Forensic criminalistics

Criminalistics deals with substances derived from crime scenes for criminal investigations.

Analysis and identification of

• Narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances;
• Explosives and explosive residues;
• Gunpowder residues;
• Suspected contaminated alcoholic beverages;
• Counterfeit products such as money, beverages and fertilisers;
• Fire accelerants in arson cases;
• Paint and glass from scenes of crime and motor vehicle accidents;
• Poisonous chemical substances in foods and drinks;
• Unknown substances of any kind.

Other duties

• Preparing etching reagents for restoring defaced engine and chassis numbers;
• Preparing fingerprint reagents for lifting fingerprints;
• Preparing APQ (anthracene, phenolphthalein and quinine) reagents for treating money in corruption cases;
• Attending scenes of crime to collect samples. See crime scene support.