Secret DNA weapon
Police trial linked to Norlane crime drop
AN AUSTRALIAN- FIRST trial where residents mark their valuable possessions with traceable synthetic DNA could be behind a crime drop in one of Geelong’s hardest hit suburbs.
Now employees at some of the region’s largest secondhand trade shops are being trained to search for liquid DNA on items to stop crooks onselling stolen property.
The Protect-Prevent initiative, spearheaded by Geelong region Superintendent Craig Gillard, was rolled out three months ago at 500 homes in Norlane and at Whittlesea, north of Melbourne.
The trial, borne from similar systems in the United Kingdom and the United States, saw residents given a small amount of traceable DNA to mark their products so if stolen they could be linked back to their original owners.
Superintendent Gillard said the first half of the trial led to “really encouraging results” — with education surrounding the project possibly linked to a near 15 per cent overall crime drop in Norlane.
“We’ve seen some really encouraging results at the halfway point — we’ve only had a very small number of burglaries recorded in the Norlane pilot area and two of them involved parties known to each other,” Superintendent Gillard said.
Another unrelated burglary of a DNA-marked television is currently under investigation.
“Our primary objective is to reduce the amount of burglaries occurring and prevent people committing break and enters,” he said.
“It is too early to release data and dig deeper — that will all form part of the trial evaluation at the end of March — but at this stage things are pointing in the right direction.”
Of the 500 Norlane households involved, 90 per cent of residents chose to participate. With some homes vacant, only a small number of residents opted out of the trial for “personal reasons”.
The trial included “a resource heavy” launch phase where police officers and Neighbourhood Watch members doorknocked all residents to explain the program. The face-to-face contact and explanation was “well-received” and formed part of essential education.
Police have been expanding the program, equipping second-hand dealers with specialised torches allowing them to search for secret DNA on items traded for cash.
Cash Converters Geelong manager Tony Veisse said staff would use torches to check items before entering them in their database shared with police.
Sellers are required to provide 100 points of ID, sign a legal declaration, agree to have a photo taken and in some cases provide proof of purchase.
After Cash Converters has purchased goods, a thorough item description is uploaded onto a state-based police database.
The seller’s ID is also included so police can recognise potential offenders.
Police check the information against any reportedly stolen goods. The items are held for up to two weeks before being eligible for sale.