Watch Forensics The Science of Crime

A weapon is found at the scene of a crime. Important question for the investigators: Was the victim shot with this weapon? Molecular ballistics can make a decisive contribution to clarification. Organic material from the victim is thrown back into the weapon in the event of gunshot wounds.

Crime scene investigation in the laboratory: molecular biologist Dr Harald Schneider extracts DNA from very small traces. Already 0.5 square millimetres are enough to uniquely identify genetic material. At first you could only tell whose DNA you found.

The detection rate for capital crimes in most Western countries is over 90 percent. Much of this high rate is due to the different areas of forensics. Experts from many forensic disciplines support the police and judiciary in solving crimes. The entomologists specialize in insect science.