"The Robbing of the Crown Jewel" by Claire and Ellie
“The Robbing of the Crown Jewel” Chapter One The Robbery “Tell me, Miss Suzanne Ross,” the detective says as he looks down at the files, “What were you doing the night of the 21st…?” $ $ $ On the night of the 21st of July, the Crown Jewel Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada was robbed of half its money. But onlyhalf its money. It comes to our attention that the casino was holding an event that evening, so the place was packed. It would be almost impossible to rob the casino on this night, or figure out who did it. But, the FBI has suspected three people: Suzanne Frank-Ross, Joshua Ross, and George Ross. These people were seen there that night, and they all have certain “ties” with the casino. All three were at the event the night of the 21st. The possible motives have not yet been discovered. Brett Fuller and his new assistant, Melissa Turner, have been selected to investigate the case. $ $ $ “Earth to Suzanne? Yoo-hoo!” said Brett soothingly.“Oh! I am so sorry, I spaced out there for a moment. Lately I have been a nervous wreck over this robbery. I just can’t believe something like this would happen with the high security we have. We have guards on every corner and security cameras placed every fifteen feet along the wall!” “What do you mean wehave?” inquired detective Fuller. “I am the new assistant manager of the casino, since my ex-husband was fired. I re-married the manager, George Ross.” “Who was your husband before?” “My husband was Edgar Fulton. He was the old assistant manager before me, but he lost his job a month ago. We were fighting over most things, and we divorced each other two years ago.,” responded Suzanne. “I am sorry to hear that. Excuse me for a moment, so I can go get my assistant, Melissa. Detective Fuller quickly opened the door. “Oh, hey Brett!” Melissa exclaimed. “Hello Melissa, what were you doing out here?”“Oh! I wanted to hear the interrogation, but I accidentally locked myself out of the Secret Room, you know the one behind the mirror in the Interrogation Room? Ha-ha.” Brett shook his head and whispered in Melissa’s ear, “That room doesn’t have a lock. Anyway, that is not the important part. I need you to get me a coffee .” “Yes-siree, I have to get one too. I am parched from being in that room for, like, five minutes.” Melissa skipped out of the interrogation room. But when Brett began talking again, her footsteps abruptly stopped. “Now, Miss Ross-” “I’m sorry, I thought I had told you when we began, I am married,' interrupted Suzanne, “Call me Mrs. Ross.” “Excuse me, Mrs.Ross. I would like you to answer the very first question I asked you, where were you the night of the robbery?” “I was at the event for the casino’s new hotel addition. You can ask anyone, I was sitting at a table alone drinking a strawberry Virgin Pina Colada. My husband was out and about; I didn’t see him that night.” “OK. I have just one more question. Did you see anyone in particular the night of the crime?” “Well, I did see this one woman. Of course, I was sitting pretty far away from her, but it was obvious that she was trying not to be spotted. The wrinkles on her face were showing because she wasn’t wearing make-up. She had dark brown hair. But, just then, a man walked in front of me, and by the time he moved again, she was gone. I did not get a good look at her clothing. Also, my husband’s brother, Joshua, is the janitor. I saw him leaving the vault right before we found out it had been robbed.” Just then, Melissa entered the room holding two steaming cups of coffee. Out of the corner of Brett’s eye, he saw Suzanne stiffen when Melissa opened the door. “Thank you for your time Mrs. Ross, that is all that is needed today. Now, Melissa will show you out,” Brett said with a smile. “I can find the way out myself. There is no need to trouble your assistant.” “No, please. I insist,” said Brett, impatient now. “You won’t be troubling her, will she Melissa?” Melissa shook her head “no” and smiled. “If you say so, thank you.” And on that note, Melissa and Mrs. Ross headed out the door. $ $ $ Chapter 2 The Casino: Part One The following day, Brett and Melissa went to the casino. As they walked inside, Brett saw the bustle of the maids and the bartenders hurrying around trying to clean up the mess from the night before. “Hello, what can I do for you today?” “Hi, I am Detective Brett Fuller, from the FBI. This is my assistant Melissa Turner. Are you George Ross by any chance?” “Yes I am. Pleased to meet you Detective Fuller. The faster this is figured out, the faster I can re-open the casino and start up business again.” “Can you give me any new facts relating to the case?” “No, I know absolutely nothing besides the fact that half of my, I am mean our, money was stolen.” “Can you lead me into the vault, then maybe we can make some