Clues by Sam Answers Today (Mar 05, 2026) – Full Explanation
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Find Clues by Sam answers today for Mar 05, 2026. Below is the full step-by-step explanation for today's Clues by Sam puzzle, including the solution and logical reasoning.
A1
👩💼
Amy
clerk
B1
👨⚕️
Ben
doctor
C1
👩🍳
Cheryl
cook
D1
👩🌾
Diane
farmer
A2
👩⚕️
Evie
doctor
B2
👨⚕️
Gabe
doctor
C2
👩⚖️
Helen
judge
D2
👨💼
Isaac
clerk
A3
👮♂️
Jose
cop
B3
👮♂️
Keith
cop
C3
👩⚖️
Laura
judge
D3
👷♂️
Martin
builder
A4
👮♂️
Nick
cop
B4
🕵️♂️
Paul
sleuth
C4
🕵️♂️
Ryan
sleuth
D4
👷♀️
Saga
builder
A5
👩🍳
Tina
cook
B5
🕵️♀️
Uma
sleuth
C5
👨🌾
Vince
farmer
D5
👷♀️
Xia
builder
Final Board State
This puzzle is fully solved.
All characters have been identified as innocent or criminal based on today's clues.
Final Result
Innocent 11Criminal 9Unknown 0
See how each clue leads to the final result
Answer (spoilers)
A quick reference of the final identities. For explanations, see the reasoning above.
▶ Answer list (spoilers)
Innocent · 11
[ D1 ] [ C2 ] [ A3 ] [ B3 ] [ C3 ] [ D3 ] [ A4 ] [ D4 ] [ A5 ] [ C5 ] [ D5 ]
Criminal · 9
[ A1 ] [ B1 ] [ C1 ] [ A2 ] [ B2 ] [ D2 ] [ B4 ] [ C4 ] [ B5 ]
Clues
Raw text reference from the original puzzle
Original clue texts as provided in today's puzzle. No deductions or interpretations are applied here.
▶ Raw clues (original text)
A1 · Amy
"Maybe noonedunit?"
B1 · Ben
"Only 1 of the 2 criminals in column A is Keith's neighbor"
C1 · Cheryl
"Isaac is one of Martin's 2 criminal neighbors"
D1 · Diane
"Whoduncrime!"
A2 · Evie
"Actually, Ivedunit. Sorry."
B2 · Gabe
"2 of the 3 sleuths have an innocent directly above them"
C2 · Helen
"There are more criminals in row 1 than row 5"
D2 · Isaac
"Whodunwhat?"
A3 · Jose
"I still don't know whatsbeendun, but I'm glad it's over!"
B3 · Keith
"So, whodunit?"
C3 · Laura
"There are exactly 4 criminals in column B"
D3 · Martin
"There are exactly 2 criminals in row 4"
A4 · Nick
"Gabe is one of 3 criminals above Uma"
B4 · Paul
"There are exactly 3 innocents below Cheryl"
C4 · Ryan
"Idontdunit!"
D4 · Saga
"There are exactly 3 innocents in the corners"
A5 · Tina
"Someone mustvedunit!"
B5 · Uma
"Only 1 of the 4 criminals neighboring Keith is below Cheryl"
C5 · Vince
"There's an equal number of criminals in columns A and C"
D5 · Xia
"Exactly 2 of the 6 criminals on the edges are Evie's neighbors"
Clues by Sam Today Explained
Full reasoning transcript (reference)
Below is the full step-by-step explanation for today's Clues by Sam puzzle.
▼ View full transcript (15 steps)
B2 · Gabe → CRIMINAL
Because: Nick’s clue explicitly says that “Gabe is one of 3 criminals above Uma,” which directly includes Gabe in the set of criminals. Since all clues are truthful, Gabe must be a criminal. Therefore, we can determine that B2 Gabe is CRIMINAL.
