114 Murder Mystery Riddles To Test Your Deduction Skills

Famous columnist Max Worthington was found deceased at his manual typewriter, fatally stabbed in the back. His agent, Roger, found his body when he went to check on Max to see why he hadn't submitted his latest column. He then called the police, and the dispatcher sent Detective Sing to investigate. Detective Sing noticed that Max had apparently been writing his column when he was killed and that the last thing typed was "49t34 w5qgg3e j3," apparently a random string of numbers and letters created when his lifeless body slumped forward onto the typewriter. Detective Sing questioned the people closest to Worthington and found several suspects: Max's ex-wife, Marisa, had been feuding with him over alimony payments she felt entitled to, despite his offer of the mansion they had shared, plus a generous lump-sum payment; Max's current girlfriend, Jillian, was a beautiful young woman but was seemingly high maintenance and seemed to miss his money more than him; and Max's brother, Gerald, was happy his brother was dead, as Max had stolen Marisa away from him, and Gerald was intent on winning her back. Detective Sing concluded his investigation and quickly made an arrest. Who did he take into custody?

Sean Donovin was found deceased in his hotel room bed at 3:15 PM on January 4 by the hotel maid. There were no apparent signs of foul play, and a cryptic note was left behind, so police initially assumed that Sean had taken his own life. However, a detective was called in just to be safe, and he immediately suspected foul play. Sean was a young man in his 20s, was engaged to be married, and was a successful businessman who also taught Sunday school. On the surface, he seemingly had no reason to commit such an act. Since Sean passed in his hotel room and there was no sign of forced entry, the detective theorized that if he had been slain, it had to be one of the three people closest to him, as he didn't trust people easily. The three people closest to him were his sister, Hannah, who often assisted him with teaching Sunday school; his brother, John, who ran a small, semi-successful business; and, Sean's fiancee, Jenna. Finding no obvious motive among the three, the detective held off on declaring Sean's end a suicide until after the medical examiner performed an autopsy. Sean had apparently perished from a lethal injection that killed him instantly. He was found approximately 11 hours after he passed. Still confounded by the evidence, the detective then began scouring the note for clues. It read: "My loved ones, Jenna, Sis, John, I would just like to tell you how sorry I am. Blame God for why I am to die today. Blame Him. Seek Him if you want to know why I did leave you. Do not mourn my death. Please move on. Goodbye, Sean." The detective found it strange that a seemingly pious and devout man would take his own life and then blaspheme against God, but the handwriting was verified to be Sean's. After some thought, the detective deduced that Sean had been slain and arrested one of the three suspects. How did he know this, and who was the culprit?

John Aiers, a little person, was found dead in his living room from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, the pistol still clutched in his lifeless hand. There was no sign of a struggle and no indication of foul play - only the small bullet hole below his left breast and a small bloodstain around the wound. The bullet had gone clear through his body, through the couch he was sitting on, and had lodged in the wall behind him. A junior detective surmised from the scene that Aiers had taken his own life, bolstered by the man's massive amount of financial debt and history of depression. However, the senior detective stated that he knew Aiers had been murdered the second he laid eyes on his body. What did he notice that the junior detective had not?

One snowy night, Sherlock Holmes was in his house sitting by a fire. All of a sudden a snowball came crashing through his window, breaking it. Holmes got up and looked out the window just in time to see three neighborhood kids who were brothers running around a corner. Their names were John Crimson, Mark Crimson, and Paul Crimson. The next day Holmes got a note on his door that read “? Crimson. He broke your window.” Which of the three Crimson brothers should Sherlock Holmes question about the incident?

Anderson, Biggs, and Carpenter were staying together at a place by the seaside. One day they went out in a boat and were a mile at sea when a rifle was fired on shore in their direction. It seems that Anderson only heard the report of the gun, Biggs only saw the smoke, and Carpenter merely saw the bullet strike the water near them. Which of them first knew of the discharge of the rifle?

Melanie lived with her siblings in a small town. One afternoon, Melanie was found dead in the living room. When the police questioned her siblings, they had both been in the pool from the morning and hadn’t killed her. But the police arrested Melanie’s siblings for her murder. Why?

It’s 6 pm and George Manly was murdered. Yet no murderer was found. But the cops got witnesses. There were 5 other people in the house at the time of George’s murder. The chef said he was cooking dinner. The gardener said she was gardening. The auntie said she was playing chess with her brother. The wife said she was watching TV. And the grandfather said he was in his wheelchair. So who murdered George Manly?

On the first day of the school a young girl was found murdered. Police suspect four male teachers and question them. They were asked what they were doing at 8:00 am. Mr. Walter: "I was driving to school and I was late." Mr. Thomas: "I was checking English exam papers." Mr. Benjamin: "I was reading the newspaper." Mr. Calvin: "I was with my wife in my office." The police arrested the killer. How did the police find the murderer?

A man owned a casino and invited some friends. It was a dark stormy night, and they all placed their money on the table right before the lights went out. When the lights came back on, the money was gone. The owner put a rooster in an old rusty tea kettle. He told everyone to get in line and touch the kettle after he turned the lights off, and the rooster will crow when the robber touched it. After everyone touched it, the rooster didn't crow, so the man told everyone to hold out their hands. After examining all the hands, he pointed out who the robber was. How did he know who stole the money?

A rich and handsome man named James Leonard was murdered on a Sunday afternoon. At the time of the murder there was: the maid, the cook, the butler, the gardener and the wife. They gave the following statements. Maid: "I was fixing the table." Cook: "I was cooking breakfast." Butler: "I was polishing the silverware and the dishes." Gardener: "I was planting tomato seeds." Wife: "I was reading a book." Who did it?

It is a stormy, snowy day. There is a man dead inside a shack. There are no windows and the only door is locked from inside. There is no way in or out. The man has a stab wound. There is a puddle of water and blood next to him. How did he die?

An adventurer finds a chest of treasure guarded by a pirate who offers him a red key, a blue key, and a gold key. Only one of them can open the treasure chest, and he only has one chance to choose the right key. Behind the pirate, he sees a ciper reading ‘TGK HOE ELY DEN.’ Which key does he choose?

A Japanese ship was en route to the open sea. The captain went for a shower removing his ring and keeping it on the table. When he returned, he found it had gone missing. The captain immediately called the three suspected crew members and asked each one where they were and what were they doing in the last 15 minutes. The cook said, “I was in fridge room getting meat for cooking.” The Engineer , “I was working on generator engine.” The seaman said, “I was on the mast correcting the flag which was upside down by mistake.” The radio officer said, “I was messaging to a company about the arrival.” The navigation officer said, “I was sleeping in my cabin.” The captain immediately caught the thief. How?

A man is found splattered on the ground outside his work building where he had an office on the 10th floor. The detective is asking the CEO of the company about it on the top floor of the building (24th). The CEO says, "He was constantly talking about suicide. We should have taken him more seriously. He left me this suicide note." The detective ignores the CEO holding out the suicide note. He pulls out a coin and says, "Heads or tails?" CEO is confused but the detective doesn't flinch so he finally says, "Ok... tails." The detective flips the coin out the window and watches it all the way to the ground below. Then he looks at the CEO and says, "Sorry it was heads. This is a murder, not a suicide." Why does he think that?