US police base charges on information from connected devices
As a case in the USA shows, digital traces can solve brutal crimes.
At least that's what the police in the US state of Connecticut claim, who are supporting the charges in an ongoing murder trial with data from smartphones, computers, social networks and even the victim's fitness tracker Fitbit . These should now help to convict the suspected perpetrator.
Accusation through device information
“Conny Dabate was shot on December 23, 2015 in her home in Ellington with the Magnum that her husband had purchased a few months earlier. Richard Dabate told police that a masked man entered their home and wrestled him to the ground. The killer is then said to have followed his wife into the basement and shot her.”
reports the US local newspaper “Hartford Courier”.
The trial is causing a stir, particularly due to the police's innovative forensic investigation work.
“It was only through the information found on electronic devices that police were able to charge Richard Dabate with the murder of his wife,”
emphasizes the daily newspaper.
In addition to call data, SMS and postings on social online networks such as Facebook, it was primarily the fitness tracker Fitbit that provided essential information for an indictment.
"The data from her arm tracker shows that the victim last moved at 10:05 a.m. - almost a full hour later than the time Richard Dabate told police as the time of his wife's death,"
clarifies District Attorney Craig Stedman.
“Great investigative aid”
After the investigators had collected and evaluated all the relevant data on the case, it was clear that Richard Dabate's story did not match the information found in the digital footprints of himself and his wife.
“Fitbit is an electronic tool that records all movements. This also makes it a great investigative aid. We get the information we are looking for faster than with a DNA test,”
says Stedman, who is convinced of the potential.
“But it will certainly be rare that Fitbit can actually catch a murderer like this.”
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )