Case File #071720: Missing - Ima Boxturtle

Summary:

A kidnapping has occurred at the Connecticut

Science Center. Ima Boxturtle’s tank was

broken into and she was taken!

Examine the evidence left at the scene to help

narrow down the list of suspects and figure out

who took Ima.

Meet the Suspects:

Miss Melissa Melissa is our Genetics educator. You can

often find her wearing her tie-dye lab coat

in the Genomics Lab.

Miss Sarah Sarah is one of our camp counselors, but

don’t let that fool you!

Miss Kaila Kaila is the animal caretaker. She feeds

and cleans all the animals at the

Connecticut Science Center.

Mr. Nate Nate is an educator at the Connecticut

Science Center. Keep your eyes peeled to

spot him teaching in the Genomics Lab.

Mr. Zach Zach is one of our friends behind the

scenes, helping to gather all of our fun

science materials!

Miss Caity Caity helps to book all of our wonderful

programs in the Discovery Labs.

Evidence:

Work together and complete each activity to eliminate suspects based on the

evidence. Make observations and keep track of your evidence below to build your

case.

Code Breaking: What does the ransom note say?

Answer: _____________________________________________

Fingerprints: Whose fingerprints match those left at the scene?

Place a ✔ in the box below any suspect who left fingerprints behind!

Suspect Melissa Sarah Kaila Nate Zach Caity

Shoeprints: Who left shoeprints near the tank?

Place a ✔ in the box below any suspect who left shoeprints behind!

Suspect Melissa Sarah Kaila Nate Zach Caity

WHO DID IT? _______________________

Look at all of your evidence and form your conclusion!

FINGERPRINT IDENTIFICATION

Fingerprints are divided up into 3 basic pattern categories.

Pattern Description Example

Whorl

This fingerprint looks like a bullseye. It

has lines entering at the side of the pad

of your finger, spiraling to an end in the

center of the print.

Loop

This pattern is like an upside down “U”

and can come from the left or the right.

The loop lines enter on one side of the

finger pad and leave from the same side

Arch

This pattern looks like a hill, with lines

entering on one side, slanting up, then

back down, and exiting out the other

side of the finger pad.

SUSPECT FINGERPRINTS

Suspect Fingerprint Pattern

Melissa

Sarah

Kaila

Nate

Zach

Caity

EVIDENCE CARD

We were able to extract three fingerprints from the scene of the crime.

All three fingerprints were taken from Ima’s tank. Can you match these

fingerprints to those on your “Suspect Fingerprints” handout? Record your

observations in CASE FILE #071720. What suspects can we eliminate at

this point?

Suspect 1 Suspect 2 Suspect 3

Evidence Card

There was a ransom note found at the scene of the crime. Use the cipher wheel to

decipher the secret code and find out what the kidnapper wants! Record your

observations in CASEFILE #071720.

Cipher Wheel Key: A10

If you want to see Ima again…

VOKFO WO MYYUSOC

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

SX DRO VKL!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _!

Evidence Card We were able to extract three shoeprints from the scene of the crime. Can you match these shoeprints to the

molds taken from the suspect’s shoes? Record your observations in CASEFILE #071720.

Evidence # 1 Evidence #2 Evidence #3