A New Case for DCW's Detectives

[Rukia Kurosaki 357]

Case File 3:

This afternoon, at approximately 3:54 pm, Hebi Yoshi-san (Her maiden name is Ryota) went to her son's room to retrieve him for a scheduled play-date, only to find that Karasuma-kun was missing. The frantic mother, who works 12 hours a day during the week, feared for her son's safety, as her husband, who died last year, had been found dead after his disappearance a few days before. The window was left open, and her son was nowhere to be found. A few minutes later she recieved a call from an unidentified person on her home phone. The call came from her cell phone, which she had left in her son's room, and their voice was disguised. (I am now going to refer to the culprit as he for ease of writing.) He reportedly warned Yoshi-san against calling the police and demanded 10 million yen in Beika Park before sunset if she wanted to see Karasuma-san alive. Disguised as the parent and child of the playdate, Edogawa Conan and Mouri Kogoro were able to enter Hebi-san's home. These are the clues they gathered about the situation.

Due to the fact that the window had been opened from the inside, and based on fingerprints, by the kidnapped child, the culprit has to be someone aquainted with the family. The suspects are:

Ryota Kasumi- the child's aunt. She has always been close to her sister.

Motive: Her business is going bankrupt, and she is 3 million yen in debt.

Alibi: From noon to 2:40 this afternoon, she was at a salon getting her hair cut and dyed. After this, Kasumi drove to her sister's house and remained in the living room with her the entire time she was there. She left through the front door around 3:07, and her sister watched her go around the corner. Karasuma-kun was still in his room when Hebi-san checked on him a few minutes later.

Shinte Raku- Hebi Yoshi-san's regular child-sitter and housekeeper. He is well-regarded as a professional, and has always taken great care of Karasuma-kun.

Motive: Unkown... (Monetary gain?)

Alibi: Until 3, he was alone in his apartment. When he arrived at 3:15, Karasuma-kun was still in his room, and although he went into every room to clean, Raku-san was with Yoshi-chan when she recieved the culprit's call. He didn't leave the house at any point, and was still there whe Mouri-san arrived.

Azuka Hiro- Hebi-chan's childhood friend. They met in elementary school, and were close even after she met and dated her future husband. After his death, Hiro-san visited often to see her and the child.

Motive: Unknown. (Monetary gain? Their past?)

Alibi: He arrived at Yoshi-san's home around 3:32 pm, and remained in the living room with her the entire time he was there. Hiro in the restroom when the child was discovered missing, but was within her sight looking for him when she was called by the culprit.

Clues and Facts:

- Karasuma's fingerprint's were on the window, and it had been opened without any trick or sign of forced entry, as though the boy had opened it.

- During the search, Hiro-kun checked the boy's room, front yard, tree house, and bathroom.

- The child's mother searched her own room and the hall closet, along with her husband's old bedroom.

- Raku-san looked in the back yard and the shed behind the house, as well as the garage.

- It seems like no one had a chance to sneak the boy out of the house.

- None of the suspects were carrying anything suspicious with which they could have subdued the child.

- None of the suspects were in possession of Hebi-chan's cellphone.

[Balthazar Manfredie 226]

The housekeeper

next time i wont read this late and answer it

[justwantanaccount 125]

Oh man, this is awesome! Thanks for putting in your time and effort for these things!

I'm not that great at deductions, but let's see if I can get this thing right . . .

Okay . . . the childhood friend, maybe? The husband went missing and died - maybe this is because the childhood friend wanted to get rid of the person in the way of his love? He was in the restroom when the child was discovered missing . . . maybe he went to the child's room really quick and told him that he wanted to play with the child in the tree house or something? Where was he when the wife received the call . . . he was within the lady's sight . . . he could have prepared some kind of recording to play for this, maybe the recording was on his own phone, then he turned off Hebi's cell phone and stashed it somewhere when he searched around for the child . . . he was the one who searched a lot of places, so the child was probably in one of those places (tree house?) . . . his motive would probably be that he was frustrated that Hebi didn't seem interested in marrying him even after the husband's death, so he decided to set up a fake kidnap so that he can come swoop in and be the hero somehow, and then have Hebi fall in love with him. The proof will be that Conan finds the child in the tree house, I think.

