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in much smaller consignments, exporters are largely non-existent, and it is now internationally-recognised that Hong Kong is no longer a major drug exporting
centre.
Identification Bureau
To cope with increasing demand, the Identification Bureau set up a fourth scenes of crime team, based at Yuen Long police station in the New Territories.
The Scenes of Crime Section attended 9,177 crime scenes during the year. They found 5,615 fingerprint impressions, of which 770 impressions were identified involving 251 people in 416 cases.
Throughout the year, 43,334 arrest fingerprint forms were processed by the bureau's Main Fingerprint Collection Section and 23,559 people were identified as having previous convictions. The number of convicted people on record at the end of 1977 totalled 363,303. The section also carried out 26,790 security searches during the year. The Photographic Section supplied 358,433 photographs of crime scenes to divi- sions and units. The Document Examination Section handled 45 cases and examined 129 documents that resulted in 17 positive findings.
Criminal Records Bureau
The Criminal Records Bureau is studying the feasibility of computerising its nominal index, which now lists the names of 700,000 people.
The Modus Operandi Index, which lists the methods habitual criminals use to commit crimes, has already been computerised. Further emphasis was placed during the year on the bureau's microfilming programme, which is considerably relieving the problem of storing criminal records.
Criminal Intelligence Bureau
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The Criminal Intelligence Bureau was reorganised in May, 1977. Its charter includes collating information on active criminals and crime with territory-wide implications, carrying out research into organised criminal activity and disseminating intelligence reports.
Ballistics Office
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The Ballistics Office is Hong Kong's authority on arms, ammunition and related subjects. There has been a steady increase in crime involving firearms in recent years and case figures for 1977 were up more than 20 per cent on the previous year.
Weapons examined included revolvers, pistols, teargas guns, air guns, imitation firearms, home-made guns and toy cap guns that had been converted to fire missiles. During the year, nine outstanding armed robbery cases were solved by matching ammunition found at robbery scenes with guns seized at a later date.
Communications
The Communications and Transport Branch plans, installs and maintains a sophis- ticated infrastructure made up of radio installations, a comprehensive computer- controlled teleprinter system, a telephone network, radar installations and a variety of specialised electronic equipment. It also manages a fleet of 1,170 vehicles of 19