A matter of gold and blood

by NewsPress articles

BEHIND THE DISAPPEARANCES OF ORVAULT, THE TROADECS' FAMILY TRAGEDY (France Info story)

A blue and white column slowly progresses through a wooded and soggy landscape. Death caterpillar in the mist…

…An examining magistrate, a forensic doctor, an anthropologist and investigators from the judicial police lead the way, followed by a dozen agents from the technical and scientific police, a cohort of CRS and peacekeepers. The group makes its way through this rugged and marshy terrain, tormented by the Zeus storm that has just hit Brittany. The buildings of the Stang farm stand in the background.

Heads are bent, looking for the slightest clue. Thirty-two hectares to be combed for fragments. Body parts, scattered, pulverized. We are not at the site of an air disaster, but at a crime scene. There are four victims, Brigitte and Pascal Troadec, aged 47 and 49, and their two children, Charlotte and Sébastien, aged 18 and 21.

It is on this image, captured on 8 March in Pont-de-Buis (Finistère), that the case of the missing persons of Orvault, which has become that of the Troadec family, closes. A terrible story, which began two weeks earlier, 280 km away, in a house in Loire-Atlantique. The story.

THE DISAPPEARANCE

Still no message, no call. From Landerneau (Finistère), Denise is worried. For several days now she has had no news of her daughter, who lives in Orvault (Loire-Atlantique).

His phone doesn’t answer anymore. Brigitte is used to calling him every week. A few streets away, Hélène is just as worried. No sign of her sister or her family. She can’t take it anymore and calls her work, the tax office in Nantes. Brigitte didn’t show up on Monday 20 February, the day she was supposed to return to work after a few days’ holiday. Her anxiety grew. Hélène contacted the police to report her disappearance.

The police arrived at the Troadec family’s house, located in a residential area of Orvault. The shutters are closed, the one-storey house is empty. The heating was turned off and the temperature was 8°C. The sheets have been removed from the beds. In the bathroom, no toothbrush or hairbrush. A cup and a glass are found in the kitchen sink. In the fridge, several items of food had expired. Sheets, not quite dry, are spread out inside. Wet clothes are still in the washing machine.

It is as if the house had stopped living at a given moment. (Pierre Sennès, public prosecutor in Nantes, in Presse Océan).

The investigators notice pinkish marks on the staircase, as if blood had been summarily wiped off. In a room on the ground floor, a mobile phone and its earpieces were stained with blood, as was a pair of socks. The technical and forensic police arrive as backup. With the help of the Bluestar, they detect other traces of blood in significant quantities on the floor. A watch, broken and stained with blood, was found under a bed. Everything suggests that a “scene of violence”, in the words of the prosecutor, took place in this house. The analyses quickly confirm these fears: the blood does belong to three members of the family, Brigitte, Pascal and Sébastien.

An empty house, traces of blood, no body… The case immediately evokes another, which has marked the minds in Nantes. In 2011, the remains of the wife and four children of Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès were found after several days under the terrace of a bourgeois house in the City of Dukes. The father, the presumed murderer, is still untraceable today. In the Troadec case, the investigation, opened for “deliberate homicide, kidnapping and sequestration”, is quickly directed towards a family member. Especially since a detail intrigues the investigators. In front of the house, the couple’s two cars, an Audi and a BMW, are still parked. But the son’s car, a Peugeot 308, is missing.

THE SON'S FALSE TRAIL

The neighbourhood investigation begins. With its share of banalities. The Troadecs are described as “reserved people” who had been living in Orvault for at least ten years. “They were people who didn’t talk about themselves and who didn’t necessarily want to make friends”, according to a neighbour. In the neighbourhood, the morning “good morning” has dried up over time.

Some people mention the “depressive disorders” from which the father, employed in an SME specialising in the manufacture of illuminated signs, suffered “in the past”. His son is portrayed as having “suffered from psychological fragility”. The possibility of a father-son family dispute is emerging. Investigators and the media are looking into the digital life of the teenager, a second year student of BTS Digital Systems in Saint-Laurent-sur-Sèvre (Vendée). The son of Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès attended the same school. The fantasy machine is running wild.

Sébastien had created, like many teenagers of his age, several profiles on different social networks. In the midst of hundreds of harmless comments, a few old messages were enough to obscure the portrait of the young man. In 2014, at the age of 18, he tweeted: “I can’t take it anymore, I want to die but I can’t even do it”. On the Ask.fm forum, someone asked him if it was “possible to justify murder”. “The thing I hate the most? My reflection,” he writes again, quick to denigrate himself or talk about his own death.

In 30 years, I’ve been dead for 27 years.

Sébastien Troadec, on his Twitter account, in 2014.

Sébastien Troadec also confided on social networks his disagreement with his father. “I’m fed up with this, I’m going to the police station to lodge a complaint against my father”, “for moral harassment :'( #LT”, he stormed in April 2013. “My father is a big fucking alcoholic asshole because he farts in the shower and says it’s my fault when he’s the last one to have taken one,” he ranted a week later. There is also this message, dated May 1: “If they really knew what was going on in my head, they’d think I was crazy without morals. Photos of him posing with a knife or with his face hidden by a scarf were reported in the media. Le Parisien reported that he was sentenced to community service in 2013 for death threats.

