Tuesday, July 26, 2005
SOLVE IT LIKE HOLMES
Note: This piece was written as my contribution for a magazine called Kshitij but some intellectuals, who call themselves the editors, had some other ideas. Since I had spent some time in composing this, so publishing it here. This is also dedicated to my IIT-M gang.
It was a dark, eerie night and the silence was broken down by screeching sound of a jeep. As detective Chubby walked into the hostel with his assistant Stony, he could feel the tension in the air. It was the first time such a crime was committed on the institute’s premises. He could see the next day’s newspaper headlines “Student found murdered in the hostel” in front of his eyes. This would lead to further repercussions in terms of the reputation of this institute. With all these thoughts running in the back of his mind, Chubby found himself standing in front of the ill-fated room no. 247, the door of which was wide open and on the floor was lying the body of Pinns. There were a few guys standing outside the room in a shocked state.
A man, who by no means looked like a student, walked up to Chubby and said in a breaking voice “Hello detective, I am the warden of this hostel. This student Pinns lived in this room and was found murdered 45 minutes ago, strangled to death”. Chubby looked at his watch; it was fifteen minutes past midnight. He looked at the deserted, dark corridor. “Are there no lights here in this part of the hostel”, he enquired.
“These tube-lights are not working for the last two days. Somebody took away their starters. We registered a complaint but no action was taken”, a heavy voice spoke from behind the detective. This was Viv, Pinns’ best friend of the past.
Till now Stony had taken a stroll in the hostel and he reached up to Chubby and said in his quirky style “There is no way an outsider could have come inside the hostel other than through the front door. I spoke to the watchman, who swears that no outsider entered the hostel after 10 PM. He has a list of all the visitors in the register. If it was done by an outsider, it was done before 10 PM”.
“But Pinns came with me from the library at 11 PM”, another voice made its way through the huddle. This was Buffy, Pinns’ neighbor.
“That means one of the students has committed this crime!!!”, exclaimed Stony with widened eyes.
“How many students live here?” asked Chubby, ruthlessly brushing aside his assistant’s excitement.
“Only ten”, said the warden, “Its summer break going on; so we don’t allow students to stay. Only final year students who are doing their projects are living here”.
“How many are living in this wing?”
“Six of us……oh I forgot now only five are living”, said Demi, the bulky guy of them all; and as always, not leaving any opportunity to pun on words.
“What about the guys in the other wings?”, said Chubby, closely examining Pinns’ body with a raised brow.
“They all went for a movie at 10 PM. They probably don’t know what has happened here. Oh God ………”, said Icy in a choked voice.
“Who found the body?”
Sandy, the guy who had not uttered a word till now, was the most stunned in the whole gang. He raised his hand as if he was sitting in a class. “I found him lying here. After he came from the library, he told me that he would bring some booze from his room and join me in 10 minutes but did not turn up for 30 minutes. I thought he passed out or something inside his room but this……..”, his voice broke and he started crying profusely.
After a brief silence, Chubby spoke, “Seems like all four of you were there inside the hostel when this happened”.
“No detective, I went to the other hostel; I had just entered the wing when Sandy shouted and collapsed on the floor after seeing the body”, Buffy was quick to interrupt. He was looking like an 80s rock star with long hairs, torn black jeans and a black tee shirt, with his muscles trying to rip the fabric apart.
“Okay then; I will take statement of each of you in the next room. Please come one by one”, asked Chubby in a stern voice of a cop.
Sandy, the frailest among the whole lot, came into the room, still fazed due to the horrific event. He spoke in a trembling voice, “When Pinns did not turn up till 11:30, I went to his room and found it bolted from inside. After knocking and shouting, I opened the door only to find pitch dark inside…………….”
“…… Opened the door!!! How can you open a door that is bolted from inside? Are you drunk?”
“No detective….. Luckily I didn’t have any money or booze today. Coming back to the door, everyone in the wing knew that Pinns’ door opened after you tap it 4-5 times at a particular spot. Nearly everyone had mastered this art. After opening the door, I tried to switch on the lights but in vain; so I went back to Demi’s room and got the emergency light. As I switched on the light, I could see him lying absolutely still. I shouted and …… and don’t know what happened after that”.
