Keep us posted ! And Tell Katy about this site !

Great detective work. I wonder if there'll be a video show during the group meeting

BHC I only just read this thread as I've been out of the country for a while - Incredible!! What an awful position to find yourself in, you were very brave to do the right thing and confront this girl. Then in the face of very nasty blackmail you pull some amazing detective work out of the bag! Wooo! I'm looking forward to hearing how it unfolds today!

COME ON!!!! THE SUSPENSE IS KILLING ME!!!!

Me too!

Every time a new reply appears in this thread, I'm logging in, only to discover it's someone else urging BHC to come back with goss!! Now I'm one of them

I've been checking all day and even left a meeting earlier to check again! It's unbearable

I hope this Katy gets what she deserves - and that would be eviction from the PhD programme

I hope the IT guys had a look at the hard drive of Sabrina's computer which could be evidence as well.

My whole department is still waiting ... working as a techician at the moment and I told alot of people about this story (post docs , PhDers , Masters student , supervisors ).. they simply cant wait... everyone is glued to the screen ..and all the experiments in the department are halted since 4pm

Sorry its taken so long guys, as you can understand I had to leave work before posting, and there is quite a lot to think about. What I am going to write is anonymised for my own safety, so some things may not make sense. Apologies in advance.

The meeting was to say the least interesting. The PI, post docs, PhDers and RAs all met at 9pm. The PI started out simply by saying Sabrina's work had gone missing and as it was quite a substantial amount, he thought it wise to investigate further. Not strictly true, but I wasnt about to point this out at that time. He said he had been through "Various channels" and had uncovered evidence that there may have been an act of academic sabotage and that there may be some turmoil because of possible disciplinary action.

So did no one take any action ?

That's all?

He then said he would like to see Katy individually. I and Sabrina knew what was going on but Katy went crimson as the rest of us looked at her. They went to another office while the rest of us sat there and were gossiping about it, apart from Sabrina and I who didnt know what to say or do so just sat there giving each other looks.

Katy came back out the office and said that "THIS ISNT OVER!" and death stared at Sabrina. The PI came back and explained that there were allegations that Katy had sabotaged, but Katy had denied it. On being told there is evidence she still denied it and said that she was going to talk to her personal tutor and co-supervisor (she has 2 supervisors 1 local, 1 at another uni). Katy had been sent home for the rest of Friday, and first Sabrina and I were asked to go to the PIs office.

I dont know what the PI said to Sabrina (cos they were alone), but he asked me again was I absolutely sure about everything I said. I said I had only seen her at the computer beforehand, and that she had threatened me.

He said that Katy had denied everything even when told there was video evidence. She said that she wanted to know everything before saying anything. She also said that she had been unhappy with the group for some time, and that her other supervisor was aware of this.

The PI told me that disciplinary measures have been launched, but there were two problems. The first is that the PI has got a visiting professorship in the states, so it may be difficult for him to handle everything due to time limitations. The second is that Katy has a fairly prestigious scholarship award which may cause problems for the group if she decides to cause "trouble".

Obviously, there is other stuff I cant go into, but thats the gist of it. To be honest I am a little confused after everything.

I didnt realise that people were going to be as interested as I am (as you know I use this place to vent frustration and get things out my system). I am sorry there wasnt anything dramatic like cops coming in and taking Katy to jail or a fight breaking out, if that is what you were expecting.

Thanks for all your support folks.