Police action
against a heroin factory
Because of the nature of the offence and the large quantity of exhibits in- volved, police action at a heroin fac- tory must be orderly and regulated so as to minimise any danger to officers in the raiding party and to obtain full benefit from forensic evidence. The following points are a guide to the action which should be taken at the scene of a factory.
Before Raiding the Premises Before raiding the premises one officer should be detailed to seize the exhibits and various samples taken from the scene. He should go to the scene equipped with the following items:
About 200 to 300 polythene bags of various sizes.
About 200 to 300 exhibit labels. Ten plastic containers of various sizes.
One funnel.
Twenty pairs of disposable plastic hand gloves.
One roll of cotton wool.
Also required are 10 kits for taking contact traces from suspects. Each kit is sterilised and contains:
One pair of disposable plastic hand- gloves.
Eight small plastic bags.
One comb.
One nail clipper.
Three cotton wool swabs.
Initial Action on Gaining Entry * Do not smoke, or switch on or off electric lights or use camera flash bulbs until the chemist is satisfied that no dangerous vapours are present.
* Do not taste any powder or liquids. Lethal poisons such as strychnine hydrochloride will be present.
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Secure the premises and detain all persons found at the scene.
Action with detained persons
** As soon as possible put disposable
plastic gloves on all persons.
* Take them away from the imme-
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diate area of the factory.
Remove outer garments of the suspect's clothing and pack in poly- thene bags. Ensure that each item
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of clothing from each detained person is packed separately.
A police officer to carefully wash his own hands and finally take a cotton wool swab from his hands to ensure that they are free of drug traces. Swab to be packed as an exhibit and later analysed. Remove disposable plastic gloves from the suspect and place in an exhibit bag.
Police officer to take swabs (using previously prepared damp cotton wool) from hands of detained per- sons, including the tops of their fingernails. Pack swabs as exhibits. * Finger nails to be cut and cuttings from each hand to be packed separately as exhibits.
* Comb hair and retain comb and
any debris as exhibit.
Exhibits officer to prepare a detailed sketch plan of the premises showing the exact location of every exhibit. Experts to visit the scene in the fol- lowing order:
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Photographer-close-ups of any traces or splashes are very im- portant. Fingerprints—if it is necessary to remove exhibits for examination, ensure that they are replaced in their original position before seizure by the exhibits officer.
Splashes of heroin can often be found on the walls or on the material covering the walls in a room where heroin is being manufactured. (KT/CR/2147/73)
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Forensic Chemist-he will make an initial examination at the scene and will give advice on the nature of exhibits to be seized. Check walls and floors for splashes or traces of heroin. If possible seize items containing these, such as a carpet. If not, take swabs from the walls etc.
Seize exhibits
* Each room is given a letter, A, B,
C...
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Exhibits to be seized are obtained in a clockwise manner and num- bered in order, A1, A2 . . . Exhibits located on top of one another or in some way closely linked are numbered Ala, Alb... Seize an item from each room which is not connected with the manufacturing process as a control sample. These are submitted to the laboratory to ascertain the presence or absence of traces of drugs. They can be of value when prosecuting the case and rebutting the defence that traces of drugs on the detained persons are the result of adventi- tious contact.
Seize curtains and any extractor fans if there is no obvious evidence that manufacturing has taken place.
After seizing all exhibits recheck the scene for any hidden compart-
ments.
Seize personal items of each suspect to connect him to the premises. Also, seize any keys connected with the premises found in the suspect's possession. This rebuts the defence that he is a casual visitor.
* Seize documents to establish who is residing at the premises, for example receipts for rent, electri- city, water, and television, as well as personal letters etc. Surveyor to prepare plans of the premises.
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