UNIT 1.

HISTORY OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION

Over the years, it has become increasingly evident that the crime problem is exceeding the capabilities
of the criminal justice system to control or even contain it. In early groups known as tribes and clans, methods
existed for detecting and resolving undesirable acts. The methods used although primitive beyond as compared
today were based on assigning responsibility to a given individual or family. If a member of a particular tribal
family violated the moral code of tribe, the other family members were held responsible for detection,
apprehension, and even execution of the offending member. The following are some notable accounts relative
to investigation:

2100 B.C. Babylon

At about 1750 BC, Hammurabi, king of Babylon, created one of the first bodies of written law – The
Code of Hammurabi. The code was then implemented to detect those who refused to obey the law. It imposes
the Lex Taliones (Law of Retribution) principle where the punishment ofan offender was equal to what he did.
The principle also refers to the concept known as, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.”

5th Century B.C. (Rome). This century marked Rome for the creation of the first specialized investigative unit
which was names as Questors or Trackers or Murderers.

6th Century B.C. (Athens). This era adopted an unpaid magistrate (judge) to make decisions to the cases
presented to them. This magistrate was appointed by the citizens.

Reign of Alfred the Great

In the later part of 9th century Alfred the Great established a system of “mutual pledge” (Social
Control),which was organized for the security of the country into several levels such as the following:

1. Ten Tithing. This was done by grouping a hundred of persons into one under the charge of a High
Constable. Hue and cry were employed. The constable who was considered the first form of English
Police dealt with more serious breaches of the law.
2. Tithing. This was performed by grouping ten persons to protect one another and to assume
responsibility for the acts of the group’s members. The one who heads the group was called Chief.

Note: William Norman divided England into shires (districts) and was headed by a reeve (rules).

The Time of Christ (Rome)

The Roman Emperor Augustus picked out special, highly qualified members of the military to form the
Praetorian Guard, the Praefectus Urbi and the Vigiles of Rome. Their functions were as follows:

1. Praetorian Guard. This guard was considered too be the first police officer in Rome, with the job of
protecting the palace of Rome and the emperor.

2. Praefectus Urbi. The function of the Praefectus Urbi was to protect the city, exercising both executive and
judicial power.

3. Vigiles of Rome. The Vigiles began as fire fighters, granted with law enforcement responsibilities and
patrolled Rome’s streets day and night.They were considered as a civil police force designed to protect citizens.
They were considered quite brutal and it is where the word “Vigilante” came from.

1285 A.D., The Statute of Winchester (England)

The Statute of Winchester was enacted to establish a rudimentary justice system in which most of the
responsibility statute was promulgated by Winchester. The statute: established the following

1. Watch and Ward Act;

2. Hue and Cry System;
3. Parish Constables became primary urban law enforcement agent in England; and
4. All males kept weapons in their home for maintaining public peace.
1720’s, Jonathan Wild (England). He was a buckle maker and a brothel operator and a master criminal who
became the London’s most effective criminal investigator. He was the most famous thief catcher in 1720s. He
conceived the idea of charging a free for locating and returning stolen property to their rightful owners
(Manwong, 2004).

1749 (Henry Fielding). He founded the Bow Street Runners. This was called London’s first professional police
force (originally numbered just eight) and was considered as the foundation of all modern police forces. In
1751, Henry published a pamphlet entitled An Inquiry into the Causes of the Late Increase of Robbers, which
called for many sweeping changes in the laws and the execution of their laws Eduardo, 2008, Notes in Law
Enforcement Administration).

1753, John Fielding. As a younger half-brother of Henry Fielding, he was appointed as Henry’s personal
assistant in 1750. He also helped Henry to root out corruption and improve the competence of those engaged in
administering justice in London. He also introduced the practice of developing informants, printing wanted
notices, employing criminal raids, and bearing firearms and handcuffs. The blind John was known as the “Blind
Beak” and allegedly abled to recognize 3,000 criminals by the sounds of their voices (Eduardo, 2008, Notes in
Law Enforcement Administration).