While some testimonies confirm Sébastien’s “somewhat special” personality, his friends argue that it is only the construction of an online persona. In Le Parisien, his maternal aunt assures us that “Sébastien was getting better and better since he entered the BTS. He had many friends and went out with them at the weekend. He was more open. My nephew had literally transformed himself. He felt better about himself.

Nevertheless. If the investigators remain cautious and are exploring all avenues of investigation, the wanted notice broadcast to the whole of France mentions the possibility of “a disastrous project” by the son, “aimed at eliminating the members of his family and perhaps himself”. Among the disturbing elements, his mobile phone, the last to be switched off on the night of 16 to 17 February.

THE MORBID TRAIL GAME

The case of the missing persons of Orvault holds the country in suspense. But the investigation is stalling. At least in appearance.

The journalists cling to the slim elements that are filtering through: Charlotte, 18, went to the police station with her mother to lodge a complaint on the day of the disappearance. The reason was that her bank card had been hacked to buy video games… The focus was again on Sébastien, who was described as a “geek”. Mother and daughter would then have bought sushi. Consumable until 17 February, they were found in the fridge. So many clues reported by the press but which do not provide the beginning of a serious lead…

One detail is bothering the investigators: the blood of Charlotte, who has been at school since the beginning of the school year at the Notre-Dame de Fontenay-le-Comte high school (Vendée), in the first year of a BTS, was not found in the house. What happened to her? Plane tickets for Portugal, dated 10 April, were also found in the letterbox.

It was 27 February, ten days after the Troadecs’ disappearance, and the mystery remained. The public prosecutor’s office opened a judicial investigation and appointed two investigating judges. Two days later, the case had its first twist: a pair of trousers, a bank card and Charlotte’s Vitale card were found by a jogger in Dirinon (Finistère), near Brest. The next day, 500 metres away, investigators discovered two children’s books belonging to Pascal Troadec. But the real turning point came when Sébastien’s car was spotted in the car park of a church in Saint-Nazaire (Loire-Atlantique). The floor mat had disappeared, but no trace of blood was visible to the naked eye.

For the psycho-criminologist Jean-François Abgrall, the perpetrator “favours disorienting the investigators”. During a new press conference, eagerly awaited by all the media, the prosecutor Pierre Sennès confirmed “a possible morbid game of chance” and an “extraordinary case”. The magistrate also dismissed the hypothesis that Charlotte’s credit card had been stolen or used by Sébastien. The teenager and her mother went to the bank, not the police station, to stop Charlotte’s card. Charlotte herself had bought video game credits on the internet as a gift for Sébastien, and realised that the sum debited via an American server exceeded the purchase price. The brother’s trail seems to have gone cold.

THE BROTHER-IN-LAW'S CONFESSION

Officially, Sébastien’s car has not yet revealed its secrets. The prosecutor had warned that the results of the analyses would not be communicated in real time, to preserve the investigation. Unofficially, the investigators have a major clue: the DNA of Hubert Caouissin, Pascal Troadec’s brother-in-law, was found in the vehicle – on the headrest, according to Le Parisien. Another secret point: the companion of Lydie Troadec, Pascal’s sister, also left his genetic fingerprint in the Orvault house, on a glass.

If it is impossible to date this DNA, these elements contradict the version of the individual, heard in the early stages of the investigation. While in police custody, Hubert Caouissin had explained that he had not seen the Troadecs for a long time, because of a dispute over an alleged inheritance. On 5 March, the man and his companion were again placed in police custody. The information circulated, giving a whole new direction to this drama.

Time was running out, as the investigators had already used up the number of hours in custody. During the night, Hubert Caouissin breaks down and confesses. Yes, he killed the four members of the Troadec family for a story of “gold coins”. France wakes up with the name of a presumed culprit. A few hours later, Pierre Sennès gives another press conference and literally transports the audience to the scene of the quadruple murder. A one-shot story, based on the statements of the 40-year-old.

On the evening of Thursday 16 February, Hubert Caouissin went to the Orvault pavilion with “the intention of spying to see if he could gather information on this inheritance problem”. He applied “a stethoscope” to the window to try to listen inside the house. Later that evening, the suspect waits for the family to go to bed before entering the house and hiding in the laundry room. “He enters with the intention of retrieving a key seen on a piece of furniture,” the magistrate continued. But in trying to achieve his goal, the suspect made a noise, attracting the attention of the Troadec couple, who went downstairs “with a crowbar”. Hubert Caouissin managed to get hold of it. Refusing to give “more precise details”, the prosecutor evokes a “criminal scene of great violence”.

The rest of the scenario was recounted by Pierre Sennès and then clarified by Le Parisien the following days: Hubert Caouissin stayed with the Troadecs until the early hours of the morning, before returning home to the Pont-de-Buis farm, where he had been living for two years with Lydie Troadec. According to the newspaper, the presumed murderer immediately confided in his 8-year-old son, even before talking to his partner.

You will see, they will tell you that your father is a monster. But I’ll explain and tell you the truth.

Hubert Caouissin to his son, according to comments reported by Le Parisien.
The couple returned to Orvault on the evening of the 17th and 18th. Hubert Caouissin washed the house while Lydie waited in a car with a walkie-talkie, Le Parisien reported. A macabre detail reported by the newspaper: exhausted by the cleaning, the presumed murderer fell asleep for four hours in Sébastien’s bed. The duo left with the bodies, loaded into the 308. For two or three days, Hubert Caouissin tried to make the bodies disappear,” said Pierre Sennès. It seems that the bodies were dismembered, one part buried, the other part burned.

