FSCS_Midterms

• Crime Scene Approach


  1. Consider overall safety of team

  2. Anticipate unfavorable terrain and weather condition

  3. Designate staging area

  4. Coordinate with investigator-on-case (IOC)

  5. Request SOCO assistance
• Immediate Recording and Documentation

  1. Photography or videography

  2. Note taking including weather condition
• Search and Collection Personnel


  • Wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE)
  • In explosion incidents, wear overall white suits and hard hats
• Preliminary Crime Scene Survey

  1. Careful walk-through with IOC

  2. Determine extent of crime scene and install police line

  3. Determine search method and necessary resources

  4. Establish command post
• Physical Evidence Assessment


  Identify/recognize type of evidence according to priority and forensic relevancy
• Narrative Description of Crime Scene

  • Time and date of SOCO team arrival
  • Persons present
  • Type of crime scene
  • Weather condition
  • Lighting condition
  • Temperature
  • Sound/noise/smell condition
  • Condition of appliances
  • Original position of victim and evidence
  • Condition of entry and exit points
  • Other pertinent information
  • Time and date of completion of processing
• Crime Scene Documentation


  • Photography/video recording
  • Note taking
  • Sketching
• Crime Scene Search


  1. Start from accessible areas and proceed to hardly accessible location

  2. Identify fragile or transient evidence
• Physical Evidence Recording and Collection

  1. Indicate locations on diagram/sketch and photo log

  2. Tag and photograph evidence in place before collection

  3. Mark all recovered evidence

  4. Use appropriate evidence containers

  5. Place identifying marks on containers

  6. Seal all containers
• Final Crime Scene Survey


  1. Vigorous search for hidden evidence

  2. Discuss survey with IOC for completeness

  3. Review documentation for unintentional errors

  4. Account all collected evidence

  5. Conduct inventory of equipment
• Post Crime Scene Processing


  1. Discuss types of evidence collected and their significance

  2. Inform IOC of evidence disposition

  3. Discuss future case conferences
• Relinquishment of the crime scene

  1. Complete final survey and documentation

  2. Check the crime scene and discard used gloves, masks, packaging tapes in a transparent trash bag or in an appropriate container

  3. Do not leave trash at the crime scene

  4. If temporary cessation of crime scene processing, the scene must be sealed by the SOCO team and secured by the concerned territorial police Unit

  5. Upon resumption of processing, the concerned SOCO team who sealed the scene or the duly authorized relieving SOCO team shall be the one to re-open the same
• Establish and maintain communication with the investigator-on-case


  Provide each party (SOCO IOC) available contact numbers before departure from the crime scene
• Release of the crime scene

  The release of the crime scene to the owner of property or to any local person in authority shall be the sole responsibility of the IOC
• Case conference


  1. May be conducted as necessary

  2. Forensic correlation may be conducted by the SOCO team to review and evaluate both information and gather physical evidence in order to generate conclusion and eventually solve the case
• Crime Scene Processing Specific Procedures

  • Crime Scene Approach
  • Preliminary Crime Scene Survey
  • Physical Evidence Assessment
  • Narrative Description of the Crime Scene
  • Crime Scene Documentation
  • Crime Scene Search
  • Physical Evidence Recording & Collection
  • Final Crime Scene Survey
  • Post Crime Scene Processing
  • Case Conference
• Clandestine Laboratory


  • Considered special situation whereby the Forensic Chemical officer (FOCO) shall be tasked to undertake the initial scene assessments and advise the SOCO Team Leader as to how the sequence of the crime scene investigation shall be undertaken
• Bombing cases


  • The Explosive Ordnance disposal Team (EOD) should clear and declare the area safe prior to the conduct of SOCO
  • Before entering the crime scene, the EOD of Bomb squad must submit themselves for swabbing by the SOCO Team as SOP
• Suspected and or reported Chemical Biological, radiological and or nuclear (CBRN) situation

  • SOCO Team shall directly coordinate with the special Rescue, CBRN Team of the BFP prior to the conduct of crime scene investigation
• Mass victim Identification- (man-made and natural calamity)

  • The SOCO Team, in addition to its fundamental function, shall acts as first responder in the identification of the victims prior prior to the arrival of the Interim Disaster Victim Identification Task Group (DVI TG) of the PNP Forensic Group
  • In case of mass fatality incident caused by the natural disasters, the NBI shall primarily be in-charge of the identification of the dead
  • In case of mass fatality incident due to man-made causes, the PNP shall primarily be in-charge of the identification of the dead
• Responding to an ambush incident