1800, Patrick Colquhoun., Patrick Colquhoun published a book known as, “The Commerce and Policing of
the River Thames”. He was also credited for his innovation for the critical development and three decades later,
led to Robert Peel’s “new” police. Colquhoun together with Master Mariner John Harriott developed the Marine
Police Firce or sometimes known as the Thames River Police. It was said to be England’s first Police force. The
police force was designed to tackle theft and looting from ships anchored in the Pool of London and the lower
reaches of the river. The force is now known as the Marine Support Unit. Colquhoun also had the idea of a
publicly funded police force. His main contribution was the introduction of crime prevention, or preventive
policing, the fundamental principle to the English police system (Eduardo, 2008, Notes in Law Enforcement
Administration).

1811, Eugene “Francois” Vidocq (France). Eugene Vidocq established a squad of ex-convicts to aid the Paris
Police in investigating crimes. He worked under the theory of “Set a thief to catch a thief.” He introduced the
concept of “Trade Protection Society,” which became the forerunner of our present-day credit card system. For
a fee, any owner of a shop or business establishment could obtain particulars concerning the financial solvency
of now customers. He was credited as the founder of La Surete, the France’s national detective organization and
was considered as the Father of Modern Criminology in the French Police Department. He was also regarded as
the first private detective (Eduardo, 2008, Notes in Law Enforcement Administration p 5).

Dr. Edmond Locard. Edmond Locard publised L’ Enquete Criminelle et les Methodes Scientifique in 1920.
He was also a pioneer on forensic science and became known as the Sherlock Holmes of France. “Every contact
leaves a trace”. This became known as “Locard’s Exchange Principle (Eldrige, 2011).

1829, Sir Robert Peel (London). British statesman Sir Robert Peel established the London Metropolitan Police
Force (LMPF), which became the world’s first modern organized police force. (LMPF) did not only became a
model for the American police system but also had greatly influence on the style if policing in almost all
industrial societies. LMPF was guided by the concept of crime prevention as a primary police objective. It also
embodied the belief that such a force depended in the consent and cooperation of the public, Informal names
are, “the Met” and “MPS”. In statutes it is referred to in the lower case as the “Metropolitan Police Force” or
the “Metropolitan Police”, without the appendage “service”.

The MPS is also referred to as Scotland Yard after the location of its original headquarters. Police are
often referred to as ‘Bobbies’ or ‘Peelers’ after Sir Robert (Bobby) Peel. The primary role of the police in
Britain was to keep the Queen’s Peace, which continues to the present days. He also introduced the techniques
in detecting crimes such as detectives concealing themselves, and secretly photographing and recording
conversations. London Metropolitan Police employed the first undercover officer. The great contributions of Sir
Robert Peel led people to regard him the Father of Modern Policing. His most memorable principle was, “the
police are the public, and the public are the police” (Eduardo, 2008, Notes in Law Enforcement administration,
p 7).
1833, England. Scotland Yard employed the first undercover officer. In USA, the first daytime paid police
department was established in Philadelphia.

1835, Texas Rangers. Texas Ranger was organized as the first law enforcement agency with statewide
investigative authority. This is the forerunner of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

1839, William Henry Fox Talbot. William Henry Fox Talbot explained his photographic process to the Royal
Society London. This year was known as the birth of photography.

1851, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Multi-suspected identification line-up was employed for the first time.

1852, Charles Dickens (U.S.A). Charles Dickens was a great novelist in which through his story entitled Bleak
House, he introduced the term detective to the English language (Adams & Taylor, 1995).

1856, Kate Wayne (U.S.A). Kate Wayne was the first woman detective in the history of criminal investigation.
She was hired by the Pinkerton Agency, and contributed to solving big cases in the United States of America.

1859, U.S.A. The Appeliate Court of USA recognized/accepted photographs as evidence in court proceedings
upon its relevancy and after thorough verification.

1866, Thomas Byrnes (U.S.A). Thomas Byrnes was a keen-minded individual who trained his detectives in
recognizing individual criminal techniques. He founded the criminal “modus operandi.” This is a Latin phrase,
approximately translated as “Method of Operation”. The term is used to describe someone’s habits of working,
particularly in the context of business or criminal investigation. In English, it is often shortened as M.O.
(Memidex Website, 2013).

