Many criminal cases, that affect people financially and emotionally, remain unsolved, because current analysis is not providing enough intelligence. In this project we aim to develop two different tools to enhance the effectivity and efficiency of crime scene investigation. First one is an innovative rapid test to determine whether a trace sample contains sufficient DNA that enables suspect identification. Second tool is a microfluidic device to establish at the crime scene if biological traces belong to the same individual (victim/suspect). With this we aim to increase the trust and confidence of citizens in government and law enforcing agencies.

In the Netherlands roughly 25.000 times a year evidence material is analyzed for the presence of drugs of abuse. These analyses are conducted in laboratories from the Dutch Polic, the Netherlands Forensic Institute, and the Dutch Customs Laboratory. The preferred technique, GC-MS, relies on gas chromatographic separation followed by mass spectrometric characterization. In addition to the detection of drugs of abuse, GC-MS also provides valuable information on the origin, production and transport of the confiscated material. In the FIDBID project, forensic experts, data scientists and criminologists join forces to fully automatically extract and report this goldmine of forensic intelligence.