The Mysterious Murder of Martha McHale

The Mystery surrounding the Death of Martha McHale 

McHale, Martha (Age 26, Blonde, Caucasian, American) - found dead at quarter past ten in the evening, 1st June 1975. Body found on top of a car in the parking area alongside her apartment building. Believed to have fallen from the balcony of her top floor apartment. 

The police have investigated the incident, and have corroborated the following story, based on witness testimonies, as well as officers that were patrolling the street: 

Ms. McHale had returned home to her apartment building at around eight in the evening. Intoxicated, she spoke briefly with Javier Garcia in the lobby, and then made her way up the stairs. She then proceeded into her own flat, alone, and locked the door shut. The eight other tenants of the building claim to have heard screams and yells from her flat. They heard multiple voices, and heard the sound of two distinct gunshots. All of them quickly came out of their apartments, and heard a loud noise outside the building - the sound of glass and metal shattering. Six tenants made their way upstairs, accompanied by two police officers, and the other two tenants investigated the noise outside with one police officer. The door to the apartment was locked from the inside, and had to be forced open by the officers. Upon entry, they discovered a ransacked flat, with no person around, and a pistol lying on the floor. The officer outside, and the tenants, followed the sound of the noise and found Ms. McHale lying on top of a car that was in one of the many parking spaces outside. 

Mr. Claudius and Mr. Gertrabade - the two detectives police detectives, were called to examine the body. This was their observation: 

Ms. McHale was found facing upwards, lying on a car which was dented, most certainly by the impact of her fall (as supported by the story of the officers that accompanied the tenants). Her body had two small cuts, caused by the windshield she fell on. No cuts or bruises apart from the ones caused by the windshield or roof of the car. There was no visible bullet wound in her body. Injuries caused extensive blood loss. 

Mr. Claudius and Mr. Gertrabade proceeded by investigating Ms. McHale’s apartment. This was their observation: 

The building consists of eleven floors (including the ground floor). Each floor has only one apartment, and the ground floor has a lobby. Ms. McHale lived on the tenth floor. Ms. McHale’s apartment was the only one to have a balcony, because it was the top floor apartment. She was stated to have moved in around six months prior to the incident, after her immigration from America, and lived alone. The apartment had four rooms - a living room, a bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom. The kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom seemed to have been unaffected by the incident. The front door was the only entrance to the place, and it led into the living room. The far end of the living room had glass doors 

that led out to a small balcony. The doors of the balcony were found open. There was no other means of entrance or exit. The front door was broken open by the officers, as it was locked from the inside. The living room was presumed to be the site of the event. 

The cushions of the couch were lying on the floor. Multiple photo frames with small notes (written by Ms. McHale herself) were found fallen over on the floor consisting of pictures of Ms. McHale posing for different photo shoots. Some of them are with people in the building, others are unknown people. The gun was lying in the middle of the room, with the barrel facing towards the balcony. The floor nearby had one bullet lodged in it. The magazine can hold up to nine bullets, and there were seven bullets remaining. A small diary of Ms. McHale was found on a desk. Some pages were torn, and lying on the floor around the diary. There is speculation about missing pages. A few empty bottles of white wine were found, with dust gathered on the rim, indicating they were consumed at a previous time. A large bottle of pink gin was found on the kitchen counter, with about 200ml remaining. A few locks, around four handfuls full, of blond hair were found - long - believed to be Ms. McHale’s own natural hair. A safe lies in the corner of the room. The door was found open, and four and a half thousand francs were stacked, in cash. An accounting book was found, and pages were ripped out of it. All pages were still in the apartment, and none were stolen, as the detectives could find all the page numbers in order. A note was left on her desk. Handwriting is the same as her diary. Note reads, “save some of his blue gin for tomorrow.” No bottle of gin was found in the apartment, aside from the previously stated pink gin. 

Mr. Dumas, physician, was asked to examine Ms. McHale’s body. His study concluded: 

Rigor mortis had set in at the time of examination. She was found wearing a yellow plaid shirt underneath a white jacket, and a gray skirt. Her clothes were punctured by the glass and metal of the car. The locks of her hair, believed to be four handfuls full, were pulled out by the roots, leaving a wound behind her left ear. No other apparent injuries or damages. Her left hand, her non-dominant hand, tightly clenched a few strands of dark brown hair - natural hair, not synthetic, but believed to be extremely hard and brittle. She was not wearing any footwear. Cause of death was stated as blood loss and impact of fall. Considering the height of the fall and weight of the victim, Mr. Dumas believes that it is ‘impossible’ for her to survive such a fall, or for any person with similar physicality. Mr. Dumas also states that no person of any height or weight can survive that fall. 

