New forensic devices to help police scan crime scene data instantly
dubai — A first-of-its-kind ‘forenscope’ that can instantly process fingerprints, DNA samples and documents found at the crime scenes and a 3D face scanner are some of the top innovations being showcased by the Dubai Police at the Emirates Forensic Conference and Exhibition.
The three-day event, exploring ‘how science can serve justice’, kicked off at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre on Monday.
Lieutenant Abdul Rahman Alhaj, expert assistant at the fingerprint section of the Dubai Police Forensic Department, said that police officers have to currently collect samples from the crime scene and then physically transport them to the police department for further investigation. However, once the Dubai Police adopt the new forenscope, a lot of time can be saved as the details of the fingerprints, DNA samples and documents can be electronically processed at the crime scene and transferred to the department within seconds.
He added: “The device is basically an android tablet with a camera, which can be used to create and save every case separately. It has six types of lights with UV and IR wavelengths.
“For taking fingerprints, we use UV light. It has two lenses — one for reading the DNA and documents and the other lens for reading fingerprints. After capturing images, we have the option to edit, take measurement, crop, add text, and so on.”
He also demonstrated how the device can use its infrared light to read the original text an ink soaked or splattered document.
One of the other unique devices on display was the 3D face scanner that was implemented by the Dubai Police about nine months ago. It is used to compare suspects with footage or evidence from CCTV, to aid identification.
Major Dr Hamad Alawar, head of the video and image forensic section at the Dubai Police, said: “It helps us increase the accuracy of our forensic reports when it comes to comparing suspects with any piece of evidence — videos, CCTV or images, and it allows us to easily investigate it in a lot of details. It increases our speed and accuracy.”
He demonstrated how the scanner works, on his colleague. “Using my colleague as an example here, you get to capture his face in 3D. You don’t need to call the suspect again to take any more photographs. You can do any kind of comparisons of it from any angle, zooming in to find any marks. You can compare the facial features with more precision.”
As of now, the Dubai Police forensic lab only has one such device for 3D identification.
Besides many such innovative devices, the forensic event features seven workshops, 20 exhibitors and more than 30 scientific lectures and 70 summaries.