sense of all this.” George led Melissa and Brett to the vault. When they entered, George’s cell phone rang. “Excuse me for a minute, I have to take this.” He stepped out into the hallway, and closed the door behind him. Something immediately caught Brett’s eye. Under a box hidden behind the door, was a small piece of cloth. Brett walked over and picked it up. “I know I have seen this before, but where?” Brett mumbled. “I’m sorry,” said Melissa, “I didn’t quite catch that.” She looked down to see what Brett was holding and her smile faded slightly, but it was almost unnoticeable. “I don’t believe I have seen that anywhere, maybe you’re just mistaken, Brett.” “No, no, no. I have most definitely seen it before! Oh! I know where I have seen the fabric! It was the suit, hmm, oh yes. It was George Ross’ suit jacket. His suit was made of this fabric,” exclaimed Brett. “No, that’s not possible,” stuttered Melissa nervously, “See! He is wearing a black suit, that fabric is from a navy suit jacket!” “But that is a new suit. You can tell,” explains Brett, “It is newly cleaned and pressed. He could not have worn that the day of the crime. It takes three or more days to clean and press a new suit at the dry cleaners.” “Oh, right!” $ $ $
Chapter 3 The Phone Call (A conversation of George Ross and his father, overheard by Detective Fuller)
“Father! I know you are sick, and you must be out of your mind! You cannot believe that Joshua will be a better owner than me! He is just a janitor! He cannot inherit the-” “No, George, I have already made up my mind about it. I am not as crazy as you think, Georgy. I am as healthy as a horse,” says George’s father in a raspy voice, “*cough, cough.*”“But Dad! Joshua obviously robbed the casino! People have said that they saw him in the vault just before the robbery! He is obviously trying to make me look bad so that he can have the casino over me! He made it look so easy to rob us of ourmoney. He was always the less responsible one, too!”“I don’t believe he would do that, son. And if he did, which is highly unlikely, then he did a great job of it. He has learned his ways and is more responsible now.” “But Dad-” “The discussion is over Georgy. My decision has been made.” $ $ $ Chapter 4 The Manager’s Office The next day, Brett and Melissa had a scheduled interrogation with Joshua. “Hi Joshua, please take a seat. I am detective Brett Fuller, and this is my assistant, Melissa. We have a few questions for you relating to the robbery of your father’s casino. It will only take a few minutes. First, we would like to know why you were seen walking out of the vault.” “While I was mopping the floors, I heard a peculiar noise coming from the vault. I know the pass-code to get into the vault, so I opened it to look inside. But, as I had suspected, I must have been imagining things because there was nobody in there. Then, when I was walking out of the vault, Mrs. Ross spotted me. She must have suspected me right away.” “We have heard some things are going on with your father, the owner of the casino. What is happening to him? Is he sick? Is he in debt?” inquired Detective Fuller. “He has had lung cancer for some time now. The doctors are just nowsaying that it will most likely be fatal.” “So we have heard that you are the older of the two between you and George, how is your relationship with him?” “We have a strange relationship. When we were younger we were basically best friends. But, since my dad bought the casino, things have changed. He sees the casino as competition between the two of us, where I see at as just another place to work. Because he became the manager, he now thinks that he should inherit the casino once our father passes on even though he is younger. We are not as close anymore.” “Would you ever try to sabotage your brother so that you could have the casino?” “No! We aren’t as close anymore, but he is still my brother. I love him no matter what happens.” “Thank you for all the information you have provided us with. Melissa will now show you out.” “I am glad to help. I hope you catch the culprit,”chuckled Joshua to himself. $ $ $ Brett was now led on by a hunch that had been growing over the last couple interviews. He wanted to go visit the owner’s office. Because the owner was about to sign over the casino, there must be some paperwork that goes along with it.When they entered the office, Brett immediately saw some confidential-looking papers. He walked over, and when he got close, he realized it was laminated. He picked it, but then realized that he could see his own thumbprint when he moved his thumb. Right away, he knew what he needed to do with it. Brett ran to the car while Melissa walked slowly behind him looking deep in thought. Well, as deep in thought as Melissa could get. Brett drove over to the police station, where the fingerprint detecting lab was located. Once