DNA Evidence in Property Crimes: An Analysis of More than 4200 Samples Processed by the Brazilian Federal PoliceForensic Genetics Laboratory

G Chemale,S M Aguiar,C E M Medeiros,R C Silva Junior,R S Paiva,C B V Carvalho,K Michelin,M A M Menezes,H B Lima,L H Fassio,A P V Castro,B R Trindade,R T F Paranaiba,G S Jacques,A C Minervino,J M Freitas,J L Badaraco

doi:10.17063/bjfs6(1)y2016108a

Abstract

DNA evidence is nowadays used for the investigation of a wide range of crimes. Once reserved mostly for violent cases such as rape and murder, biological material recovery is not only restricted to such crime scenes anymore. As DNA technology is getting cheaper and its results faster, there has been a growing interest in using DNA to help solving volume crimes, mostly property crimes. In this work, an analysis of more than 4200 samples of biological material recovered from more than 1000 cases of property crime offenses processed by the Brazilian Federal Police Forensic Genetics laboratory is described. Most of the property crime offenses included: (1) Automated Teller Machine (ATM) thefts, skimming or Personal Identification Number (PIN) capturing scams, (2) post office burglaries or armed robberies, (3) Federal government buildings burglaries. Success rate at DNA recovering and STR typing showed great variability, mostly due the nature of biological source, but an average of 52% of samples presented usable DNA and in 44% of the cases at least one genetic profile reached the minimal criteria for insertion in CODIS. Results obtained in this work showed what types of evidence are usually collected in property crimes and which ones provide the best results for DNA typing. These results can be used to better guide crime scene evidence collection practices in property offenses, making it more efficient and cost effective.

Highlights

DNA fingerprinting has revolutionized the forensic sciences in the last 25 years, contributing enormously to police investigations and court proceedings[1,2]
We report an analysis of more than 4200 samples of biological material recovered from more than 1000 cases of property crime offenses processed by the Brazilian Federal Police Forensic Genetics laboratory over the period 2011-2016
DNA testing of biological evidence collected from property crimes can be an important tool for the identification of perpetrators

Summary

Introduction

DNA fingerprinting has revolutionized the forensic sciences in the last 25 years, contributing enormously to police investigations and court proceedings[1,2]. DNA evidence analysis is widely accepted as a standard forensic technique for the investigation and detection of a wide spectrum of crime types, from lesser to violent crimes, such as rapes and murders[3,4]. It is estimated that property crimes of motor vehicle theft, arson, household burglary, and larceny/theft generated per-offense tangible costs between $3,523 and $16,4285. It may cause great psychological and emotional damage on its victims

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Conclusion