*Crosses fingers*

[Balthazar Manfredie 226]

and this is nice what you are doing

[kfnnapa 9]

Oh man, this is awesome! Thanks for putting in your time and effort for these things!

I'm not that great at deductions, but let's see if I can get this thing right . . .

Okay . . . the childhood friend, maybe? The husband went missing and died - maybe this is because the childhood friend wanted to get rid of the person in the way of his love? He was in the restroom when the child was discovered missing . . . maybe he went to the child's room really quick and told him that he wanted to play with the child in the tree house or something? Where was he when the wife received the call . . . he was within the lady's sight . . . he could have prepared some kind of recording to play for this, maybe the recording was on his own phone, then he turned off Hebi's cell phone and stashed it somewhere when he searched around for the child . . . he was the one who searched a lot of places, so the child was probably in one of those places (tree house?) . . . his motive would probably be that he was frustrated that Hebi didn't seem interested in marrying him even after the husband's death, so he decided to set up a fake kidnap so that he can come swoop in and be the hero somehow, and then have Hebi fall in love with him. The proof will be that Conan finds the child in the tree house, I think.

*Crosses fingers*

You know what as far as I can see that is the best possible solution with how people acted. The only thing I would change is that the husband died by outside influence and he was just seizing the opportunity to be with the family.

The only other thing I could come up with, was that the aunt could have come back and gotten him at any time from 3:15-3:54. She also has a clear motive, but motive doesn't mean anything in a conviction.

[Rukia Kurosaki 357]

The housekeeper

next time i wont read this late and answer it

Then what's your deduction?

[justwantanaccount 125]

You know what as far as I can see that is the best possible solution with how people acted. The only thing I would change is that the husband died by outside influence and he was just seizing the opportunity to be with the family.

The only other thing I could come up with, was that the aunt could have come back and gotten him at any time from 3:15-3:54. She also has a clear motive, but motive doesn't mean anything in a conviction.

Oh cool, someone agrees with me!

Oh yeah, that's true, there's no real evidence that the childhood friend was responsible for the husband's death. You're right, that part's pure speculation and I wouldn't be able to prove anything.

I thought about the aunt, too, but then I couldn't come up with a way for her to return - she obviously didn't return through the front door, but if she entered through a window, or something, then she would have had to open the window (I assume that they're all locked, since people usually lock windows) by breaking it, which would raise suspicion. Although, I guess that she could climb the tree to the child's room's window and get the child to open the window and bring his mom's cell phone and come outside . . . but I doubt that any full grown adult would climb trees. Plus, wouldn't someone (a neighbor or passerby) notice that a grown woman was climbing a tree? It's possible but unlikely. Also, if the aunt had a spare key to the back door, or something, then that fact should be mentioned.

There's also the possibility that the child just ran away, but it would be extremely stupid of him to run away without taking anything. The mother should also notice if there's any strange behavior from the child.

EDIT: *Looks at kfnnapa's profile* Whoa, whoa, whaaat? How do you have only one post when you posted three times already?

[Kaitou Kid Legendary Thief 197]

The last one. will post my reasoning when I get home

Edits: the last one meaning child ran away hahaha

[kfnnapa 9]

EDIT: *Looks at kfnnapa's profile* Whoa, whoa, whaaat? How do you have only one post when you posted three times already?

What do you mean? I've posted twice on the last case, and then on this one. Or did it say that I posted once. Because that could be just a random mistake.

Also The aunt Could have used a ladder to get to the child's window so he would open it for her and she could grab the cellphone. Then take the ladder back to the shed, or wherever she got it from.

Also I thought about the kid running away on purpose, because I thought about Conan's first case. Because the mother is working 12 hours a day on weekdays maybe he ran away and wanted her to stop working so she could play with him. But then why would there be a ransom for 10 million yen. My only answer would be that a random person, or the aunt because she wasn't at the house, took him and set up the kidnappiing.

So there are two possible deductions. I'm starting to get annoyed by this case because using some trick any person could have done it. I will solve it.

[Rukia Kurosaki 357]

Well, think about the call. It's obvious that someone got ahold of the mother's cellphone, which was in the child's room. So if he had run away he would have had the phone with him. Also, look at the people's descriptions closely. I have hidden something about one of the suspect's pasts because it would give away the solution. As a hint here are their ages.

