Road to Nowhere

Road to Nowhere is a case featured in Criminal Case, appearing as the ninety-fifth case of the game and the thirty-ninth case of Pacific Bay. Also, it is the first case to take place in Pacific Bay's Rhine Canyon.

Plot
As a reward for putting an end to the Utopians and saving Ivywood from the psychological epidemic previously, Chief Marquez moved the team to the desert district of Rhine Canyon. Chief Marquez's concern was having Frank Knight and the player assist any local highway troopers overwhelmed by the rising crime rates while Frank was more curious about aliens in the desert, something Chief Marquez didn't want to hear. So Frank and the player boarded to the wilderness only to find Cal Stark, a troubled teen, impaled on a cactus. The player was quick enough to declare it as murder as Cal's corpse was shipped to Roxie Sparks for autopsy to launch the murder investigation.

During the murder investigation, the team ran into a highway trooper named Ana Herdez, in which Chief Marquez attended the Pacific Bay police academy with. Notwithstanding, the team ran into Colonel Spangler for the third district in a row as the army officer was transferred to the Red Stone Army Base in Rhine Canyon, arousing Chief Marquez's attention for a third time. Chief Marquez and Ana got into a catfight in the interrogation room as the top police official accused Ana of trying to steer the player to the wrong direction while the highway trooper accused Chief Marquez of allowing the killer to be on the loose. Despite these challenges the player experienced, the killer turned out to be a farmer named Jordan Stark, who's ironically the victim's grandfather.

The moment evidence pointed him as the killer, Jordan was surprised about what the player found. Frank took some time to show Jordan the findings the player garnished during the investigation, but Jordan didn't like what Frank told him although the detective admitted that Jordan had remorse. Jordan eventually bowed to the player's investigative skills, so he told Frank and the player why the murder happened.

One day Jordan saw Cal hitch-hiking by the side of Route 76 to get away from Rhine Canyon, so when he saw Cal he pulled over and tried to talk some sense into him. Cal took a picture of Jordan as a memoir of Rhine Canyon as he would not return to Rhine Canyon after he left. Jordan didn't want Cal to leave Rhine Canyon, so he tried to force Cal back into the Stark Farm pickup truck. Cal tried to attack Jordan, prompting Jordan to dodge and shove him to the cactus. Cal was stuck in the cactus, in which Jordan panicked since the victim started bleeding to death so Jordan fled the crime scene and left Cal for dead. Frank heard enough, so the player shipped Jordan to trial.

Judge Dante felt that domestic homicide was a bit harsh. Jordan admitted that he was a bad grandparent but the Judge said that Jordan should've called an ambulance rather than fleeing the scene. Jordan made a beneficiary deed to pass his fortune to Cal upon his death but due to the victim dismissing the deed to follow his own path, friction between Jordan and Cal ensued. Jordan wanted Cal to take over the farm instead of following his own path, but Cal's intent to flee Rhine Canyon only made things worse not to mention the victim's affiliation with Bubba Wyatt's Crystal Skulls motorbike gang. Although Judge Dante accepted that this murder was accidental (since Frank and the player has enough evidence to prove that Jordan had remorse), a murder is a murder as a 10-year jail sentence was required for the farmer.

In the hours following Jordan's indictment, Colonel Spangler was upset that the Pacific Bay Police Department ruffled his feathers for a fourth time, while Bubba Wyatt was caught handling ecstacy in Rhine Canyon. Ana took some time to reveal that Chief Marquez is a native of Rhine Canyon, and when Frank heard about it, he tried to have Chief Marquez confirm it but the top police official refused to say so as she preferred to keep her private life out of public reach, suggesting that the Chief is a private person. Moreso, Chief Marquez advised the police force to keep an eye on Colonel Spangler just in case something funny happens in Rhine Canyon.

Victim

 * Cal Stark (found impaled on a cactus)

Murder Weapon

 * Cactus

Killer

 * Jordan Stark

Killer's Profile

 * The killer weighs 210 pounds.
 * The killer drives a pickup truck.
 * The killer eats barbecue sauce.
 * The killer wears sunglasses.
 * The killer is male.