it was done scanning, he pulled out the fingerprint results. They were just as he had suspected. Three people’s fingerprints showed up: Brett Fuller, the owner Mr. Ross, and George Ross. He looked at the signature on the laminated document, and realized it wasn’t correct. He had seen the owner’s signature on the police report. The signature was too loopy. “What are the documents for?” asks Melissa. “They seem to be the papers to sign over the Crown Jewel, and the signature is forged,” answered Brett. “I think I have this case almost figured out.” “You know what, er, I really don’t think you do,” says Melissa, “There is always some twist to the mystery. Who do you think did it?” “I’ll get back to you tomorrow on that question. For right now, let us go back to the hotel rooms. We can sleep on it.” Chapter 5 The Casino: Part 2 The following day, Brett and Melissa got up early and reported to the police station. He told them to make an arrest on George Ross. Melissa looked slightly older, because of her face being so wrinkled. Wait,Brett thought to himself. Doesn’t Melissa usually wear a lot more makeup? She looks really old!Suddenly, Brett remembered his conversation with Mrs. Ross, and how she mentioned a girl about in her thirties with a wrinkled face. And, now that he thought about, she had stuttered a little when he said he had figured out who it was. Brett was now thinking that Melissa was in on the robbery as well. When Melissa left the room, Brett talked quickly, and quietly to the police about his discoveries. He told the police not to arrest her yet, but to keep an eye on her. $ $ $ The police officer gave a ride to Brett and Melissa over to the Crown Jewel where George Ross was working. When they arrived, there were already a couple other officers there who had heard about what was going on. Everyone walked inside, and found George Ross standing there yelling at his brother. Startled by his new company, George Ross made a bolt for the door. “Oh no you don’t”, yelled an officer. “You are staying right here while we ask you some questions. Brett, I think it is your turn to talk.” “Thank you officer, I have acquired some clues that have led me to the conclusion. I found a piece of Mr. George Ross’ suit jacket that he wore the day of the crime. I also heard that Mrs. Ross didn’t see her husband at all the night of crime. My partner, Melissa, and I overheard a conversation with Mr. George Ross and his father. It seemed that the owner, George and Joshua’s father, is about to pass away. George wanted to inherit the casino, but their father was thinking of giving it to Joshua. Of course the crime was the perfect distraction to send in these papers,” Brett held the documents up for everyone to see. “ If these papers were sent in, the casino would be signed over to George, after he forged the signature of his father. Exactly half the money was stolen. Only a thief that has a purpose and also works for the company who wouldn’t want the casino to go bankrupt would rob only half the money. “I almost thought that it was Joshua because Mrs. Ross claimed to see Joshua coming out of the Crown Jewel’s vault, but he claimed to hear people in the vault so he went to investigate. Mr. George Ross couldn’t make all that noise or steal all the money alone . He had to have someone else on the inside, someone close to him. Someone like his daughter. Isn’t that right Melissa Ross?” “How in the world did you figure it out?” exclaimed Melissa. “Suzanne Ross claimed she saw a maid about in her thirties, with a sort of wrinkled face. Today I saw Melissa with no makeup on. She fit the description exactly. Also, this morning, her head appeared to be leaning sideways, but when I got close to her, I realized that it wasn’t her head, it was her hair. I then suspected it to be a wig. She disguised herself with boat loads of makeup so that workers wouldn’t recognize her from the casino. She was trying to lead me off the investigation with every step forward I made. I also looked up her file, there was nothing under the name “Melissa Turner.” But there was a file name under Melissa Turner Ross. Meaning she could only be the daughter of Mr. George Ross. But, what was her motive? She wanted to be the new assistant Manager, she thought she would get this position if she helped “Daddy.” “Wow, I must say that I did not even recognize my own niece,” said Joshua. “OK, that should impress the judge. Come on you two, let us get you into the police car. We are taking you into the station,” said the cop.“So, Joshua will definitely get the casino?!” exclaimed George with a frown.“And, this means I won’t be the new assistant Manager?” asks Melissa.“No!” yells everyone in unison.“What a dumb blonde,” mumbles Brett under his breath. “I’m a brunette!” yells Melissa pulling off her wig, and getting forced into the back of the police car.
