The Detective’s DeskAya Hart
Buyer
What happened from your point of view?
I paid for the paint and requested reimbursement once.
What should I check to test that account?
My bank confirmation refers to P62.
MEDIUM · CASE FILE
The Two Names on One Invoice
Medium · A community mural project
Two volunteers claim reimbursement for the same paint. Compare supplier invoice numbers, payer evidence and the wording of each request.
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 supplier sells one order under invoice P62. A forwarded invoice is available to more than one person.
People and accounts
Omar Bell
Treasurer
What happened from your point of view?
Both requests claim personal payment.
What should I check to test that account?
I paused the second one when the invoice numbers matched.
Nora Cole
Supplier
What happened from your point of view?
P62 is one sale and one payment.
What should I check to test that account?
Changing the customer display name on a copy does not create another sale.
Felix North
Coordinator
What happened from your point of view?
My copy of the invoice proves I paid too.
What should I check to test that account?
Aya forwarded it so I could record the project costs.
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 · Accounts desk
Buyer’s payment confirmation
Aya’s account pays reference A19 for P62. The amount matches the complete invoice.
Case record · Accounts desk
Coordinator’s reimbursement form
Felix claims “personally paid P62” and attaches the forwarded invoice with the visible display name edited.
Case record · Supply desk
Supplier’s single invoice
P62 lists one paint order and one payment reference A19, with no second delivery.
Case record · Supply desk
Supplier’s payment ledger
Only A19 settled P62. No payment from Felix and no duplicate paint order appears.
Case record · Accounts desk
Treasurer’s hold note
Aya’s first request is paid; Felix’s later request is held, preventing a second budget payout.
Case record · Accounts desk
Forwarded cost email
Aya sends Felix the invoice “for your cost register, already paid by me”. Felix replies “recorded”.
Questions to resolve
Who claims another person’s paid cost as their own?
What happened to the second reimbursement?
What does possessing the forwarded invoice establish?
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.