tomb | Solutions

THE SOLUTION

HOW TO BEGIN

The Start Here Guide states that the goals for your investigation are to identify the killer and uncover the motive of the murderer. It also advises that you should observe the following protocols during your investigation: (1) solve the case by developing the most likely theory that is supported by the evidence, (2) accept statements made by witnesses or other sources of information as true unless they are contradicted by other evidence, and (3) if an inconsistency arises during your investigation, be sure to check it against the other available evidence.

THE MURDER

The evidence in the investigation reveals the following facts:

Easton Myers was killed on March 20, the day of the Tomb of the Pharaoh exhibition opening, and his body was found in a storeroom adjacent to the exhibit.

According to the autopsy report, the time of Myers’ death was between 6:45 pm and 7:15 pm.

During the investigation, the murder weapon was found in a trash can in the Lancaster Museum: an ancient Egyptian hammer that was also taken from the storeroom where the body of Easton Myers was discovered.

KEY CARD ACCESS

When visiting the crime scene with Agent Ainsley Pike, you learn that the storeroom where the body was found and the murder weapon was taken is only accessible by those with keycards. Evidence uncovered during the investigation reveals that Lucas Hunt, Haley Tipton, and Branning Larsen all had keycards because they worked on the curation of the exhibit. Jackson St. Pierre was also given a keycard as the primary financial sponsor of the exhibition. Of the five suspects, only Haruto Tanaka did not have a keycard that would have given him access to the murder weapon and the crime scene. Although Takana had motive for the murder of Easton Myers (Myers had been illegally selling him fake Egyptian artifacts), he did not have the opportunity to commit the crime.

A STOLEN ARTIFACT

The hammer that was used to kill Easton Myers was stolen from the same storeroom where the body was found. Intern Leslie Shoemaker reported in her interview that the hammer was definitely present in the storeroom on March 20 at 3:58 pm. Assistant curator Joel Penn stated in his interview that he observed the hammer was missing from the storeroom by 4:35 pm on March 20. Therefore, it can be surmised that the hammer must have been stolen from the storeroom (by someone with keycard access) between 3:58 pm and 4:35 pm on March 20. In her interview, Marcy Manning stated that Branning Larsen came to her office “on the day that Myers was killed” at “a quarter to four” and “spent the next 45 minutes complaining about Myers.” Therefore, it can be concluded that Larsen was present in Marcy Manning’s office on March 20 from 3:45 pm until at least 4:30 pm. Larsen could not have stolen the murder weapon to use to kill Easton Myers.

DNA EVIDENCE

The Egyptian hammer used to kill Easton Myers was sent to the National Forensic Crime Laboratory for testing. Among the findings in the NFCL’s report was that DNA found on the handle of the hammer must have belonged to the killer and contained only XY chromosomes. This indicates that the killer was male.

A MEETING BEFORE THE OPENING

In her interview, Marcy Manning said that she met with Jackson St. Pierre and members of the Lancaster Museum Foundation “an hour and fifteen minutes" before the exhibit was scheduled to open, and deliberated for “a half an hour.” This means that Jackson St. Pierre was present at that meeting from 6:45 pm until at least 7:15 pm on March 20. This is the same time period that Easton Myer’s time of death occurred according to the autopsy report. St. Pierre could not have been present in the museum storeroom to kill Myers since he was at a meeting with Manning and the museum’s foundation members.

THE IDENTITY OF THE KILLER

Of the the five suspects, only Lucas Hunt had the means, motive, and opportunity to kill Easton Myers. Hunt was in a relationship with Haley Tipton, and Easton Myers was having an affair with her. According to Polina Sokolov, Hunt also applied to be part of an archaeological expedition with her, but Easton Myers gave a poor recommendation about Hunt to Sokolov, and Hunt was not chosen. Hunt did not have an alibi for the time period that the murder weapon was stolen, did not have an alibi for the time of Myers’ murder, and had key card access to the storeroom where the murder weapon was stolen and Myers was killed. Lucas Hunt is the killer.

Lucas Hunt Arrested in Murder of Professor

Forrest City — Yesterday afternoon, the FBI arrested graduate student Lucas Hunt for the premeditated murder of professor Easton Myers. Hunt attempted to flee from FBI agents who arrived at the Lancaster Museum to conduct the arrest, but was captured before he could escape from the museum. Hunt has been charged with first degree murder and is being held until trial without bail. FBI Special Agent Ainsley Hunt credited an unnamed “special investigator” who was retained by the FBI to assist in the case with uncovering the identity of Easton Myers’ killer and determining the motive for the crime.

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