Then, with the help of his companion, Hubert Caouissin cleaned Sébastien’s vehicle and left it in Saint-Nazaire “a little bit at random”. “His idea was to direct the search towards the port. A sort of diversion,” the magistrate said. The suspect also took the family’s belongings with him to make it look like he was going on holiday. Hubert Caouissin is under investigation for “murder” and “attacking the integrity of a corpse”, his companion for “altering the state of a crime scene and receiving corpses”. Both were imprisoned.

A matter of gold and blood
(Audio)

Read the original article :
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Telegram
Reddit
VK
Email
Print

Inscrivez vous à notre newsletter :

BLUESPRAY
Click Here
BLUESTAR MAGNUM
Click Here
BLUESTAR TRAINING
Click Here

Pays

Tags
Argentina (3) Begium (1) Brazil (1) Canada (1) Chile (1) Colombia (1) Costa Rica (1) France (21) Francia (1) India (1) Israël (1) Mauritius (1) Morocco (1) Perú (2) Porto Rico (1) South Africa (2) United States (12)

Année

[archives_year]
Archives

Killer of elderly woman confesses he had help from hitman

by NewsPress articles

Puno: the killer of an old woman confessed to having been helped by a hitman

Diario Correo : 27.05.2017

He killed his wife because he met another woman.

He got confused on his own and finally had to take responsibility for the murder of the woman with whom he had 3 children. This is the fate of Dionicio Mamani Laura who was sent to prison for 9 months to await his sentence.

He took an early leave and accepted all the charges against him during the hearing that took place yesterday at around 8am at the Judiciary headquarters in the city of Puno.

Andrea Condori Curasi, to whom he was married, was murdered in the house also occupied by Mamani and several of his relatives who alerted the police about it. At first, Dionicio tried to deny any connection with the death.

The Depincri agents soon discovered this because, after his confused statements, they decided to apply a reagent called “luminol blue star”.

Using this chemical, they discovered that after participating in the murder, the suspect had washed the blood of his partner, but the chemical allowed them to find traces of his crime on his skin.

CONFESSION

This was the tip of the iceberg in terms of finding out everything because, when confronted with the evidence, the suspect at the time confessed to taking part in the murder along with a hitman.

Both had covered the woman’s face to ensure her silence, while with a knife they stabbed the pillow in the hope of hitting the victim’s head or neck as she tried to defend herself.

One of the attempts hit the old woman’s eye and she turned her head in pain and received the next attack with the back of her head. The gruesome scene took place at 4 a.m.

Read the original article :
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest
Email
WhatsApp
Telegram
VK
Reddit

Inscrivez vous à notre newsletter :

BLUESPRAY
Click Here
BLUESTAR MAGNUM
Click Here
BLUESTAR TRAINING
Click Here

Pays

Tags
Argentina (3) Begium (1) Brazil (1) Canada (1) Chile (1) Colombia (1) Costa Rica (1) France (21) Francia (1) India (1) Israël (1) Mauritius (1) Morocco (1) Perú (2) Porto Rico (1) South Africa (2) United States (12)

Année

[archives_year]
Archives

The murderer of an old woman confessed to having been helped by a hitman

by NewsPress articles

Puno: the murderer of an old lady confessed having been helped by a hired killer

Diario Correo : 27.05.2017

He killed his wife because he met another woman.

He got confused and finally had to take responsibility for the murder of the woman with whom he had 3 children. This was the fate of Dionicio Mamani Laura who was sent to prison for 9 months to await his sentence.

He took an early leave and accepted all the charges against him during the hearing that was held yesterday around 8 o’clock in the morning at the headquarters of the judiciary in the city of Puno.

Andrea Condori Curasi, with whom he was married, was murdered in the house also occupied by Mamani and several of his relatives who alerted the police about it. At first, Dionicio wanted to deny any connection with the death.

Depincri agents discovered him quickly because, after his confused statements, they decided to apply a reagent called “luminol blue star”.

Through the chemical, they discovered that after participating in the murder, the suspect had washed the blood of his partner, but the chemical allowed them to find traces of his crime on his skin.

CONFESSION

This was the tip of the skein to discover everything because, in front of the evidence, the suspect of the time confessed to have participated in the murder together with a hitman.
 
Both had covered the woman’s face to guarantee her silence, while with a knife they stabbed the pillow in the hope of touching the head or neck of the victim who tried to defend herself.
 
One of the attempts hit the eye of the old woman who, because of the pain, turned her head and received the next attack with the back of the head. The macabre scene took place at 4 am.
Read the original article:
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest
Email
WhatsApp
Telegram
VK
Reddit

Inscrivez vous à notre newsletter :

BLUESPRAY
Click Here
BLUESTAR MAGNUM
Click Here
BLUESTAR TRAINING
Click Here

Pays

Tags
Argentina (3) Begium (1) Brazil (1) Canada (1) Chile (1) Colombia (1) Costa Rica (1) France (21) Francia (1) India (1) Israël (1) Mauritius (1) Morocco (1) Perú (2) Porto Rico (1) South Africa (2) United States (12)

Année

[archives_year]
Archives

The scene of a crime, suicide or natural death has no mystery for the “cleaners”

by NewsPress articles

It's a job that is rarely mentioned, as if to ward off bad luck. The very mention of it brings to mind crime scenes seen on television in a second. "After-death cleaner".

