Development Of Latent Fingerprints Research Articles

DNA recovery after sequential processing of latent fingerprints on copy paper.

Forensic examiners must determine whether both latent fingerprint development and DNA profiling can be performed on the same area of an evidence item and, if only one is possible, which examination offers the best chance for identification. Latent fingerprints can be enhanced by targeting different components of fingerprint residues with sequential chemical treatments. This study investigated the effects of single‐reagent and sequential latent fingerprint development processes on downstream DNA analysis to determine the point at which latent fingerprint development should be stopped to allow for DNA recovery. Latent fingerprints deposited on copy paper by one donor were developed using three sequential processes: 1,8‐diazafluoren‐9‐one (DFO) → ninhydrin → physical developer (PD); 1,2‐indanedione‐zinc (IND‐Zn) → ninhydrin → PD; and IND‐Zn → ninhydrin → Oil Red O (ORO) → PD. Samples were examined after the addition of each chemical treatment. DNA was collected with cotton swabs, extracted, quantified, and amplified. DNA yields, peak heights, number of alleles obtained, and percentage of DNA profiles eligible for CODIS upload were examined. DNA profiles were obtained with varying degrees of success, depending on the number and type of treatments used for latent fingerprint development. The treatments that were found to be the least harmful to downstream DNA analysis were IND‐Zn and IND‐Zn/laser, and the most detrimental treatments were DFO, DFO/laser, and PD. In general, as the number of treatments increase, the opportunities for DNA loss or damage also increase, and it is preferable to use fewer treatments when developing latent fingerprints prior to downstream DNA processing.

Development of latent fingermarks by unbalanced magnetron sputtering deposited ultra-thin metal film

Thin metal films with thickness above 50 nm have been successful used for developing level 1 features of latent fingermarks. In order to easily show the level 2 and level 3 features of the fingermarks, thinner films are needed to be fabricated. Three kinds of metal films including cooper, chromium and aluminum with film thickness ranging from 5 nm to 30 nm were deposited by unbalanced magnetron sputtering. The efficacy of film thickness and metal type on developing latent fingermark was investigated. The most clearly developed fingermark was obtained by films with thickness of 10–20 nm. Cooper films exhibit better effects on showing Level 2 features than chromium and aluminum films with the same thickness. The optical contrast of fingermark ridges and valleys was influenced by the morphology difference of film deposited on ridge and valley areas, which were related to shadowing effect affected by film thickness and metal type determined re-emission effect.

Development of Latent Fingerprints on Non-Porous Surface with Fluorescent Dye Based Small Particle Reagent

Fingerprints are a useful source of evidence in establishing the identity of the person and hold large importance in crime scene investigations. A diverse range of physical and chemical methods are available for the development of latent fingerprints, but limited work is done on detection of prints from wet non-porous surfaces. The study aimed at developing a novel method for identification of latent fingerprints from such a type of surface. Small Particle Reagent was prepared using non-toxic chemicals and was proven to be effective in detecting latent fingerprints on Aluminum Foil. Fluorescent component, Basic Yellow-40 dye was used in the formulation. The Shelf life of the SPR solution was also considered an important factor in the study and was found to be 25 days.

Surface functionalized inorganic phosphor by grafting organic antenna for long term preservation of latent fingerprints and data-security applications

Creative advancements are enormously sought for the advanced forensic and data security in modern era. Herein, fabrication of Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) functionalized Gd2O3:Eu3+ (5 mol %) nanopowders dispersed in a poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) matrix for long term preservation and visualization of latent fingerprints, as well as printing. Efficient intramolecular energy transfers from coordinated ligand to the doped Eu3+ ions, called the antenna effect was precisely organized by grafting organic molecule, resultant to an enhanced photoluminescence emission. On this basis, the masking of PVA/Gd2O3:Eu3+ (5 mol %)@BSA solution on a latent fingerprints results a flexible transparent film; a highly stable fingerprint images with well-defined ridge characteristics was developed on the film, which enabling personal individualization. Interestingly, the followed latent fingerprints development technique was non-destructive and stored long duration up to 1 year on filtrating and non-filtrating surfaces. The same mechanism was also validated by utilized for application of PVA/Gd2O3:Eu3+ (5 mol %)@BSA nanocomposites in dip pen and intaglio printing. Hence, the prepared nanocomposites signify an competent method towards long preservative fingerprints as well as great performance for data security operations. This work endorses a prospective paradigm for luminescence enhancement and its applications in advanced forensic science.

