According to BBC News 24, a burglar has been convicted in the UK using evidence obtained from CCTV footage of the scene.
Not an amazing statement in itself right? But he was identified not by his facial features, clothing or hair style, but by the way he walked!
Apparently, Forensic Podiatrist Ian Linane was able to analyze the man’s gait from the footage given to him by police, who already had DNA evidence placing John Rigg at the scene.
Linane explained that the process involved “painstaking frame-by-frame assessment of movement”, which can take many days. He agreed the outcome was not perhaps as accurate as finger-printing, but that there is ‘a sliding scale’ between a possible match and a near definite identification.
Linane’s interest in the Science began when as a child he noticed that in Cowboy Films the baddies always walked with a bow-legged John Wayne-esque gait.
While all this is fascinating and a step forward in the resources open to those battling crime, I can’t help thinking that now this is out in the open, the ‘clever’ criminal will be disguising their walk as well as wearing a balaclava.
Which just makes me think of The Ministry of Silly Walks.
Bad Jo.
To read the full news story go here.