20 Minute : 09.05.2017

It’s done, the words are out. They are few to do so and “no, it has nothing to do with the film Léon”, warns Julien Martel, the director of Groupe NAD, a young Alsatian company specialising in this field, whom 20 Minutes met.

Visit to an Alsatian company specialising in cleaning up after a death. It uses mainly organic products and respects to the letter safety and hygiene procedures

It’s a job that is rarely mentioned, as if to ward off bad luck. The very mention of it brings to mind crime scenes seen on television in a second. “Cleaner after death”. It’s done, the words are out. They are few to do so and “no, this has nothing to do with the film Léon”, warns Julien Martel, the director of Groupe NAD, a young Alsatian company specialising in this field, whom 20 Minutes met.

Although he denies that his job is shrouded in mystery, the thirty-year-old unwillingly sets the scene for a US series from the outset. Julien Martel leads us into his office where demonstration containers are lined up for soiled waste. I don’t like the term “cleaner”, this is not the United States, the relationship with death is not the same”, he warns. I’ve already had, as one anecdote among others, a phone call from someone who told me they had a “problem” and wanted me to come and clean it up, no questions asked. And wanted to pay in cash…”. The innuendos and silences are long. “We have very strict intervention protocols. For example, in the case of a homicide, we only intervene once the seals have been removed; moreover, we ask the police or the gendarmes to be there when they are removed and we attach these documents to our file. It’s a job where you have to be very rigorous, meticulous but also passionate. As for natural deaths, the body must have remained at the scene for at least 48 hours, or the death must be due to an infectious, viral or bacterial disease, otherwise we have no reason to intervene. “

Illustration. Group NAD agent gelling agent sprinkling operation – Group NAD

Like in a movie, or almost

Come, follow me,” he says before leading us into his back garage, where his “laboratory” is located. And this is not CSI Miami. A small, dark space where a cement pavement with blood splatters and a white protective suit, mask and gloves hang. “There is no projection, you are safe. This is blood, the scene is frozen,” says the cleaner. “This is pig’s blood, very close to human blood.

We use this laboratory as much as necessary for our blood homicide or suicide intervention protocol, as we are constantly improving our techniques and research. “. A place where every employee, before going out into the field, is trained for a month before taking an assessment test. “There is no such thing as training,” says Julien Martel. So it is he who personally oversees the training of the employees, who are considered to be a “band of friends” and who, all together, meet every fortnight in the company of a psychologist, in order to share or discuss the problems encountered.

This research allows it, and this is a particularity, to use no (or very few) chemical products. The young company has chosen to invest in innovative technologies for cleaning and disinfecting surfaces, but also for airborne disinfection, including the destruction of odours using an ozone generator. This prevents any resistant and allergenic strains after our visit,” says Julien Martel, “without using chemicals automatically. And to ensure that nothing is left behind, the cleaners use Bluestar or a UV lamp on homicides or suicides, whenever they have a doubt during certain interventions to look for traces of blood that would have been washed away, so as not to leave anything behind after their passage.

Illustration. Taking pictures to study the behaviour of blood – NAD Group

Dry steam cleaning

While clients will not get back their mattresses or carpets stained with blood and organic matter where bacteria proliferate, the premises will be disinfected, clean. “We have the same protocol as in operating theatres. In fact, after a homicide or suicide, we use the same machine for cleaning and disinfection as the one used in the Versailles hospital. It sprays dry steam, the temperature of which rises to 180°, and not a single interstice escapes it,” says Julien Martel. We restore the premises so that the families do not see the other side of the coin, to help them. “

A field that the young entrepreneur knows very well. A former soldier, he “comes from the world of the funeral industry” and has spent three long years thinking about the needs of his profession before launching his business. “It is a service that we offer. A continuation of the funeral service. “

Read the original article
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest
Reddit
VK
Tumblr
Email

Improved detection of Luminol blood in forensics

by NewsScientific articles

Review: Improving Luminol Blood Detection in Forensics

Florida Forensic Science : 01.03.2017

(Emily C. Lennert)

Article to be reviewed:

1. Stoica, B. A. ; Bunescu, S. ; Neamtu, A. ; Bulgaru-Iliescu, D. ; Foia, L. ; Botnariu, E. G. “Improving luminol blood detection in forensics”. Journal of Forensic Sciences. 2016, 61 (5), 1331-1336.

Keywords: serology, blood, luminol, chemiluminescence, intensity, hemoglobin, urea, cyclodextrin, bleach, oxidation, denature, Weber method, Weber solution

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this review are an interpretation of the research presented in the article. These opinions are those of the summation author and do not necessarily represent the position of the University of Central Florida or of the authors of the original article.

Summary:

Luminol is a common method for preliminary identification of blood. While other types of presumptive tests for the identification of blood exist, luminol remains as a frequently used method world-wide. This is partially due to its ability to be used to screen large areas for the presence of blood. However, in spite of its popularity, luminol has well known shortcomings, such as lack of specificity, which may lead to false positive indications of the presence of blood, and the requirement that the test be performed in complete darkness for best results.

