Crime Solving on Pitara Kids Network

The Hottest way to Catch Crooks

Sat, 13 Oct 2001 05:18:56 +0000

All of us know how crooks are caught. We have seen it in film after film: the police inspector matches the fingerprints on the scene of the crime with the suspect’s fingerprints. And the culprit goes to prison.

Fingerprinting has remained one of the best ways to catch a person with a criminal record. The technique was foolproof, for no two people have matching fingerprints — even identical twins.

Unfortunately, things are not so simple any more. Crooks have become smarter and are very careful not to leave fingerprint traces. While some wipe all the surfaces they touch, others prefer using gloves. British police are now using different ways to nab or catch offenders.

What is Ribotyping?

Tue, 01 Jan 2002 20:07:16 +0000

Consider this, in a murder case, the culprit has left no clues. There are no fingerprints or eye witnesses.

A perfect crime, you would say. But on close inspection, the crime branch discovers a tiny strand of hair. Back in the forensic laboratories, scientists use this strand of hair to track down the criminal and solve the murder case.

But, how can you crack a mystery with a strand of hair, you would exclaim.

The technique used by forensic scientists to track down the culprit is called DNA-fingerprinting. DNA stands for deoxy-ribo-nucleic acid. The DNA is present in every cell of our body and contains information needed by the cell to go about its activities.