Clue:
"Gabe is one of 3 criminals above Uma" — Nick (A4)
B1 · Ben → CRIMINAL, C3 · Laura → INNOCENT
Because: Nick’s clue says that in column B above Uma at B5, there are exactly three criminals, and Gabe at B2 is one of them. The people above Uma are Ben at B1, Gabe at B2, Keith at B3, and Paul at B4, so this means exactly one of Ben, Keith, and Paul is innocent. Gabe’s clue says that exactly two of the three sleuths (Paul at B4, Ryan at C4, and Uma at B5) have an innocent directly above them, so among Keith (above Paul), Laura at C3 (above Ryan), and Paul (above Uma), exactly two are innocent. If Laura were criminal then both Keith and Paul would have to be innocent, but Nick’s clue allows only one innocent among Ben, Keith, and Paul, so Laura must be innocent; then exactly one of Keith and Paul is innocent, which forces Ben to be criminal to keep only one innocent in Ben, Keith, and Paul. Therefore, we can determine that B1 Ben is CRIMINAL and C3 Laura is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Gabe is one of 3 criminals above Uma" — Nick (A4)
"2 of the 3 sleuths have an innocent directly above them" — Gabe (B2)
B5 · Uma → CRIMINAL
Because: The people above Uma in column B are Ben (B1), Gabe (B2), Keith (B3), and Paul (B4). Nick’s clue says that Gabe is one of three criminals above Uma, so there must be exactly three criminals among those four people, including Gabe. Since Ben and Gabe are already criminals, that forces exactly one of Keith or Paul to be a criminal, making the total above Uma equal to three criminals. Laura’s clue says there are exactly four criminals in column B, so the remaining criminal must be Uma herself. Therefore, we can determine that B5 Uma is CRIMINAL.
Clue:
"Gabe is one of 3 criminals above Uma" — Nick (A4)
"There are exactly 4 criminals in column B" — Laura (C3)
B4 · Paul → CRIMINAL
Because: Keith is at B3, so his neighbors are A2, A3, A4, B2, B4, C2, C3, and C4. Ben’s clue says column A has exactly two criminals, and exactly one of those two is Keith’s neighbor; since Keith’s only column A neighbors are A2, A3, and A4 and A4 is already innocent, this forces exactly one of A2 or A3 to be a criminal. Uma’s clue says Keith has exactly four criminal neighbors in total, and exactly one of those four is “below Cheryl,” which means in column C; among Keith’s column C neighbors, only C2 and C4 can qualify (C3 is Laura and is innocent), so exactly one of C2 or C4 is a criminal. That gives three criminal neighbors for Keith already: Gabe at B2, exactly one of A2/A3, and exactly one of C2/C4, so the fourth criminal neighbor must be Paul at B4. Therefore, we can determine that B4 Paul is CRIMINAL.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 2 criminals in column A is Keith's neighbor" — Ben (B1)
"Only 1 of the 4 criminals neighboring Keith is below Cheryl" — Uma (B5)
B3 · Keith → INNOCENT
Because: Uma is at B5, so the people above Uma in the same column are Ben at B1, Gabe at B2, Keith at B3, and Paul at B4. Nick’s clue says that Gabe is one of exactly three criminals above Uma, meaning there are exactly three criminals among those four people. Since Ben, Gabe, and Paul are already known criminals, they already account for all three criminals the clue allows above Uma. That leaves Keith as the only one who cannot be a criminal there, so he must be innocent. Therefore, we can determine that B3 Keith is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Gabe is one of 3 criminals above Uma" — Nick (A4)
C5 · Vince → INNOCENT
Because: Cheryl is at C1, so the people below Cheryl are Helen at C2, Laura at C3, Ryan at C4, and Vince at C5. Paul’s clue says exactly three of those four are innocents, so exactly one of Helen, Laura, Ryan, and Vince is a criminal; since Laura is already known innocent, the single criminal must be among Helen, Ryan, and Vince. Uma’s clue talks about the four criminals neighboring Keith at B3 and says only one of those four is below Cheryl; among Keith’s neighbors that are also below Cheryl, the only possible criminals are Helen (C2) and Ryan (C4) because Laura (C3) is innocent and Vince (C5) is not a neighbor of Keith, so exactly one of Helen and Ryan is that criminal. That means the one criminal below Cheryl is Helen or Ryan, leaving Vince as one of the three innocents below Cheryl. Therefore, we can determine that C5 Vince is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 4 criminals neighboring Keith is below Cheryl" — Uma (B5)
