Still Waters
Reopened Thursday 22 January 2026 (death: 15 October 1988)
DS Marilyn Achebe, Cold Case Review Unit
Marrow Beck Reservoir & Ashwater village, and the county records archive
Thomas 'Tom' Beckett, 24, junior planning clerk (deceased 15 Oct 1988)
On 15 October 1988 Tom Beckett was found drowned below the sluice at Marrow Beck Reservoir. A 1989 inquest recorded misadventure: a young man who had been drinking, slipping on the wet sluice steps. In January 2026 a retaining wall failed at the housing estate built above the reservoir, and the collapse exposed that the 1987 geotechnical survey which had approved the build was falsified: it hid a slip-plane. Tom had been the planning clerk on that file. The Cold Case Review Unit has reopened his death with modern document forensics, digitised archives and DNA recovered from his preserved jacket.
Work both timelines: the 1988 file and the 2026 laboratory. Establish whether the misadventure verdict survives a modern re-read; if it does not, find how the original inquest file was doctored and by whom, eliminate the other reopened suspects, prove how and why Tom died, and name the responsible person with supporting evidence. Each stage is sealed: you will need to prove your reasoning to unlock the next.
Who's involved
5 people are connected to this case. In the game you'll interview each of them and weigh their motive against whether they really had the opportunity.
Alan Mercer
In 1988: the Detective Sergeant who closed the case quickly.
Dennis Quayle
In 1988: Tom's drinking friend; had a public row with Tom that last night.
Gerald Foss
In 1988: Chief Planning Officer (Tom's boss). Now retired.
Nita Sharma
In 1988: junior surveyor who co-signed the Beckwater survey.
Ray Dutton
In 1988: property developer who built the estate above the reservoir.
Playing a case
- 01Read the briefing and open the evidence board.
- 02Examine forensics, documents, messages and CCTV, and interview every suspect.
- 03Clear each checkpoint deduction to unlock the next stage as the clock runs down.
- 04Name the culprit, their motive and their method, then get scored against the full solution.
Ready to open the file on Still Waters?
Play this case