Post by Saint on Jun 1, 2024 12:51:53 GMT
Here’s another mystery. It’s taken from a TV detective series. The plots are ingenious in the style of Conan Doyle, even if the events they depict are somewhat unlikely to occur in real life.
As before, there really isn’t a right or wrong answer. Please submit answers by pm.
John Price arrives at The Ballinger Hotel in Dallas on November 25. He is an antiques dealer, visiting the city to attend a coin auction to be held there on November 26. He has with him a collection of rare antique coins valued at almost $6,000,000.
A prestige customer, Price is greeted in the hotel foyer by Jackson Murphy, the hotel owner and manager. Moments later, they step out of the elevator on one of the higher floors, as the manager leads Price to his suite. Inside, the door of a large wall safe stands open, awaiting the deposit of the valuable coins. When the coins are safely inside, Murphy instructs the antiques dealer to set the safe's electronic timer so that the safe will open again at exactly 9 o'clock the next morning. There is no means of opening the safe until that time.
Jackson departs and Price unpacks his suitcase into the wardrobe in his room. He places in a very precise order on the writing desk some papers he will need to read the following morning before the auction.
His work complete, Price turns his attention to the suite’s mini bar. A third of a bottle of his favourite vintage brandy later, the hotel room tinkles with the sound of breaking glass as Price knocks his brandy balloon to the floor while getting unsteadily to his feet. The drunk man weaves his way to his bedroom, where he sleeps soundly until the following morning.
When the safe door clicks open at exactly 9 o'clock the next morning, the coins are gone. The safe is completely empty.
How were the coins stolen?
Note:
1) The safe is built into the wall. There was no possible way to rip out the safe and replace it with another.
2) The safe is secure. Other than through its door, there is no way in or out of the safe, and there are no signs that the safe was tampered with in any way. There was no combination, and the timer is tamper-proof. There was no electronic (or any other) means of by-passing it.
3) When Price deposited the coins the previous evening, he inserted the actual coins. He was confident that he had locked the coins away, and he was right - he had.
How were the coins stolen?
As before, there really isn’t a right or wrong answer. Please submit answers by pm.
John Price arrives at The Ballinger Hotel in Dallas on November 25. He is an antiques dealer, visiting the city to attend a coin auction to be held there on November 26. He has with him a collection of rare antique coins valued at almost $6,000,000.
A prestige customer, Price is greeted in the hotel foyer by Jackson Murphy, the hotel owner and manager. Moments later, they step out of the elevator on one of the higher floors, as the manager leads Price to his suite. Inside, the door of a large wall safe stands open, awaiting the deposit of the valuable coins. When the coins are safely inside, Murphy instructs the antiques dealer to set the safe's electronic timer so that the safe will open again at exactly 9 o'clock the next morning. There is no means of opening the safe until that time.
Jackson departs and Price unpacks his suitcase into the wardrobe in his room. He places in a very precise order on the writing desk some papers he will need to read the following morning before the auction.
His work complete, Price turns his attention to the suite’s mini bar. A third of a bottle of his favourite vintage brandy later, the hotel room tinkles with the sound of breaking glass as Price knocks his brandy balloon to the floor while getting unsteadily to his feet. The drunk man weaves his way to his bedroom, where he sleeps soundly until the following morning.
When the safe door clicks open at exactly 9 o'clock the next morning, the coins are gone. The safe is completely empty.
How were the coins stolen?
Note:
1) The safe is built into the wall. There was no possible way to rip out the safe and replace it with another.
2) The safe is secure. Other than through its door, there is no way in or out of the safe, and there are no signs that the safe was tampered with in any way. There was no combination, and the timer is tamper-proof. There was no electronic (or any other) means of by-passing it.
3) When Price deposited the coins the previous evening, he inserted the actual coins. He was confident that he had locked the coins away, and he was right - he had.
How were the coins stolen?
