OXFORD BOOKWORMS COMPREHENSION TEST

Stage 4
Great Crimes

1 Match the crime from A with the person B

or group from B. a he was shot by Jack Ruby.
A b he was never seen again.
1 ___ murder c he went to live in Brazil.
2 ___ robbery d he gave away two million dollars for
3 ___ terrorism, kidnapping and robbery poor people.
4 ___ assassination e he left a note saying ‘I’m sorry’.
5 ___ kidnapping 20 marks

B 4 Match a number from A with a letter

a Vincenzo Perugia from B.
b Lee Harvey Oswald A
c the SLA 1 ___ A witness …
d Dr Crippen 2 ___ A detective …
e Bruno Richard Hauptmann 3 ___ A burglar …
20 marks 4 ___ A lawyer …
5 ___ A kidnapper …
2 Are these sentences true (T) or false (F)?
a ___ Dr Crippen and his wife were unhappy B
together. a tries to find out who did a crime.
b ___ Charles Lindbergh Junior was found b takes somebody away so that their family
dead. will pay money to get them back.
c ___ There were three men in the train c goes into a building to steal things.
robbers’ gang. d sees something happen.
d ___ Kennedy was shot more than once. e has studied law and talks for people in a
e ___ Patty Hearst helped to rob a bank. court of law.
f ___ Lindy Chamberlain had a baby in 20 marks
prison.
g ___ The police arrested Shergar’s 5 Can you answer these questions?
kidnappers. a What nationality was Dr Crippen?
h ___ Bonnie and Clyde were famous …………………
singers. b Where was the Mona Lisa found, after it
i ___ Nick Leeson killed a bank worker. was stolen? …………………
j ___ Elmyr de Hory forged passports. c In which country did Azaria Chamberlain
20 marks disappear? …………………
d What was the number of Nick Leeson’s
3 Match a number from A with a letter from Error Account? …………………
B to make complete sentences. e How did Elmyr de Hory die? …………………
A 20 marks
1 ___ After Ronnie Biggs escaped from
prison … Total marks
2 ___ After Lee Harvey Oswald was
arrested …
3 ___ After Nick Leeson left Barings Bank …
4 ___ After Shergar was kidnapped …
5 ___ After Hearst’s daughter was
kidnapped …

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS COMPREHENSION TEST ANSWERS
Stage 4
Great Crimes

1
1 d
2 a
3 c
4 b
5 e

2
a T
b T
c F
d T
e T
f T
g F
h F
i F
j F

3
1 c
2 a
3 e
4 b
5 d

4
1 d
2 a
3 c
4 e
5 b

5
a American
b Florence
c Australia
d 88888
e He took his own life (he committed suicide).

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 4
Great Crimes

PLACES 8 The horse Shergar was kidnapped from a

farm in _____.
Choose the best answer. a  Scotland
1 Crippen was arrested on a ship going b  Wales
to _____. c  Ireland
a  Brazil d  England
b  Canada
9 Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow first met
c  New York
in _____.
d  Belgium
a  Louisiana
2 The Mona Lisa is kept in a museum b  Missouri
in _____. c  Oklahoma
a  London d  Texas
b  New York
10 Nick Leeson discovered a mistake by one of
c  Rome
his staff in _____.
d  Paris
a  Singapore
3 The kidnappers of Charles Lindbergh Junior b  New York
arranged to meet Dr Condon in a _____. c  London
a  cemetery d  Tokyo
b  hotel
20 marks
c  railway station
d  boat
PEOPLE
4 After the Great Train Robbery, the criminal
Ronnie Biggs lived in _____ for many years. Choose the best answer.
a  Spain 11 Crippen’s wife, Cora, loved _____.
b  Brazil a  travelling
c  Japan b  the theatre
d  Scotland c  sport
5 President Kennedy was shot in Dallas, a city d  reading
in _____. 12 The man who stole the Mona Lisa signed
a  California his name as _____.
b  Arizona a  Leonard
c  Texas b  Florence
d  Florida c  Vinci
6 Patty Hearst’s family lived in _____. d  Carré
a  California 13 Charles Lindbergh was a famous _____.
b  London a  artist
c  Texas b  criminal
d  New York c  journalist
7 Lindy Chamberlain’s daughter disappeared d  pilot
during a holiday _____. 14 After leaving prison, Patty Hearst wrote a
a  in the forest book and became _____.
b  near the beach a  a singer
c  in the city b  a shopkeeper
d  in the desert c  a teacher
d  an actress