The Development of Dusting Method for Dragon Fruit Peel as Fingerprint Visualization

<p>Various fingerprint powder preparations used for fingerprints have a color or contrast and a sticky material for good adhesion. However, some chemical substrates used for fingerprint powders are toxic and have the potential to harm health. This research is essential to overcome this problem using a new natural powder , namely dragon fruit peel powder, as a latent fingerprint development that was simple, non-toxic, and cheaper than commercial used fingerprint powder. Fingerprint development was carried out on non-porous surfaces (aluminium foil, CD, glass preparations) and porous surfaces (HVS paper, spectra paper, paperboard). This study used 90 fingerprint samples based on ethnicity (Batak, Javanese, Malay), blood type, and gender. The development of fingerprints using dragon fruit peel powder resulted in clear visualization on the surface of aluminium foil and glass preparations with sizes of 100 and 200 mesh. Meanwhile, fingerprints on the paper surface resulted in poor visualization because the protrusions of the fingerprints were not visible. The most dominant fingerprint patterns based on ethnicity, blood group, and gender were the loop pattern, then the whorl, and the smallest arch, respectively.</p><p><strong><em> </em></strong></p>

Featured Cover

The cover image is based on the Research Article Spontaneous redox route for gold-aryl film development of latent fingerprints on nickel coins by Ahmed A. Mohamed et al., https://doi.org/10.1002/sia.6941.

Pristine Graphic Carbon Nitride Quantum Dots for the Visualized Detection of Latent Fingerprints.

User-friendly fingerprint powders, namely efficient, low-cost and nontoxic ones, are always desirable for the development of latent fingerprints (LFPs). Here, we described the use of pristine graphic carbon nitride quantum dots (g-C3N4 QDs) as a new kind of user-friendly fingerprint powder. The g-C3N4 QDs can be easily prepared from urea and sodium citrate precursors through low temperature solid-phase reaction. Due to their good optical properties and selective interactions with secretion residuals, the g-C3N4 QDs powders were exploited to develop LFPs on different substrates by the powder dusting technique. The LFP images on a plastic bag exhibited a high ridge and furrow contrast ratio, allowing for easy identification of level 1 - 3 details of LFPs. This work indicates that the g-C3N4 QD powders provide good performance for LFP visualization and is likely to be adopted for some applications in forensic investigations.

Preliminary efficiency evaluation of development methods applied to aged sebaceous latent fingermarks

Latent fingermarks are important trace evidence found in crime scenes mainly used for identification purposes. Once deposited, the composition of samples changes over time influencing the efficacy of latent fingermark development methods. In this sense, the aims of this work were to characterize the fatty acid (FA) profile of sebaceous latent fingermarks by GC–FID and to preliminarily evaluate the development efficiency of enhancement methods (powder dusting, iodine fuming and silver nitrate method) in a 30-day period of aging under controlled parameters of temperature, photoperiod and humidity. Results showed that myristic (7.51 ± 0.76% − 13.39 ± 1.26%), palmitic (35.91 ± 1.07% − 40.81 ± 2.52%), stearic (6.67 ± 0.36% − 9.13 ± 0.36%) and oleic (18.08 ± 0.25% − 20.93 ± 0.26%) acid varied significantly (p < 0.05) over the 30-day period of analysis. Regarding development efficiency, fluorescent orange powder and the silver nitrate method also increased their efficacy to develop latent fingermarks over time while the iodine fuming method decreased its efficiency. Silver black powder had constant efficacy in the tested period. Changes in the constitution of sebaceous marks possibly influenced the development efficiency of enhancement techniques. This knowledge is important to better understand the kinetic of aging and its influence on the development method.