The Weber method is a common protocol for preparation of a working luminol solution. Generally, luminol is dissolved in sodium hydroxide to create a stock luminol solution. Then a “working solution” is prepared by combining the luminol solution with additional sodium hydroxide, hydrogen peroxide, and purified water. The working solution may then be sprayed onto surfaces to test for the presence of blood. A positive result for luminol can be seen as the emission of blue light, a process referred to as chemiluminescence. The intensity and duration of chemiluminescence may depend on what the luminol is reacting to, i.e. blood or bleach, as well as the quantity of the reactant, meaning more concentrated samples will produce more intense chemiluminescence. Due to variability in time and intensity of chemiluminescence, chemiluminescence cannot reliably indicate what the luminol is reacting to. However, increasing the time and intensity of chemiluminescence is still a goal for researchers because it will enable crime scene investigators to visualize positive results more clearly. Luminol undergoes a chemical process called oxidation, which, for luminol, ends in the release of energy that can be seen as visible light, i.e. chemiluminescence. Hemoglobin, a protein found in blood, enhances the oxidation of luminol. When blood and luminol come into contact, the hemoglobin speeds up the oxidation of luminol and produces the chemiluminescence that indicates the presence of blood.

Two issues with luminol are of particular interest in this research. The first is the intensity and time of chemiluminescence; this research aims to increase both time and intensity, and the second is to eliminate false positives caused by sodium hypochlorite, i.e. bleach. The second aim is more challenging because bleach is a strong oxidant as well and will result in a chemiluminesce response in the absence of blood. . First, 5mm diameter absorbent fiber disks were soaked with 20μL of human blood. Then, dilutions of the blood on the disks were made ranging from 1:1 to 1:100,000. All of the disks were placed into the wells of 96-well plates. 40μL of the luminol working solution, prepared according to the Weber method, was added to each disk. Chemiluminescence measurements were made using a plate reader, chemiluminometer, which measured the intensity of light 17 seconds after the addition of working solution.

Urea experiments:

For some disks, an 8M urea solution was used to pretreat the blood soaked disks for 20 minutes prior to the addition of the working solution. Urea was used to partially denature, or break down, the hemoglobin to enhance the chemical properties of the reaction. The authors theorized that, if the chemical properties of hemoglobin could be enhanced, the intensity and time of chemiluminescence would be greater. Additional disks were prepared on which a 30% sodium hypochlorite solution was applied to the blood soaked disks prior to pretreatment with urea.

Urea results:

Urea treated disks were found to produce chemiluminescence of stronger intensity for all levels of blood dilution than just luminol alone. Additionally, the higher intensity was maintained for at least 100 seconds, as seen in figure 3(c) within the study. For the disks treated with only bleach, pretreatment with urea is reported to have removed the false positive that results from the reaction of luminol with bleach. Figure 6 within the study displays the chemical decomposition of bleach in the presence of urea. During the 20 minute pretreatment period, urea breaks down the sodium hypochlorite molecules. Then, when the luminol working solution is applied, the chemiluminescence that occurs is due to the presence of blood only, rather than the sodium hypochlorite (bleach) molecules, which no longer exist. Although the intensity of chemiluminescence that occurs due to the presence of blood in the urea treated sample is low when compared to a sample of blood alone, a positive result can still be detected.

Cyclodextrin experiments:

On other disks, cyclodextrins were added after the addition of the working solution. Cyclodextrins are cyclic, sugar based molecules, and the research study reports that previous studies had used some types of cyclodextrins to enhance the intensity and time of chemiluminescence by luminol. This study tested seven different cyclodextrins at varying concentrations, to determine what cyclodextrin, and how much of it, would produce the best enhancement of chemiluminescence. Chemiluminescence measurements were taken using the chemiluminometer for all disks.

Cyclodextrin results:

Of the seven cyclodextrins examined, monochloro-triazinly-β-cyclodextrin (MCT-β- CD) was found to produce the best enhancement of intensity. A MCT-β-CD concentration of 15mM was found to be optimal for enhancement of the chemiluminescent intensity. MCT-β-CD was found to be more effective than luminol alone, i.e. the Weber method, even when the blood was more diluted.

Scientific Highlights:

  1. Experiments were also conducted within this study to verify the theory of hemoglobin denaturation’s effect on chemiluminescence and the effect of urea on hemoglobin. This was used to verify the reasoning behind the use of urea as a pretreatment process that reduces false positives.
  2. Monochloro-triazinly-β-cyclodextrin (MCT-β-CD), at a 15mM concentration, may be used to enhance the intensity of chemiluminescence.
  3. Pretreatment with 8M urea may increase the time and intensity of chemiluminescence.
  4. Pretreatment with 8M urea may eliminate false positives due to sodium hypochlorite, i.e. bleach.
  5. Denaturation, or break down, of the hemoglobin protein appears to contribute to enhanced chemiluminescence.

Relevance:

Luminol is a common method of blood identification, however, it is not without faults and can be improved upon.

Potential conclusions:

While luminol is a common tool for field identification of blood, the test is prone to false positives due to bleach, a popular household item. Improvements can be made to increase the usefulness and efficiency of luminol and mitigate the impact of false positives. Urea and some cyclodextrins, such as MCT-β-CD, may enhance chemiluminescence, making luminol a more useful tool.

