Criminal Investigation Research Articles

Victims and witnesses of international crimes, such as genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity can suffer from psychological trauma or related sequalae as a direct consequence of the crimes. Recounting such experiences carries a substantial risk of secondary victimisation or retraumatisation. This risk must be carefully considered not only during international criminal investigations and prosecutions, but also at the preliminary stage of identifying and locating potential witnesses. This article critically examines the involvement of third parties in the identification of potential witnesses, distinguishing between organisations with varying mandates and so-called intermediaries. The analysis draws upon relevant scholarly literature, case law, and transcripts of proceedings. The findings suggest that, although there have been efforts to (increasingly) regulate the involvement of third parties to locate potential witnesses, the implementation of a trauma-informed process requires more precisely formulated procedures. This is essential to safeguard the psychological well-being of victims and witnesses from the earliest stages of investigations.

Blow flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) play an important role in forensic entomology (using insects and other arthropods to criminal investigations). An early step for this application is accurate species identification. The 2 main approaches are morphological and molecular, but each has its limitations, making it necessary to use alternative or supplementary tools. Since outline-based geometric morphometrics (GM) is widely applied with insect identification, this study examined this method for species identification of 800 third-instar larvae of 8 blow fly species Chrysomya chani Kurahashi, Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius), Chrysomya (Ceylonomyia) nigripes Aubertin, Chrysomya pinguis (Walker), Chrysomya (Achoetandrus) rufifacies (Macquart), Hemipyrellia ligurriens (Wiedemann), Lucilia cuprina (Wiedemann), and Lucilia porphyrina (Walker). Successful classification based on the cephaloskeleton demonstrated high reclassification scores ranging from 89% to 100%. This indicates that outline-based GM of the larval cephaloskeleton contour offers a significant advantage in identifying fly specimens. It can complement traditional methods, especially when encountering certain limitations-such as incomplete or damaged larvae-and can also help lower costs associated with molecular analyses.

Abstract DNA analysis, as part of forensic investigation, has transformed the criminal justice system by providing highly accurate evidence to link individuals to crime scenes, thereby enhancing forensic reliability while also increasing public trust in the system. However, its application in notable cases, such as the Nithari Kand and Aarushi Talwar cases, has revealed systemic weaknesses. These cases highlight the challenges of implementing DNA technology in underdeveloped forensic infrastructures, raising concerns about the consistency and reliability of forensic processes. The present study examines the efficacy and limitations of DNA analysis in criminal investigations in India, utilizing qualitative data from forensic experts ( n = 8), investigating officers ( n = 12) and legal professionals ( n = 60), as well as forensic reports and court documents. We found that while DNA evidence played a critical role in victim identification and suspect linkage, its impact was often compromised by procedural lapses, sample contamination and delayed forensic processing. These findings contribute to the growing body of research on forensic science in developing legal systems and offer practical implications for reforming India’s forensic and investigative infrastructure.

Forensic dentistry is a branch of dentistry that assists the justice system in solving cases by identifying bodies, contributing significantly to criminal and civil investigations. It is especially used in situations where the body is already in an advanced state of decomposition, carbonization, or skeletonization, or when there is no known identity for the corpse. This specialty analyzes dental evidence, such as teeth and the DNA present in them, comparing ante-mortem and post-mortem records, analyzing the dental arch, bite marks, and dental prostheses, which are often customized and unique. Forensic dentistry can also assist in cases of violence, mass disasters, accidents, and in identifying missing persons. The use of well-filled dental records, X-rays, and other clinical records is essential in this process, allowing for accurate and reliable analysis. This article includes literature reviews and case reports in which forensic dentistry has proven to be extremely important for resolving each situation, using different methods of human identification. The role of the dental surgeon as an expert or technical assistant has proven to be indispensable for the elucidation of various cases, reinforcing the relevance of this area in the field of forensic medicine.