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Latent fingerprints are important trace evidences found at crime scenes that assist forensic experts in human identification. Given this, development of novel development agents are crucial in order to obtain satisfactory latent fingerprint enhancement. Among potential development powders are bisamides, which are chemically obtained by the condensation reaction of esters and amines resulting in fluorescent molecules. In this sense, the aims of this work were to synthesize and characterize bisamide analogues and to evaluate these materials as potential fingerprint developers applied to porous and non-porous surfaces. Results showed that bisamide analogues could be synthesized in adequate yields (67 – 89%) exhibiting fluorescent properties in distinct wavelength emissions (350 – 714 nm). Evaluation of fingerprint development showed that bisamide 3a had promising results regarding the development of latent fingerprints. Therefore, bisamide analogues were satisfactory synthesized while fingerprint development evaluations showed that these materials could be promising tools for the enhancement of latent fingerprints.

Preparation of fluorescent bisamides: A new class of fingermarks developers

Latent fingerprints are important trace evidences found at crime scenes that assist forensic experts in human identification. Given this, development of novel development agents are crucial in order to obtain satisfactory latent fingerprint enhancement. Among potential development powders are bisamides, which are chemically obtained by the condensation reaction of esters and amines resulting in fluorescent molecules. In this sense, the aims of this work were to synthesize and characterize bisamide analogues and to evaluate these materials as potential fingerprint developers applied to porous and non-porous surfaces. Results showed that bisamide analogues could be synthesized in adequate yields (67 – 89%) exhibiting fluorescent properties in distinct wavelength emissions (350 – 714 nm). Evaluation of fingerprint development showed that bisamide 3a had promising results regarding the development of latent fingerprints. Therefore, bisamide analogues were satisfactory synthesized while fingerprint development evaluations showed that these materials could be promising tools for the enhancement of latent fingerprints.

Monofunctional curcumin analogues: evaluation of green and safe developers of latent fingerprints

Fingerprint development is one of the most useful techniques in forensic investigation. The powder method is widely used, as it consists of a non-destructive testing. However, some of the powders commonly used are toxic and dangerous to human health. In this sense, monofunctional analogues of curcumin (3a–e) are proposed as novel coloring powders for the development of latent fingerprints. Granulometric and scanning electron microscopy analysis were performed for a better understanding of the interaction between developers and substrates. The best results for the development of fingerprints were obtained with compound (1E,4E)-1,5-di-p-tolylpenta-1,4-dien-3-one (3b). Development with this compound was specific and allowed detection both from male and female donors. Also, in an in vitro experiment, compound 3b presented low cytotoxicity in a mammalian cell line. Based on that, a novel alternative for latent fingerprint developers was proposed.

Spontaneous redox route for gold‐aryl film development of latent fingerprints on nickel coins

Surface modifiers through redox routes emerged as the most preferred in forensic science. Aryldiazonium salts stabilized with tetrachloroaurate (III) are excellent redox modifiers in the development of latent fingerprints on nickel surfaces. Nickel coins were fingerprinted and developed with a stable diazonium salt [O2N‐4‐C6H4N≡N]AuCl4. The developed surfaces were studied using XPS that showed the presence of the characteristic gold and organic modifier peaks. Also, imaging analysis using SEM showed clusters of gold. EDS quantitative analysis estimated a good amount of gold presence on the fingerprinted compared with the non‐fingerprinted area. Our results are important in the analysis of nickel coins using a spontaneous route by simply depositing diazonium salt solution drops on the nickel surface without any additional reducing agent. This work brings strong supporting evidence for the efficient combination of diazonium surface chemistry and high‐performance surface analytical tools (XPS, SEM‐EDS) in the fast, spontaneous development of fingerprints and their morphological and chemical composition assessments.

