The scientific capabilities of the Yucatan State Police force for criminal investigation were confirmed by Governor Mauricio Vila Dosal during his visit to the State Attorney General’s Office (FGE). “These technological elements represent the ideal formula to maintain the high levels of security in our state” the governor said.
Accompanied by the head of the FGE, Wilberth Cetina Arjona, Vila Dosal toured the laboratories of Genetics and Expert Intelligence, as well as the Department of Ballistics, where most of the procedures and protocols comply with international regulations, and many of them are endorsed by US law enforcement authorities, following the agreements of the Mérida Initiative.
Vila Dosal highlighted the scientific focus with which investigations of criminal acts are carried out, its valuable contribution to guarantee the good levels of security in the state, and he assured that the government will continue to invest on training and infrastructure in this matter.
In the Genetics Laboratory, the general director of the Institute of Forensic Sciences, José Flores Acosta, told the governor that there are only two internationally accredited labs of this type in Mexico, one of them is in Yucatán and the other one is in Aguascalientes. Besides, Flores Acosta added that this Genetics Laboratory is also certified in data management with global standards.
“Here we capture, classify and store the genetic profiles that serve to identify missing persons. Being accredited at this level allows us to share information with international security agencies in a timely manner, thanks to the work carried out daily by six chemistry specialists, all recognized by the ANSI National Standard Accreditation Board (ANAB), “said the official.
The Genetics Laboratory, one of the most advanced in the country, is the only one that has its own cold room for the preservation of evidence, as well as robotized equipment for genetic tests, which provide scientific certainty to crminal investigation cases, as it is done in first-world countries.
Mauricio Vila then visited the Laboratory of Expert Intelligence, where more than 120 experts work on evaluation, graphology, psychology, computer science, photography, interpretation, lofoscopy, criminology and ballistics. This department is also internationally accredited.
The governor also visited the identification department, recognized as the oldest in the country (it was inaugurated on January 2, 1936), which has accumulated to date 177 thousand records of people processed and sentenced for some kind of crime.
Yucatan is a pioneer in fingerprint identification in all of Mexico, therefore, the FGE training directorate has been named this department “Ernesto Abreu Gómez”, who was a forerunner of forensic services in Mexican territory.
“The personnel, the reagents, the procedures and the results show a transcendental scientific certainty when the investigation of a crime reaches the courts of the state,” said Cetina Arjona.
As part of his visit to the FGE, the governor held a meeting with the head of the unit, deputy prosecutors and directors, where they addressed issues related to challenges and opportunities that the justice procurement system is currently facing in the Yucatan.
The governor visited the projectile recovery section of the Department of Ballistics, where specialized staff recuperate and analyze shells of fire weapons used in crimes.
Finally, Vila Dosal went to the department where two video spectral analyzers, one of Russian and the other of Brtish manufacture, are used to detect alterations in official documents: Deletions, additions, ink crossings or any falsification in bills, passports, voter’s credentials, birth certificates and other official documents.
TYT Newsroom with information from yucatan.com.mx
