The Case of the Missing Brisket
Written by Mr. Hummels
Last modified 4-14-2012
Cast of Characters:
Paulo: A student at Winchester Colt Academy who stumbled upon an empty tray meant to carry the school’s famous brisket.
Bjorn: A janitor who has a baby face. He was seen entering the locker room with a large duffle bag.
Martina: The head cheerleader in charge of the Make it Sweet Foundation who was seen exiting the scene with something stuffed in her pompons.
Sandaval: The rebel of the school. He wears a black leather jacket, shorts, and sandals with socks. He was seen exiting the scene with a bag he stuffed into the basket of his bicycle.
Svenbaka: The organizer of the Brisket Day Celebration. She was seen exiting the scene with the covered tray that usually carries the brisket.
On the afternoon of October 14, Paulo was walking into the Winchester Colt Academy to pay his lunch fine and noticed that the famous, fabulous, fantastic brisket that was made by the Winchester Colt lunch ladies had disappeared. “What in the name of Thor’s hammer?” Paulo squealed. “Someone has stolen the brisket,” he said just as Martina sauntered around the corner.
“Oh no!” she squeaked. “What on Earth? Paulo, you stole the brisket.”
“Me!” Paulo exclaimed. “No, I didn’t do it. I just flitted upon the scene.”
Sandaval swaggered into the kitchen, “Yo, y’all. Wuz up, and where’s the brisket, yo?”
“Paulo stole it,” cried Martina.
“Did not,” whinnied Paulo.
“Paulo, you just ruined Brisket Day, you fool,” growled Sandaval.
“Maybe Svenbaka knows. She was just here organizing Brisket Day.”
They galloped down the hall at a moderate pace to find Svenbaka, the foreign exchange student who is now in charge of Brisket Day. The three students trounced through the door and bellowed, “Svenbaka, where’s the brisket, yo?”
Svenbaka replied in a stern tone, “No one ruins Brisket day.”
Paulo said, “But somebody stole the brisket.”
“We can’t have Brisket day without brisket,” stammered Svenbaka. That’s when they heard the squeak of the wheels coming from Bjorn’s janitorial cart. “What are you kids doing in there?” Bjorn said with a glimmer in his eye and a hint of red on his baby face.
“Bjorn, somebody has stolen the brisket from the kitchen.”
“It wasn’t me,” growled Bjorn.
“Yo, why are you getting so defensive, yo,” said Sandaval.
“Listen punk, I’ve been getting ready for Brisket day ever since you were a preschooler. I’d never ruin Brisket day,” scoffed Bjorn.
“What was in the duffle bag I saw in the gym?” asked Paulo.
“It was hockey equipment that I was bringing in for Coach Kleinschwartzmanstein,” explained Bjorn.
“Well, what was in that carrier I saw on your bike, Sandaval? It looked like that might have had brisket in it,” said Paulo.
“This is wack, yo. I’m out of here, yo,” said Sandaval. Martina looked at Bjorn.
“That was sudden, don’t you think,” Paulo fiercely mumbled.
“Sandaval did it. I just know it. I can feel it in my bones,” Svenbaka said. “You know he has been acting strangely, and he does come and go as he pleases because he’s a rebellious teenager, unlike us.”
Bjorn said, “I know the boy’s mother. She’s raised him right. He wouldn’t do something like that.”
“Well, Bjorn. We know you’re an honest man, having worked here for years under many principals. We know you are a trusted member of this community. Did you steal the brisket?”
“How dare you? As I have told you, I have been here for numerous years, and I was working in the boiling room all morning fixing that old boiler, except when I was in the gym.”
Martina glanced at Svenbaka, “Look at his hands. They’re all sooty. You wouldn’t have that much soot on your hands if you were stealing brisket.”
Paulo said, “I don’t know if we can trust him, but what were you doing all day, Martina?”
“I was at cheerleading practice. Does it look like I could steal a brisket in my pompons?” said Martina.
“You were the last one alone with the brisket. Where did you put it, Paulo?”asked Martina.
Svenbaka interrupted, “Well, I’ve been in the kitchen all day. You know I haven’t left the school today. How could I steal the brisket?
“What about the covered tray you were schlepping down the hall? It holds the brisket,” said Martina.
“I had the lunch ladies clean the special brisket tray, and I just put it in the brisket office in the kitchen. There are cameras everywhere in the hallways. I bet we could go ask Principal Jon Smythe.”
Paulo said, “Oh, those cameras don’t work.”
“Son, you must have a screw loose in that noggin of yours. I installed them myself. Them’s reliable cameras. They ain’t seen no abuse since I’ve been put in charge of ‘em,”Bjorn said. “Let’s mosey down the hallway to see Principal Smythe.” They meandered down to the office and circled around his oak desk. “Principal Smythe,” chimed Svenbaka, “The brisket has been stolen.”
“What in the name of Zeus’s thunderbolts are you talking about?” said Principal Smythe as his face turned a shade of purple. “This is my first year as principal, and this isn’t happening under my watch.” He pulled open a door in his desk to reveal a mammoth red button. When he pressed it, a painting turned around revealing 20 security monitors. “The perpetrator of this horrible crime will be found, and they will be brought to justice,” principal Smythe rambled.
Your job is to examine the story carefully and determine who stole the brisket.
Remember:
1. Consider each piece of relevant evidence.
2. Explain each piece of evidence.
For each character, examine the evidence and the explanations and write a claim.
Finally, be prepared to write a paragraph including a claim about who stole the brisket. Give evidence and explanations to support your claim.