Mr. Claudius and Mr. Gertrabade further made their observations and speculations about the means of entry and exit (ingress and egress). These are as follows: 

Her apartment had only two possible entrances and exits - the front door, and the balcony. The balcony doors were found open, possibly opened by Ms. McHale herself. The other floors have large windows instead of balconies, and all were closed. There is a rainwater pipe that is attached to the building, that runs from the ground floor to the roof, which can be reached from the balcony. The time taken by any person to escape is longer 

than the time between the screams and when they opened the door, not to mention the strength required to climb up and down it. There is no nearby structure that a person can leap to. The bricks of the building provide enough support only for fingertips. Impossible for a person to climb. There are some small shrubs and bushes that go around the building. They do not provide enough support for any person falling, regardless of height. 

The apartments on Floor 5, and on Floor 8 are empty and have no tenants. The windows are closed, and there are no signs of any person entering or exiting either of the two apartments. Keys to the apartments are held by the landlord, Jacques Cartier, who lives a few miles away in his residence. He was made aware of the situation and called by Ophelia Andolin, as per the detectives’ instructions. 

The detectives interviewed each of the tenants in the building. Their statements were as follows: 

Ophelia Andolin, 22 (Female, Dark Hair, Floor 1) - Moved from hometown in Belgium two years prior. Friends with McHale. Often spent time in her apartment. Does not recollect any suicidal tendencies. Last meeting with McHale was at two in the afternoon, the day of her death. Spoke about plans to go for an opera next month. Heard from H. Wizcowski a rumor concerning D. Rodriguez and Ms. McHale. Was of sexual nature. Says she often converses with Ms. McHale, but hasn’t heard it from her. Was cleaning her bathroom at the time of the incident. Heard two or three different voices. They were all loud and shrill. Said it sounded like a Czech person. Heard two distinct gunshots, and a loud crashing sound. Made her way outside with one of three policemen, to investigate the car. Has not previously conversed with a Czech person. 

Dave Rodriguez, 51 (Male, Red Hair, Floor 2) - Native of Spain. Spouse of M. Rodriguez. Shows his medals and proves he is a retired army officer with a gun license. Recognizes the pistol as his own. Claims to have given it to her a couple of weeks ago as she wanted protection from ‘harmful men’. Trusted her, knowing her popularity. Knows that she always locks her apartment well when she leaves. Instructed her not to tell anyone that she has a gun. Denies claims of sexual interactions with Ms. McHale. Last outing with Ms. McHale was a trip with Melissa to a petting zoo. Was speaking with Melissa at the time of the screaming. Heard the voice of an Austrian, judging by intonation. It was harsh and loud. Heard two gunshots, and a crashing sound. Took a pistol and accompanied the two officers upstairs. Does not know if they have conversed with an Austrian. 

Melissa Rodriguez, 48 (Female, Grey Hair, Floor 2) - Was born in Spain. Spouse of D. Rodriguez. Denies all rumors about him. Says he is a faithful husband. Last time she was with McHale was the trip to the petting zoo around a month ago. Is not aware that her husband gave her a gun. Says she was popular and threatened often by men, according to what her husband tells her. Does not speak often with Ms. McHale. Says she was returning home from her aunt’s residence around nine, and went to her own floor. Heard screams. Agreed with her husband that the voice was Austrian. Heard two gunshots and the crashing sound. Accompanied Ophelia to investigate the car outside. 

Kris Piatek, 40 (Male, Blond Hair, Floor 3) - One of the parties that went up with the officers. Said he is of Polish origin, and was reading a book at the time. Said he dated Ms. McHale for a week, but he broke it off with her. Claims that they didn’t work out well. Says she used to smoke cigarettes a lot, and always used the balcony for that. Gave her a bottle of pink gin that very morning. Says it was a gift from his workplace, but he has quit drinking a few months ago. Claims to have heard two distinct voices only. Says he could not determine the intonation of the voices. Heard the words ‘Mon Dieu’ and believes that the culprit was a Frenchman. Heard only two gunshots, and a crashing sound. Has never conversed with a French person. 

Beatrice Clouseau, 26 (Female, Brown Hair, Floor 4) - One of the parties that went upstairs. Says she moved from Paris two months ago. Claims to have been eating dinner at the time. Says she is a schizophrenic and does not leave her apartment at all. Has never conversed with Ms. McHale or any other tenant in the building. Claims to have heard a loud voice, a shrill voice, and a harsh voice. Thinks it most likely was an Italian voice, because of the loudness. Does not recollect hearing ‘Mon Dieu’. Heard only two gunshots, and a crashing sound. This person was interviewed using a translator. Has no knowledge of English language, or Italian. 

Rebecca Novak, 28 (Female, Red Hair, Floor 6) - Headed upstairs with the policemen. Is a native of Russia. Was writing her diary at the time of the incident. Does not communicate often with Ms. McHale. Says she knows about something regarding Ms. McHale and D. Rodriguez. Also has heard of a debt she owes to J. Garcia. Says her last meeting with Ms. McHale was an offer to go drinking with Ophelia, three months prior. Denied the invitation as she has to visit her mother. Claims to have heard the words ‘Sacre’ and ‘Mon Dieu’ and thus believes that the culprit is a Frenchman. Says that the voices were loud, harsh, and shrill. Heard two gunshots, and a crashing sound. Has never communicated with a person of French origin. 