This study examined the problem of Awaiting trial as a practice associated with the correctional services and pending judgement by the appropriate court. The objective of the study is to define the nature, determine the failure of investigation, identify the possible factors, examine the effects and find out possible solutions of awaiting trial of an inmates in Jos correctional service. The total of 100 respondents were selected from 5 units in Jos correctional service. This Comprise 80 awaiting trial inmates, 5 Prison Authority and 5 representatives from the High Court as well as 10 Nigeria Police Force. Frequency Distribution Table was used to process the quantitative data and the qualitative data were analysis based on descriptive statistics. Literature is reviewed from relevant journals, magazines, and newspapers. The finding indicate that, practice of detaining suspects in correctional custody negates the constitutional provision of presumption of innocence. By way of recommendation, there is need to train a new breed of police investigators to catch up with modern methods of criminal investigation, there is need to computerize court proceedings including recording of cases in order to speed up trials and modern prison practices should be introduced such as private prison even though controversial. In conclusion, this research is a contemporary social issue that needs urgent investigation by other researchers to be able to know causes of awaiting trial of inmate in Nigerian correctional service which is going through for possible action.

This study reports the discursive appeals embedded in the deployment of evasions in police-suspect interactions (PSIs) in Ibadan. Studies have marked investigating police officers (IPOs) as participants who overtly wield power during interrogation. This study argues that power is not an exclusive preserve of the IPOs; suspects equally deploy evasions to challenge IPOs’ powers. Informed by van Dijk’s model of critical discourse analysis, 45 interrogation sessions on fraud and threat to life, murder, rape, stealing and felony, observed at the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Ìyágankú, Ibadan, constitute the data for the study. Suspects are evasive through deliberate construction of deflection, appeals to ignorance, ambiguity, and interrogatives to challenge IPOs’ construction of power. The study notes that evasions are used by suspects to express resistance in PSIs. While previous studies see suspects as vulnerable participants in PSIs, this study holds that suspects also challenge IPOs by using evasions to stymie IPOs’ investigative skills.

Labour Productivity of Criminal Investigation in Finland, 2002-2023 Symptoms of Baumol’s Cost Disease Is criminal investigation (CI) one of the non-progressive labour-intensive sectors of the economy? Specifically, does the core assumption of Baumol’s cost disease theory hold true for the sector, so that the rate of growth of labour productivity of CI is zero? The current study is based on a simple model of labour productivity and on Key Performance Indicator data of the Finnish police. Using Cobb-Douglas production function and OLS regression analysis, labour productivity of CI was estimated for the Finnish police districts as a function of time (2002-2023), controlling for the number of crimes reported to the police. For some of the police districts, labour productivity growth was slightly positive; for some, it was slightly negative. In the aggregate, the estimated compounded annual growth rate of labour productivity of CI was approximately 0.20%-0.25% over the period of time under analysis. CI is probably not a non-progressive sector of the economy, but it is not one of the fast-progressive sectors either. Using a long-term time series data set, the study is unique from the scholarly point of view. Apart from the study by van Reenen on the Dutch police, there are no directly related earlier studies.

ABSTRACT This study aimed to analyze the legality of using artificial intelligence-based facial recognition technology in criminal investigations in light of fundamental rights, considering that technological innovations are integrated into criminal investigations. The methodological procedures used to guide this research were through a qualitative approach with an exploratory and descriptive objective, including a literature review of legal doctrines on facial recognition, in order to relate the methods to the research problem. Data collection was based on books, scientific articles, master’s dissertations, and doctoral theses, accessed through the following database platforms: Science Direct, SciELO, and Google Scholar. The results indicated that the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and facial recognition (FR) in criminal investigations represents a significant technological advancement for the justice system, promoting speed and efficiency in police and judicial actions. However, these technological innovations raise significant and serious concerns regarding the protection of fundamental rights, especially regarding privacy, the presumption of innocence, and due process. Recent rulings by the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) have shown that the misuse of facial recognition without proper legal procedures can result in judicial errors and rights violations. Therefore, it is concluded that the applicability of technological innovations in criminal investigations must be guided by rigorous ethical, technical, and legal criteria, utilizing control mechanisms, human oversight, and regulations. This highlights that the balance between investigative efficiency and respect for human rights is crucial for Artificial Intelligence’s responsible and fair contribution to the criminal justice system. Keywords: Technological innovations. Facial recognition. Criminal investigation. Fundamental rights.

Summary The famous Tomb Robbery papyri provide a vivid example of how criminal law was practiced in ancient Egypt. Ransacking royal tombs and temples was considered a capital crime, punishable by death. In this context, the victim was represented by the state. Anything used in the commission of the crime was deemed a “criminal tool,” and criminal investigation and forensic evidence at the crime scene aimed to identify such tools. According to the texts of those papyri, “the instrumentalities of crime” used by the tomb robbers included items for opening, smashing, digging, traction, and lighting. Additionally, the robbers used tools to cover up the traces of the crime, such as setting fire to looted tombs and temples.

