To develop a portfolio of robust fingerprint enhancement techniques specifically for use in the field in Africa.

1. Conduct a developmental validation of conventional and innovative fingermark enhancement methods to determine analytical sensitivity, specificity, limit of detection and robustness to varying environmental conditions (surface type, temperature, pH, humidity, etc.).
2. Assess the efficacy of an imaging system in the detection of latent and enhanced fingermarks.

Ongoing

The United Nations estimates that the global illegal wildlife trade is worth between $7 billion and $23 billion a year, making it an extremely profitable criminal enterprise. In addition, there is an estimated $146 million a year in tax revenue. If left unchecked, the loss of endangered species threatens the biodiversity of the planet. The use of fingerprints to identify those involved in the illegal wildlife trade on samples such as ivory, pangolin scales and rhino horn represent a valuable tool in forensic investigations. This project lies alongside a training and upskilling project Wildlife Police Officers currently being undertaken in Zimbabwe. Working in the field revealed the need to develop and validate reliable methods that can be used to enhance fingermarks on challenging wildlife samples would greatly support wildlife law enforcement practices and disrupt the illegal trafficking chain. Validation will take place ‘in country’ by wildlife forensic officers. If successful, the methods will be published and made available via TRACE and the African Wildlife Forensics Network.