The police are planning to adopt a computer system that
will identify the footwear used by criminals. The police expect to
add the system to their fingerprint and DNA detection
databases.
When the new system is ready, it will search through records of
the patterns of soles found at crime scenes with those on the
footwear of suspects. The pilot system is being developed for the
police by the University of Sheffield.
Home Office figures show that almost 15% of crime scenes threw
up shoe print evidence in 2004/2005. The Serious Organised Crime
Police Act 2005 now also gives police the power to take shoe prints
from suspects.
The system works by capturing images of shoeprints left at crime
scenes, and matching these images taken in custody suites. A
roll-out date for the new detection database has so far not been
announced.
