Method to establish age of fingermark
The Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) is developing a method to establish the age of fingermarks. Investigators will soon be able to date fingermarks on the basis of fatty acids.
The model of the method was recently published in the leading scientific journal Science and Justice.
According to fingermark expert Marcel de Puit of the NFI, the method will result in considerable time savings. "We will soon be able to make a selection of which fingermarks we will have to examine further, and which not. We will then be able to say: 'these fingermarks are much older than the crime, and consequently not relevant."
The method will enable investigators to establish whether a fingermark is younger than 15 days. Results from older fingermarks are not reliable. If the fingermark is not older than 15 days, experts will soon be able to say something about its age, with a margin of one day. De Puit expects that it will be possible to reduce this margin in the short to medium term.
The NFI cannot immediately start dating fingermarks for use in criminal investigations. In order to increase knowledge and the level of support, De Puit wants fellow-institutes abroad to gain experience with the method first. This will pave the way for the future, so that the method will then be able to be freely applied in practice.