“The Robbing of the Crown Jewel”
Chapter One
The Robbery
“Tell me, Miss Suzanne Ross,” the detective says as he looks down at the files, “What were you doing the night of the 21st…?”
$ $ $
On the night of the 21st of July, the Crown Jewel Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada was robbed of half its money. But only half its money. It comes to our attention that the casino was holding an event that evening, so the place was packed. It would be almost impossible to rob the casino on this night, or figure out who did it. But, the FBI has suspected three people: Suzanne Frank-Ross, Joshua Ross, and George Ross. These people were seen there that night, and they all have certain “ties” with the casino. All three were at the event the night of the 21st. The possible motives have not yet been discovered. Brett Fuller and his new assistant, Melissa Turner, have been selected to investigate the case.
$ $ $
“Earth to Suzanne? Yoo-hoo!” said Brett soothingly.“Oh! I am so sorry, I spaced out there for a moment. Lately I have been a nervous wreck over this robbery. I just can’t believe something like this would happen with the high security we have. We have guards on every corner and security cameras placed every fifteen feet along the wall!”
“What do you mean wehave?” inquired detective Fuller.
“I am the new assistant manager of the casino, since my ex-husband was fired. I re-married the manager, George Ross.”
“Who was your husband before?”
“My husband was Edgar Fulton. He was the old assistant manager before me, but he lost his job a month ago. We were fighting over most things, and we divorced each other two years ago.,” responded Suzanne.
“I am sorry to hear that. Excuse me for a moment, so I can go get my assistant, Melissa. Detective Fuller quickly opened the door.
“Oh, hey Brett!” Melissa exclaimed.
“Hello Melissa, what were you doing out here?”“Oh! I wanted to hear the interrogation, but I accidentally locked myself out of the Secret Room, you know the one behind the mirror in the Interrogation Room? Ha-ha.”
Brett shook his head and whispered in Melissa’s ear, “That room doesn’t have a lock. Anyway, that is not the important part. I need you to get me a coffee .”
“Yes-siree, I have to get one too. I am parched from being in that room for, like, five minutes.” Melissa skipped out of the interrogation room. But when Brett began talking again, her footsteps abruptly stopped.
“Now, Miss Ross-”
“I’m sorry, I thought I had told you when we began, I am married,' interrupted Suzanne, “Call me Mrs. Ross.”
“Excuse me, Mrs. Ross. I would like you to answer the very first question I asked you, where were you the night of the robbery?”
“I was at the event for the casino’s new hotel addition. You can ask anyone, I was sitting at a table alone drinking a strawberry Virgin Pina Colada. My husband was out and about; I didn’t see him that night.”
“OK. I have just one more question. Did you see anyone in particular the night of the crime?”
“Well, I did see this one woman. Of course, I was sitting pretty far away from her, but it was obvious that she was trying not to be spotted. The wrinkles on her face were showing because she wasn’t wearing make-up. She had dark brown hair. But, just then, a man walked in front of me, and by the time he moved again, she was gone. I did not get a good look at her clothing. Also, my husband’s brother, Joshua, is the janitor. I saw him leaving the vault right before we found out it had been robbed.” Just then, Melissa entered the room holding two steaming cups of coffee. Out of the corner of Brett’s eye, he saw Suzanne stiffen when Melissa opened the door.
“Thank you for your time Mrs. Ross, that is all that is needed today. Now, Melissa will show you out,” Brett said with a smile.
“I can find the way out myself. There is no need to trouble your assistant.”
“No, please. I insist,” said Brett, impatient now. “You won’t be troubling her, will she Melissa?” Melissa shook her head “no” and smiled.
“If you say so, thank you.” And on that note, Melissa and Mrs. Ross headed out the door.
$ $ $
Chapter 2
The Casino: Part One
The following day, Brett and Melissa went to the casino. As they walked inside, Brett saw the bustle of the maids and the bartenders hurrying around trying to clean up the mess from the night before.
“Hello, what can I do for you today?”
“Hi, I am Detective Brett Fuller, from the FBI. This is my assistant Melissa Turner. Are you George Ross by any chance?”
“Yes I am. Pleased to meet you Detective Fuller. The faster this is figured out, the faster I can re-open the casino and start up business again.”
“Can you give me any new facts relating to the case?”
“No, I know absolutely nothing besides the fact that half of my, I am mean our, money was stolen.”
