Take a "Stab" at our free, online teeny-weeny murder mystery game!

On Wednesday, May 5th at the CRAVE Toronto launch party, Shot In The Dark Mysteries tried out a new format of mystery game. While we already have our winners from the event, (to be announced on Wednesday) we wanted to open it up to the general public, to try to solve the mystery. We have prizes too – copies of CRAVE and free murder mystery games (or free family-friendly mystery games, it’s your choice!)

So, here’s the set-up and 5 clues. Read through, determine the killer, cast your accusation and get a chance at a prize! It’s that easy. Depending on the response, we will be running this free mystery game contest until the end of the week.

The CRAVE Toronto launch party was just getting started when a scream rang out from the back hallway. Fortunately for the organizers of the event, the music and laughter from those here to celebrate the launch drowned out the sound. A waitress, returning to the kitchen for more hors d’oeuvres, was shocked to find a woman lying in the hallway, bleeding from her neck.

An ambulance was called, but it was too late! She was dead! While police need to investigate, and consider everyone in attendance tonight a suspect, they are also trying to keep the murder quiet in the hopes of discovering the murderer during the party, before they have the chance to slip away and escape. Attendees need not know about the murder unless they try to leave the premises, in which case they will be stopped.

The murdered woman has been identified as Lila Lozinsky, an ambitious 20-something with legs up to here and a shifty glance. It’s a wonder Leigh Clements from Shot In The Dark Mysteries ever hired her.

Yes, that’s right, she was the assistant of one of the entrepreneurs featured in CRAVE Toronto. Leigh hired Lila in September 2009 to help her with the administrative side of Shot In The Dark Mysteries, but quickly found that the sweet, helpful, ambitious girl she thought she was bringing on board had a hidden agenda. Leigh realized only recently that Lila had been taking credit for her mysteries, including those Leigh wrote for Petro Canada and Chrysler Egypt, which took place before Lila was even on the payroll!

Tonight, Lila was to run the table while Leigh mixed and mingled and enjoyed the party. But Lila had planned another rendezvous before the festivities began. Upset that she wasn’t featured alongside Leigh in CRAVE, Lila contracted Irina Fortey from Irina Photography and arranged a shoot to take place before the event began. The rich colours of BerBer’s interior would prove the perfect backdrop for a shoot that would highlight her “finer qualities”. What she planned to do with the photos after that is unknown.

Investigators have determined that she died from a stab wound to the neck, and by examining the wound they have determined that it was a long, cylindrical object, as the wound is approximately five inches deep. Her killer would have had to use such force to puncture her skin that it has been deemed a “crime of passion”, since a pre-meditated murder would have been executed much differently. The place of the murder, in the hallway that leads to the kitchen and the alley, where the dumpsters are located, indicates the killer did not think the murder through ahead of time – it’s a high traffic area and the killer would have had very little time to commit the murder and escape without being seen – no more than two or three minutes in total. Also, the stab wound is not consistent with a knife or traditional stabbing weapon, which indicates that the murderer grabbed something nearby, or something they were carrying, and used it to assault the young assistant. But who? And why?

In the short time she was around before the doors officially opened for the party, Lila managed to make a number of enemies at BerBer Resto.Bar.Lounge. The waitresses, kitchen staff and many other entrepreneurs setting up their tables for the evening. Her outrageous demands, scanty attire and condescension made it hard NOT to hate her. But what could Lila have done to enrage someone so much that they would stab her?

There were a few clues found around the scene of the murder that have allowed police to identify six suspects. Two of these suspects are apparent; Irina Fortey from Irina Photography, who was photographing Lila shortly before she was found dead, and Leigh Clements of Shot In The Dark Mysteries, the woman whose reputation Lila was trying to destroy. The other suspects are:

Karen Donaldson from Panache Life

Patricia Figueira from Cre8ive Invitations

Ariane Griffiths from Foundation Studio

Kingi Carpenter from Peach Berserk

your clues…

1. Kingi Carpenter from Peach Berserk was seen running around with an EXTREMELY large pair of scissors, which she claims she was using in her silk screening.

2. An umbrella was found outside, next to a dumpster, broken and mangled.

Broken Umbrella, found by dumpster

3. A pencil was found in the hallway near the body. On the pencil was the slogan: “IGNITE EXCITEMENT!” Patricia from Cre8ive Invitations was handing out those pencils at her table!

4. Lila attended Karen from Panache Life’s most recent “Urban Oasis!”

5. Lila was overheard earlier saying that she planned to start her own marketing and PR company that allows clients to set their own prices, just to drive Ariane from Foundation Studio out of business!

[contact-form 2 "Teeny-Weeny Mystery Accusation Form"]