1866, Jessie James Gang (U.S.A). The gang made the first hold-up which marked the beginning of the gang’s
15 year hold-up and robbery spree (12 band hold-ups and 12 train stage robberies in 11 states). Clay County
Savings Association was their first victim and took $60,000.00.

1877 Howard Vincent (England). Howard Vincent headed the newly organized Criminal Investigation
Department in Scotland Yard. He was considered the founder of Criminal Investigation as well as the Father of
Personal Identification (Tubid, 1996). The system recorded anthropometric measurement and personal
characteristics such as color of eyes, scars, and deformities. The following measurement were taken:

1. Body: height, reach from fingertips to fingertips, length of trunk and head, or height sitting;
2. Head: length and width, length and width of right ear;
3. Limbs: length of left foot, length of left middle finger, length of left little finger, length of left forearm.
These measurement were recorded on cards and classified according to the length of the head.

1992, Francis Galton. Francis Galton is an English man who published his study on classifying fingerprints
and recognized the uniqueness of the fingerprints to be used as evidence against a suspect.

1918, England. A new concept was introduced in the field of Criminal Investigation, known as “Team
Policing.” In this concept, there is no patrol division or criminal investigation per se. In this system, a team of
police officers is assigned to patrol and investigate all criminal matters within their area of jurisdiction or
district.

1953, Paul Leland Kirk. A chemist and forensic scientist, Paul Leland Kirk is most known for his work on
blood spatter evidence. He applied this expertise on bloodstain pattern analysis to the Sam Sheppard homicide
case. He published “Crime Investigation” in 1953, one of the first comprehensive criminalistics and crime
investigation textbooks that encompassed theory in addiction to practice (Turvey, 2011). 1966, Miranda v.
Arizona (U.S.A.) The US Supreme Court established procedure guidelines for taking criminal confessions. The
case is the origin of the present Miranda rights of every accused under custodial investigation.

1977, USA. The FBI introduced the beginning of Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) with the
first computerized scans of fingerprints.
1986, England. Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) typing was first used to solve a crime. DNA is unique to every
individual and can be used for personal identification.
1987, USA. DNA profiling was introduced for the first time in US criminal court. Based on RFLP analysis
performed by Life codes, Tommy Lee Andrews was convicted of a series of sexual assaults in Orlando, Florida
(Rankin, Forensic Science Central, 2005-2014).

New York v. Castro. This was the first case in which the admissibility of DNA was seriously challenged. It set
in motion a string of events that culminated in a call for certification, accreditation, standardization, and quality
control guidelines for both DNA laboratories and the general forensic community (PBS Website, 1995-2014).

1999, USA. The FBI upgraded its computerized fingerprint database and implemented the Integrated
Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS), allowing paperless submission storage, and search
capabilities directly to the national database maintained at the FBI (Atlanta Notaries Website, 2013).

1818 – 1884, Allan Pinkerton. Being engaged in business as a barrel maker in 1846, Allan Pinkerton captured
a gang of counterfeiters and was consequently elected as a county sheriff. In 1850 he organized the Pinkerton’s
National Detective Agency and was appointed as the first city detective in Chicago. The recovery of a large sum
of money stolen from the Adams Express Company and the discovery of a plot to murder Abraham Lincoln in
1861 made way to his reputation (Manwong, 2004). During the American Civil War he recognized the secret
service of the U.S. Army. During the railroad strikes if 1887 his agency provided strikebreakers. His books
include Strikers, Communists and Tramps (1878) and Thirty Years a Detective (1884). Allan Pinkerton was
considered as the America’s foremost private detective. his individual truly deserves the title of “America’s
Founder of Criminal Investigation.” Among methods he pioneered were “shadowing,” the art of suspects
surveillance, “roping,” working in undercover capacity with a motto, “We never sleep.”