“Can you lead me into the vault, then maybe we can make some sense of all this.” George led Melissa and Brett to the vault. When they entered, George’s cell phone rang.
“Excuse me for a minute, I have to take this.” He stepped out into the hallway, and closed the door behind him. Something immediately caught Brett’s eye. Under a box hidden behind the door, was a small piece of cloth. Brett walked over and picked it up.
“I know I have seen this before, but where?” Brett mumbled.
“I’m sorry,” said Melissa, “I didn’t quite catch that.” She looked down to see what Brett was holding and her smile faded slightly, but it was almost unnoticeable. “I don’t believe I have seen that anywhere, maybe you’re just mistaken, Brett.”
“No, no, no. I have most definitely seen it before! Oh! I know where I have seen the fabric! It was the suit, hmm, oh yes. It was George Ross’ suit jacket. His suit was made of this fabric,” exclaimed Brett.
“No, that’s not possible,” stuttered Melissa nervously, “See! He is wearing a black suit, that fabric is from a navy suit jacket!”
“But that is a new suit. You can tell,” explains Brett, “It is newly cleaned and pressed. He could not have worn that the day of the crime. It takes three or more days to clean and press a new suit at the dry cleaners.”
“Oh, right!”
$ $ $
Chapter 3
The Phone Call
(A conversation of George Ross and his father, overheard by Detective Fuller)
“Father! I know you are sick, and you must be out of your mind! You cannot believe that Joshua will be a better owner than me! He is just a janitor! He cannot inherit the-”
“No, George, I have already made up my mind about it. I am not as crazy as you think, Georgy. I am as healthy as a horse,” says George’s father in a raspy voice, “*cough, cough.*”“But Dad! Joshua obviously robbed the casino! People have said that they saw him in the vault just before the robbery! He is obviously trying to make me look bad so that he can have the casino over me! He made it look so easy to rob us of ourmoney. He was always the less responsible one, too!”“I don’t believe he would do that, son. And if he did, which is highly unlikely, then he did a great job of it. He has learned his ways and is more responsible now.”
“But Dad-”
“The discussion is over Georgy. My decision has been made.”
$ $ $
Chapter 4
The Manager’s Office
The next day, Brett and Melissa had a scheduled interrogation with Joshua.
“Hi Joshua, please take a seat. I am detective Brett Fuller, and this is my assistant, Melissa. We have a few questions for you relating to the robbery of your father’s casino. It will only take a few minutes. First, we would like to know why you were seen walking out of the vault.”
“While I was mopping the floors, I heard a peculiar noise coming from the vault. I know the pass-code to get into the vault, so I opened it to look inside. But, as I had suspected, I must have been imagining things because there was nobody in there. Then, when I was walking out of the vault, Mrs. Ross spotted me. She must have suspected me right away.”
“We have heard some things are going on with your father, the owner of the casino. What is happening to him? Is he sick? Is he in debt?” inquired Detective Fuller.
“He has had lung cancer for some time now. The doctors are just nowsaying that it will most likely be fatal.” “So we have heard that you are the older of the two between you and George, how is your relationship with him?”
“We have a strange relationship. When we were younger we were basically best friends. But, since my dad bought the casino, things have changed. He sees the casino as competition between the two of us, where I see at as just another place to work. Because he became the manager, he now thinks that he should inherit the casino once our father passes on even though he is younger. We are not as close anymore.”
“Would you ever try to sabotage your brother so that you could have the casino?”
“No! We aren’t as close anymore, but he is still my brother. I love him no matter what happens.”
“Thank you for all the information you have provided us with. Melissa will now show you out.”
“I am glad to help. I hope you catch the culprit,”chuckled Joshua to himself.
$ $ $
Brett was now led on by a hunch that had been growing over the last couple interviews. He wanted to go visit the owner’s office. Because the owner was about to sign over the casino, there must be some paperwork that goes along with it.When they entered the office, Brett immediately saw some confidential-looking papers. He walked over, and when he got close, he realized it was laminated. He picked it, but then realized that he could see his own thumbprint when he moved his thumb. Right away, he knew what he needed to do with it.
