A US-based firm reports it will help create a ‘DNA-Protected Community’ in Stockholm, in a trial collaboration with the Stockholm Police and three insurance companies.
The trial project, known as MärkDNA, is to cover 500 houses in Tyresö, in the southern part of the Swedish capital. Household items will be marked with the Applied DNA Sciences anti-theft product DNANet, branded in Sweden as smartDNA. The marks are designed to be forensically analyzed in an APDN lab to pinpoint the origin of the stolen object.
Should stolen items in possession of a criminal be be recovered by police, the smartDNA mark will link the criminal to the crime.
Items that are marked with the product may also be scanned instantly with an ultraviolet (UV) light, which will show the presence of the forensic mark with a bright fluorescence. Police cars in Stockholm County will be fitted with UV lights used to help find DNA-branded loot.
Warning signage and other publicity in the communities will also act as a deterrent. APDN partner Leif Svensson, CEO of Safe Solution AB, has appeared on Swedish TV about the initiative.
The participating insurance companies, which are sponsoring and financing the project, are IF, TryggHansa, and Länsförsäkringar. Others have also expressed interest in joining.
The trial is similar to one under way for several months in London, where APDN has protected over 2000 homes with the DNANet system. Two other competitor companies will participate with APDN in the trial. Visit www.adnas.com
