CTI: Crime Team Investigation

Started by Mandle, Tue 16/06/2020 16:50:02

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JackPutter

The chief smiles, snaps his fingers and points at detective heltenjon. "Sounds like a decent lead! Let's give the IT goblins, I mean, gurus some time to set up a trace and then we'll call this lunatic up."

(Full update coming once I get up in the morning.)

Stupot

I was about to suggest 1408. Not due to cracking the code, but it was the first Stephen King number that came to mind.

Laura Hunt

Quote from: heltenjon on Tue 30/06/2020 23:12:57
Aha!
"..." "35 - 11 14 10 18" "1315 - 21 1114 1110 1118" "11131115 - 1211 3114 3110 3118"
35 = one 3 one 5, 11=two 1, 14= one 1 one 4, 10= one 1 one 0, 18= one 1 one 8...and so on.

Going backwards, that's three 5 - one 1 one 4 one 0 one 8.

Potential solution
Let's dial 555-1408!


Brilliant! My number was so close but the logic behind my reasoning was totally off. Nice lateral thinking! ;-D

JackPutter

THE KS CASE

CHAPTER TWO

The IT technicians finish installing a new phone with a tape recorder and tracing device at a special desk in the corner of the bullpen, and they start to proudly explain how they have spliced the lines so that once a call is going through that phone anyone can hear the conversation by simply picking up their own desk phone. The chief makes his way out of the office and they promptly shut up.

The chief picks up the receiver. "I want all ears in on this! We don't know how smart this person is yet. They might let something slip if they're pressed, so stay frosty." With that, the chief punches in the number 555-1408. You all pick up your phones to listen in.

After three rings, the call is answered, and a voice starts to speak. The person talking is using some kind of voice modulator, so it's impossible to detect an accent or even if the person is male or female.

QuoteHello detectives. I'm glad to hear from you, I was worried my little number game might be too tricky for you all to solve. You may have found it difficult, but at least I am fair... I even provided change so this call shouldn't cost you a penny!

I told you that you would find out whose blood I sent you if you could crack the code, and now you are one step closer. I hope you weren't expecting me to just tell you outright, where's the fun in that? But I will tell you WHERE you can find them. What state you find them in is entirely dependent on how quickly you unearth their location. I've hidden their location somewhere in plain sight, in fact I would imagine that millions of people have already laid eyes on it. Though you might find few who are willing to admit it. Exactly where have I published this location info? That's the game we're going to play, boys.

That's about all I have to say at the moment... Oh, I imagine you're wondering why I signed the letter, "KS." Well those are not my initials, of course. They stand for those who would destroy a God, those who kill the reigning leader, those who use opportunity to usurp the big man's seat. I will not stand by and allow them to do it any more.

So long.

After those last words, there is a mechanical clicking sound, and the voice begins repeating itself. It's evident that you are listening to a recording. The chief puts down the handset, retrieves his hankie and wipes his forehead. "Any luck with the trace?" he asks the IT specialists, who just shake their heads solemnly. The chief nods, not surprised by this. "At least we know one thing, they can talk better than they write."

The chief grabs a passing uniformed rookie by the elbow. "Kid, I want you to go down to the newsstand on the corner and pick up 10 copies of Playboy magazine." A snicker is heard coming from the direction of the IT department. "KNOCK IT OFF!" yaps the chief, "Even I can work out that's where this maniac posted the info." The rookie scoots out of the room with a bright, "Yes, Sir!"

The IT department is eventually ushered out of the room, despite their pleas of wanting to help scour the magazines for information. It's not long before the rookie returns, laden down with smutty magazines. The chief pats him on the back and sends him on his way. It doesn't take much flicking through the magazine to discover this unusual picture on one of the advertising pages:



Taking a deep breath, the chief addresses you. "Okay detectives, more letter mumbo-jumbo. Get cracking!"

Adding the map here for reference:
Spoiler
[close]

Laura Hunt

#224
Third row from the top, we can see ARMSTRONG written right-to-left, which is a location on the map (Armstrong Walk).

