Case 03: Death of a Front

Solution

To win, you must have:

1. Named "Crazy" Cassie Franco as the man responsible for the murder of Julian Bookbinder.
2. Explained his motive by mentioning both of the following:
   • "Crazy" Cassie wanted to get even with Vladimir Cermak, who had ordered Charlie Delacourt's death.
   • "Crazy" Cassie hoped that by killing Cermak's front man, Julian Bookbinder, Cermak and his Plantation Corporation would not get the zoning variance they needed to open the Plantation Club, thus keeping competition out of Huxley.

The Story

When "Crazy" Cassie Franco heard that the Plantation Corporation wanted to open a private club on Planters Lane, he did a little research and discovered it was a front for Vladimir Cermak. Franco knew that Cermak, an Albany criminal bigwig, specialized in using local front men, in this case Julian Bookbinder, to open and maintain "clubs" that were actually places for illicit sex and gambling. Cermak had been successful because of his extensive political clout with the state legislature in Albany and with local governments down the line.

Franco decided he couldn't afford to let Cermak start operating in Huxley, so he hired Charlie "The Torch" to burn down 1 Planters Lane, the site of the new club. Charlie had worked for Franco for three years doing contract arson jobs, but for the first time, Charlie wouldn't have help from the people he was burning out. As a result, the job was bungled.

Vladimir Cermak had no trouble discovering who was responsible for the fire and ordered that Franco be taught a lesson, with Charlie "The Torch" as the example. Franco was furious about Charlie's murder and swore he'd get even. He decided to kill Julian Bookbinder, both avenging Charlie's death and hopefully keeping Cermak's Plantation Corporation from getting the zoning variance needed to operate their club.