The mother- 27

The child- 5

The housekeeper- 30

The aunt- 24

The childhood friend- 27

[justwantanaccount 125]

@kfnnapa: I mean that this number

is different from this one

I just thought that it was really weird. ^^;

Anyway, wouldn't someone (especially the housekeeper) notice the aunt climbing up to the kid's window, one way or the other?

[Rukia Kurosaki 357]

Uh, the kid's room is on ground level, if I forgot to mention it...

[Sherlock Lupin 41]

What I'm trying to figure out is why a women 3M yen in debt would have the audacity to go to the salon...

Is possible the SIM card was swapped?

Edited August 1, 2011 by Sherlock Lupin

[justwantanaccount 125]

@Shinichi Natake: Ah. Oops! *blushes* Can I ask if there's a fence around the mother's house or not?

[Kaitou Kid Legendary Thief 197]

Well, think about the call. It's obvious that someone got ahold of the mother's cellphone, which was in the child's room. So if he had run away he would have had the phone with him. Also, look at the people's descriptions closely. I have hidden something about one of the suspect's pasts because it would give away the solution. As a hint here are their ages.

The mother- 27

The child- 5

The housekeeper- 30

The aunt- 24

The childhood friend- 27

The child is 5?? Okay that's too young to know how to run away... But how did the child know how to open the window in the first place... He's only 5... Lol. I thought the child was like... 7/8 haha...

Let's change it to the friend hiro. She searched the boys room so she had a chance to grab her phone. She searched the toilet even though she had been there when the boy was missing... The boy was probably in the tree house where she hid him. She could have known about her friends husbands disappearance and death and that her friend would definitely pay the ransom this time so she made use of this fact.

[Lupin of the Heisei Era 248]

the aunt, i think?

[Balthazar Manfredie 226]

Ryota Kasumi- the child's aunt

she the only one with the clear motive, and an opportunity. Also the boy trusted her and im guessing he would come to her if she called

[Rukia Kurosaki 357]

Nobody has it yet. You need the culprit, the trick, and the motive. Here's a hint: Look at the suspects' ages and think about how that could have to do with a motive for the kidnapping. (I don't really expect anyone to figure out the motive on their own. Also, here's what happens later.

Yoshi-san left the money in Beika Park as requested, and 20 minutes later her son walked into the house with his mom's phone in hand. He also had a couple pieces of candy in his pocket that didn't come from the house. When asked where he had been he told Mouri that he promised not to tell, and he had been playing hide and seek. (They checked the phone, which had sent a call to the mother presumably before the child was given it, and also had recieved a call from an unknown number around the time when Hebi-san left the money. All the suspects had gone off by themselves at some point while there to use the restroom.

Mouri returned to the Park and discovered that the money was still there. Atop the bag was a printed note, likely written beforehand, that read, "You have done as I asked, and so your child shall return to you."

Hint: The culprit did not plan to harm Karasuma-kun if Yoshi-san didn't pay the ransom.

[Kaitou Kid Legendary Thief 197]

COULD IT BE THE CULPRIT IS TWO PEOPLE?!?!?! :P Anyways...

Haha Im tempted to guess the aunt but... This is why I wanted to guess the aunt: Perhaps the aunt dyed her hair to the colour of the mother... Then she walked by and called out to the boy from the window. The boy thought it was his mother so he opened the window. But to his surprise he realised it was his aunt. His aunt asked the boy to bring the phone along when she saw the phone on the table. Then she called his mum when he is not looking and passed it back to him and gave him some candy to silence him BUT I dont know the motive. And what if the phone was not there?! Okay... so no.

How about Shinte Raku- Hebi Yoshi-san's regular child-sitter and housekeeper? Well, he is the only one who knows that the mum's phone is in the son's room since he is the only one who have entered the room. He could have told the son, or left a note and telling him to take the phone and hide somewhere until a specific time. Maybe he told the boy that there was treasure (candy) to be found and do everything he needs to find the treasure? So the son heeded the note and went to play, and returned at the specific time with the candy. But how did he manage to disguise the voice in the receiver? But anyways, since he called Karasuma as Karasuma-SAN instead of Karasuma-kun, it indicates that there is a sign of respect for him. So perhaps its him. There's a possibility?