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 4
Great Crimes

15 Lindy Chamberlain told the police that 22 The man who was executed for the
a _____ had taken her baby daughter. Lindbergh kidnapping was a _____.
a  tiger a  teacher
b  kidnapper b  carpenter
c  wild dog c  doctor
d  snake d  gardener
16 The men who kidnapped Shergar were 23 About _____ criminals were involved in the
wearing _____ to hide their faces. Great Train Robbery.
a  masks a  3
b  balaclavas b  40
c  sunglasses c  8
d  hats d  15
17 Bonnie Parker was an excellent _____. 24 Shots were fired at President Kennedy from
a  writer a building where _____ were kept.
b  singer a  banknotes
c  driver b  cars
d  photographer c  books
d  animals
18 When Nick Leeson left Barings Bank, he left
a note saying _____. 25 Patty Hearst’s father was a _____.
a  ‘I’m going home’ a  newspaper owner
b  ‘I’m sorry’ b  lawyer
c  ‘I’ll be back soon’ c  pilot
d  ‘I did nothing wrong’ d  policeman
19 Charles Ponzi was born in _____ in 1882. 26 The body of Lindy Chamberlain’s daughter
a  Hungary Azaria was _____.
b  France a  found in a tent
c  Italy b  never found
d  Canada c  found in a river
d  found in the mountains
20 Elmyr de Hory died in Ibiza, Spain in _____.
a  1949 27 In 1981, Shergar won the Epsom Derby
b  1959 _____ metres ahead of the other horses.
c  1976 a  240
d  1996 b  2.4
c  0.24
20 marks
d  24

FACTS 28 The Barrow gang killed _____ policemen.

a  five
Choose the best answer. b  seven
21 Crippen worked for a company that c  nine
sold _____. d  eleven
a  medicines 29 Many years after his crime, Nick Leeson
b  guns became manager of a _____.
c  books a  bank
d  radios b  football club
c  shop
d  restaurant

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 4
Great Crimes

30 It is thought Charles Ponzi collected 37 the group of people at a trial who decide if
about _____ dollars from his investors. someone is guilty or not
a  10 million a  gang
b  100 million b  prosecution
c  10 billion c  jury
d  100 billion d  surgery
20 marks 38 a building in which horses are kept
a  museum
VOCABULARY b  court
c  camp
Choose the best answer. d  stable
31 something that can kill you if you eat or 39 a group of criminals who work together
drink it a  gang
a  surgery b  case
b  medicine c  company
c  frame d  farm
d  poison
40 a room or building where people can see
32 to believe that someone may be guilty of paintings
a crime a  hospital
a  punish b  cemetery
b  suspect c  gallery
c  damage d  theatre
d  doubt
20 marks
33 a plan for organizing something
a  invest
EVENTS
b  scheme
c  fake Choose the best answer.
d  fraud
41 On board the Montrose, Crippen pretended
34 to end your marriage to somebody that Ethel Le Neve was _____.
a  pretend a  his aunt
b  suspect b  his wife
c  divorce c  his son
d  damage d  his daughter
35 the piece of wood or metal around the edge 42 The man who stole the Mona Lisa
of a picture was _____.
a  gallery a  French
b  signal b  Italian
c  tent c  English
d  frame d  American
36 very strong or important 43 Charles Lindbergh Junior died a few _____
a  powerful after he was kidnapped.
b  wounded a  hours
c  confident b  days
d  rough c  months
d  years