Looking to see if I can find something else before we send somebody there...

heltenjon

At this point, I'd like to check with Stephen King's secretary if he has any public appearances in this area coming up. It looks like our killer has a King obsession, and while
that may make it unlikely that King is the target (no more books if he kills him), it would be nice to rule out the possibility.

The killer may have chosen this district because of the names of the police officers. While Pangborn stands out as the unusual name, every officer has a name shared by a
Stephen King character. Alan Pangborn is the main character in The Dark Half and Needful Things and a supporting character in many other stories. Carrie White is the main character in Carrie. Cynthia Collins is a character from Under the Dome. Leland Gaunt is the other lead from Needful Things. Stuart Ullman is the General Manager of the Overlook Hotel in The Shining, and the one to give Jack Torrance his caretaker job.

With the Stephen King characters in the hundreds, and most of the names being common names, this may not be so unplausible as it seems. However, I don't think we ought to send out officers to every location that reminds us of Stephen King. Then we will be sure to walk into traps. Let's see what the next lead may be.

Ian Aloser

#226
OMG, I can't follow, you are all too fast

Laura Hunt

Quote from: heltenjon on Wed 01/07/2020 09:26:37
At this point, I'd like to check with Stephen King's secretary if he has any public appearances in this area coming up. It looks like our killer has a King obsession, and while
that may make it unlikely that King is the target (no more books if he kills him), it would be nice to rule out the possibility.

The killer may have chosen this district because of the names of the police officers. While Pangborn stands out as the unusual name, every officer has a name shared by a
Stephen King character. Alan Pangborn is the main character in The Dark Half and Needful Things and a supporting character in many other stories. Carrie White is the main character in Carrie. Cynthia Collins is a character from Under the Dome. Leland Gaunt is the other lead from Needful Things. Stuart Ullman is the General Manager of the Overlook Hotel in The Shining, and the one to give Jack Torrance his caretaker job.

With the Stephen King characters in the hundreds, and most of the names being common names, this may not be so unplausible as it seems. However, I don't think we ought to send out officers to every location that reminds us of Stephen King. Then we will be sure to walk into traps. Let's see what the next lead may be.

Honestly, I think that the Stephen King lead is simply a meta-wink from Jack, not from the killer, i.e., it has no in-game relevance and Jack simply used Stephen King references to populate it. He clearly said that we would need no outside knowledge to find the solutions to the puzzles, and basing a whole case on Stephen King references would definitely go against that, as we shouldn't all be expected to be fans of Mr. King to solve this. I believe that we should focus strictly on the clues we're given.

heltenjon

Quote from: Laura Hunt on Wed 01/07/2020 09:31:49
Quote from: heltenjon on Wed 01/07/2020 09:26:37
At this point, I'd like to check with Stephen King's secretary if he has any public appearances in this area coming up. It looks like our killer has a King obsession, and while
that may make it unlikely that King is the target (no more books if he kills him), it would be nice to rule out the possibility.

The killer may have chosen this district because of the names of the police officers. While Pangborn stands out as the unusual name, every officer has a name shared by a
Stephen King character. Alan Pangborn is the main character in The Dark Half and Needful Things and a supporting character in many other stories. Carrie White is the main character in Carrie. Cynthia Collins is a character from Under the Dome. Leland Gaunt is the other lead from Needful Things. Stuart Ullman is the General Manager of the Overlook Hotel in The Shining, and the one to give Jack Torrance his caretaker job.

With the Stephen King characters in the hundreds, and most of the names being common names, this may not be so unplausible as it seems. However, I don't think we ought to send out officers to every location that reminds us of Stephen King. Then we will be sure to walk into traps. Let's see what the next lead may be.

Honestly, I think that the Stephen King lead is simply a meta-wink from Jack, not from the killer, i.e., it has no in-game relevance and Jack simply used Stephen King references to populate it. He clearly said that we would need no outside knowledge to find the solutions to the puzzles, and basing a whole case on Stephen King references would definitely go against that, as we shouldn't all be expected to be fans of Mr. King to solve this. I believe that we should focus strictly on the clues we're given.


I agree. We should focus on the clues and send units accordingly. However, I think that KS must mean King Slayer. It fits the clues, if it's about Stephen King or not.