The stability of Nigeria as a sovereign entity is under growing threat from escalating criminal activities; however, academic inquiry into the challenges confronting police criminal investigations remains insufficient. This gap contributes to widespread misconceptions and underestimation of the severity of threats posed by crime. This study investigates the factors militating against effective criminal investigation within the Nigerian Police Force, focusing on the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Abuja. The research assesses whether deficiencies in police criminal investigation contribute significantly to the escalation of crime in Nigeria, especially considering that previous state efforts to combat crime have yielded minimal results. The study employed a survey research design, drawing on both primary and secondary sources. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 306 respondents for questionnaire administration, while 10 informants were purposively chosen for in-depth interviews. The study is theoretically anchored on the functionalist and conflict perspectives of crime. Findings reveal several critical challenges: poor police-public relations, inadequate funding, political interference, and lack of consistent capacity building. These factors collectively undermine the effectiveness of police criminal investigations. The study recommends comprehensive police reform, including the restructuring of the FCID, public sensitization programs to foster mutual trust, and the continuous training and retraining of investigative personnel to improve competency and performance. Such interventions are vital for restoring public confidence and enhancing the operational efficiency of the Nigerian Police Force in combating crime.

Microbial profiles in dust are closely correlated with geographical locations and provide valuable clues for criminal investigation, demonstrating significant potential in forensic use. However, the feasibility of using microbial profiles from metagenomics datasets to infer the geographical locations remains underexplored. In this study, we collect 170 dust samples from resident communities in four cities across northern, eastern, southwestern, and northwestern China. All samples are subjected to shotgun metagenomic sequencing to reveal variations in microbial composition. In total, 41,029 species are annotated, including 93.39% bacteria, 6.37% eukaryotes, 0.21% viruses, and 0.03% archaea. Clear clustering patterns are observed among the four cities (R2=0.870, P<0.001). Further filtering of species with detection rates below 10% across all samples strengthens city-level clustering (R2=0.948, P<0.001). Additionally, 127 biomarkers are identified using linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe) to distinguish between the cities. Each city harbors a distinct microbial community, with unique species and relatively abundant taxa that contribute to its differentiated microbial profile. All samples are randomly split into training and testing sets in a 7:3 ratio. Five machine learning models including SourceTracker, FEAST, LightGBM, Random Forest and Support Vector Machine are applied to 51 randomly sample data and achieve average accuracies of 88.89%, 92.16%, 98.04%, 99.35% and 69.28%, respectively. These results constitute a microbial genetic map of four cities in China that highlights distinct microbial taxonomic signatures and provides an approach for city-scale source tracking of dust samples.

The integration of clinical microbiology into forensic medicine and toxicology has revolutionized investigative method ologies, enhancing the precision of criminal investigations. This review examines the role and impact of clinical micro biology in forensic contexts, focusing on its applications, technological advancements, challenges, ethical considerations, and future prospects. Forensic microbiology has proven invaluable in various forensic investigations, such as identifying pathogens in unex pected deaths, analysing soil microbiomes to infer crime scene geolocations, and utilizing the human microbiome for individual identification. Advances in next-generation sequencing, artificial intelligence, and machine learning have significantly enhanced the capabilities of forensic microbiology, enabling faster and more precise analyses. These tech nologies facilitate a deeper understanding of microbial evidence, contributing to more accurate forensic conclusions. However, the field faces challenges, including the need for standardized methodologies and protocols, rapid pathogen identification, and handling complex microbial ecosystems. Ethical considerations, particularly regarding the privacy of microbiome data and its legal interpretation, are also pivotal. Future research directions emphasize developing rapid on-site testing methods, expanding microbial databases, and establishing robust ethical frameworks for microbiology’s use in forensic science. These advancements are anticipated to further refine forensic microbiological methods, ensuring their responsible and effective application in legal investiga tions. In summary, the integration of clinical microbiology into forensic medicine and toxicology marks a significant ad vancement in forensic science. It offers enhanced capabilities in crime scene analysis and pathogen identification, while posing challenges that require careful consideration and ongoing research. The continued evolution of this field prom ises to significantly contribute to the efficacy and integrity of forensic investigations.

