The Detective’s DeskNell Moss
Auction clerk
What happened from your point of view?
I requested a replacement outer seal after water damage.
What should I check to test that account?
I never authorised substitution of the sheet.
HARD · CASE FILE
The Letter Opened before Sealing
Hard · A family archive auction
A seal expert is blamed because she resealed a packet. Establish what was inside before her work and who had already arranged a private sale.
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 scene
The original letter has a watermarked crescent visible in transmitted light. A photocopy shares its handwriting but not its paper.
People and accounts
Sami Lane
Private buyer
What happened from your point of view?
I purchased a facsimile.
What should I check to test that account?
My invoice says crescent paper.
Ruth Bell
Paper specialist
What happened from your point of view?
The watermark distinguishes the original.
What should I check to test that account?
A normal top-lit scan cannot show it.
Dina Hart
Archivist
What happened from your point of view?
I passed the sealed original to the seal expert.
What should I check to test that account?
My preparation scan shows the handwriting.
Omar Cole
Seal expert
What happened from your point of view?
The packet arrived already containing a photocopy.
What should I check to test that account?
I photographed the open contents before fitting the new authorised seal.
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.
Case record · Seal bench
Intake custody receipt
Omar receives the packet directly from Dina. The old closure is cut by Dina during a joint contents check before Omar begins work.
Case record · Archive desk
Preparation scan
Dina’s scan shows only top-lit handwriting. It cannot establish paper identity or what was placed into the closed packet afterward.
Case record · Seal bench
Seal expert’s intake image
Before resealing, the opened intake packet contains an unwatermarked facsimile. The dated image includes the damaged old seal.
Case record · Buyer’s desk
Predated invoice and reply
Dina invoices “crescent original, public facsimile supplied”; Sami replies accepting both terms before the packet reaches Omar.
Case record · Paper desk
Original paper condition
The signed original has crescent-watermarked paper and a repaired lower corner. The facsimile lacks the watermark.
Case record · Archive desk
Dina’s sole preparation entry
Dina alone holds original and facsimile between the specialist’s check and the handover to Omar. No other person packs the inner sheet.
Case record · Auction desk
Resealing authority
Nell authorises replacement of the damaged closure while preserving actual contents and recording intake. Omar follows those limits.
Case record · Buyer’s desk
Private recovery
The crescent-watermarked original with repaired corner is recovered from Sami’s purchase folder.
Questions to resolve
Who changed the sheet before resealing?
Who knowingly agreed to the private original and public facsimile?
What does Omar’s new seal establish?
Who among the seal expert, clerk and specialist is established as knowing assistance to substitution?
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.