Legal Brief: Improving luminol blood detection in forensics (Steve Krejci)

From a trial lawyer’s perspective, determination of whether luminol was used in a case is a critical issue for a couple of reasons. First of all, luminol does not react with blood alone. The iron present in blood, not just human blood, is what reacts with luminol to emit light.1 So, not only will any animal blood trigger such a reaction, other items can catalyze, or speed up, the reaction and will lead to the emission of light. Some items that can do this include bleach, copper, urine, fecal matter, and horseradish.2, 3, 4 Therefore, the use of luminol to draw inferences such as crime scene exits, movements of persons, and attempts to clean up crime scenes are subject to cross examination on wholly innocent explanations. Second, if blood is detected and subsequently analyzed, luminol is now a contaminant that must be accounted for. However, the use of luminol will not interfere with the ability to do subsequent DNA analysis.5

Read the original article :

Sources :

#serology #blood #luminol #chemiluminescence #intensity #hemoglobin #urea #cyclodextrin #bleach #oxidation #denature #Weber #method #Weber #solution

Inscrivez vous à notre newsletter :

BLUESPRAY
Click Here
BLUESTAR MAGNUM
Click Here
BLUESTAR TRAINING
Click Here

Pays

Tags
Argentina (3) Begium (1) Brazil (1) Canada (1) Chile (1) Colombia (1) Costa Rica (1) France (21) Francia (1) India (1) Israël (1) Mauritius (1) Morocco (1) Perú (2) Porto Rico (1) South Africa (2) United States (12)

Année

[archives_year]
Archives

Officers get forensics training

by NewsPress articles

A couple dozen first responders and crime scene investigators gathered around a makeshift crime scene Wednesday afternoon in Jackson.

Jackson Sun : 31.12.2016

They watched instructors spatter blood on a large sheet of paper taped between the floor and the wall at the Madison County Fire Department, but other blood marks on the paper and a nearby shirt and pair of pants were either faint or not visible at all.

What followed was arguably the afternoon’s big highlight, and all it took was a flip of the light switch and a few sprays from a bottle.

An instructor sprayed a blood finding agent called Bluestar Forensic over the clothes and paper, instantly revealing blue prints where blood had dried.

“Wow,” one said.

“Crazy,” said another.

And though not every scene calls for such a blood finding product, its potential usefulness required no explanation – especially considering it doesn’t mess up DNA.

The session was part of a one-week class put on by the UT Law Enforcement Innovation Center and affiliated with the National Forensics Academy.

The UT LEIC travels around the state and elsewhere to teach officers how to recognize blood stain patterns and use photography and other tools to better understand crime scenes — and hopefully find answers that lead to justice. Dan Anselment, a training consultant, has worked with UT since 2014. He previously lived in Minnesota.

“I grew up in a family of law enforcement, and there is something about the challenge to crime scenes, trying to figure out who did this, why did they do it, what evidence is there,” he said. “I enjoy trying to figure out and find clues that maybe others won’t necessarily see, so for me it’s definitely a challenge but it’s something that I like to be a part of.

“And also it’s rewarding; it’s very rewarding. If you can successfully help bring closure to a family, a victim of a crime, because of your work that you do out at a scene, I mean that’s invaluable.”

Earlier in the afternoon trainees placed drops of blood on a sheet of paper, with the resulting spots differing in shape depending on the angle. The session also covered the different ways blood can be spread around at a scene, and what each pattern might suggest about what happened. One trainee asked if such a demonstration might ever be used in court, but the instructors explained it’s unlikely a judge would allow it. A recreation attempt in a controlled setting would be possible, but it’s difficult to do and wouldn’t necessarily help a case.

Read the original article

Officers get forensics training

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
VK
Telegram
WhatsApp
Email
Print

Subscribe to our newsletter

BLUESPRAY
Click Here
BLUESTAR MAGNUM
Click Here
BLUESTAR TRAINING
Click Here

Year

[archives_year]

Country

Tags
Argentina (3) Begium (1) Brazil (1) Canada (1) Chile (1) Colombia (1) Costa Rica (1) France (21) Francia (1) India (1) Israël (1) Mauritius (1) Morocco (1) Perú (2) Porto Rico (1) South Africa (2) United States (12)
Archives

Photographing bloodstains

July 7, 2016

Photographing bloodstains: Bluestar reagent FORENSICS 4 AFRICA 07.07.2016 (Nick Olivier) In the late summer of 2012, police officers in a small Midwestern town were called

Read the article

Photographing bloodstains

by NewsPress articles

Photographing bloodstains: Bluestar reagent

FORENSICS 4 AFRICA 07.07.2016 (Nick Olivier)

In the late summer of 2012, police officers in a small Midwestern town were called to the scene of a homicide. The caller reported that they had explored the creek in a wooded area at the north end of town and found a deceased man weighed down by rocks in the creek.

The victim had significant neck injuries that appeared to be consistent with a large, sharp weapon. Further examination of the area revealed a trail of blood about 20 metres long which led to a large pool of blood in a homeless camp next to the stream.

Dr. Tim Wilson – Associate Professor and Chair Department of Criminal Justice – Missouri Southern State University

Police located a machete between two trees near the blood trail. Investigators did their best to document the blood trail in daylight; however, due to the length of the trail, they were unable to show it in its entirety. Investigators returned to the scene after dark in an attempt to obtain a photograph of the blood trail using Bluestar Forensic Latent Bloodstain Reagent, a luminol-based blood visualization chemical that causes blood traces to luminesce.