Chapter 1

 * Investigate Route 76. (Clues: Victim's Body, Tire Track, Faded Badge)
 * Examine Faded Badge. (New Suspect: Colonel Spangler)
 * Question Colonel Spangler about his badge. (New Crime Scene Unlocked: Stark Farm)
 * Investigate Stark Farm. (Clues: Torn Photo, Animal Feed)
 * Examine Torn Photo. (Result: Photo)
 * Examine Photo. (New Suspect: Jordan Stark)
 * Inform Jordan Stark of his grandson's death.
 * Examine Animal Feed. (Result: Mini-Revolver)
 * Analyze Mini-Revolver. (09:00:00; New Suspect: Ana Herdez)
 * Question Ana Herdez about her mini-revolver.
 * Examine Tire Track. (Attribute: The killer drives a pickup truck)
 * Autopsy Victim's Body. (18:00:00; Attribute: The killer weighs 210 pounds)
 * Go to Chapter 2. (No stars)

Chapter 2

 * Ask Bubba Wyatt about his friendship with the victim. (Available after unlocking Chapter 2)
 * Investigate Canyon Vista. (Available after unlocking Chapter 2; Clues: Rock Slab, Torn Magazine)
 * Examine Torn Magazine. (Result: Cal Collage; New Suspect: Missy Benedict)
 * Ask Missy Benedict about the collage of the victim she made.
 * Examine Rock Slab. (Result: Brown Substance)
 * Analyze Brown Substance. (12:00:00; Attribute: The killer eats barbecue sauce)
 * Investigate Hay Cart. (Prerequisite: Brown Substance analyzed; Clues: Faded Document, Bird's Nest)
 * Examine Faded Document. (Result: Victim's Message)
 * Ask Spangler about the victim's UFO picture. (Prerequisite: Victim's Message unraveled)
 * Examine Bird's Nest. (Result: Deed)
 * Examine Deed. (Result: Deed Number)
 * Analyze Deed. (12:00:00)
 * Question Jordan about the deed on the Stark Farm. (Prerequisite: Deed analyzed)
 * Go to Chapter 3. (1 star)

Chapter 3

 * Ask Ana about her attempt to hijack the case. (Available after unlocking Chapter 3)
 * Investigate Lookout Point. (Available after unlocking Chapter 3; Clues: Cal's Suitcase, Pile of Rocks)
 * Examine Pile of Rocks. (Result: Skull)
 * Examine Skull. (Result: Biker's Signature)
 * Question Bubba about the message on the skull. (Prerequisite: Biker's Signature restored)
 * Examine Cal's Suitcase. (Result: Device)
 * Analyze Device. (09:00:00)
 * Question Missy about her disagreement with Cal. (Prerequisite: Device analyzed)
 * Investigate Desert Roadside. (All tasks before must be done first; Clues: Broken Camera, Mile Marker)
 * Examine Broken Camera. (Result: Camera)
 * Analyze Camera. (09:00:00; Attribute: The killer wears sunglasses)
 * Examine Mile Marker. (Result: Blood)
 * Analyze Blood. (15:00:00; Attribute: The killer is male)
 * Arrest Killer.
 * Go to Map to the Stars: Part 1. (No stars)

Map to the Stars: Part 1

 * Interrogate Colonel Spangler about his presence in Rhine Canyon. (Available after unlocking the Map to the Stars)
 * Investigate Canyon Vista. (Prerequisite: Talk to Spangler; Clues: Torn Paper)
 * Examine Torn Paper. (Result: Newspaper)
 * Analyze Newspaper. (06:00:00)
 * Talk to Colonel Spangler about his preoccupation with aliens. (Prerequisite: Newspaper analyzed; Reward: Cowboy Hat (Male))
 * Offer your help to Ana Herdez. (Available after unlocking the Map to the Stars)
 * Investigate Stark Farm. (Prerequisite: Talk to Ana; Clues: Book)
 * Examine Book. (Result: Chemistry Book)
 * Analyze Chemistry Book. (09:00:00)
 * Talk about the drug formula to Ana Herdez. (Prerequisite: Chemistry Book analyzed; Reward: Burger)
 * Investigate Route 76. (Prerequisite: Talk to Ana; Clues: Drug Bag)
 * Examine Drug Bag. (Result: Fingerprints)
 * Analyze Fingerprints. (06:00:00)
 * Question Bubba Wyatt about the drugs. (Prerequisite: Fingerprints analyzed; Reward: 20,000 Coins)
 * Investigate Next Case. (1 star)

Trivia

 * This is one of the cases of Pacific Bay in which the killer and the victim are related.
 * Like Ivywood Hills, the Additional Investigation chapter is named differently in this case, with future cases of Rhine Canyon to follow. In this case, the chapter is dubbed "Map to the Stars: Part 1".
 * This case is currently unavailable for play on the iOS version of the game.