? schools they attended relevant? earlier or current occupations? hobbies? Thisish, no to others. friends/acquantances? places they visited?
Were these people killed to cover another crime? No, but very OTRT. Were they (possible) witnesses of a crime? No, but very OTRT.

[JuifErrant]

Did the victims witness some incident involving Mary? Was she trying to erase evidence for her involvement in that incident? Did the victims learn something unpleasant about Mary, and she was trying to make sure that no one else learns about it?

Did all the victims write letters to a particular person? Receive letters from a particular person? Was that person Mary? Were the victims trying to blackmail Mary?

[Mimino]

Did the victims order things by mail? Did they regularly receive parcels from mail order companies?
Did Billy make the conclusions that finally led him to report to Gwen after the victims died? already before? were his observations completely unrelated to the victims' death? (i.e. would he have reported the same thing to Gwen also if the victims were still alive?)
Does Billy know at all that these people are dead? that they were murdered?
Were the victims criminals?
The hobby the victims shared, can it be described as: sport? gaming? collecting? arts/culture related? outdoor activity? something one can do alone?
Did the victims meet regularly? for reasons related to their hobby?

[old_wombat]

Hmm, if Billy is the postman and he discovered the links, then obviously Mary the Postmistress becomes a logical suspect.

[Konnie]

Did the victims witness some incident involving Mary? Yope, they didn't yet witness it. Was she trying to erase evidence for her involvement in that incident? Yes Did the victims learn something unpleasant about Mary, and she was trying to make sure that no one else learns about it? Yesish, they didn't yet know it.

Did all the victims write letters to a particular person? Receive letters from a particular person? Was that person Mary? Were the victims trying to blackmail Mary? No to all


Did the victims order things by mail? Yes Did they regularly receive parcels from mail order companies? Yesish
Did Billy make the conclusions that finally led him to report to Gwen after the victims died? Yes already before? He may have noticed it before, but wouldn't have thought much of it. were his observations completely unrelated to the victims' death? (i.e. would he have reported the same thing to Gwen also if the victims were still alive?) No
Does Billy know at all that these people are dead? Yes that they were murdered? Yes
Were the victims criminals? Irrel
The hobby the victims shared, can it be described as: sport? gaming? collecting? This is closest. arts/culture related? outdoor activity? something one can do alone?
Did the victims meet regularly? No for reasons related to their hobby? No, and considering it a hobby could be misleading.


Hmm, if Billy is the postman and he discovered the links, then obviously Mary the Postmistress becomes a logical suspect. No, and remember Mary is involved in politics.

[RedWine]

Did Mary do anything else to victims, apart of having murdered them? Did she take their mail? Was their mail stamped with particularly valuable stamps? Did the victims collect stamps?

[JuifErrant]

Did the victims all order similar items for their collections? And these items contained the unpleasant evidence about Mary? Relevant how Mary learned about that? Was the information contained in those items dangerous for Mary's political career?

Did the victims collect art? Postcards? Coins? Books?

Is there a relevant relationship between Billy and Mary?

[Konnie]

Did Mary do anything else to victims, apart of having murdered them? Yes Did she take their mail? Not all of it. Was their mail stamped with particularly valuable stamps? No Did the victims collect stamps? No


Did the victims all order similar items for their collections? Yes, and it's possible they didn't all actually keep the items. And these items contained the unpleasant evidence about Mary? Yes Relevant how Mary learned about that? Somewhat. Was the information contained in those items dangerous for Mary's political career? Yes

Did the victims collect art? Noish, I guess it might DOYD. Postcards? Coins? Books? This is closest, we're skipping an obvious one.

Is there a relevant relationship between Billy and Mary? No

[biograd]

You said money was involved as a motive, so had Mary been involved in some type of corruption? Had she embezzled money? committed some type of fraud?

The type of thing that the victims collected, does it consist of pages with writing on them? If so, is the writing fiction? nonfiction? Is it a form of journalism?

[Konnie]

You said money was involved as a motive, Only in that her career and thus her money would have been threatened.so had Mary been involved in some type of corruption? Noish Had she embezzled money? No committed some type of fraud? No

The type of thing that the victims collected, does it consist of pages Yes with writing on them? I think with little writing. If so, is the writing fiction? nonfiction? Any writing would be this. Is it a form of journalism? I don't think anyone considers it as much, but OTRT.

[old_wombat]

Gosh. Some writing, some pages, maybe art, overlooking an obvious collectible closest to "books". Where to go from here?

Photographs, possibly with descriptions or inscriptions or dedications?

