FORMER Deputy Commissioner of Police in the Jamaica Constabulary Force Mark Shields, who is now the managing director of Shields Crime & Security Consultants, is leading the charge for better use of forensic technology in crime fighting in Jamaica. He has teamed up with British company Selectamark to introduce a number of crime-fighting devices to Jamaica which utilise synthetic DNA in identifying criminals and those placed at the scene of the crime.

SelectaDNA now has seven products in the range. These include a property-marking product, transferable products (gels and greases), covert sprays and defence sprays. SelectaDNA has been sold since 2006 and it is now in 24 countries around the world including Trinidad & Tobago, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, UK and the British Virgin Islands.

SelectaDNA Trace is a high-tech marking solution which consists of a group of ceramic nanoparticles and thousands of holographic microdots. The nanoparticles are read by a special scanner which shines light onto the molecules and measures the refraction.

SelectaDNA products contain a UV Tracer, so by simply shining a UV torch over a marked item, a blue fluorescence will indicate the presence of the Trace solution. The code can then be read either by applying a SelectaDNA Trace scanner to the surface or by taking a scraping of the lacquer and reading it with a scanner later.

Selectamark

These products require no laboratory analysis and are used by local authorities, police forces and small- to medium-sized businesses. The marking of assets and infrastructure together with warning signage and partnering with law enforcement provides a powerful deterrent to anyone contemplating theft.

Since 2005, Selectamark has worked with UK police forces spreading the word about SelectaDNA and its ability to link criminals to committed crimes. The ‘DNA Fear Factor’ amongst criminals means that areas protected by SelectaDNA immediately become difficult targets.

Selectamark is a 26-year-old UK company with Andrew Knights serving as managing director. He has been in the security industry for 15 years and at one stage ran his own anti-theft/anti-intruder product business. He then sold it to 65 countries around the world. He has extensive experience as a senior security industry executive.

Speaking with Caribbean Business Report from Shields Crime & Security Consultants headquarters in Kingston, Knights said: “We call it synthetic DNA so that people know that it is man-made. We use plants, but it is still natural DNA made in a laboratory.

“These products are used for preventative measures, hence we use signs indicating that DNA technology is in use here, so beware. This has proven to be an effective deterrent. I must add here that in UK courts, there is a 100 per cent conviction rate on trial if DNA or other forensic science is involved. What we want to do is put that into the criminal marketplace so that they know if they get DNA on them they will be prosecuted and convicted. The message is that the product is a property — marking one but the concept is theft prevention.

“What we want to do is educate the criminals so that if they go into premises where there is DNA spray, they will get evidence on them and that means conviction.”

Mark Shields and forensic methods

Over the years Mark Shields has championed the use of forensic evidence in bringing cases to prosecution in Jamaica. He was triumphant in this regard in the prosecution of Matthews Lane strongman Zeeks. Both the Jamaican justice system and police force have been slow in embracing a more scientific approach.

“By adopting a more forensic approach one gets a more immediate result. It is pretty much clear-cut and places people at the scene of the crime. This is crucial to the presentation of evidence. If anybody knows about forensics, it’s Mark Shields, and he will be able to pilot it in Jamaica. I think the important thing here is that this will not burden the police. It is a useful resource to assist them in their duties in facing prolific crime,” said Knights.

Mark Shields added: “I have been in Jamaica for seven years now and I have tried to implement a human DNA data base. We have been promised by the minister of justice, Mark Golding, that we can expect legislation on the matter by June of this year. It has been a long wait because there are literally thousands of DNA traces where exhibits have been taken from crime scenes to the forensic laboratory but we don’t have a system to match them. What we are going to do both in terms of synthetic DNA and SelectaDNA means that we don’t actually need that change in legislation because we can work within the confines of existing legislation but we can start to mark property.

So in effect we are moving ahead of the game in a matter of months. Before this we had all the equipment but we didn’t have the appropriate legislation. We have spoken on this matter with two members of the Cabinet and we have engaged senior staff at the Constabulary, and in both instances they have been encouraging.

Not relying solely on DNA

“It is quite clear that we are going to have to seek some legal advice on the use of DNA. We cannot afford to be arrogant on this matter. I would think that we don’t have any massive hills to jump on this. This is just another piece of evidence that will link criminals to committed crimes conclusively. I must stress here that you have to look at the whole picture and don’t solely rely on DNA evidence.

That means taking into account witness statements, fingerprints and so forth, but DNA is a key tool in the box in getting a conviction. But let us be clear here, it is not simply about getting a conviction. It is about preventing crime in the first place. We have to get to the place where we have a scrap metal industry where we are preventing people from stealing manhole covers, piping and cell tower equipment as we saw last month. This is a problem both in Jamaica and internationally, and we now have a product that can treat all of that metal which serves as a deterrent.

Senior Consultant at Shields Crime & Security Consultants, Simon Shields, declared that it is very important that the insurance companies in Jamaica come aboard with the SelectaDNA products.

“If people can see that their premiums are going to be reduced by using SelectaDNA they will jump on board because it will save them money. With things like flat-screen TVs and other appliances we can offer SelectaDNA at the point of sale. What we are doing is trying to find other pieces of technology that will help in the fight against crime. We are actively attempting to find ways to reduce crime in Jamaica. There are products on the market that can help us with this and they don’t cost too much.”