State DNA database now linked to other countries

Hundreds of suspects have been identified, including a suspect for a cluster of seven unsolved burglaries in Dublin, thanks to the new links

DNA profiles at crime scenes – known as crime stains – can be obtained from myriad sources such as knives, strands of hair or broken glass.

Hundreds of criminal suspects have been identified due to the state’s DNA database being linked to equivalents in other European countries.

The Forensic Science Laboratory has a library of 9,300 DNA profiles gathered at Irish crime scenes and it can check them for matches with the DNA profiles of 41,000 convicted offenders, suspects and volunteers on the Irish DNA database.

It has now broadened its search powers by signing agreements with 11 European countries to ...