Javier Garcia, 24 (Male, Brown Hair, Floor 7) - Is a Spaniard. Says that he provided Ms. McHale a loan of three thousand francs for an investment only a few months ago, which she was to pay back sometime in July. Says she was very intelligent and believes she knows how to earn a lot of money. Spoke with Ms. McHale in the lobby when she returned. Claims to have been checking his mailbox when she walked in. Says she was ‘quite’ intoxicated at the time, which was not unusual, and couldn’t make conversation. Walked her up the stairs till floor seven and went into his apartment. Claimed to be listening to the radio at the time of the incident. Headed upstairs with the policemen. Says it must have a German, because of the harshness of voice. Claims there were shrill screams, and hard and rough screams, and all were very loud. Heard two gunshots, and a crashing sound. Has never met a person hailing from Germany. 

Herbert Wizcowski, 32 (Male, Dark Hair, Floor 9) - Was born in Poland. One of the parties that headed up the stairs. Says he was having a drink of whiskey himself at the time, as he does every night. Headed upstairs with the party. Could hear very distinctly loud and shrill screams. Also heard a rough voice, but could not tell how many different voices. Claims he heard an Italian accent, based on the words. Could not tell what words were said. Heard two gunshots, but couldn’t hear the car crashing sound clearly. Does not know any Italians, and has never conversed with one. 

Mr. Claudius and Mr. Gertrabade searched through the accounting book found at the apartment. No information of relevance was found. Believed to be a book she used for work. The pages of her diary were found, but the order of the torn pages could not be determined. The notebook was primarily filled with thoughts and feelings about her past, things of a few years ago. 

The detectives deduced that the motive, the means, and the culprit had to do with her current place of residence. They thus narrowed down their search because of the seemingly unexplainable nature of the act. The presence of policemen at the scene of the crime allowed for this deduction to be valid. 

All information concerning other tenants and potential culprits was selected. This information is as follows: 

4/1 - Just collected the dough! Have enough to pay Javi back, but there’s still time to make some more. 

5/5 - Don’t know why Michael is still trying to get back with me. He is honestly is creeping me the FUCK out. Like, who told him where I work? He won’t find out where I live, thankfully. I should ask Dave for help. 

5/3 - The petting zoo experience was so great! Melissa was so sweet, and Dave was just himself. We got to see and PET ponies, chimpanzees, rabbits, lemurs, and donkeys too! 4/9 - Rebecca should really come along! I hope we get to be better friends than we are currently. 

6/1 - Kris has really been nice. I seem to have moved on from him, well Dave just helped me remember that there are nice people out there in the world. And who’s to say we can’t be friends? Looking forward to trying the blue gin he left outside my door. And I can protect myself from those ruffians that always come over to Le Syndicate. 

2/10 - Kris asked me out! Well, I really don’t know what to respond to that. He is nice and stuff, but... well actually, I might grow to really like him. Let’s go on it and see where we go from there. 

1/1 - I guess the whole Lobby thing kinda makes sense. Floor 10 sounds wayy better than floor 11! 

5/4 - I saw that Beatrice girl today. She really seems to be getting better. I should try talking to her some time. Who knows how well we might hit it off? 

2/2 - I met Dave again today, who was really, really, welcoming and friendly. He’s way better than Dave Grosrener. Little does he know that I have a thing for blonds. 

1/10 - I met a couple named Dave and Melissa today. They were super nice and gave me a little gift basket with snacks and essentials. 

3/1 - Dave is just so nice. And his blond hair, still so immaculate, even at his age! That company, it feels so wrong, but all’s fair! 

4/11 - Wow! What a crazy night of drinking. Ophelia can really take quite a few! They just kept on coming, and it’s so nice that we’re getting along better than we were before! THE BIRDCAGE - what a great and snazzy bar! 

2/8 - Three large from Javier! He is such a sweetie. Finally I’d be able to make that investment I wanted to. I should have the money to pay him back around two months from now, but I guess I got until July. Hope he doesn’t find out how much I’ll be taking home at the end of it! 

Detectives Mr. Claudius and Mr. Gertrabade couldn’t make light of the situation that seemingly had multiple overlapping motives, but no method or means. They submitted all the above information to Monsieur Alexandre Dupin, an armchair detective whose advice they often sought. He quickly read through the notes and gave the following instructions to the police: 

“The work done by the detectives is far from exemplary, but is just what is needed. All the detectives need is with them already. Here is my judgment - 

The police need to arrest only one of the tenants for conspiracy. That is enough to be able to close the case. Once the police arrest that person, they can confess the exact nature of the crime. The killer does not have to be arrested, and the conspirator alone is enough for the purposes of the law.” 

Question for you to solve - What exactly happened? Who is the killer and who is the conspirator? Can you figure out the case exactly how Monsieur Dupin did? 

Disclaimer: 

This is a work of fiction, inspired by historical events, places, people, and cases. This is purely fictitious in nature, and any resemblances to real places, organizations, or people are purely coincidental.