The Detective’s DeskHARD · CASE FILE
Hard · A disputed gallery collection
A buyer presents a genuine signature as proof of a completed sale. The owner calls it a deposit. Trace which terms belong to that signature and whether the packer knowingly helped a false collection.
Read the case file below, or open the interactive desk to examine records, keep notes and submit your reasoning. These are the case materials, without the solution.
The bronze remains detained in its crate. The original receipt, the gallery’s carbon duplicate and the attempted collection papers are available. No payment other than the recorded deposit is disputed.
Packing assistant
I prepared a crate after Ilan showed me his papers, but the duty officer stopped release.
I was told the owner had approved collection. I did not inspect the reverse terms.
Gallery owner
I accepted a refundable display deposit. I did not sell the bronze figure to anyone.
The transaction terms are printed on the reverse of the receipt.
Prospective buyer
My signed receipt proves I bought the bronze. The gallery must release it to me.
The paper says “received” and bears Ruth’s genuine signature.
Gallery clerk
I issued the deposit form and later saw a different first page attached to it.
Our carbon duplicate includes a form serial across both sides.
Read each record on its own terms. A claim made by a person is different from a fact established by an independent record.
Physical record · Sales desk
Serial D18 records a refundable exhibition deposit. Its reverse expressly says no ownership transfers and the balance has not been paid. Ruth’s signature acknowledges that deposit.
Physical record · Sales desk
Only the small D18 deposit was paid. The transfer record contains no balance payment, sale invoice or owner-approved release.
Physical record · Packing room
Ilan tells Omar that Ruth has authorised release. Omar replies that he will prepare a crate but asks the duty officer to confirm authority before it leaves.
Physical record · Packing room
Omar’s hold request precedes the owner’s complaint. The crate remains sealed inside the gallery; he did not bypass the verification he requested.
Physical record · Document counter
The unbroken counter recording shows Ilan removing the deposit cover and attaching his new release sheet before showing the document to Omar.
Physical record · Document counter
Ilan attaches a new front sheet stating “paid sale and release” to the signed D18 page. The new sheet has no matching serial, and its wording is absent from the carbon duplicate.
Use the interactive case desk to select your finding and cite the records that support it. The answer is checked there, and your progress stays in your browser.
Compare the records with each account. Work out what the evidence establishes, then separate that finding from anything it does not prove.