FILE No.37Unsolved
A candy shop with no security cameras. The old woman who runs it comes out to the register about ten seconds after a customer enters. That day, she had just counted the sweets on the shelf right before the boy arrived. There were no other customers in the shop.
Before she came out, the boy put several sweets into his pocket, then bought something else.
At the register, the old woman said to the boy, "Shoplifting is wrong, you know?" His heart nearly stopped, and he cried and apologized. In fact, she had not seen him shoplift.
Why did she say this?
If you get stuck, open the hints one at a time, in order.
Was she looking at the inside of the shop?
What had she checked about the shelf before the boy came?
How many customers were in the shop during those ten seconds?
Why did she say this?
Choose the answer closest to the truth.
She noticed sweets were missing from the shelf and the boy was the only one there
The answer is “she noticed sweets were missing from the shelf and the boy was the only one there.”
She had counted the sweets on the shelf just before the boy arrived. When she came out to the register, several were missing. Since the boy was the only customer, he must have taken them. Even without seeing it, she could deduce it from the change in numbers and the circumstances. There were no cameras and it took ten seconds to get to the register, so she could not have seen it. The text says nothing about remembering his face or about a bulging pocket.
You assume she said it because she saw it.
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