[SirValeq]

Hi,

How would someone fabricate evidence of a murder/arson in SR universe? Other than false witness statements and tampering with photographs/videos, what else can be done in 2075?
I need my players to feel really obliged to do a run in exchange for destroying said evidence... 

[Reaver]

How was the murder done?

From there, what evidence do the authorities have to go with?

We need some details here!


●●●●●

In the case of my crew, we needed the Yaks off our backs after we raided a money laundering site.
To do this we took out a high ranking Yak official and dropped evidence that a mob soldier was behind it.

But to pull THAT off, we needed to tail and gain info on our "Fall guy".
After a LOT of legwork we had/knew:
His finger prints.
His voice pattern.
His favorite weapon.
What he looked like.

From there, we used physical mask to make our Sammy look like the "fall guy", a voice syth cyberware for the sammy to sound like the "fall guy" and armed with the same weapon.

We made sure the Sammy was recorded by security approaching the Yak, made sure he was recorded talking to the Yak, and finally, recorded shooting the Yak in the face!

Then we swtiched out the gun used with the "fall guy's" gun.

The police, now had a visual of the "fall guy" approaching, talking, and shooting the Yak captain. Guess where he ended up....


And we got the Yaks off our back long enough to beat feet and get away!


Obviously, there was a lot of effort that went into all this, and wasn't done in a single game session (took 3 or 4 as I recall) but its what we did. Now I have no idea if the mobster went to trial or not... nor do I care as that wasn't what we were after (we wanted chaos and a scapegoat - which we got). 

There are lots of things you can do to frame someone. Just have the matrix/physical evidence lead somewhere.

[Vibral]

Broadcasting from a SIN with the same Name/Number which matching equipment, guns, and ammo purchased under said fall guy. Then was just stated some DNA and video makes things very convincing for your local cop on retainer to put the pieces together.

[SirValeq]

How was the murder done?

From there, what evidence do the authorities have to go with?

We need some details here!

The story is like this:
1. Players con their way into a party in a rich guy's estate. They arrive there as journalists (false identities, or rather stolen ones). They rob his safe during the party (actually, another person robs it, but they catch up to the person and reclaim the item) and get away (mostly unnoticed). The Players were accompanied by a NPC runner, who they hired just for this job (face/safe-cracker).
2. During the same night, after the party, the guy and some of his maids/guards are shot and the whole building is torched. They players were already far away, in a different district, getting ready to sleep. The murders and arson were done by a different team (working with the rich guy's wife). This team has lots of resources at its disposal (corp-funded, because it's a bigger plot).
3. So far I've come up with this possible evidence:
- the wife's false testimony (about them visiting the rich guy, which they actually did before the party to scout the building, and about them threatening him, which they didn't do)
- fragments of a video recorded by the NPC runner's gear (glasses), which was tinkered with and now shows a big fire behind their car during the getaway
- NPC runner's false testimony claiming, that he didn't know that they wanted to kill the guy and torch the place, but they did it anyway (he is coerced into saying this)
- there is proof of their attendance at the party - they only looped the cameras in the room with the safe. Some attendees may also remember them, although by their false identities.

So they actually were in said place the same night, just didn't do the stuff that they're being accused of doing. They might have left some DNA evidence, although most if not all would probably get destroyed in the fire.

Ideally, the evidence would be just so overwhelming, that it would look suspicious even to Dana.

[TheWayfinder]

It seems that you've got enough to go on.  But if you really want seriously incriminating evidence, you're going to have to get downright sinister. 

You can have all kinds of video surveillance.  That's the most incriminating of all, and you can have it doctored to look like they were the killers.  It's a little tough to disprove, not without a real good hacker or technomancer or other specialist,  This would, of course, mean that someone is deliberately setting them up, which is kind of what you want, right? 

In truth, you don't need a whole lot to incriminate a suspect.  In fact, in the Sixth World, it's enough that a bunch of SINless criminals are the culprits and the cops will go after them anyway, just because it's convenient for them.  The cops shouldn't care that much, unless it's a feather in the cap of someone who's trying to make a career in law enforcement/security for himself. 

[SirValeq]

Indeed, doctored video footage and a false statement from the victim's wife was enough to get my players thinking and willing to look for a way out of this mess. Thanks for the help.

[sidslick]

I've sent teams into missions, after they've planted evidence duplicated from a KE evidence lock-up; to cut a long story short, this compromised a KE detective who was looking into their activities and landed her in a whirlwind of shit with Internal Affairs and the local DA.  She got the hint, especially as the DA was also the Johnson........

[BetaCAV]

Tangentially, if you can't fabricate the evidence, fabricate the crime.

Preferably using subcontractors (though it may cause some ill-will and/or "go sideways").

For example, stage a murder, but actually kidnap the target instead. Draw out a couple pints of blood, dilute it with plasma (or even saline), and splash it around the murder scene. Maybe even drag the (probably unconscious) victim through it on the way out. Chemical analysis of the blood may reveal the dilution, but a DNA check will just show who it's supposed to.

Have the kidnapping team sit on the "victim" for a week or so, and then release them. Or hire another team to extract (If you like the first team, warn them and/or have both teams load less-than-lethal munitions -- but reduce the pay).

By the time all this gets untangled -- if it does -- you should have plenty of time and distractions to do what you need to, and get away. Best of all, you and your team aren't directly involved, leaving you to focus on the more lucrative aspects of the run, which you'll need unless you let the other teams wipe each other out (for shame, chummer).

For the advanced version, use the target's own assets for one (or both!) teams. This is more likely to eventually lead back to you, but will reduce the opposition you encounter should you and your team have to go on site. The interrogations, counter-interrogations, and internal reprisals will be fierce, and "going off book" will be just the opening salvo.