1847 – 1915 Dr. Hans Gross. Dr. Hans Gross was the earliest advocator of criminal investigation as a
scienceInterested in investigation while serving as an examining magistrate he became a professor of
Criminology at the University of Vienna (Manwong, 2004). He is also recognized today as the Father of
Criminalistics/Forensic Science.

1859 – 1930, Dr. Arthur C. Doyle. Dr. Arthur C. Doyle is a British physician, novelist, and detective-story
writer, Dr. Arthur C. Doyle is best known as the creator of the character of master sleuth Sherlock Holmes. The
characterization of Holmes, particularly his ability of ingenious deductive reasoning, was based on one of
Conan Doyle’s own university professors (Vicente, 2014 Manual on Criminal Investigation).

Dr. Alec John Jeffreys. Dr. Alec John Jeffreys used DNA fingerprinting and profiling to identify Colin
Pitchfork as the murderer of two young girls in the English midlands. Significantly, in the course of the
investigation, DNA was first used to exonerate an innocent suspect (U.S. National Library of Medicine
Website, 2014).

Flaviano Guerrero. Flaviano Guerrero is the only Filipino member of the United States Federal Bureau of
Investigation (NBI Website, 2014).

Take Note: The evolution of criminal investigation is closely similar with the historical development of
criminalistics.

Criminal Investigation in the Philippines

1901. The Criminal Investigation Service (CIS) now known as CIDG can trace its humble beginnings out of an
urgent need for a unit that would handle investigation of major crimes especially against national security, and
at the same time, free other Philippines Constabulary Units from this time-consuming and highly specialized of
criminal investigation. Hence, this crime-fighting unit came into being with the creation of Investigation Section
(IS) pursuant to Section 2 of Act No. 235 of the Philippine Commission enacted on October 3 1901 (CIDG,
Manual, 2000, p. 1).

1901 – 1919. During the American occupation, the criminal investigation service was primarily organized out
of the great necessity of the Philippine Constabulary in the investigation of crimes (CIDG Manual, 2000, p. 1)
1913. The genesis of criminal investigation in the Manila Police Department, presently known as the Western
Police District took place in 1913.

1920 – 1936. The CIS then known as the Information Service led to the successful investigation on the then
Colurom rebellion, Sakdalista Movement and the Asedillo uprising. It also became successful in suppressing
and investigating crimes including those committed against the security of the state (CIDG, Manual, 2000, p. 1).

1936 . The Division of Investigation (DI) was created by virtue of Commonwealth Act No. 181 during the reign
of the late President Manuel L. Quezon. The DI, with 45 initial members, was organized by Thomas Dugan and
Flaviano C. Guerrero and this was patterned after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of United States of
America (NBI Website, 2014).

1942 – 1945. During the Japanese occupation, the DI was affiliated with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)
and the Philippine Constabulary (PC) known as the Bureau of Investigation (BI), (NBI Website, 2014).

1946. The CIS was tapped to perform highly specialized task of investigation and intelligence work as a
criminal investigation branch of G2 (CIDG Manual, 2000, p. 1).

1947. The Bureau of Investigation was recognized by virtue of Republic Act No. 157 and the Department of
Justice became its parent agency. R.A. 157 was later amended by Executive Order No. 94 renaming the BI to
what is known now as, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI Website, 2014).

1950. The CIS was commissioned to gather intelligence and assume as the role main investigating outfit of the
Philippine Constabulary in response to the resurgence of various criminal syndicates, like the Black Shirt and
the Kamlon gang coupled with the organization of various anti-government movements, such as the
Hukbalahap (CIDG Manual, 2000, p. 1).

1987. The mandate of the 1987 Constitution establishing the National Police Force that should be national in
scope and civilian in character under the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) paved the way
for the creation of Philippine National Police (PNP). Consequently, the CIS is retained as one of the national
support units of the PNP under the name of Criminal Investigation Service Command (CISC), this distinguishes
it from the operating unit of the administrative support unit created pursuant R.A. 6975 which assumed the
name of the “Service” while operating support units assumed the name of command (CIDG Manual, 2000, p.
2).

