New to the game and playing with a group. I was wondering if we could ask how long ago had Jack been here instead of has he been here. I was promptly denied the request and told it's against the rules.

I guess it is against the rules. I was sure I saw an example in the rule book where it was asked how long ago he was there. Oh well.

It is definiteky against the rules, Jack could possibly be at that location during the clue search.