Brett ran to the car while Melissa walked slowly behind him looking deep in thought. Well, as deep in thought as Melissa could get. Brett drove over to the police station, where the fingerprint detecting lab was located. Once it was done scanning, he pulled out the fingerprint results. They were just as he had suspected. Three people’s fingerprints showed up: Brett Fuller, the owner Mr. Ross, and George Ross. He looked at the signature on the laminated document, and realized it wasn’t correct. He had seen the owner’s signature on the police report. The signature was too loopy.
“What are the documents for?” asks Melissa.
“They seem to be the papers to sign over the Crown Jewel, and the signature is forged,” answered Brett. “I think I have this case almost figured out.”
“You know what, er, I really don’t think you do,” says Melissa, “There is always some twist to the mystery. Who do you think did it?”
“I’ll get back to you tomorrow on that question. For right now, let us go back to the hotel rooms. We can sleep on it.”
Chapter 5
The Casino: Part 2
The following day, Brett and Melissa got up early and reported to the police station. He told them to make an arrest on George Ross. Melissa looked slightly older, because of her face being so wrinkled.
Wait, Brett thought to himself. Doesn’t Melissa usually wear a lot more makeup? She looks really old! Suddenly, Brett remembered his conversation with Mrs. Ross, and how she mentioned a girl about in her thirties with a wrinkled face. And, now that he thought about, she had stuttered a little when he said he had figured out who it was. Brett was now thinking that Melissa was in on the robbery as well.
When Melissa left the room, Brett talked quickly, and quietly to the police about his discoveries. He told the police not to arrest her yet, but to keep an eye on her.
$ $ $
The police officer gave a ride to Brett and Melissa over to the Crown Jewel where George Ross was working. When they arrived, there were already a couple other officers there who had heard about what was going on. Everyone walked inside, and found George Ross standing there yelling at his brother. Startled by his new company, George Ross made a bolt for the door.
“Oh no you don’t”, yelled an officer. “You are staying right here while we ask you some questions. Brett, I think it is your turn to talk.”
“Thank you officer, I have acquired some clues that have led me to the conclusion. I found a piece of Mr. George Ross’ suit jacket that he wore the day of the crime. I also heard that Mrs. Ross didn’t see her husband at all the night of crime. My partner, Melissa, and I overheard a conversation with Mr. George Ross and his father. It seemed that the owner, George and Joshua’s father, is about to pass away. George wanted to inherit the casino, but their father was thinking of giving it to Joshua. Of course the crime was the perfect distraction to send in these papers,” Brett held the documents up for everyone to see. “ If these papers were sent in, the casino would be signed over to George, after he forged the signature of his father. Exactly half the money was stolen. Only a thief that has a purpose and also works for the company who wouldn’t want the casino to go bankrupt would rob only half the money.
“I almost thought that it was Joshua because Mrs. Ross claimed to see Joshua coming out of the Crown Jewel’s vault, but he claimed to hear people in the vault so he went to investigate. Mr. George Ross couldn’t make all that noise or steal all the money alone . He had to have someone else on the inside, someone close to him. Someone like his daughter. Isn’t that right Melissa Ross?”
“How in the world did you figure it out?” exclaimed Melissa.
“Suzanne Ross claimed she saw a maid about in her thirties, with a sort of wrinkled face. Today I saw Melissa with no makeup on. She fit the description exactly. Also, this morning, her head appeared to be leaning sideways, but when I got close to her, I realized that it wasn’t her head, it was her hair. I then suspected it to be a wig. She disguised herself with boat loads of makeup so that workers wouldn’t recognize her from the casino. She was trying to lead me off the investigation with every step forward I made. I also looked up her file, there was nothing under the name “Melissa Turner.” But there was a file name under Melissa Turner Ross. Meaning she could only be the daughter of Mr. George Ross. But, what was her motive? She wanted to be the new assistant Manager, she thought she would get this position if she helped “Daddy.”
“Wow, I must say that I did not even recognize my own niece,” said Joshua.
“OK, that should impress the judge. Come on you two, let us get you into the police car. We are taking you into the station,” said the cop.“So, Joshua will definitely get the casino?!” exclaimed George with a frown.“And, this means I won’t be the new assistant Manager?” asks Melissa.“No!” yells everyone in unison.“What a dumb blonde,” mumbles Brett under his breath. “I’m a brunette!” yells Melissa pulling off her wig, and getting forced into the back of the police car.