I can't get past photographs containing Mary (and possibly but not necessarily the victims), that in themselves are totally innocuous, but later become significant enough to murder for. For example, they show that she was at place X at time Y when she shouldn't have been, or that she was with someone that she should not have been. Jeb Zagruder comes to mind

I'm also thinking that the five victims, Mary and Billy were at an "event", where these photos were taken, and that is all that they had in common.

Magazines, Periodicals, Comics?

Some kind of advertising or religious brochures?

[Konnie]

Gosh. Some writing, some pages, maybe art, overlooking an obvious collectible closest to "books". Where to go from here?

Photographs, Yes possibly with descriptions probably with these or inscriptions or dedications?

I can't get past photographs containing Mary Yes!(and possibly but not necessarily the victimsNo), that in themselves are totally innocuous And no., but later become significant enough to murder for. For example, they show that she was at place X at time Y when she shouldn't have been, or that she was with someone that she should not have been. Jeb Zagruder comes to mind

I'm also thinking that the five victims, Mary and Billy were at an "event", where these photos were taken, and that is all that they had in common. No

Magazines This!, Periodicals, Comics?

Some kind of advertising or religious brochures? No

[old_wombat]

Hmm. Photos of Mary in a magazine.

Showing her doing something that she shouldn't have been doing? In a place she should not have been? Destroying her alibi for another crime?

Is the nature of the magazine relevant? Eg ... A for-sale-to-everyone like "New Idea" (or as we say in Oz, "No Idea") or "National Enquirer"? A club magazine for members only? A subscription magazine for a fairly narrow common interest? A hobby magazine that many people buy just for the advertising?

Given Mary is into politics, is it a magazine of a political nature? LIke a Party magazine? And the five victims were of the same Party?

Is she doing or saying something in the magazine that might be acceptable elsewhere, but not acceptable in this little town? I'm thinking along the lines of something along the lines of say an anti-smoking statement that might not go down very well in a town that relies on growing tobacco for town employment.




I'm not seeing any kind of path forward from here. Are we ultimately trying to figure out who Mary is? Are we trying to guess ... her occupation? Her location (ie, lives in this town, or elsewhere?)

[Konnie]

Hmm. Photos of Mary in a magazine.

Showing her doing something that she shouldn't have been doing? Yesish In a place she should not have been? No Destroying her alibi for another crime? No

Is the nature of the magazine relevant? Yes! Eg ... A for-sale-to-everyone like "New Idea" (or as we say in Oz, "No Idea") or "National Enquirer"? A club magazine for members only? A subscription magazine for a fairly narrow common interest? Thisish, but not too narrow I don't think. A hobby magazine that many people buy just for the advertising?

Given Mary is into politics, is it a magazine of a political nature? No LIke a Party magazine? And the five victims were of the same Party?

Is she doing or saying something in the magazine that might be acceptable elsewhere, but not acceptable in this little town? Eh, most places probably don't find it acceptable. I'm thinking along the lines of something along the lines of say an anti-smoking statement that might not go down very well in a town that relies on growing tobacco for town employment. No, OTWT.




I'm not seeing any kind of path forward from here. Are we ultimately trying to figure out who Mary is? Are we trying to guess ... her occupation? I'll just say she's the mayor. Her location (ie, lives in this town, or elsewhere?) The nature of the magazine, and why she was in it.

[JuifErrant]

Is the thing Mary was doing on the photos generally considered unacceptable for politicians, but not for "mere mortals"? For everybody, regardless of occupation? Is it related to religion? Morality? Tolerance? Would the action be considered unacceptable by itself, or only in combination with something else about Mary? Which only a resident of the town would know?

Was the magazine about science? Culture? History? Travel? Cuisine? Gaming? Fashion? Did the magazine explicitly point out that the woman on the photo in question was in fact Mary, mayor of a small town?

[Konnie]

Is the thing Mary was doing on the photos generally considered unacceptable for politicians, Yes but not for "mere mortals"? For everybody, regardless of occupation? There are those who do this and are probably comfortable, but I think the average person would find it taboo at best, unacceptable at worst. Is it related to religion? Morality? Many find it morally wrong.Tolerance? Would the action be considered unacceptable by itself Yes, or only in combination with something else about Mary? No Which only a resident of the town would know? No

Was the magazine about science? Culture? History? Travel? Cuisine? Gaming? Fashion? None of these really. We're still skipping it.Did the magazine explicitly point out that the woman on the photo in question was in fact Mary, Yes mayor of a small town? No, explore.

