Update: Crime Solving Deck of Cards

And a small update on the French Alps shootings!

Mystery Mob!

We have two updates on some older posts of ours this week. The first involves a new face to add to the Deck of Cards that solves crimes, and the second involves The French Alps hit job (Jesus Christ, that’s Jason Bourne!).

A brief summary of the pack of cards

In 2003, the US government developed “personal identification playing cards” to help identify the most wanted members of Saddam Hussein’s government.

The idea was to print decks of cards featuring the names and images of those individuals thereby increasing the likelihood of soldiers recognizing them in the field. 

And like we mentioned in our previous post, it’s worked for a few cold cases within the deck already.

Okay cool, what’s the update

So, according to The New York Times, Ashley Flowers has taken an interest in this deck of cards.

Who is Ashley Flowers and why does this matter, you ask?

Well, because Ashley Flowers is the GOAT when it comes to true crime podcasts, that’s why!

She runs the media company Audiochuck which includes “Crime Junkie,” “Anatomy of Murder,” “CounterClock,” “Park Predators” and “O.C. Swingers.”

And now she has her eyes set on a new podcast that takes a deeper look at every cold case featured in this deck!

It’s going to be dubbed “The Deck.”

Pretty cool! We’ll definitely be listening.

You mentioned the French Alps…Where’s Jason Bourne

Back in October of 2021 when the moon was full, the air was crisp, and ABC Family was probably playing re-runs of Hocus Pocus, we did a write up on a very peculiar shooting incident in the French Alps.

Well, guess what, THERE’S BEEN AN ARREST!

But before we get to these updates, let’s rehash this wild tale.

The Hit

On September 5th, 2012, Saad Al-Hilli was found murdered at the top of a mountain, near a small French town named Chevaline. He had been shot four times, twice in the head. Worse yet, his wife & mother-in-law were also murdered, suffering multiple gunshots including two in the head. His two daughters were also with him but were, luckily, alive. One, 7 years old, had been shot in the shoulder and hit in the back of the head. The other daughter, 4 years old, was unhurt and hidden underneath her mother’s legs. The final victim was a local bicyclist, shot five times including, you guessed it, twice in the head. 

The shooter fired 21 total bullets, most likely at moving targets, and 17 bullets had found their mark. 

By all accounts, this seemed like a professional hit. 

For our full write up on the investigation and early suspects, check here.

And here’s the links to the original mystery, if you want to dive in further before getting to the January 2022 update.

• GQ’s very deep dive

• BBC documentary, “Murder in the Alps”

THE UPDATE — There’s been an arrest!

On January 12th, 2022, a man was arrested for questioning regarding this crime. He’s apparently a suspect and the police wanted to know “more about his schedule” during the time of the shootings. His house was also searched.

He had previously been a witness in the case.

BUT…they let him go. At least for now. He’s not the first person to be arrested and questioned, and likely won’t be the last. The tale goes on.

See you next week!

As always, 

Stay ‘spicious 

-Andy & Mark

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