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 4
Great Crimes

44 After the Great Train Robbery, the robbers

left _____ at their hiding place.
a  money
b  cars
c  clothes
d  fingerprints
45 The man arrested for killing President
Kennedy died _____.
a  in the electric chair
b  of old age
c  when a man shot him
d  when he fell from a window
46 Two months after being kidnapped, Patty
Hearst was involved in _____.
a  making a bomb
b  burning a house
c  a bank robbery
d  a political assassination
47 A month after she went to prison, Lindy
Chamberlain _____.
a  had a baby
b  killed someone
c  escaped
d  died
48 The gang that took Shergar chose a day
when there was an important _____.
a  soccer match
b  horse sale
c  holiday
d  horse race
49 Nick Leeson hid his losses in Error
Account _____.
a  44444
b  99999
c  11111
d  88888
50 Orson Welles made a _____ about Elmyr de
Hory called F for Fake.
a  book
b  film
c  play
d  record
20 marks

Total marks

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST ANSWERS
Stage 4
Great Crimes

PLACES EVENTS
1 b 41 c
2 d 42 b
3 a 43 a
4 b 44 d
5 c 45 c
6 a 46 c
7 d 47 a
8 c 48 b
9 d 49 d
10 a 50 b

PEOPLE
11 b
12 a
13 d
14 d
15 c
16 b
17 a
18 b
19 c
20 c

FACTS
21 a
22 b
23 d
24 c
25 a
26 b
27 d
28 c
29 b
30 a

VOCABULARY
31 d
32 b
33 b
34 c
35 d
36 a
37 c
38 d
39 a
40 c

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS BOOK ACTIVITY ANSWERS
Stage 4
Great Crimes

BEFORE READING 7+h Crippen was arrested by Inspector Dew

For these activities, encourage students to
exchange ideas, and to speculate and to
guess. Do not tell them the answers that
are factual; they will find out the answers
as they read.
Activity 1
Encourage students to speculate and to
make guesses. They will find out as they
read that the answers are:
in book: farm, note, drug, glove, poison,
knife
not in book: heart, grandfather, shoe, cow,
insect, bread
Activity 2
assassination Killing a political leader
kidnapping Taking someone and keeping
them as a prisoner in order to
get money
murder Deliberately taking someone’s
life
robbery Using violence to steal money or
other things
terrorism Hurting, killing or frightening
people to try to make the
government do what you want
Activity 3
Open answers.
WHILE READING
Chapter 1
1+e When Cora sang in theatres, she called
herself ‘Belle Elmore’.
2+c Crippen could not work as a doctor in
England because he had trained in
another country.
3+g Crippen fell in love with Ethel Le Neve, who
was his secretary.
4+a After killing Cora, Crippen told everyone
that she had gone back to America.
5+f The police found part of a woman’s body
under Crippen’s house in London.
before he reached Canada.
8+b On the day that Crippen died, Ethel sailed
from London for New York.
Chapter 2
1 Paris.
2 Because paintings were often taken away and
photographed.
3 A thumbprint.
4 500,000 lire (100,000 dollars).
5 He bought and sold paintings.
6 He was a house painter.
7 A list of names and addresses of people who
bought and sold paintings in different
countries.
Chapter 3
1 Charles Lindbergh was a rich, famous pilot.
2 Charles Lindbergh Junior was often called
‘Little It’.
3 Betty Gow was Charles Junior’s nurse.
4 Violet Sharpe, who worked for the Lindberghs,
killed herself a few months after the
kidnapping.
5 The kidnapper arranged to meet Dr Condon in
a cemetery.
6 Cemetery John collected 50,000 dollars for
false information about the missing child.
7 Bruno Hauptmann was found guilty of killing
Charles Junior.
Chapter 4
Correct order: 7, 2, 6, 8, 3, 5, 1, 4
7 The robbers bought an old farmhouse.
2 The night mail train left Glasgow for London.
6 The train driver saw a red signal and stopped
the train.
8 Two robbers attacked the driver.
3 Some robbers took bags of money out of the
train.
5 The robbers went to the farmhouse to count
the
money.
1 The police found some fingerprints at the
farmhouse.
4 Most of the robbers were caught and put in
prison.

