CLOSING IN

INTERPOL has been given access to the DNA of the suspected killer of Sophie Toscan du Plantier.

Evidence gathered at the scene was badly damaged, but a new discovery means forensic scientists can get a DNA profile from even the tiniest sample.

The breakthrough in forensic science could hold the key to identifying whoever killed the French TV producer near her holiday home on December 23, 1996, near Mizen Head, west Cork.

No one has been charged with the 38-year-old's killing, although Gardai interviewed more than 1,000 people and a file was sent to the DPP.

Earlier this year samples taken from the crime scene were said to be useless, as they had deteriorated and were regarded as little use at that time.

But science has moved on and the amount of DNA needed to link a person to a crime has now been reduced from a postage stamp-sized sample of blood to an amount the size of a grain of salt which can be grown until it is large enough for analysis.

A Forensic Science Service worker who has worked on many police investigations in London said: "The way it works is that we double the sample in size many, many times until it is big enough for us to work with.

"Even though the du Plantier samples were damaged, it does not mean they will not be examined again. It just means they were not good enough at the time.

"We have been using this technique for quite some time and have had many successful convictions.

"I've read reports that the du Plantier invest-igation is closed, but I can assure you we have not received any such instructions and the case will remain open until someone is in the dock, is prosecuted and goes to the cells."

The Forensic Science Service, based in Lambeth, south London, has used its pioneering methods to help investigations around the world.

They were asked to assist in the du Plantier murder and have solved crimes for the FBI.

The technology that could nail the killer is being used to solve serious crimes in Britain every day and boffins in the lab are gradually working their way back through thousands of unsolved cases that will take years to go through.

The senior scientific officer said: "If you committed a crime, say 20 years ago, and think you got away with it, you had better think again. We have more than a million DNA profiles on our database and, if you're on it, for whatever reason, the police may come knocking on your door.

"The chances of two people having the same profile are one billion to one.

Of course, if you were identical twins, for example, you would have the same DNA but in most cases it's as definite as it's going to be.

"The people who work on the Sophie du Plantier murder in London don't see it so much as a job. They see it as one of the big challenges and will do anything, even in their own time, to put the murderer behind bars."

The DNA technique now being used daily is known as LDC, which stands for Low DNA Count, and is now in use at laboratories and universities across the UK.

The insider added: "It will take time, but we're not giving up. "Be the murderer in Ireland, which is most likely, the UK, or any other place in the world, they should be worried when they receive the knock."

Copyright 2002 MGN LTD
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.