Viv: “I was working on my project the whole evening and did not come out of my room. I went to take bath at around 11:20 and saw Demi and Icy playing Age of Empires on the network in their respective rooms. In the middle of the bath, I heard a strange cry; thinking something is wrong, I ran out only to see Sandy lying on the ground outside Pinns’ room. As I tried to wake him up, I saw the body of Pinns in the dim emergency light. Suddenly I saw Buffy standing besides me …. He also came running, I think. Yeah…… I think this nerd Buffy is the main suspect. He had an aversion for Pinns from the very beginning because of grades. Last week, they had a major fight when Buffy came to know that Pinns had stolen some of the experimental results from his thesis and submitted them to the professor. This would have meant a straight A to Pinns and Buffy would have been left with a B, which in turn would have put the Gold medal in Pinns’ neck. Everyone knows that Buffy can do anything for grades”
Buffy: “I know what this cool dude Viv would have told you. He thinks I am the killer. Why will I do this? Just for the sake of some grades!!! No way. I mean….. we bickered over some issue but today Pinns apologized to me and I gave him lift on my bike from library. I forgave him and things were cool. In my opinion, Viv is the one. He had a grudge against Pinns coz his girlfriend had ditched him and went with Pinns. Viv is an emotional guy and was very upset about this and never spoke to Pinns. He even told me that he would kill Pinns whenever he got a chance. Yesterday, he saw both of them on the beach and this made him even more furious. I think he was planning this meticulously in his room all day today. He would have killed him and left the door like that. And this guy Sandy, he is always boozed…... you can’t trust whatever he says …….. sometimes he even forgets his own name.”
Demi: “I was playing AOE with Icy on the network the whole day today. I had my headphones on and same was the case with Icy, I suppose. Viv, who was acting very weirdly with his bathroom towel on, called us out. I have a strong hunch that Sandy is the killer. He has got some problem …….. I think he is mad and goes crazy when drunk. Also, he is always on the lookout for cash to buy some booze or grass. Today he must have demanded some money from Pinns, refusal of which would have led to all this. Then he must have feigned unconsciousness ….. everything is a natak.”
Icy: “This is the most unfortunate incident that has occurred in our institute. Please don’t tell this to anyone but Demi is the killer. Last week, he had a fistfight with Pinns at the swimming pool during a water-polo match. Actually it was Demi’s fault but he didn’t listen to anyone. Pinns complained to the authorities and Demi was barred from playing any game on the campus …. thankfully not computer games. From then, he swears revenge; even he keeps the names of all his enemies in Quake as ‘Pinns’ and kills them like insects. Also, around 11:15, I felt that he was not active in the game; so I went to his room only to find him walking in the corridor with a dry smile and telling “I just went to look if someone had some grub in the wing”. I suspect it is then that he must have committed this crime.”
Stony was sure that he would find some other clue in this case; so he ventured into the whole wing but everything was in vain. This was quite well-planned. He reached the main entrance to find his boss talking to the watchman. Chubby in his Sherlock Holmish style asked him, “So, what do you make of this case?”
“Very interesting case but there are lots of loose ends. Anyone of the five could have done this. The door and the windows were closed and found intact ……”
Interrupting Chubby remarked, “…… its rudimentary dear Stony. The killer is ……..”
Who do you think is the killer?? Just put on your thinking shoes Holmes-style and solve this case. Answers in the next posting.
It was a dark, eerie night and the silence was broken down by screeching sound of a jeep. As detective Chubby walked into the hostel with his assistant Stony, he could feel the tension in the air. It was the first time such a crime was committed on the institute’s premises. He could see the next day’s newspaper headlines “Student found murdered in the hostel” in front of his eyes. This would lead to further repercussions in terms of the reputation of this institute. With all these thoughts running in the back of his mind, Chubby found himself standing in front of the ill-fated room no. 247, the door of which was wide open and on the floor was lying the body of Pinns. There were a few guys standing outside the room in a shocked state.
A man, who by no means looked like a student, walked up to Chubby and said in a breaking voice “Hello detective, I am the warden of this hostel. This student Pinns lived in this room and was found murdered 45 minutes ago, strangled to death”. Chubby looked at his watch; it was fifteen minutes past midnight. He looked at the deserted, dark corridor. “Are there no lights here in this part of the hostel”, he enquired.
“These tube-lights are not working for the last two days. Somebody took away their starters. We registered a complaint but no action was taken”, a heavy voice spoke from behind the detective. This was Viv, Pinns’ best friend of the past.
Till now Stony had taken a stroll in the hostel and he reached up to Chubby and said in his quirky style “There is no way an outsider could have come inside the hostel other than through the front door. I spoke to the watchman, who swears that no outsider entered the hostel after 10 PM. He has a list of all the visitors in the register. If it was done by an outsider, it was done before 10 PM”.
“But Pinns came with me from the library at 11 PM”, another voice made its way through the huddle. This was Buffy, Pinns’ neighbor.
“That means one of the students has committed this crime!!!”, exclaimed Stony with widened eyes.
“How many students live here?” asked Chubby, ruthlessly brushing aside his assistant’s excitement.
“Only ten”, said the warden, “Its summer break going on; so we don’t allow students to stay. Only final year students who are doing their projects are living here”.
“How many are living in this wing?”
“Six of us……oh I forgot now only five are living”, said Demi, the bulky guy of them all; and as always, not leaving any opportunity to pun on words.
“What about the guys in the other wings?”, said Chubby, closely examining Pinns’ body with a raised brow.
“They all went for a movie at 10 PM. They probably don’t know what has happened here. Oh God ………”, said Icy in a choked voice.
“Who found the body?”