"There are exactly 3 innocents below Cheryl" — Paul (B4)
C1 · Cheryl → CRIMINAL
Because: Ben’s clue says there are exactly two criminals in column A, so Vince’s clue (“There’s an equal number of criminals in columns A and C”) forces column C to also have exactly two criminals. In column C, Laura at C3 and Vince at C5 are already innocent, so the two criminals in column C must come from Cheryl at C1, Helen at C2, and Ryan at C4. Uma’s clue says that among the four criminals neighboring Keith, exactly one is below Cheryl; the only neighbors of Keith that are also below Cheryl are C2 and C4, so at most one of C2 and C4 can be a criminal. That means C2 and C4 cannot both be criminals, so Cheryl at C1 must be one of the two column C criminals. Therefore, we can determine that C1 Cheryl is CRIMINAL.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 2 criminals in column A is Keith's neighbor" — Ben (B1)
"Only 1 of the 4 criminals neighboring Keith is below Cheryl" — Uma (B5)
"There's an equal number of criminals in columns A and C" — Vince (C5)
D2 · Isaac → CRIMINAL
Because: Cheryl’s clue says that Isaac is one of Martin’s 2 criminal neighbors, which directly states that Isaac is a criminal (and also that he is a neighbor of Martin). Therefore, we can determine that D2 Isaac is CRIMINAL.
Clue:
"Isaac is one of Martin's 2 criminal neighbors" — Cheryl (C1)
D4 · Saga → INNOCENT
Because: Keith is at B3, and the only neighbors of Keith that are below Cheryl (in column C under C1) are Helen at C2 and Ryan at C4. Uma’s clue says Keith has four criminal neighbors, and exactly one of those four is below Cheryl, so exactly one of Helen (C2) and Ryan (C4) is a criminal. Cheryl’s clue says Martin at D3 has exactly two criminal neighbors and one of them is Isaac at D2, so among Helen (C2), Ryan (C4), and Saga (D4), only one can be a criminal. Since exactly one of Helen and Ryan is already forced to be criminal, Saga cannot be the second criminal neighbor of Martin. Therefore, we can determine that D4 (Saga) is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 4 criminals neighboring Keith is below Cheryl" — Uma (B5)
"Isaac is one of Martin's 2 criminal neighbors" — Cheryl (C1)
D5 · Xia → INNOCENT, D1 · Diane → INNOCENT
Because: The corners are A1 (Amy), D1 (Diane), A5 (Tina), and D5 (Xia), and Saga says exactly three of these four corner people are innocents. Ben says there are exactly two criminals in column A, and only one of those two is Keith’s neighbor; in column A, the only neighbors of Keith are A2 and A3 (A4 is also a neighbor but Nick there is already innocent), so the other column A criminal must be at A1 or A5, which are not Keith’s neighbors. That means at least one of the corners A1 or A5 is definitely a criminal. Since there is exactly one criminal in all four corners, neither of the other two corners on the right side, D1 or D5, can be criminal. Therefore, we can determine that D5 (Xia) is INNOCENT and D1 (Diane) is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 2 criminals in column A is Keith's neighbor" — Ben (B1)
"There are exactly 3 innocents in the corners" — Saga (D4)
D3 · Martin → INNOCENT
Because: D3 (Martin) is on the edge because it is in column D. Xia’s clue tells us there are exactly 6 criminals on the edges in total. We already have 4 known edge criminals (Ben at B1, Cheryl at C1, Isaac at D2, and Uma at B5), and Ben’s clue also tells us there are exactly 2 criminals in column A, which are both on the edge as well, making 6 edge criminals altogether without using D3. Since the edge criminal total is already fully used up, Martin at D3 cannot be a criminal on the edge. Therefore, we can determine that D3 Martin is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 2 criminals in column A is Keith's neighbor" — Ben (B1)
"Exactly 2 of the 6 criminals on the edges are Evie's neighbors" — Xia (D5)
C4 · Ryan → CRIMINAL
Because: Row 4 contains Nick at A4, Paul at B4, Ryan at C4, and Saga at D4. Martin’s clue says there are exactly 2 criminals in row 4. We already know Paul is a criminal, while Nick and Saga are innocents, so the only remaining way to reach exactly 2 criminals in that row is for Ryan at C4 to be the second criminal. Therefore, we can determine that C4 Ryan is CRIMINAL.
