Forensic studies with human analogues: evaluation of decomposition and the use of residual odor detection dogs

Abstract

This book is the product of the research group “Sniffing Knowledge” which belongs to the School for Canine Guidance and Training of the National Police of Colombia, in collaboration with the Institute of Forensic Sciences of the Texas Technological University (TTU). Chapter 1 includes experiments with human analogues (Sus Scrofa) detectable by canine teams, evaluating the sensitivity and specificity of the findings at sites where a corpse was found by means of a double blind test. The test is carried out in order to determine the existence of residual odor. It also validates the response of the dog and itshandler using unmanned aerial devices and uses dogs who were certified with human bone remains. Chapter 2 analyzes the effects of the external envelope of pigs against the rate of decomposition in order to understand, in real practice when a body is discovered at a crime scene, if such information is crucial for criminal investigators to be able to establish the Post Mortem Interval (IPM). The academic and experimental approach analyzes tangent efforts to present possible solutions to corpse inspection procedures or the possible sites associated with the events in which a person might die. To conclude, it articulates different fields of knowledge within the forensic sciences applied with canines, allowing high reliability for the subsequent approach in real operational work of missing persons or in cases of homicide in order to have an impact on the crimes that affect coexistence and citizen security in Colombia.