1991. Due to the media publicity of investigations of sensational cases committed by local executives
Organized Crime Groups (OCGs), the CISC as mandated by R.A. 6975, acted as the primary investigating arm
of the PNP on major crimes, OCGs, and economic sabotage (CIDG Manual, 2000, p. 2).

1994. On September 5, 1994, the Criminal Investigation Service Command was renamed as Criminal
Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) following NAPOLCOM Resolution Nr. 92-37, with the motto “We
seek the truth.” From its humble inception up to the way, it metamorphosed to being the premier arm of the
PNP as the “Spirit and Soul of the Force” (CIDG Manual, 2000, p.2).

1996. A SOCO team was appropriately organized to meet the core mission of the Crime Laboratory which is
the National Operating Support Unit of the PNP by virtue of NAPOLCOM Resolution Nr. 96-058 (Cacdac, et
al. 2009).

Laws Relative to Criminal Investigation

1. 1935 Phil. Constitution, Art, 3 Sec. 17 (1)
"In all criminal proceedings, the accused shall... enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel..."
2. 1973 Phil. Constitution, Art 3, Sec. 20

"No person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself." That, any person under investigation for the
commission of an offense shall have the right to remain silent, to have a counsel, and to be informed of such
right. No force, intimation, or any means, which vitiate the free will, shall be used against him. Any confession
obtained in the violation of this section shall be inadmissable as evidence.

3. 1987 Phil. Constitution, Art 3, Sec. 12 (1).

 "Any peson under investigation of the commision of an offense shall have the right to be informed of his right
to remain silent and to have a competent and independent counsel preferably of his choice. If the person cannot
afford the services of a counsel, he must be provided with one. These rights cannot be waived EXCEPT in
writing, signed and in the presence of a counsel.

Related Cases:
Miranda v. Arizona (1966) It originated from the American jurisprudence. Mr. Ernesto Miranda, a Latino
who was accused of kidnapping and rape in the State of Arizona. The Arizona Police interrogated him
exhaustedly leading to his confession. Based on his confession, he was charged, tried and convicted. Appeal of
his conviction was made before the Arizona Supreme Court but his conviction was affirmed.. The appeal was
then elevated to the US Supreme Court where there was a reversal of the decision and he was a reversal of the
decision and he was acquitted on constitutional grounds. It was in this case that the US Supreme Court laid
down the constitutional rights of the accused during the custodial interrogation.. This constitutional right was
also incorporated in the 1973 Philippine Constitution and later in the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines. This
is known as the Miranda Rule, Doctrine, or Warning.

The Rights of a Person under Custodial Investigation are as follows:

1. Right to remain silent. Anything that he/she may say may be used against him/her in any court of law.

2. Right to have a counsel preferably of his/her own choice and if she/he has none, the government must
provide one for him.
3. Right to be informed of the nature of the charges against him and whatever he/she says may be used for or
against him/her; and
4. Right to be informed of such rights under constitution.
These rights could be validly waived in writing and with the assistance of a counsel in order that the ensuing
confession be admissible in evidence. The confession must also be in writing, signed and sworn to by the
accused.

In Miranda v. Arizona case, the court addressed the question oh how to enforce a suspect's right to counsel and
right against self-incrimination. The court concluded that police officers must specifically inform suspects of
these rights and inform them that if they give up these rights their statements can be used against them.

Gideon v. Wainwright (U.S., 1963) The Supreme Court that the Sixth Amendment, which guarantees criminal
defendants the right to counsel, requires state government to provide attorneys for indigent (poor) criminal
defendants.

Escobedo v. Illnois (U.S., 1964) The court held that a suspect has a right to have an attorney present when
being interrogated in police custody as well as durinh trial.

Morales v. Juan Ponce Enrile, 1983 (GR # 61016;SCRA 538) The Supreme Court of the Philippines ruled in
this case and made a clear remark that the Miranda Warning as it is generally called to have to be made so that a
confession can be admitted.

