This information is made public under North East Somerset Police Service’s new community initiative: Justice Is a Shared Story – Let’s Write It Together
Read the B&NES Beacon article about it here!
Department:
Exceptional Cases
CRIME:
MURDER
Case Officer:
Detective Inspector
Permission:
Public view
CASE IDENTIFIER: 42/7A/LIBRARY AKA:
We’ve got a case here as twisty as an acrobatic snake. We need your help.
Yesterday morning a young Librarian was murdered on the Mobile Library. If you put it in a book no-one would believe it! Poisoned, no less. Unfortunately, our poisons expert is currently away on a rare-frog spotting holiday in the Amazon, so we don’t yet know how the poison got into the Librarian’s system – it could have been swallowed, inhaled, or even sprayed onto his skin.
My people have been under every stone and turned every page in the place, and we’ve narrowed it down to 6 Suspects. A rum bunch they are too, more rum than a shipful of pirates. Now we need you to go through the evidence and find out which one of them committed the crime!
Good Luck!
Use the tabs to view the files on the victim and the suspects, hidden within are the clues you need to work out who committed murder! (And who didn’t.) For a conviction, we need to know: who the murderer is, and what their motive was. Enter these on the ‘Solution’ tab to see if you’ve got it right!
The Library has also put together a list of recommended reads containing Historical, Cosy, and Classic Crime, as well as their favourite modern fiction, if you need some inspiration.
Name: Ashley ‘Ash’ Ashwell
Age: 22
Family: Father is a songwriter/musician who used to manage rock stars. Most famous client was Sykes in the 1990s.
Qualifications: Degree in Library and Information Studies (Police Note: finished of top of class)
Job: Mobile Library Librarian (Police Note: got the job 11 months ago against fierce competition, including several of his university classmates)
Hobbies: Enjoys collaging, particularly using newspaper and magazine cuttings.
Health: Asthma (Police Note: regularly lets his inhaler run out). Has been on a health kick since Christmas and is now teetotal (Police Note: but still enjoys an occasional slice of cake).
Police Record: Was brought in for questioning in a case of crop damage in 2022, but released without charge
Click a suspect to see their file
09:15
The Victim – Ashley ‘Ash’ Ashwell – and the Driver, Sal, leave the depot in the Mobile Library.
09:44
Mobile Library arrives in Keynsham.
10.00
Sykes Public Appearance. Press and all other people are kept outside the Mobile due to space. Only Ash and Sykes onboard.
10:19
Verity Vantini arrives as the press are leaving.
10:24
Sykes gets off the Mobile Library.
10:30
Verity Vantini gets off the Mobile and Ash and Sal depart Keynsham.
10:58
The Mobile Library arrives in Midsomer Norton. Mrs Chorlton is waiting and gets straight on.
11:14
Silas Small gets on the Mobile Library.
11:22
Mrs Chorlton gets off the Mobile.
11:28
Silas Small gets off the Mobile.
11:36
Ash and Sal depart Midsomer Norton.
12:16
The Mobile Library arrives in Bath.
12:32
Both Dion DeTamble and Bibi Butler get on around the same time.
12:43
Dion DeTamble gets off the Mobile Library.
12:50
Bibi Butler gets off the Mobile Library.
13:00
The Mobile Library departs Bath and drives straight back to the depot for lunch.
13:37
The Mobile Library arrives at the depot and when Sal opens the door she finds the body of the Ash on the floor – dead.
Think you know whodunnit?
Welcome, all of you. I’ve gathered you, all six suspects in this case, back on the Mobile Library – the scene of the crime. I’ve been through all the evidence and I’ve pieced it all together. All of you had a motive, all of you had a possible chance, but only one of you managed to take it!
I know who murdered the Librarian, Ashley ‘Ash’ Ashwell!
Do you?
#1. Whodunnit?
#2. What was the motive?
Results
You know who murdered the Librarian, Ashley ‘Ash’ Ashwell!
Well done, it wasn’t easy!
Click here to find out more about the suspects and their motives
Nope, refresh the page to try again!
Click an image to download the physical files to print at home: for best results print on A4 paper, two-sided on the short edge, then fold in half. You can download everything in one file here.