[old_wombat]

Hmm. So Mary was photographed doing something from which she profited, specifically as mayor of a small town, but no fraud or embezzlement, that the average person would find taboo or unacceptable. Let's see how wide a net we can cast. Does her activity involve:

human sexuality?
polarisation of humanity along financial lines (eg, benefiting the rich at the expense of the poor)?
morally questionable business dealings?
treatment of animals?
environmentalism?
religious practice?
abuse of political power?
denigration or betrayal of the town and/or its people?
benefiting her personally at the expense of the town?
nothing actually "wrong", merely embarrassing or humiliating to the town/people?


Had she not murdered these five people, what would Mary have anticipated that they most likely would have done with the information?

SImply been personally outraged and left it at that? (that doesn't seem like a motive for murder)
Spread the information to the rest of the town?
Lobbied to have her removed as mayor BUT no other consequences for her?
had her removed as mayor, and then other consequences?
Gone to the police or other law authorities? (recalling that there was no fraud or embezzlement)

[JuifErrant]

Was this perhaps an adult magazine? And Mary was on one of the NSFW pictures in it? And it did not identify her as the mayor of that town, but the residents of the town reading the magazine would know who Mary is, so Mary killed them in order to keep her secret?

[Konnie]

Hmm. So Mary was photographed doing something from which she profited Only financially., specifically as mayor of a small town, but no fraud or embezzlement, that the average person would find taboo or unacceptable. Let's see how wide a net we can cast. Does her activity involve:

human sexuality? Yes
polarisation of humanity along financial lines (eg, benefiting the rich at the expense of the poor)?
morally questionable business dealings?
treatment of animals?
environmentalism?
religious practice?
abuse of political power?
denigration or betrayal of the town and/or its people?
benefiting her personally at the expense of the town?
nothing actually "wrong", merely embarrassing or humiliating to the town/people?


Had she not murdered these five people, what would Mary have anticipated that they most likely would have done with the information?

SImply been personally outraged and left it at that? (that doesn't seem like a motive for murder)
Spread the information to the rest of the town? Yes
Lobbied to have her removed as mayor BUT no other consequences for her? Possibly
had her removed as mayor, and then other consequences? Possibly.
Gone to the police or other law authorities? Probably not. (recalling that there was no fraud or embezzlement)


Was this perhaps an adult magazine? Yes! And Mary was on one of the NSFW pictures in it? Yes! And it did not identify her as the mayor of that town, but the residents of the town reading the magazine would know who Mary is, so Mary killed them in order to keep her secret? Yes!

Nice work! There's one small detail not very important since we've got most of the info. Would we like to try for it or just sp0!l?

[old_wombat]

So. She is the mayor of a small town. Posed topless for Playboy. Earned twenty five grand for doing so. Then had second thoughts and decided it was not a good idea and not worth the money. So she killed the five guys in town who subscribe to Playboy. How sordid. Sounds like an episode of "Days of our Lives" or maybe the Six o'Clock News. What WAS she thinking?

The only question that seems to be outstanding was why she did this. Was it the money? Prestige? Feminine vanity?

[Mimino]

Were these five people the only ones in town who are reading the magazine in which Mary appears?
And we have to find out how Mary found out their names?
Is it a wide-spread magazine that one can buy at any shop or newsstand?
Or something that is distributed only by mail order?

[Konnie]

I've decided since we have the vast majority of information, I will just sp0!l it. The only remaining detailwas how she knew she'd be in the magazine, which shall be explained in the...

SPOILER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*****************************************************************************************************************************

Way back in the day, when Mary was a fun-loving party girl, she did a bit of posing for an issue of Playboy (or any adult magazine.) When she became mayor, she figured no one would ever find out since it was so long ago. Then to her horror, one day she recieved a letter from Playboy. They were publishing a special throwback issue and had decided to use one of her shots as the cover. Terrified any subscribers in town would either blackmail her or have her removed from office, she quickly used her political powers to check who subscribed. Finding only five such men, she casually visted them within two nights and shot each one.

Afterward, Billy the postman was given the duty of deleting each man's magazine/newsletter subscriptions. He noticed the connection, and figuring it was nothing but also knowing the police had little to go on, he told Sheriff Jocko. She followed the unlikely lead after realizing each man's Playboy was not with the rest of their mail. After a quick Google search she saw the cover and the chips fell into place.

I should mention I'mm NOT writing a soap opera haha. My original story actually has more supernatural elements to it, but that seemed too complicated and unneccessary here. Great work, everyone!

[Solong]

Good puzzle, but it must be a really small town if it doesn't have a newsstand somewhere in town.

[Konnie]

Haha, very true. But the town I live in has no newstands!

[irishelk]

Your narrator could even mention that in the beginning, "A town too small for a newsstand, where most residents had an internet connection but weren't really sure what to do with it..."