How about the childhood friend? Well, the motive is huge, during the time of call, although she is within sight, it is unsure of whether she is within hearing range... Also, the child could have taken the child out already before she arrived and then returned back to the house like nothing happened. She could have asked the child to take out the phone... then she used it to call the mother. Then when they went to deposit the money, the friend possibly hid the phone in the house and placed the note on the money and then used a nearby public phone to call the phone. The child could be nearby the phone and recognized his mother's ring tone and went to receive it. So the friend asked the boy to return home. The motive is as stated above ^

[justwantanaccount 125]

Aww. ;_; I felt pretty good about my deduction, too. ;_;

Okay, so the money was still there - which means that even if the aunt was the culprit, she wasn't motivated by the money. Then what was the motive? The printed note is funny - "You have done as I asked, and so your child shall return to you" - it sounds as if the culprit wanted the child, and not the money, and wanted to test the mother's love for the child. The culprit was probably upset that the mother worked 12 hours a day and didn't pay as much attention as she could have to the child . . . from this, it sounds like the housekeeper/babysitter was the culprit. Shinichi Natake says that the culprit's past is key to the motive - maybe the babysitter lost a boy Kurasuma-kun's age in the past? *Gasp* This is speculation, but maybe the husband has something to do with the housekeeper's child's death? Could this be the reason the husband died? Because the housekeeper killed the husband out of anger for the death of his child?

Anyways, how did the culprit get the child to go outside from the window? The housekeeper/babysitter probably told the child that they were going to play hide-and-seek sometime between 3:15 and 3:54. The housekeeper wanted to make it look like a kidnap, so he gave the child candy from his apartment and told the child to grab the mother's phone and a recording of the blackmail, and told the child to call home with the mother's phone and play the recording at the time when the play-date was supposed to happen. Since he is the housekeeper, he would have known about the time of the playdate. Then the housekeeper told the child to go outside through the window, maybe by telling the child that he should keep his hiding place as secret as possible. Then, when the mother left the money at the park, the housekeeper knew then that the mother loved the child deeply, so he called the child through the mother's cell phone and told the child to come back home. The housekeeper probably called from some phone booth as he was returning home, so that no one would recognize the phone number.

So in short, motive = to test the mother's love for the child, culprit = the housekeeper/babysitter, and trick = the child called home with a recording as part of what he thought was a game.

EDIT: Wait, the recording thing makes no sense - the child brought back only the cell phone, no recording. Maybe the housekeeper told the child to stash the recording after the child played it?

[Rukia Kurosaki 357]

You solved it! The housekeeper did lose his son five years ago when the father, who had disappeared, kidnapped him. The father was calling the housekeeper with instructions when he got into a car crash in a deserted area, killing himself and the child. Although the housekeeper originally had no idea who the kidnapper had been, when he realized that the man had taken away not only his son but his own child's father, he had to do something. His wife left him when he became depressed and lost his job following his son's death. Then he was hired by Yoshi-san to take care of Kurasuma-kun, and he felt kind of whole again. But here was the woman whose son had no father, spending all her time away from home, seeming not to understand that her beloved child could be gone at any time... When the case was solved, Hebi-chan pressed no charges, and let the housekeeper continue his duties. She knew her so loved him like a father, and that separating them would cause him almost as much pain as when he lost his own son. (I'm being really sappy with this one) Okay, so pick a topic for my next fanfic or case.

[justwantanaccount 125]

^ _yyyeeeeaaaaaAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Woo! I got it right at last! Okay, for the next case, I'd like it if there were multiple culprits. They could be collaborating, or they could be acting independently, whatever you prefer. I feel like we need more multi-culprit cases in the mystery genre!

[Rukia Kurosaki 357]

Alright. I'll get to work on it later today.

[Kaitou Kid Legendary Thief 197]

LOL. I hoped that there were clues to link to that >__< (Or explanation to why the rest are incapable) Don't really understand... >__<

[Sherlock Lupin 41]

Drat... it's the house keeper? I thought it was the child hood friend? Oh well, nice deduction! I really wish you had put it in a spoiler though...