The Detective’s DeskInez Lane
Recorded packet handler
“Establish my packet, location and event from the verified custody record.”
HARD · CASE FILE
The reversed dispatch cipher
Hard · CEDAR TELEGRAPH ROOM
The cabinet name was encoded in two stages. Four readers have submitted decodings; only one reverses both stages in the right order. The archive retained the competing reconstructions in separate packets. Rebuild their custody events, identify the proposal supported by the analytical records, then name that packet’s recorded handler. The packet events form a separate ordered register; do not substitute a calculated clock time for a review-slot label.
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.
Your assignment
Who handled the packet containing the supported reconstruction?
- The analytical records answer the analytical question; worksheet records establish the packet custody reconstruction. Candidate proposals and supplementary recollections are claims to test.
- There are 4 ordered events. Use each listed person, location and item once in its column. “A immediately before B” means A is in the row directly above B, with no row between them.
- 6 verified records support the complete submission. Keep the separate context note out of the proof.
- No outside facts or unstated exceptions are required. The complete board and report are assessed together.
People and accounts
Milo West
Recorded packet handler
“Establish my packet, location and event from the verified custody record.”
Jules Ash
Recorded packet handler
“Establish my packet, location and event from the verified custody record.”
Vera Pine
Recorded packet handler
“Establish my packet, location and event from the verified custody record.”
Case records
Read each record on its own terms. A claim made by a person is different from a fact established by an independent record.
VERIFIED RECORD C
Alphabet instruction
After the card procedure, shift each letter three places backward in A–Z, wrapping at A. This final string is the cabinet name.
Undo the alphabet shift only after the card procedure.
CONTEXT NOTE
Radio weather
Reception was clear; no extra missing letters are implied.
This describes the setting; it does not establish the requested result.
VERIFIED RECORD A
Cipher card
Write the received six letters as two rows of three, left to right. Read columns in order 3, 1, 2, each top to bottom. Then reverse the entire six-letter result.
Recover the intermediate stream before applying the alphabet rule.
VERIFIED RECORD B
Received strip
The received letters are D H V G F U. The strip contains no spaces or padding characters.
This is the complete encoded input.
RECONSTRUCTION RECORD
Packet proposal index
This is the same investigation’s packet custody record. There are 4 ordered events, labelled Review 1, Review 2, Review 3, Review 4. Each listed person, location and item occurs exactly once. These slots describe record order, not times from the analytical problem. Each packet contains the proposed reconstruction shown in the index. Solve the original three analytical records to identify the supported proposal, then trace its packet to its handler. Control packets have no proposal and cannot be the target.
- The event handled by Milo West occupies slot 2 (Review 2).
- The event at Review bench occurs earlier than the event handled by Inez Lane, without claiming they are consecutive.
- The event at Intake counter and the event involving “Packet Amber” are exactly 3 positions apart, with 2 intervening events; this alone gives no direction.
| Packet | Proposed analytical answer |
|---|---|
| Packet Amber | FHGDUV |
| Packet Birch | CEDAR |
| Packet Cedar | SRADEC |
| Packet Dune | CEDARS |
Use each column’s choices exactly once. Verified relationships govern the board; proposed answers and later recollections do not override them.
RECONSTRUCTION RECORD
Custody sequence
The relationships below were verified independently. “A immediately before B” means A is in the row directly above B, with no row between them. Keep relationships from all worksheet sources together.
- The event at Reading desk occupies slot 3 (Review 3).
- The event handled by Milo West occurs earlier than the event involving “Packet Dune”, without claiming they are consecutive.
- The event involving “Packet Dune” occurs immediately before the event handled by Inez Lane (consecutive rows, with no event between them).
Use each column’s choices exactly once. Verified relationships govern the board; proposed answers and later recollections do not override them.
RECONSTRUCTION RECORD
Cross-check and accounts
The relationships below were verified independently. “A immediately before B” means A is in the row directly above B, with no row between them. Keep relationships from all worksheet sources together.
- The event at Reading desk and the event involving “Packet Birch” are exactly 2 positions apart, with 1 intervening event; this alone gives no direction.
- The event handled by Jules Ash occurs earlier than the event at Reading desk, without claiming they are consecutive.
Use each column’s choices exactly once. Verified relationships govern the board; proposed answers and later recollections do not override them.
Questions to resolve
Which cabinet name does the verified procedure recover?
Match every recorded item to its handler or reviewer.
- Packet Birch
- Packet Cedar
- Packet Dune
- Packet Amber
At which recorded event was the target packet handled?
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.
Build your finding
Compare the records with each account. Work out what the evidence establishes, then separate that finding from anything it does not prove.