The process of photographing bloodstains at an outdoor crime scene requires several important pieces of equipment and adequate personnel in order to capture the luminescence after the chemical has been applied, while at the same time illuminating the scene adequately so that the viewer can appreciate the composition of the crime scene. This list includes:

  • DSLR camera with a minimum f / 3.5
  • Tripod
  • Shutter release cable or remote control (for extended shutter times required)
  • One or more external flashes
  • Bluestar Forensic Latent Bloodstain Reagent, at least two vials of prepared solution in spray bottles
  • Sufficient staff to operate the camera, flashes and sprayers

There are several factors regarding the use of a DSLR in low light scenes that should be kept in mind when using this technique. Firstly, the camera settings should be set to the widest possible aperture and the lens should be in manual focus mode – otherwise, in near total darkness, the camera will attempt to focus by emitting light from the camera’s LED, which in turn can ruin the image. Secondly, a tripod and cable release or remote shutter release should be used in an effort to eliminate the movement of holding the camera by hand or even pressing the shutter for an extended period of time. In this case, as the scene was located in a wooded ravine with very little ambient light and no moon, the final exposure required a time lapse of 255 seconds. Without the tripod and cable release, the image would probably have been blurred due to camera movement. Before starting the exposure, make sure your focus is correct by illuminating the scene with a light source.

Secondly, in a large outdoor scene like this, the use of external flashes is necessary to illuminate the area beyond what a single flash could show. Bear in mind that it is best for those using the flashes to ensure that they are out of sight of the camera. The required flashes can be activated at any time during the exposure, but it is recommended that the flashes be triggered at the beginning of the exposure or at the end of the exposure to ensure that you do not illuminate the staff applying Bluestar through the sprays.

Finally, make sure that the people spraying Bluestar keep moving during the exposure for two reasons: 1) to maintain the application of the chemical, ensuring that the luminescence is visible throughout the exposure; and 2) to prevent any ambient light from illuminating them during the long exposure. In addition, several exposure tests are probably necessary to determine the correct number of flashes and the length of time the shutter should be open, given the lighting conditions of a particular scene.

Bear in mind that this technique of illuminating blood evidence should only be used to tell the story of the event, and not as evidence of a presumptive positive test for the presence of blood due to the fact that the chemical reacts with other substances, such as bleach.

All images were captured using a Canon EOS Rebel XS SLR digital camera with an 18-55mm IS lens. The scene was at the bottom of a shallow ravine in a heavily wooded area with very little ambient light other than that provided by a moonless night sky. This technique relied on darkness to allow for very long exposures, ensuring that the Bluestar luminescence would be visible until the end of the run.

Article Forensic 4 Africa
Source: Evidence Technology Magazine

Similar articles :

Read the article :
Read the article :

Nisman case: the conclusions of the criminal report

by NewsPress articles

Nisman case: conclusions of the official criminal report point to suicide

11.06.2015 ­ – ARGENTINE – INFOBAE –

Infobae has accessed the 97-page document that the federal police experts gave to the Fein prosecutor, which determines that Nisman died “standing up and facing the mirror”. The reconstruction showing the shooting with two hands, the thorough study of the blood stains and the absence of traces of a possible murderer’s escape

There is a sequence of photos on page 32 of the report that five criminal experts called in to investigate the death of Alberto Nisman submitted to prosecutor Viviana Fein this week, which Infobae fully endorses. It is a re-creation of the event, what could have happened in the opinion of these experts. In them, a man in front of a mirror takes a gun with both hands and brings it to his head. “Result of this analysis” is the title of the upper text. An in-depth study of the blood stains in Nisman’s bathroom at the Park provided the information for this analysis, which reads as follows: “All of this taken together indicates that the most likely hypothesis is that Dr. Nisman would have been standing next to the bathtub, in front of the vanity, on the carpet,

DyN 162

Later, the report assures that “blood spatters and splashes were observed on both hands of the deceased, the latter consistent with the rear projection generated by a shot fired at close range, indicating the proximity of both hands to the wound” and that the left hand overlapped the right “in support or on the handle”. All of this is key information for the case, something that adds to the medical board’s report and the progressive results of the computer forensics conducted by the Metropolitan Police.

Viviana Fein, like the medical board, asked questions of the experts to contrast the statements in the Arroyo Salgado complaint. Thus, almost five months after the death of the former UFI AMIA prosecutor, data is accumulating in the office of the prosecutor of the case to draw a conclusion. At no point does the text speak of a possible murderer of Alberto Nisman, nor does it find the evidence in the Park’s bathroom to do so. On the contrary, it reinforces – without explicitly saying so – the idea of suicide.

