Clues & Culprits › Hints › Oct 2, 2026 Easy
Spoiler-Free Hints for Oct 2, 2026
Stuck on the Easy case, “Three Hundred Copies of a Lie”? Open one nudge at a time. Nothing below reveals a verdict unless you click a box marked spoiler.
Back to the case Rules refresher
About this case
The first edition of the Evening Clarion announced the mayor's resignation. The second edition, forty minutes later, did not — and in between, someone collected £60,000 from bookmakers who had taken bets on exactly that.
This Easy case seats 16 suspects on a 4×4 grid. 14 of them carry a clue; the other 2 only have something to say about themselves. Every step can be proven from a single clue plus what you already know.
Nudge 1 — where to start
The case opens with Kurt the tipster (C3) already proven. Their statement is enough on its own to prove one more suspect straight away — read it word by word, especially the counting words (exactly, neighbors, between).
The person between me and Ivan is innocent.— Kurt, tipster (C3)
Spoiler: who can I prove first?
Juno (B3) is innocent, proven by Kurt’s statement.
Nudge 2 — the opening
Four suspects get proven in this stretch, in rows 3 and 4. The statements doing the work are direction clues, “between” clues and neighbor counts. Tip: with direction clues, “above”, “below”, “left” and “right” cover the whole line in that direction, not just the next card.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Kurt’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Juno (B3) — innocent.
Nudge 3 — after about 4 proven suspects
Four suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 1, 2 and 4, most of them in row 2. The statements doing the work are paired verdicts, neighbor counts and role counts. Tip: with paired verdicts, chain the pairs: a link of “same” and “different” statements often runs across the board.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Ned’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Otto (C4) — innocent.
Nudge 4 — after about 8 proven suspects
Three suspects get proven in this stretch, in rows 1 and 2. The statements doing the work are “between” clues, paired verdicts and row and column counts. Tip: with “between” clues, only the cards strictly between the two named suspects count.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Dexter’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Celia (C1) — a criminal.
Nudge 5 — the endgame
Four suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 1, 3 and 4, most of them in row 1. The statements doing the work are neighbor counts and role counts. Tip: with neighbor counts, a corner has three neighbors, an edge five, the middle eight — compare the count with what is left.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Greta’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Basil (B1) — innocent.
Clue types in this case
role counts ×2, neighbor counts ×4, paired verdicts ×3, “between” clues ×2, row and column counts ×1 and direction clues ×2.
Questions
How many clues does this case have?
14 of the 16 suspects carry a clue. The rest only talk about themselves — you can hide those asides in Settings.
Where is the full solution?
The step-by-step walkthrough proves every verdict in order.