Ep 5. Door No. 12

In Door No. 12, the fifth episode of Homicide Hunter's fifth season, Lt. Joe Kenda delves into the mysterious case of a young woman found dead inside her home. The victim, Cheri Bishop, was a 25-year-old aspiring actress with no known enemies or reason to be killed. When Kenda and his team arrive at the scene, they find Bishop lying dead on the floor next to her bed, with no signs of forced entry or struggle.

As Kenda begins his investigation, he discovers that Bishop lived in a building with 12 identical units, each with its own locked door and key. He immediately starts to suspect that the killer may have had easy access to Bishop's apartment by posing as a maintenance worker or using a stolen key.

Kenda and his team interview Bishop's friends and family, hoping to uncover any potential motives or suspects. But as they dig deeper, they come up empty-handed, with no one seeming to have any motive to hurt Bishop. Kenda also tries to track down any potential witnesses, but the building's tight-knit community proves to be challenging to penetrate.

As the investigation continues, Kenda turns his attention to the surveillance footage from the building's security cameras. Though the footage is of low quality, Kenda manages to catch a glimpse of a man carrying a toolbox who had entered the building around the time of the murder. Though initially seen as a potential suspect, the man's alibi checks out, leaving Kenda back at square one.

With no solid leads, Kenda decides to go back to the building and retrace the victim's steps, hoping to uncover any missed clues. He eventually comes across a clue he had overlooked - a piece of cloth wedged between the floorboards near the victim's bed. Deciding to take a closer look, Kenda sends the sample to the lab for analysis and eagerly awaits the results.

As the investigation approaches its end, Kenda finds himself frustrated by the lack of progress. But with the investigation seemingly at a dead end, the lab finally provides a breakthrough. The cloth had come from a carpet the killer had used to smother the victim, and the lab was able to identify a rare type of cleaning fluid used to clean the carpet.

Using this new information, Kenda and his team are finally able to track down the killer. The shock of the killer's identity sends reverberations throughout the building's community, leaving Kenda grateful that he was finally able to bring closure to the victim's family and friends.

Overall, Door No. 12 is a gripping episode that showcases Kenda's relentless pursuit of justice in the face of a case with few leads. The twists and turns of the investigation keep the audience engaged until the very end, making it a must-watch for fans of true crime dramas.