Blood stains in the prosecutor's bathroom

For five days last May and June, the forensic doctor Alfredo Horacio Sapag and the criminal lawyers Nicolás Vega Laiun, Juan Osvaldo Ronelli Edgardo Ríos (all members of the Federal Police) and criminalists Luis Olavarría and Daniel Salcedo – representing the defence of Diego Lagomarsino and the complaint of Sandra Arroyo Salgado respectively – met at the headquarters of the Forensic Science Superintendence on Azopardo Street to analyse the material from the scene of the event in El Parque and the autopsy performed on Nisman. Daniel Salcedo, the expert in Sandra Arroyo Salgado’s complaint, did not sign this report:

he delivered his, 200 pages plus a DVD with a 15-minute animated sequence on the event, in which he ratified the claims of the complaint report from last March. That official experts, for example, suggest that the former UFI AMIA prosecutor died standing in front of the mirror is something totally contrary to what Salcedo has proposed:

 a murdered Nisman kneeling in front of the bathtub. Information also comes from the visual inspection of the Park on 23 April, where they saw the bloodstains directly, which are the basis of the report. The bathroom sink is another point of analysis. The text says that “it is important to point out that the imperfections located at the bottom of the basin indicate that they were thrown from a higher elevation than the vanity, as if the producing source (head injury) would have been located at a height close to tolerance, the said projections would not have been able to adopt a sufficient parabola to land at that depth…

 the drainage of blood from the inner side of the left ankle “starts with static drops over the limb”. The “lake of blood” on the bathroom floor was explained by gravity. The position of the weapon is also explained: “It could be consistent with the weapon falling from the position the victim would have adopted at the time of the shooting or when the body collapsed towards the door.” The drainage of blood on the inner side of the left ankle “begins with drops of static electricity above the limb”. The “lake of blood” on the bathroom floor was explained by gravity. The position of the weapon is also explained: “It could be consistent with the weapon falling from the position the victim would have adopted at the time of the shooting or when the body collapsed towards the door.”

The bath mat – a small white towel – was another point of contention between the complaint and the official experts. According to the complaint, it should have been found curled rather than straight. The drop of blood on it also suggested a kneeling posture for Arroyo Salgado’s experts.

For the official and Lagomarsino’s experts, his position and the spots he presented “are consistent with the victim’s initial position … and with his subsequent plantar thrust towards the toilet room”.

If there was a murderer, he could have left a trail. The official report categorically denies this: “There are no thematic patterns of drag, transfer or footprints that indicate body movement, manipulation of objects/structures or movement of people within the enclosure.” It also disputes the theory of the alleged washed-out bloodstains that Salcedo indicated in the complaint report after applying the Luminol test to the Park. 

The text indicates a negative result after the application of the Blue Star reagent by the federal police. Close to Arroyo Salgado’s complaint, they state that this negative result was due to the fact that successive tests would have washed away the trail.

Thus, the war of crossed theories about Nisman’s death takes another turn. Today, for example, the contents of a document signed by two officers from the Cybercrime area of the Metropolitan Police have emerged regarding what happened at 8.07pm on Sunday 18 January, specifically about the connection of USB sticks and multiple entries to the prosecutor’s Samsung laptop, with the Windows 7 operating system. The file speaks of 26 simultaneous connections between USB sticks, cameras and CD-ROMs, all at the same time, which is strange because Nisman’s computer does not have the number of USB ports to do this. The minutes attributed this to a possible system failure.

Read the original article
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
VK
Telegram
WhatsApp
Email
Print

Traces of blood were found in his marital home, revealed by the “Bluestar”.

by NewsPress articles

Nancy: the charred body of a young woman found in the forest

16.07.2014 – EUROPE 1 – FRANCE

Traces of blood revealed by the “Blue-star”, a technique which allows the detection of micro-drops after cleaning.

It could be the body of a 34-year-old nurse, missing since the end of June, whose companion has been charged with voluntary manslaughter.

NEWS. The body of a young woman found burned in a forest near Nancy on Monday could be that of a 34-year-old nurse who has been missing since late June, and whose partner has been charged with voluntary manslaughter, police said Wednesday. “A police source said the body of the young woman, who disappeared during the night of 28-29 June, is believed to be that of a nurse.

The body, which was lying on a cold hearth and showed traces of charring, notably on the cranial region, was discovered by a walker on Monday morning in a forest in Villers-lès-Nancy, according to the Est Républicain. “We have already established that it was a woman. Other clues allow us to establish that a connection with the case of the disappearance is taking place,” continued the same source.

Traces of blood found at the home of the missing nurse. The young woman, a nurse and mother of a young child, had suddenly disappeared, without taking any news of her baby, whom she had entrusted to relatives for the weekend, “which is absolutely not in her habits”, said a source close to the case. Traces of blood were found at her marital home, revealed by the “Blue-star”, a technique that allows the detection of micro-drops after cleaning.

Her 36-year-old companion was charged with voluntary manslaughter and placed in pre-trial detention. He has always denied the charges against him. The investigation into the burnt body has been entrusted to the Nancy SRPJ, which could however be relinquished in favour of the Meurthe-et-Moselle departmental security service, which is in charge of the initial disappearance case.

Read the original article :

Traces of blood were found in his marital home, revealed by the “Bluestar”.

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
VK
Telegram
WhatsApp
Email
Print

Subscribe to our newsletter

BLUESPRAY
Click Here
BLUESTAR MAGNUM
Click Here
BLUESTAR TRAINING
Click Here

Year

[archives_year]

Country

Tags
Argentina (3) Begium (1) Brazil (1) Canada (1) Chile (1) Colombia (1) Costa Rica (1) France (21) Francia (1) India (1) Israël (1) Mauritius (1) Morocco (1) Perú (2) Porto Rico (1) South Africa (2) United States (12)
Archives