Electrochemical development and enhancement of latent fingerprints on stainless steel via electrochromic effect of electrodeposited Co3O4 films

Latent fingerprints are one of the most important trace evidences at crime scenes that can be used for individual recognition. The invisible nature of latent fingerprints gives rise to various kinds of development and imaging techniques, among which a number of electrochemical methods are receiving increasing attention. We report herein a new interfacial strategy based on spatially selective electrodeposition of Co3O4 films with electrochromic properties to develop and enhance latent fingerprints on stainless steel surfaces. During the development process by potentiostatical deposition of Co3O4 on the background, image contrast and development accuracy as two key factors that measure the effectiveness of fingerprint development are systemically evaluated from millimeter to microscopic scales. Three levels of morphological features in latent fingerprints can be well developed. Optical properties of deposited Co3O4 films can be reversibly adjusted by changing applied potential. This phenomenon is analyzed qualitatively through visual appraisal and determined quantitatively by using color channels. The results indicate that image enhancement of developed fingerprints can be easily accomplished by extracting the blue channel of captured images. Forensic DNA typing is also performed to reveal the impact of this method on DNA evidence in fingerprint residues. The ratio of detected loci reaches 80.9% after electrochemical process. This novel method has advantages including high development accuracy, adjustable image contrast, and relatively non-destructive to DNA analysis.

Latent fingerprint development by using silver nanoparticles and silver nitrate-A comparative study.

The beginning of latent fingerprint development on porous surface was first achieved by silver nitrate (AgNO3 ) method. But the significantly increasing cost has caused forensic experts to look for an alternative means. Silver nitrate (AgNO3 ) is the main component in the synthesis of metal nanoparticles, namely silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). Owing to its unique property to adhere with fingerprint residue, AgNPs have attracted a great attention in the domain of nano-forensic fingerprinting. This study mainly focuses on the use of lower concentration of silver nitrate through new AgNP development method. The AgNPs were synthesized by wet chemical method with different molar concentrations (0.1, 0.01, and 0.001M) of silver nitrate, characterized by ultraviolet visible spectrophotometer and high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM). The average diameter of AgNPs calculated by HR-TEM was 10.66±1.22nm at 0.1M, 12.50±2.64nm at 0.01M, and 14.44±2.68nm at 0.001M, respectively. A comparative analysis was also carried out to see the quality and stability of fingerprints produced on paper or porous substrate by using AgNO3 and AgNPs, respectively. During the study, AgNPs were able to develop distinct ridge details and were found to be stable for more than a month. Comparatively, when AgNO3 was used as the developing agent for the latent fingerprints, only faint ridge patterns were observed which further showed degradation of fingerprint stability within about 20days. Overall, the current AgNP method showed good visibility and stability by using lower concentration of silver nitrate which can be used in place of conventional AgNO3 method.

Multifunctional lipophilic purines: a coping strategy for anti-counterfeiting, lipid droplet imaging and latent fingerprint development

A purine-based multifunctional material, with satisfactory lipophilicity and fluorescence properties, has potential to be applied in minutiae-level LFP development, waterproof anti-counterfeiting ink and LD imaging of living cells.

Evaluation of alizarin and purpurin dyes for their ability to visualize latent fingermark on porous surfaces

Anthraquinones are a group of dye with many members and a wide range of industrial uses ranging from food, textiles to printing. Even though the reactions of anthraquinone dyes with amino acids are known, they have not yet been subjected to an examination regarding their ability in fingermark detection. In the presented study, the potential of alizarine and purpurin, natural anthraquinone dyes, as a fingermark reagent was examined in comparison with ninhydrin and lawsone. Alizarin and purpurin react with latent fingermark residue on copier paper and thermal paper to yield yellow-orange coloured impressions. The products formed also display photoluminescence properties when illuminated at 440 nm viewed through red filter. Both natural anthraquinone dyes exhibited some superior properties at the development of latent fingermarks on these surfaces compared to ninhydrin and lawsone.

Phase-transformation synthesis of Li codoped ZrO2: Eu3+ nanomaterials: Characterization, photocatalytic, luminescent behaviour and latent fingerprint development

