Gujarat tops in tracing fingerprints from crime spots: Report

AHMEDABAD: Fingerprints left by chance on the door handle, safe or glass surfaces in homes or showrooms have helped state police crack numerous cases. The fingerprint bureau, working in Gujarat under Directorate of Forensic Sciences (DFS), has won the distinction of making the highest number of matches in 2015 on basis of the fingerprint database in India.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Gujarat also came second in India when it came to fingerprint trace percentage, just behind Karnataka.
The report ‘Finger Prints in India 2015,’ observes that the Gujarat fingerprint bureau traced 71,854 prints from a record 2.38 lakh prints with a success rate of 30.04%. Karnataka in the same period had traced 45,224 prints at the rate of 70.43%.
Gujarat, with a record of 1.55 lakh fingerprints, stands sixth in India behind Punjab (6.79 lakh), Uttar Pradesh (4.63 lakh), Maharashtra (3.03 lakh), Madhya Pradesh (1.71 lakh) and Tamil Nadu (1.67 lakh).
“Fingerprints not only help connect the suspect with the crime scene, but also help sometimes to identify dead bodies,” said a senior state police officer.
“Criminals have become smarter over the years, trying to wipe off all surfaces, but science has also advanced over the years. Today, the investigators take 10-digit fingerprints at police station level, out of which even one digit is enough to search the database. New techniques to develop fingerprints on different surfaces have also evolved,” added the police official.
According to the report, chance prints from crime scenes helped police in Gujarat link suspects with the crimes in 20 instances and with known criminals in 30 cases through Fingerprint Analysis and Criminal Tracing System (FACTS). In a total of 34 crime detection, fingerprints were cited as primary clue.
The report mentions that a youth in Ahmedabad was identified as the accused in an ATM break-in attempt on the basis of fingerprints. Likewise, two persons were arrested by Bavla police in connection with a house break-in when fingerprints from the crime spot matched those of known criminals.
Fingerprints also help verify deeds
Fingerprint experts also have to deal with disputed documents, primarily old land deeds caught up in legal tangle. According to the report, the fingerprint bureau examined 3,505 prints in 71 cases during 2015 and experts deposed before the court in nine instances as expert witnesses. Compared to other states, the number of disputed document cases is low in Gujarat.