Superglue Fuming for the Chemical Enhancement of Latent Fingerprints

Penerimaan bukti cap jari oleh mahkamah lazimnya berdasarkan kepada anggapan bahawa tiada dua individu mempunyai cap jari yang sama. Cap jari nampak atau cap jari pendam sering dijumpai di tempat kejadian jenayah. Walau bagaimanapun, cap jari pendam adalah sukar dikesan dan memerlukan penggunaan teknik yang dapat memperlihatkan kesan cap jari. Kajian ini melibatkan penggunaan teknik kimia bagi penyerlahan cap jari pendam. Kaedah pewasapan gam jenis superglue dibandingkan dengan dua kaedah lain menggunakan reagen ninhidrin dan eosin. Penyerlahan bagi ketiga-tiga kaedah didapati bergantung kepada jenis permukaan yang mengandungi cap jari. Keputusan menunjukkan bahawa pewasapan superglue dan teknik eosin berupaya menyerlahkan cap jari pendam pada permukaan tidak berliang yang telah disimpan sehingga tiga bulan. Teknik ninhidrin pula didapati berkesan bagi cap jari pendam pada permukaan yang berliang. Kata kunci: Cap jari pendam; Pewasapan superglue; ninhidrin; eosin The acceptance of fingerprint evidence by the courts has always been predicated on the assumption that no two individuals have identical fingerprints. Fingerprints (visible or latent) are often found at a scene of crime. Latent prints however, are difficult to locate and require the utilization of techniques that will visualize the prints. This study involved the application of chemical techniques to the visualization of latent fingerprints. The more recent superglue fuming technique was compared to two other techniques using ninhydrin and eosin as chemical reagents. The chemical enhancement of the three techniques was found to be dependent upon the nature of the surface on which the prints were deposited. Results showed that superglue fuming and eosin technique were capable of enhancing latent fingerprints on non-porous surfaces which have been kept for up to three months. The ninhydrin technique was found to be effective only for latent fingerprints on porous surfaces. Key words: latent fingerprints; superglue fuming; ninhydrin; eosin