In recent years, key study was designing nanomaterials (NMs) with tunable properties in order to obtain high functional materials. For this purpose, an attempt with great effort has been put forward to synthesize ZrO2:Eu:Li (1–11 mol%) NM with varying concentration of Li+ ion that can have a control over phase, size, morphology, crystallinity, band gap and surface chemistry. More importantly, addition of Li as codopant influences the phase and crystallinity change with the change in concentration. However important challenges faced by this work was to understand the phase change, crystallinity, structural change and photocatalytic activity which has to be still explored. The synthesized NMs possess mixed phase and cubic phase with change in concentration of codopant which may be attributed to presence of defect states, micro strain, distortion of lattice. The energy band gap was found to decrease for 7 mol% NM attributed to the change in the phase. Porous morphology with variation in pore length was observed. Enhanced luminescence intensity with intense orange red emissions consistent to 5D0→7Fj (j = 0 to 4) intra configurational f-f transitions was observed for ZrO2:Eu:Li+(1–11 mol%) nanophosphor excited at 394 nm. The visualization of latent fingerprints using ZrO2: Eu: Li+7mol% nanophosphor on several surfaces, the powder dusting technique was adopted. The enhanced fingerprint under UV light provides well resolved ridge patterns for the identification of individual latent finger prints using ZrO2:Eu:Li (7 mol%) with clear resolution. Lower charge transfer resistance with enhanced photocatalytic activity for decolourization of Rhodamine B with high pore length to allow multiple reflections under UV light irradiation for 7 mol% NM with reduced band gap and optimum luminescence intensity was observed. Hence, the synthesized ZrO2:Eu:Li (7 mol%) can be employed in forensic science towards latent fingerprint development, as a photocatalyst for environmental remediation and as luminescent material in display applications.

In Situ Interactions of Eu(TTA)3(H2O)2 with Latent Fingermark Components-A Time-Gated Visualization of Latent Fingermarks on Paper.

We introduce a new latent fingermark (LFM) development method, where compounds showing long lifetime luminescence are generated in situ by the reactions of Eu(TTA)3(H2O)2 with LFM components. Until now, time-gated imaging could not be used to develop LFM on porous surfaces due to the difficulties with selective binding of the developing agents to the fingermark ridges. The nature of the interactions of Eu(TTA)3(H2O)2 with the LFM material has been investigated for three model compounds commonly found in the LFM composition-oleic acid, l-serine, and squalene. The LFMs developed with the europium β-diketonate complex have been successfully photographed using a time-gated imaging scheme. The presented new approach has been demonstrated to give similar or better results than developing agents commonly used for paper samples (ninhydrin and 1,2-indanedione). Moreover, contrary to the methods mentioned above, the new approach allows for the development of amino acid-poor LFM on paper.

Recent Trends in Fluorescent Organic Materials for Latent Fingerprint Imaging.

Fingerprints are an important kind of material evidence with the key function in personal identification, which are unique and life-long to everyone. Latent (invisible) fingerprints are common at the crime scene, needing to be visualized with proper methods in order to identify sources of the fingerprints in routine forensic practice. Fluorescent imaging of latent fingerprints has the advantage of high contrast, sensitivity, selectivity, and less dependency on instruments. Taking the environment and users' safety into consideration, organic materials for fluorescent imaging of latent fingerprints are reviewed mainly in recent 5 years. New strategies of fingerprint reagents and improved performances established for fingerprint development based on fluorescent organic materials are discussed in the view of forensic practice. In addition, we briefly highlight current challenges of recent fluorescent imaging works based on organic materials for the latent fingerprints development in forensic practice.

Chemical Imaging of Fingerprint on RMB Banknotes Using Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry

The development of latent fingerprints on long-circulated RMB banknotes has been one of the challenging task in forensic science research. In this work, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) was used to perform chemical imaging of latent fingerprints on the surface of the substrate due to its advantages such as in-situ, quasi-nondestructive, high-throughput, simultaneous analysis of multi-components and high spatial resolution. The developing effect of TOF-SIMS was firstly compared with that of several traditional methods, and the reasons for the unique advantages of TOF-SIMS were discussed. Its applicability was further discussed from the perspective of universality, sensitivity and fingerprint three-level feature acquisition capability. Finally, exogenous substances in fingerprints were also analyzed by using this technology to detect the molecular ions (m/z 92.06) and fragment ion peaks (m/z 43.02) of glycerol in the moisture lotion and developed clear fingerprint images. Preliminary research results showed that TOF-SIMS technology could provide an effective method for the development of latent fingerprints on long-circulated RMB banknotes and was expected to be used for the detection of substances in fingerprints on the surface of various substrates.