Dubai: Dubai Police, through the General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology, has successfully linked its Ballistic Identification Network with Interpol’s database.
The landmark scientific achievement in forensic sciences enhances Dubai Police’s ability to compare over 1,800,000 ballistic fingerprints worldwide in under an hour.
Major General Ahmad Thani bin Ghalita, Director of the General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology, remarked that Dubai Police is the first Arab law enforcement agency to link ballistic fingerprints with Interpol’s database. “This significant milestone enhances the Force’s efforts in unravelling the mysteries of crimes, identifying the type of firearm, and determining the user’s identity,” the Director commented.
Mr. Ghalita noted that this integration, which came under the guidance of Lieutenant General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, and the follow-up from Major General Expert Khalil Ibrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant Commander-in-Chief for Criminal Investigation Affairs, aims to strengthen communication with international police authorities under the Ministry of Interior’s umbrella and stay current with all forensic science disciplines, including “ballistic fingerprints”.
“This science plays a crucial role in providing material evidence to police authorities to support ongoing investigations and achieve justice,” the Director added. This new move will also contribute to realising Dubai Police’s “Safe City” strategic objective.
According to Captain Mohammed Abdullah Al Shamsi, Head of Firearms and Tool Marks at the General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology, the ballistic fingerprint database helps determine if a firearm has been used in other crimes.
“The system does not permit users to browse other databases; it only displays matching results with the reference numbers of the institutions that input the data so that police agencies can communicate and coordinate with each other to follow up on their investigative procedures according to internationally approved policies and regulations in this regard,” Mr. Al Shamsi noted.