Sandy, the guy who had not uttered a word till now, was the most stunned in the whole gang. He raised his hand as if he was sitting in a class. “I found him lying here. After he came from the library, he told me that he would bring some booze from his room and join me in 10 minutes but did not turn up for 30 minutes. I thought he passed out or something inside his room but this……..”, his voice broke and he started crying profusely.
After a brief silence, Chubby spoke, “Seems like all four of you were there inside the hostel when this happened”.
“No detective, I went to the other hostel; I had just entered the wing when Sandy shouted and collapsed on the floor after seeing the body”, Buffy was quick to interrupt. He was looking like an 80s rock star with long hairs, torn black jeans and a black tee shirt, with his muscles trying to rip the fabric apart.
“Okay then; I will take statement of each of you in the next room. Please come one by one”, asked Chubby in a stern voice of a cop.
Sandy, the frailest among the whole lot, came into the room, still fazed due to the horrific event. He spoke in a trembling voice, “When Pinns did not turn up till 11:30, I went to his room and found it bolted from inside. After knocking and shouting, I opened the door only to find pitch dark inside…………….”
“…… Opened the door!!! How can you open a door that is bolted from inside? Are you drunk?”
“No detective….. Luckily I didn’t have any money or booze today. Coming back to the door, everyone in the wing knew that Pinns’ door opened after you tap it 4-5 times at a particular spot. Nearly everyone had mastered this art. After opening the door, I tried to switch on the lights but in vain; so I went back to Demi’s room and got the emergency light. As I switched on the light, I could see him lying absolutely still. I shouted and …… and don’t know what happened after that”.
Viv: “I was working on my project the whole evening and did not come out of my room. I went to take bath at around 11:20 and saw Demi and Icy playing Age of Empires on the network in their respective rooms. In the middle of the bath, I heard a strange cry; thinking something is wrong, I ran out only to see Sandy lying on the ground outside Pinns’ room. As I tried to wake him up, I saw the body of Pinns in the dim emergency light. Suddenly I saw Buffy standing besides me …. He also came running, I think. Yeah…… I think this nerd Buffy is the main suspect. He had an aversion for Pinns from the very beginning because of grades. Last week, they had a major fight when Buffy came to know that Pinns had stolen some of the experimental results from his thesis and submitted them to the professor. This would have meant a straight A to Pinns and Buffy would have been left with a B, which in turn would have put the Gold medal in Pinns’ neck. Everyone knows that Buffy can do anything for grades”
Buffy: “I know what this cool dude Viv would have told you. He thinks I am the killer. Why will I do this? Just for the sake of some grades!!! No way. I mean….. we bickered over some issue but today Pinns apologized to me and I gave him lift on my bike from library. I forgave him and things were cool. In my opinion, Viv is the one. He had a grudge against Pinns coz his girlfriend had ditched him and went with Pinns. Viv is an emotional guy and was very upset about this and never spoke to Pinns. He even told me that he would kill Pinns whenever he got a chance. Yesterday, he saw both of them on the beach and this made him even more furious. I think he was planning this meticulously in his room all day today. He would have killed him and left the door like that. And this guy Sandy, he is always boozed…... you can’t trust whatever he says …….. sometimes he even forgets his own name.”
Demi: “I was playing AOE with Icy on the network the whole day today. I had my headphones on and same was the case with Icy, I suppose. Viv, who was acting very weirdly with his bathroom towel on, called us out. I have a strong hunch that Sandy is the killer. He has got some problem …….. I think he is mad and goes crazy when drunk. Also, he is always on the lookout for cash to buy some booze or grass. Today he must have demanded some money from Pinns, refusal of which would have led to all this. Then he must have feigned unconsciousness ….. everything is a natak.”
Icy: “This is the most unfortunate incident that has occurred in our institute. Please don’t tell this to anyone but Demi is the killer. Last week, he had a fistfight with Pinns at the swimming pool during a water-polo match. Actually it was Demi’s fault but he didn’t listen to anyone. Pinns complained to the authorities and Demi was barred from playing any game on the campus …. thankfully not computer games. From then, he swears revenge; even he keeps the names of all his enemies in Quake as ‘Pinns’ and kills them like insects. Also, around 11:15, I felt that he was not active in the game; so I went to his room only to find him walking in the corridor with a dry smile and telling “I just went to look if someone had some grub in the wing”. I suspect it is then that he must have committed this crime.”
Stony was sure that he would find some other clue in this case; so he ventured into the whole wing but everything was in vain. This was quite well-planned. He reached the main entrance to find his boss talking to the watchman. Chubby in his Sherlock Holmish style asked him, “So, what do you make of this case?”
“Very interesting case but there are lots of loose ends. Anyone of the five could have done this. The door and the windows were closed and found intact ……”
Interrupting Chubby remarked, “…… its rudimentary dear Stony. The killer is ……..”
Who do you think is the killer?? Just put on your thinking shoes Holmes-style and solve this case. Answers in the next posting.
