Video: Essex Police Cold Case Investigation Team (From Braintree and Witham Times)

Video: Essex Police Cold Case Investigation Team

6:00pm Thursday 31st January 2013 in News

 

Essex Police has released a video showing the work of its Cold Case Investigation Team. 

In January 2011 the Essex Police Cold Case Investigation Team was introduced as part of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate. The team investigates historical murders and serious sexual assaults in Essex that have so far not been solved.

The team are based in Brentwood and consists of a Detective Sergeant, four Detective Constables and an Investigating Officer. They work closely with forensic scientists to re-examine slides and samples from crime scenes using advances in forensic technology.

DNA was first used in the late 1980s when considerable quantities of blood, saliva, human tissue or cells were needed to build a profile. Since then huge advances in technology mean forensic experts can now extract DNA from tiny quantities of bodily fluids, hair and skin cells that are almost invisible to the human eye.

Detective Sergeant Jo Williams, from the Cold Case Investigation Team said: "The fact that a perpetrator wasn't identified years ago doesn't mean they won't be identified now.

"Cases that don't initially lead to the identification, arrest and prosecution of an offender are regularly reviewed and any new or advanced forensic techniques available to us now are applied.

"We're always keen to receive any information that could give us a new lead on a historical case. Offenders who thought they had got away with their crime in some cases for many years should be aware that we may come knocking on their door."

For more information about the Cold Case Investigation Team, visit www.essex.police.uk

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