Despite digital evidence (DE) now being a major component of most criminal investigations, very few studies have examined how police officers themselves evaluate and use DE over the course of an investigation. Drawing on in-depth interviews with N = 13 police officers from England and Wales, four themes are presented: (i) Sense-making and handling of digital devices and DE in investigations; (ii) The interpretation and reliability of DE; (iii) Strategic use of DE in investigative interviews with suspects, with a subtheme of Digital devices and DE in victim-centered interviews; and (iv) DE in the courtroom. While often seen as objective and infallible, DE is fragile, volatile, and legally complex, highlighting the cognitive and interpretive work that officers must do when dealing with DE. This is important because this work has a direct impact on how investigations proceed, including what is taken from crime scenes and how it is used in investigative interviews. Findings show how DE creates unique challenges and opportunities within investigative interviewing, extending research on strategic disclosure into the digital domain. Future directions include setting up better communication workflows to reduce epistemic drift and offering more DE interpretation training to help officers in an increasingly digital environment.

Forensic ballistics involves the examination of firearms and related evidence and their interpretation for judicial procedures. When reconstructing a crime scene, forensic ballistics can help determine the shooter, the weapon used, the range, and the approximate time of the incident. In spite of its contemporary literary connotations, forensic ballistics has been practiced for decades. Black powder and gunpowder predate forensic ballistics. Forensic ballistics is a combination of various scientific disciplines such as physics, mathematics, statistics, computers, photography, forensics, and medico-legal. This is a unique and practical field that is used in the scientific and judicial investigation of offenses related to weaponry. Its contributions to legal and medico-legal studies are widely recognized. Although there is a wealth of information available about the development of forensic ballistics worldwide, there is a dearth of information and substantial gaps in the literature. To describe the development and dissemination of forensic ballistics throughout India, this review study consults outdated but useful literature. This review may be helpful to criminal investigators, prosecutors, and anyone interested in comprehending firearm evidence and legal investigation, since forensic ballistics is of importance to the legal, social, and scientific sectors. Researchers and students who are interested in the subject can learn more about the development and dissemination of forensic ballistics in India from this review.

In 1904, Max Wertheimer and Julius Klein published apaper that shook the worlds of criminal justice and psychology. They proposed using psychological experiments, particularly word association tests, to assess whether criminal suspects had committed aparticular crime. Over the following months and years, almost every German-language journal on psychology or criminal law, as well as many foreign-language journals, published something on this so-called Tatbestandsdiagnostik. Some hailed it as the "criminal investigation of the future." However, Tatbestandsdiagnostik's downfall was as swift as its rise to fame. By the advent of World WarI, most psychologists and jurists had concluded that the association method was of no use in legal and police practice. This article traces the history of Tatbestandsdiagnostik as acase of how new forms of psychological knowledge circulated, were evaluated, and made an impact. It argues that proponents' insistence on the method's objectivity, its ambiguous relationship with psychoanalysis, and the possibility of demonstrating it to students and colleagues facilitated both its rapid rise and its demise.

ABSTRACT Police detective functions in England and Wales are straining under converging pressures. Drawing on 45 semi-structured interviews with detectives across five police forces, this paper examines how rising caseloads, proliferating digital evidence, and attenuated supervisory support interact with the College of Policing’s (CoP) Professionalising Investigation Programme (PIP). Although conceived to standardise and elevate investigative practice, more than 20 years on, PIP is experienced widely as an additional administrative weight that diverts time from inquiry, accelerates burnout, and reduces the role’s appeal; a dynamic we term the paradox of professionalisation. PIP is not the source of these pressures but intensifies them, compounding the high workloads, stress, and skills shortages already undermining detective capacity. Our analysis reframes investigative capacity as a composite of experience, team stability, mentoring, and digital infrastructure rather than raw head-count. It situates detectives’ concerns within evidence that police organisations worldwide are struggling to match seemingly limitless investigative demand with finite specialist expertise. The CoP’s recently announced review of PIP renders these findings especially salient, positioning the study as timely empirical input for reforms aimed at sustaining investigative quality, safeguarding detective wellbeing, and restoring public confidence in criminal investigations.

