A debate has erupted over the extent to which police can use DNA in Denmark after a 32-year-old man kidnapped a 13-year-old girl a few weeks ago. According to Bent Isager-Nielsen, former head of the Danish police and head of the homicide unit, many people are surprised that DNA cannot be used from the suspect in the case of the girl's kidnapping, even though the police had already obtained DNA from the suspect during investigations conducted by the police with the same suspect during a previous kidnapping and murder case a few years ago, according to TV2 and other sources.
The 32-year-old man was charged with the murder of Emily Meng in 2016, and was questioned and DNA was provided in connection with the case. However, according to current legislation, the DNA sample cannot be used in other cases until the man is charged in a new case, and can only be used in a specific case.
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DNA use in criminal investigations in Denmark
According to an article on the Danish newspaper Information's website, until 2005, police could only take DNA samples from individuals for whom other evidence in a case pointed. However, today anyone accused of a crime punishable by more than 18 months can be required to undergo DNA testing. Furthermore, DNA profiles should not be deleted from the database even if no charges have been filed against the individual.
Parliamentary parties will consider changing the law.
With the aim of facilitating investigations to solve crimes, both the Liberal Party and the Danish People's Party will investigate options regarding how the police can more easily obtain DNA samples. Peter Kofod, spokesperson for the Danish People's Party, stated – according to TV2 –: “My wish is to have a broader discussion about how we use DNA. We strongly want the police to be given much more far-reaching powers and frameworks than they have today in order to be able to fight crime.”.
At the beginning of the millennium, Bent Isager-Nielsen worked with the working group of the Ministry of Justice that established the Central DNA Registry in Denmark. According to the source, Bent Isager-Nielsen said: “At that time we also discussed the rules of voluntariness, coercion, deletion and the requirements of suspicion. For a long time there have been very different requirements for the type of crime and the grounds for suspicion.”.
Countless dilemmas
Bent Issager-Nielsen says that new opportunities also bring more discussions and dilemmas, and Bent does not take a position on the political side of the debate about whether the law should be changed so that so-called comparison files can also be used in other cases.
DNA or fingerprints that a person voluntarily provides in a case are called “comparative profiles” or “comparative fingerprints.” According to him, at that time (around 2000), it was agreed that if DNA was voluntarily provided in a case, it was for the specific case, for the purpose of denying or excluding the charge, for example. It has always been the case that fingerprints taken do not appear in the records and are not used in all other cases.
In 1995, DNA was used in fewer than 100 cases, while in 2001 the number rose to 1,911, and five years later the method was used in more than 18,000 criminal cases, according to the “DNA Profiling Registry” report issued by the Ethics Council.
The same suspect was investigated in the Emily Meng case several years ago.
Regarding the investigation into Emily Meng's disappearance, a car has been identified that could be linked to the 32-year-old man accused in the recent case of the 13-year-old girl. The car in the Emily Meng case was a Hyundai i30, and there are approximately 2,140 of these cars in Denmark. The suspect also owns a Hyundai i30, and on this basis, the 32-year-old has already been included in the case's investigative materials. One of these cars is located in Slovakia and has been secured through cooperation with Europol. Police say that in the Emily Meng investigation, DNA samples were obtained from 1,450 people. These 1,450 individuals were "acquaintances, car owners, and other people of interest." The man now accused in the 13-year-old girl's case is one of those questioned in the Emily Meng case and has also provided a DNA sample. Police Inspector Kim Cleaver told TV2 that some of the DNA traces the police have are not those that can be compared with traditional reference samples, and therefore... The police collaborated with international experts in forensic genetics.