Clue:
"There are exactly 2 criminals in row 4" — Martin (D3)
C2 · Helen → INNOCENT
Because: Keith is at B3, so his eight neighbors are A2 Evie, B2 Gabe, C2 Helen, A3 Jose, C3 Laura, A4 Nick, B4 Paul, and C4 Ryan. Uma’s clue says there are 4 criminals among those neighbors, and exactly 1 of those 4 criminals is located below Cheryl (that is, somewhere in column C below C1). Ryan at C4 is already a criminal neighbor of Keith and he is below Cheryl, so he must be that one criminal below Cheryl, which means no other criminal neighbor of Keith can be below Cheryl. Helen is at C2, which is also below Cheryl, so Helen cannot be a criminal neighbor of Keith. Therefore, we can determine that C2 Helen is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 4 criminals neighboring Keith is below Cheryl" — Uma (B5)
A1 · Amy → CRIMINAL, A5 · Tina → INNOCENT
Because: Ben’s clue says there are exactly two criminals in column A, and only one of those two is a neighbor of Keith at B3. The only people in column A who are neighbors of Keith are A2 and A3 (A4 is also a neighbor but Nick is already known to be innocent), so exactly one of A2 or A3 is a criminal, and the other criminal in column A must be in A1 or A5, meaning exactly one of A1 and A5 is a criminal. Helen’s clue says row 1 has more criminals than row 5; row 1 already has Ben and Cheryl as criminals, while row 5 already has only Uma as a criminal. If Amy at A1 were innocent, then Tina at A5 would have to be the column A criminal, making row 1 have 2 criminals and row 5 have 2 criminals, which would not make row 1 higher than row 5. So Amy must be the column A criminal instead, which forces Tina to be innocent. Therefore, we can determine that A1 Amy is CRIMINAL and A5 Tina is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Only 1 of the 2 criminals in column A is Keith's neighbor" — Ben (B1)
"There are more criminals in row 1 than row 5" — Helen (C2)
A2 · Evie → CRIMINAL, A3 · Jose → INNOCENT
Because: The edge positions have exactly six criminals in total, and right now five edge criminals are already confirmed: Amy at A1, Ben at B1, Cheryl at C1, Isaac at D2, and Uma at B5. The only edge people still unknown are Evie at A2 and Jose at A3, so exactly one of them must be the sixth edge criminal. Evie’s neighbors are A1, B1, B2, A3, and B3, and among the confirmed edge criminals, A1 and B1 are already her neighbors. Xia’s clue says exactly two of the six edge criminals are Evie’s neighbors, so Jose at A3 cannot also be an edge criminal, which makes Jose INNOCENT. Since the edge must still have six criminals total, Evie must be the remaining edge criminal. Therefore, we can determine that A2 Evie is CRIMINAL and A3 Jose is INNOCENT.
Clue:
"Exactly 2 of the 6 criminals on the edges are Evie's neighbors" — Xia (D5)