A project between industrial researchers at Warwick University and the West Midlands Police that uses 3D scanning, printing and virtual reality has provided evidence central to a murder conviction for the first time.
Lorenzo Simon was sentenced to life in prison last month for the barbaric murder of a housemate, whose body he dissected and stuffed inside suitcases he later hurled into Birmingham Canal, with help from his girlfriend Michelle Bird.
Crucially, detectives recovered part of the victim’s humerus from an oil drum in the couple’s garden – used as a furnace to destroy evidence – which experts from WMG, at the University of Warwick, proved was a seamless fit with a limb found in the case using 3D scanning techniques.
The technique, which provides image resolution 43,000 times more detailed than a hospital CT scan, also proved laceration links between a saw recovered from the canal-bed and marks found on other bones.
WMG researchers usually collaborate with industrial partners in sectors such as aerospace and automotive, using 3D scanning, printing and virtual reality technologies to spot material failures.
Nine pieces of bone were repeatedly x-rayed at a range of angles with the many thousands of images collated using specialist software to produce the 3D ultra-scans.
They were then displayed on a virtual reality 3D video wall, allowing detectives, police forensic experts and crown prosecutors to examine the digital images in remarkable depth.
Professor Mark Williams, head of product evaluation technologies at WMG, said: “A black lump resembling a large piece of coal was found in the oil drum and our scans revealed it contained the top part of the victim’s humerus, fused inside a mass of molten debris.
“The bone had been sawn and snapped. After scanning body parts in the cases we found it was a perfect jigsaw fit to another piece of bone and could show in minute detail – down to one 17,000th of a millimetre or half a hair’s breadth – the cuts on the bones.
“That helped officers match the serrated edge of the saw to many of the indents and showed they’d been inflicted with a blade width of 1.4mm. And we made exact 3D print replicas of the bone to demonstrate the evidence to the jury.
“This combination of micro computerised tomography scanning, 3D printing and 3D virtual reality truly makes the process a UK first.”
“It’s hugely rewarding being involved in major crime investigations knowing our work is helping convict offenders and secure justice for grieving families.”
Unlike traditional post mortem procedures carried out by pathologists, the scanning is non-contact and can produce high-definition 3D scans of bones or organs without the need for an invasive procedure.
The multi-million pound scanning equipment, associated software and expertise is made available to the West Midlands Police, through a partnership which also funds a a three-year Forensic PhD placement at WMG, focussed on further developing the science and expanding its capability.
The research centre has worked on four cases so far, including three murder trials.
The team also provided 3D scanning evidence that was influential in convicting a Birmingham man who murdered his estranged wife last year at their family home. Andrew Leigh claimed he found former partner Luan Leigh collapsed on the floor and that his ham-fisted attempts at CPR were responsible for bruising found around her throat.
However, scans revealed damage to the woman’s larynx – in detail beyond the capabilities of medical CT scans – that proved beyond doubt the victim had been forcibly strangled. He was subsequently jailed for a minimum of 25 years.
Detective Superintendent Mark Payne from West Midlands is leading the Warwick collaboration. He said: “It’s a fantastic development in the field of forensics and, as we’ve proved in the few cases to date, can be crucial in helping us uncover the truth behind some of our most serious crimes.”
The 10-strong research team at WMG are now building on the successes’ by running trials into the 3D modelling of entire crime scenes.
Detectives believe the high-resolution computer graphics could assist their investigations and make it much easier to present evidence to a jury, eliminating any confusion over witness testimonies.