Laura Hunt

Quote from: Laura Hunt on Wed 01/07/2020 09:22:36
Third row from the top, we can see ARMSTRONG written right-to-left, which is a location on the map (Armstrong Walk).

Looking to see if I can find something else before we send somebody there...

I can't find anything else and these old eyes are getting tired, so (potential solution) can we send somebody to Armstrong Walk? Have them talk to the residents, ask about any weird happenings lately or suspicious people loitering around, and keep their eyes open for any places where a person could be hidden: disturbed patches of soil, abandoned buildings, um, large wooden chests mysteriously appearing in the middle of nowhere, etc.

Laura Hunt

Quote from: heltenjon on Wed 01/07/2020 09:35:14
I agree. We should focus on the clues and send units accordingly. However, I think that KS must mean King Slayer. It fits the clues, if it's about Stephen King or not.

omg, what if the killer believes himself to be Stephen King's evil twin or something and this is The Dark Half all over again? :-D

JackPutter

#231
Stephen King's secretary is surprised to receive a call from the NYPD, as Mr King has received thousands of death threats throughout his career and the police have barely responded. She is able to inform you that the author has no public appearances scheduled for at least six months, and even then he will be starting his next book tour on the west coast and slowly working eastwards. She doesn't expect him to visit New York City, much less this small area upstate, for at least nine months.

(Out of character here for a moment just to confirm that no knowledge of Stephen King's work will be necessary to solve the puzzles, much like no real-world knowledge of the legal system was necessary in the Justice Killer case. Think of it as a theme to give the game a bit more character. I will do everything I can to make sure that every riddle has enough clues to be challenging but fair. You're on the right path by focusing strictly on the clues given.

That being said, if Stephen King references keep popping up in what the criminal says or does, surely it's not a coincidence? Maybe a glimpse at the kind of person behind the crimes?)

[Official Update coming soon]

Ian Aloser

The array of letters show a lot of word combinations
( of course, after all there are 100 letters)
I will highlight them in colors as soon as i have
access to my notebook
I believe it contains a whole sentence containing
the clue of what to do next

JackPutter

#233
Gillian White took off her hat and scratched her head for a moment. It felt like she had been out on the streets for a year, crawling down residential roads, stopping passersby and asking if they had noticed anything usual in the area. So far there had been no solid leads.

"Another wild goose chase," mumbled Joel Collins, sitting in the driver's seat next to her, "Probably just some prankster pulling the leg of the NYPD, but WE'RE the ones getting the fallout."

Gillian put her hat back on and resumed scanning the treeline with her spotlight. "Come on Joel," she cooed, "This is all part of the job. We don't get paid to laze around at the station cramming donuts into our mouths." Collins snickered, conceding.

"Stop the car!" Gillian cried, and Collins stepped on the brakes. Her spotlight had picked up something bright beyond the brush. She grabbed ahold of the radio pinned to her lapel and pressed the 'transmit' button. "Sergeant, this is Car 56. We've got something out of place in a patch of waste ground just south of Armstrong's Walk. We're going to investigate."

"Copy that, Officer White. Stay alert," came the response. The two officers stepped out of their car and made their way towards the object, still obscured by the bushes, illuminated by the patrol car's searchlight. Gillian pushed past the overgrowth and gasped when she saw what was in the clearing.

A cross made of white planks was embedded in a large patch of overturned earth. Gillian and Collins approached the strange monument, and as they got closer it was evident that there were some letters written on the horizontal plank in red paint. "For Sale..." Gillian read aloud, "What the hell is for sale here?"

Gillian's ears pricked as a quiet noise resonated through the clearing. She looked at Collins - he had heard it too. She stepped closer to the cross, and the noise got louder. It was a kind of a soft, muffled thudding sound. Collins's eyes suddenly went wide. "Jesus Christ, somebody's buried here! They're banging and trying to get out!"

Collins instantly dropped to his knees and started tossing the loose dirt and rocks aside with his bare hands. Gillian was about to get down beside him, but she heard another noise, this time out beyond the trees. She quickly grabbed her flashlight and pointed it in the direction she thought she heard the sound. A shape flashed between the trees and disappeared. Was it a person? Just an animal? A trick of the light maybe? This whole scenario was unsettling her more and more.

As Collins uncovered more and more dirt, the thudding sound became more and more clear. Gillian started to listen more closely... The thumping sounded a little to regular, too rhythmic to be the frantic pounding of someone buried alive. She also couldn't hear any screaming, crying, moans or sobs. Was that a faint whirring or humming noise underlying it all?

Before she knew it, Collins had uncovered something - a box of some kind. "Come on Gillian, help me get the lid off!" He reached for the edge of the box and wrapped his fingers around it.

"Joel, no!" Gillian leapt forwards and managed to tackle Collins just a moment after he lifted the lid of the box. Suddenly she was spinning, twirling, tumbling. Then a hard landing on the ground, sliding, her face scratched by the uneven surface. Her ears were ringing and she couldn't tell what way was up. She could smell burning. A bomb! Collins!

Forcing her eyes open, she saw flames, smoke, and debris. There was no sign of the cross, only a shallow crater and the splintered remains of a wooden container. Staggering to her feet, Gillian surveyed the area. There was a lump about ten feet from the crater - Joel! She stumbled over to him, falling to the ground next to his crumpled form, laid on its side. "Joel! Joel! Come on, buddy!" She gently shook his shoulder.

"Jesus Christ..." came the mumbled response. "What the hell was that?" Collins tried to prop himself up, only to end up grimacing and flopping back down. "My shoulder is all messed up... I think I'm bleeding." Gillian took a look at his shoulder and gulped. There was a deep laceration, the skin and muscle torn apart by flying shrapnel. She placed her left hand on the wound and applied pressure, grabbing her radio with her other hand. "Sergeant, we have an officer down! We need an ambulance, ASAP!"

Before any reply could come, a scrap of paper fluttered down from the sky, burned on all edges. It landed on the ground beside the wounded officers, the message still legible. "Not quite. KS"


The chief walks into the bullpen, stoic. "I just got off the phone with Sergeant Pangborn. Armstrong Walk was a bust. Two officers checked it out, and came across a bomb. One of them is hurt pretty bad. I guess now we know just how dangerous this nutcase is."

Hanging his head, the chief sighs. "I'm not going to tear into you, it was a good lead, I don't blame you for sending out a squad to investigate. There's no way you could have known what was waiting for those officers. From now on, just be careful that you've gotten all the clues you can before putting lives on the line."

heltenjon

#234
I can see the word BETWEEN in there, diagonally upwards.
EDIT: And ALDRIN to the right upwards.

Between Aldrin and Armstrong?

heltenjon

BTW, exceptional police work from the Chief! I'd never have gotten the Playboy clue.

Laura Hunt

#236
HOLY FUCKING SHITBALLS



I am horrified that this is all my fault, and terrified of making another false move. I think I'm going to take a day off if the Chief doesn't object, and maybe go talk to our police counselor...

JackPutter

The chief slides a glass of whiskey across Detective Hunt's desk. "I would have made the same call, kid. It's not your fault. We didn't know this lunatic was willing to blow up cops. Take a day, hell, take a week if you need to! Talk to whoever you want to talk to, you're a great detective and the team needs you firing on all cylinders."

Laura Hunt

Quote from: JackPutter on Wed 01/07/2020 11:36:30
The chief slides a glass of whiskey across Detective Hunt's desk. "I would have made the same call, kid. It's not your fault. We didn't know this lunatic was willing to blow up cops. Take a day, hell, take a week if you need to! Talk to whoever you want to talk to, you're a great detective and the team needs you firing on all cylinders."

Thanks, chief. It looks like my colleagues have this under control, and I'm sure I'll be good as new by the time the next clue comes in.

Ian Aloser

Quote from: heltenjon on Wed 01/07/2020 11:19:44
I can see the word BETWEEN in there, diagonally upwards.
EDIT: And ALDRIN to the right upwards.

Between Aldrin and Armstrong?
Very good Officer Helten Jon !
That makes my approach obsolete, I think.
There are just too many words in the array, but the ones you found are all made from adjacent letters
in reverse order. Give it a try !!

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