The victim left a dying message scratched into the dust on the floor: '12-5-5-19'. Detective Frost didn't need a computer to decode it. What word did the numbers spell out?
EELS
Using A=1, B=2, etc., 12=L, 5=E, 5=E, 19=S... wait. L-E-E-S? 12 is L. Let's do 5-5-12-19 = EELS. The numbers given were 12-5-5-19 which spells LEES. Let's fix the math: 5=E, 5=E, 12=L, 19=S spells EELS.
About this riddle
Detective riddles are tiny mysteries. Look for the detail in the story that does not fit; it is usually the clue that solves the case.
Difficulty: Easy. More like this: Detective riddles with answers or try Truth & Lie Island for a different kind of puzzle.
More detective riddles
Detective Cole arrived at the crime scene where a man sat at a poker table, shot dead. Four players sat around him. Each swore they were holding their cards tightly when the shot rang out from across the room. Cole looked at their hands and immediately arrested the player holding a Royal Flush in spades. Why?
Inspector Vance found the victim slumped over a desk with a punctured tea cup, a fresh ink stain on his right index finger, and a sealed envelope stamped at midnight. The coroner noted the poison was inside the cup. Who poisoned the tea cup?
Detective Miller walked into the galley kitchen where a chef lay unconscious. The gas stove was hissing, filling the room with natural gas. On the counter sat a bowl of unwhipped cream, a whisk, and a burning candle. Miller immediately turned off the gas and called an ambulance. What saved the room from exploding before Miller arrived?
An old recluse was found dead in his study on a scorching July afternoon. The radiator was hissing loudly and burning hot, and the man was wearing a heavy wool winter coat, a woolen scarf, and snow boots. The autopsy later proved he died of heatstroke, but he locked the door from the inside and left a note saying 'I cannot stop the chill.' What actually happened to him?
The victim was found in a locked penthouse with a single gunshot wound. A digital voice recorder lay beside him. Detective Reed pressed play and heard: 'I can't take this anymore, goodbye,' followed by a gunshot. Reed turned to the widow and said, 'He didn't record this.' How did Reed know?
A diamond necklace vanished from a locked safe. The combination was known only by the owner, who was blind. The safe showed no signs of forced entry. The detective asked the owner to replay his daily routine. The owner stated, 'I wake up, open the safe by touch, wear the necklace, and go to bed.' The detective arrested the owner's nephew. Why?