  • Prior to the dispatch, respective Chief/SOCO team leader of the Forensic Group shall make sure through intense verification/coordination that at active operations have seized and the area has been declared safe
  • The same shall request for security from territorial police
• Cases where the SOCO specialists shall be requested to process

  • Involving Prominent Personalities as victims or perpetrator
• Involving National Security


  • Attacks on cities, towns, barangays and other populated areas
  • Attacks or raids on military or police installations
  • Raids, harassments, ambuscades of military or police troops
  • Liquidation of government officials, military and police personnel
  • Encounter with dissident terrorists, syndicates and organized groups
  • Terrorist-related incidents such as hijacking, hostage-taking, kidnapping or burning
  • Bombing and explosion
  • Mass actions
• Field Laboratory Works (FLW)

  • macro-etching examination of stranded or defective motor vehicles
  • Withdrawal of fired bullet embedded in vehicles, structures and the like
  • Bullet trajectory determination on the location given by the requesting party
  • Paraffin examination of suspects and victims of shooting incidents who are confined in hospitals or in the office of the investigating unit
  • Conduct a drug test in the PNP, AFP and other law enforcement units
  • Blood determination using luminol test
  • Exhumation of Cadavers
  • Conduct Document Examination
  • Conduct of Computerized facial composite
  • Polygraph examination
  • Fingerprint collection in the place of the requesting party
  • Bringing bulky evidence in court
• Procedures and Guidelines in Handling Cadavers for Forensic Examination Investigation

  1. All cadavers shall be turned-over by the investigator to the SOCO Team Leader or Medico-Legal Officer for the conduct of autopsy

  2. Recovered human remains and dismembered body parts being vital pieces of forensic evidence shall be brought to a PNP accredited morgue for possible identification

  3. Cadavers should be ideally wrapped with linen before being placed into the cadaver bag

  4. The SOCO Team Leader shall supervise the inventory and security of the personal belongings of the cadaver

  5. The SOCO Team Leader shall identify the properties and clothing which may be used as evidence and these be shall turned-over to the Evidence Custodian

  6. Immediate collection of all biological samples which are likely to vanish or deteriorate during transport must be prioritized

  7. Identification tag must be placed on the body of the cadaver

  8. The cadaver shall be brought to the accredited funeral where the autopsy and other forensic examination shall be conducted

  9. The IOC shall be responsible for the retrieval and collection of evidence from the body of the cadavers brought to a hospital facility
• Conduct of Autopsy


  1. PNP personnel must ensure that the cadaver is protected from any contamination

  2. PNP personnel are prohibited from referring services of funeral morgue
• The preference of the family of the deceased shall be given priority as to which funeral parlor shall be availed of, provided that the morgue is duly accredited by the PNP
• In cases where the family prefers to avail the services of a funeral parlor other than the morgue to which the cadaver was brought or autopsied
• There shall be no fees for autopsy of cadavers
• For cases not criminal in nature wherein the families opt to have the cadaver autopsied, the prescribed fees for gross autopsy Php1,200 and histopathological examination in the amount of Php 1,000 shall be paid through the landbank
• In cases of unidentified cadavers, request for autopsy from the IOC is required and should be considered sufficient in the absence of immediate family or nearest of kin especially within 12-hours from the estimated time of death
• In cases when the cadaver is examined in the PNPFG morgue, the examining Medico-Legal Officer shall be responsible for the release of the cadaver to the family member or nearest kin with proper documentation
• In the event that the immediate family member/nearest kin authorize a funeral parlor the release of the cadaver, an authorization letter should be presented by the latter
• if the victim is a foreigner, the embassy of the victim must be notified and consent from the nearest kin or representative from the concerned embassy is obtained prior to autopsy. The examining medico-legal officer should be responsible the release of the cadaver
• For religious considerations, request for post-mortem examination shall be accompanied by a waiver or a letter requesting non-dissection of the cadaver signed by the nearest kin
• If the amount involved is 200,000 pesos and below shall be handled by the local stations
• When the amount involved is more than 200, 000 pesos the crime scene process shall be refer to SOCO
• Sensational, henious and high profile cases such as murder, bank robberies, rape and the likes as when the crime involved VIPs, government employees and foreign nationals of crimes that occur inside or within the vicinity of significant places like the office of the President, churches and the likes should be processed by the SOCO Team
• Never use items or facilities (like washroom,toilet and toiletries, telephone etc). No Smoking, Eating or Drinking
• All seized electronic equipment shall be turned-over to the Anti-Cyber-Crime Group (ACG)