MuSR / Who is the most likely murderer?

In the unforgiving desert landscape, Philip's lifeless body was discovered, a nunchaku the ghastly cause of his demise, leaving Detective Winston on a barren hunt, with Jim and Woodrow as his prime suspects.

Winston was stationed in his dusty sedan, parked down the street from a local second-hand shop. The thrift shop had a distinctive sign above its doorway "Woodrow's Antiques & Collectibles". 

His destination was not the thrift store though but the old man sitting in the wooden rocking chair on the front porch of the house just behind the store. 

Squaring his shoulders, Winston exited his car and approached the man. The old man nodded at his approach. "Mister Woodrow?" Winston asked. 

"That I am. And you don't look like a fan of knick-knacks. So I presume you're a detective?"

"Guilty as charged," Winston replied with a light chuckle. "Mind if I ask you a few questions?" 

"It's my property, detective. Love the solitude out here. I usually enjoy my peace but, go ahead," Woodrow motioned toward an empty chair opposite him. Winston noticed the hard lines of Woodrow’s arms, the strong muscles present even in his old age. 

Winston opened his notebook, "So, you used to teach martial arts?"

Woodrow smiled, "Yes, indeed. For about 40 years. Even collected a few martial arts pieces during my teaching days. Nunchaku among others," he said pointing towards a small wooden room, laden with antiques and relics.

"You still practice?"

"Everyday," Woodrow responded. "Keeps me young."

Winston checked his notes reminiscing, "The police called me after Philip mentioned he was invited here to your desert property. You had a visit from him recently, didn't you?"

Woodrow stiffened at the name. "Yeah, we got together here at my desert property."

Winston lean forward, "Philip... his actions towards the family, they were consistently abusive, weren't they?"

Woodrow sighed heavily, "Yes, that's true. Bad blood doesn't spoil the family, detective. Philip... he made many mistakes, constantly crossing lines. He never even showed an ounce of remorse. It's been difficult, but I love my family dearly and I do everything in my power to protect them," Woodrow explained, a hint of pain in his aged eyes.

Winston nodded, jotting down notes, "Did Philip come alone on his visit?"

"Yeah," Woodrow confirmed. "Needed help with his car, he said. Practically humiliated me in public when it went down. But yeah... he came, and I was here. Alone."

"Well, thank you for your time, Woodrow," Winston closed his notebook, standing up. 

"Don't mention it, detective," Woodrow replied, attention already diverted to his karate dummy in the corner of his sizeable yard.

Winston gave Woodrow one last glance and then set off back to his car, leaving Woodrow alone to his solitude. As he pulled away, he glanced in his rearview mirror to see Woodrow had already begun his martial arts practice for the day.

Winston squinted as the sun reflected off the desert's sands, making the sandy terrain that much hotter. As someone familiar with this environment, Jim often frequented the desert for solitude. Winston was investigating the intriguing murder of Philip and was heading to meet up with Jim, a local dockworker and a person of interest along with his co-workers, Joe and Sam.

Upon reaching Jim's dwelling in this arid scape, he noticed an interesting thing; despite living near the dock, Jim had a relatively dry, rougher demeanor, more suited to the desert heat. It was as if he often retreated to the desert for solitude. Joining him were Joe and Sam, each with their own questions to ask.

Joe casually started the conversation, asking Jim about his likes and dislikes. "Any hobbies you particularly enjoy, Jim?"  Jim chose to talk about the latest football match, his eyes oddly detached despite the commentary. Jim was often evasive when speaking about himself. "What about your family, Jim?", Joe continued. Jim responded, as he often does, with "I'd rather not talk about it."

During their coffee break, Sam tried to steer their conversation towards a lighter topic. "Jim," he asked, "what's your favourite film?" Jim masterfully deflected, changing the subject, commenting about the how the weather reminded him of days when he found solitude in the desert. Noticing this, Sam attempted again, asking Jim about his family, only to receive the same brief, vague answer that always followed inquiries about his private life. "I'd rather not talk about it," was Jim's curt response.

Meanwhile, Winston slowly pushed on his investigation. "Where were you on the night of 15th?", Winston asked gently, securing Jim’s response, "Night of the 15th, officer? Well, I had no work scheduled that day." His accent was thick and laced with something Winston couldn't put his finger on.

Probing gently, Winston asked. "What were you doing in the desert then?" Jim curtly responded, as he often did when being questioned, with "I'd rather not talk about it." His walls visibly starting to come up. A few witnesses had even claimed seeing Jim in the desert often in solitude.

Raising the tension, Winston brought up the topic of the document Philip had discovered concerning Jim's illegal operation at the docks, while also gently highlighting that Jim owed Philip a significant debt. Jim finally admitted to being alone with Philip that day in the desert, which he frequented, who had come to confront him about the debt.

On Philip's murder that happened in the desert while he was in solitude, Jim didn't say much, only admitting to being present in the desert that day. Unphased, Winston mentioned how the ledger detailing illegal activities was found with Philip's corpse, briefly catching a flicker of panic on Jim's face.

Returning to his evasive manner, Jim, when asked about the ledger replied with his typical refrain, "I'd rather not talk about it.", only heightening Winston's suspicions. Revelled in the tension of the meeting, Winston picked up his hat, wiped off the sweat, and left Jim with his thoughts, contemplating his next steps in this twisted desert murder. Meanwhile, the unanswered questions proposed by Joe and Sam added an extra layer of mystery to be unraveled.