The examination of insect species inhabiting decaying cadavers often yields critical forensic insights, particularlyregarding the determination of the postmortem interval (PMI), or the time of death. The life cycle of an insectoperates akin to a precise chronometer; it commences its relentless ticking mere minutes or hours followingdemise. The intricacies of insect life cycles profoundly influence the calculation of postmortem intervals, evenin instances where alternative methodologies are recognized for providing pertinent information. The presentfindings illuminate the distinctive characteristics of the local insect fauna associated with human corpses invarious regions of India, as well as their ecological dynamics. Specimens of entomofauna were meticulouslycollected during autopsy procedures from the deceased. This paper discusses ten case studies spanning fromhistorical to contemporary contexts within India. Among the subjects, whose ages ranged from a few monthsto 52 years, six were male and four were female. Both suicide and homicide constituted the causes of death. Theprimary objectives of this study were to gather data concerning the potential application of necrophagous insectsin criminal investigations and to identify the specific insect species colonizing human remains.

This paper examines Israel's deliberate use of starvation and deprivation against Palestinian children in Gaza since 7 October 2023, arguing these are not collateral effects but a systematic, discriminatory strategy. By impeding food, water and medical care and destroying civilian infrastructure, the conduct meets thresholds for starvation as a method of warfare, torture, and genocide. We conducted detailed interviews using a semi-structured protocol (Defense for Children International-Palestine, 2024) triangulated with secondary human-rights reporting and legal data. Evidence shows coordinated, prolonged obstruction of humanitarian aid and destruction of agricultural land, water systems, and medical infrastructure, producing catastrophic child malnutrition and documented deaths from starvation and disease. Where these practices are intentional and pursued with knowledge of their effects, they constitute torture under international law. The discriminatory impact on Palestinian civilians, especially children, supports an inference of genocidal intent and grounds state responsibility and universal jurisdiction. Israel's starvation policy toward children in Gaza qualifies as torture and amounts to genocide. The paper urges recognition of starvation as torture under jus cogens, immediate unimpeded humanitarian access, and prompt criminal investigations. States must enforce obligations under CAT, the Geneva Conventions, and the Rome Statute to protect Palestinian children's rights and dignity.

Currently, CCTV technology is becoming the center of attention from various circles, especially in the judicial world. This is because the application of CCTV technology with artificial intelligence can make a significant contribution to criminal investigation tasks by facilitating the collection of stronger evidence and the identification of criminals, although there are still challenges related to the limitations of the existence and validity of evidence in court. However, the fact is that the legality of CCTV as valid evidence has not yet been established as legitimate proof in court. Nevertheless, CCTV has greatly supported the tasks of the Criminal Investigation Unit at the Military Police Detachment IV/2 Yogyakarta. This research aims to understand how the Criminal Investigation Unit utilizes CCTV in its primary duties. This research employs a descriptive qualitative approach with direct observation by the researcher as an instrument. The researcher also conducted interviews and searched for documents that could strengthen the findings. The data was then analyzed in-depth and holistically regarding the phenomenon being studied, along with a deeper contextual understanding. The results of the research indicate that the use of CCTV greatly supports the primary duties of investigation unit commander at the Military Police Detachment IV/2 Yogyakarta. The results from CCTV can enhance the performance of investigators in uncovering cases. CCTV results also provide accurate information in the investigation process, allowing investigative activities to proceed more effectively and efficiently.

Edmond Locard's L'enquête criminelle et les méthodes scientifiques marks a pivotal moment in criminology's transformation from a largely unmethodical practice to a scientific discipline. While Locard is best known for advancing laboratory methods of forensic analysis, this article argues that at the heart of his conception of forensics lies the assertion that it is not rationality, but vivid imagination that makes or breaks the criminal investigation. Following Locard's claim that one of the most crucial challenges in teaching forensics is to introduce fellow criminologists to the art of using intuition and creativity for problem-solving, this article examines the concrete ways in which L'enquête criminelle attempts to actively engage the reader's imaginative faculty by presenting problems that can only be solved through "lateral thinking" and "abductive reasoning." To introduce his speculative methods, I argue, Locard borrows from detective fiction in two ways: Firstly, he counterfactually presents literary case studies by Poe as real-world cases, endorsing Dupin's detective technique as a viable criminological practice. By planting hidden clues and red herrings in semiotic puzzles to be deciphered by the reader, secondly, Locard appropriates narrative techniques to sharpen his reader's hermeneutics instincts.