6+d Ethel and Crippen travelled on the Chapter 5

Montrose using the name ‘Robinson’. 1T

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS
Stage 4
Great Crimes
2 F The president was hit by several bullets.
3 F Jack Ruby killed Lee Harvey Oswald.
4 T
5 F After Kennedy’s death, Lyndon B. Johnson
became president.
6T
Chapter 6
Patty Hearst was the daughter of a newspaper
owner. She was kidnapped by terrorists.
Two months later, she became a member of
the gang and helped them to rob a bank. A
year later she was caught and sent for trial.
The jury found her guilty and she was sent
to prison, but a few years later she was free.
Chapter 7
1 The Chamberlain children were sleeping in a
tent.
2 Lindy Chamberlain said that a dingo had taken
her baby.
3 At the end of the second inquest, Lindy
Chamberlain was charged with murder.
4 Lindy Chamberlain had a daughter while she
was in prison.
5 When the police found a dead climber, they also
found Azaria’s coat.
6 Lindy wrote a book, Through My Eyes, about
her experience.
Chapter 8
1 Because he could still father successful
racehorses.
2 Because they were wearing balaclavas.
3 They locked them in a downstairs room.
4 They wanted two million pounds.
5 Because they were travelling to one of
Ireland’s biggest horse sales.
6 The IRA probably kidnapped him because they
needed money.
Chapter 9
1b 2c 3b 4a 5c
Chapter 10
1 Why. . . ? Because he made millions of pounds
for the bank.
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BOOK ACTIVITY ANSWERS
2 What. . .? She sold twenty contracts instead of
buying them.
3 Where. . .? In Error Account 88888.
4 What . . .?A note saying ‘I’m sorry’.
5 Why. . .? Because he did not want to go to
prison in South East Asia.
6 How many. . .? 1200 people lost their jobs.
Chapter 11
Ponzi and de Hory both hoped to make money in
America. Ponzi promised to invest people’s
money, and give them the profit, but he went
to prison for fraud. De Hory discovered that
people would pay thousands for his fakes,
but not for his own paintings. People still talk
about Ponzi schemes today, and de Hory’s
own paintings are now worth a lot of money.
AFTER READING
Activity 1
1 Sofia Stone, who has just been kidnapped with
her friend Mr Darby in Louisiana. They will
be kept all night and let go the next day in
Arkansas.
2 The wife of James Fitzgerald, who looked after
Shergar. She and her children have been
locked in a room. The men are going to
kidnap Shergar and ask for money.
3 Vincenzo Perugia. He has stolen the Mona Lisa
and is locked inside the Louvre Museum. The
museum worker is going to let him out,
thinking he is a cleaner.
4 Nick Leeson. One of his staff has made a
mistake which could cost Barings £20,000.
Leeson is going to use the error account to
hide this loss, and hides further losses in the
account until they are so large they cannot
be repaid.
5 Ethel Le Neve. She has disguised herself as a
boy and is travelling to Canada with Dr
Crippen to start a new life. Crippen is going
to be arrested before the ship reaches
Canada, and returned to England for trial.
6 Jack Mills, a train driver. Some robbers have
covered the green signal and used their own
red light to stop the train. Two robbers are
going to get into the engine and make Mills
drive to a bridge, where they will unload bags
of banknotes
OXFORD BOOKWORMS BOOK ACTIVITY ANSWERS
Stage 4
Great Crimes

Activity 2
John F. Kennedy was shot as his car drove past
the Texas Book Depository. Not long after
the shooting, a policeman, J. D. Tippit,
stopped a man on the street. The man shot
the policeman and ran away. Later, Lee
Harvey Oswald was arrested for murdering
Tippit. Then a gun belonging to Oswald was
found in the Texas Book Depository, and
Oswald was arrested again – this time for
killing the president

The well-known businessman Charles Ponzi was

arrested in Boston today. Police went to the
office of Ponzi’s business, the Securities
Exchange Company, which has been taking
thousands of dollars a day from excited
investors, and took him away for
questioning. After the arrest a number of
investors said that they refused to believe
that Ponzi had done anything wrong. ‘He
paid me exactly what he promised,’ said
one, ‘so I invested it all again. He will take
care of us, I’m sure.’

Activity 3
Headlines refer to:
Lindy Chamberlain
Bonnie and Clyde
Patty Hearst
Lindbergh kidnapping
Mona Lisa

Activity 4
Arguments relate to Nick Leeson and Patty
Hearst.
Open answers.

Activity 5
Open answers. Encourage students to share
their views and opinions.

Activity 6
Open answers.

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