A suspect in a case being investigated by Lieutenant Columbo has simply ran away and disappeared it has emerged.
After it became apparent that Columbo was hounding him and he was an obvious suspect, wife killer Gerry Holt got in his car and drove a long, long way away.
'This has never happened before' said the more grouchy than usual Columbo.
'Usually I can spend a good 90 minutes acting like an idiot on the outside whilst the mind of a cunning maniac whirrs on the inside.'
'But, and you could ask why this hasn't happened before, my suspect became, well, suspicious and has ran for it.'
'What next? Someone punching Miss Marple in the face and legging it whilst she meticulously explains her deductive reasoning?'
'These TV criminals really must stopping acting like the real thing. We'll only get about 12 minutes of interesting footage followed by an age of disciplinary procedures for letting a murderer go. And nobody wants to watch an hour of paperwork.'