4. 1987 Phil. Constitution (Sec. 6, Art 16) The state establishes and maintains one police force, which shall be
national in scope and civilian in character to be administered and controlled by the National Police
Commission. The authority of the local executives over the police shall be provided by law."

5. Republic Act No. 7438 An act defining certain rights of a person arrested, detained and/or under custodial
investigation as well as the duties of the arresting, detaining, and investigating officers and providing penalties
for violation thereof (see Appendix B)

UNIT 2. CRIMININAL INVESTIGATION

What is Investigation? Investigation is the act or process of investigation or the condition of being
investigated. It also refers to a search or inquiry for ascertaining facts; detailed or careful examination.
Investigation came from the Latin ter, Investigat, which means "to inquire or to discover" during the 5th
century.

Definitions of Criminal Investigation

The following are the modern definitions of criminal investigation:

1. Criminal Investigation is defined as the collection and analysis of facts/truths about person, things, places that
are subjects of a crime to identify the guilty party, to locate the whereabouts of the guilty party, and provide
admissible pieces of evidence to establish in the guilt of parties involved in crime (Cael & Agas, 2000).
2. Criminal Investigation is the logical, objective, and legal inquiry involving a possible criminal activity. The
result of the inquiry, if successful, will answer the 5 W's (who, what, where, when, why) and the H (how)
questions.
3. Criminal investigation is a legal inquiry by virtue of a complaint to follow up, examine, trace, track and
search, step by step examination or process and meticulous observation, the fact of the commission of a crime,
the identity of the actors, and the circumstances attendant thereto, by careful evaluation of all available pieces of
evidence to the end that violators of the law be brought to the bar of justice, and the innocent be relieved there
from (Sadili & Pena. 1998).

4. Criminal Investigation is a lawful search for people and things useful in reconstructing the circumstances of
an illegal act or omission and the mental state accompanying it. It is the probing from the known to the
unknown, backward in time, and its goal is to determine the truth as facts as it can be discovered in any post-
factum inquiry.

5. Criminal Investigation is the collection of facts to accomplish the threefold aims:

a. to identify the guilty party;

b. to locate the guilty party; and

c. to provide evidence of his guilt (Western Police District Investigator's Handbook)

A criminal investigation is an official effort to uncover information acout a crime. There are generally three
ways that a person can be brought to justice for a criminal act. First, and probably the least likely, the individual
will be driven by his/her conscience to immediately confess. Second, an officer law can apprehend him/her in
the act. Third, and most common, a criminal investigation can identify the person as a suspect, after which
she/he may confess or be convicted by trial (Cael & Agas, 2000)

Three Elements of Crime

Crime exist through the presence of the following:

1. Motive is the moving power or force which compels a person to commit acts towards a definite result.
Generally motive is immaterial in incurring criminal liability; it is intent which is material. Motive becomes
material when the act brings variant crimes; ; there is a doubt whether the accused committed the crime or the
identify of the accused is doubtful; the evidence in the commission of crime is purely circumstantial; or the
evidence of the guilt of the accused is inconclusive (Boado, 2008 p.35)

2. Opportunity is the chance or time given to the offender in committing the crime. Without such chance or
opportunity given to the offender, there could be no crime committed. In many instances, the victims are the
ones making opportunity for the offender to commit such crime.

3. Instrumentality/Capabilty involves the use of materials and other means which are essential in the
commission of the crime. Thus, crime will occur if all the elements of crime exist. Further, if one of the
elements of crime is absent then crime will not and will never happen.

Kinds of Criminal Investigation

 Generally speaking, the two kinds of criminal investigation are investigation while the suspect is under arrest
and detention, and investigation while the suspect is at large." Legally speaking, the term "at large" is not
synonymous to "fugitive from justice." The former, not being a wanted a person before the eyes of the law and
therefore, cannot be lawfully arrested without a warrant. The latter is necessarily an escape from detention or an
escaped prisoner while serving sentence by virtue of a final judgment rendered by a court of competent
jurisdiction that can be legally arrested without the necessity of a warrant of arrest based from par. c, Sec 5,
Rule 113, Rules of Court (Nolledo, 2000).

Three Phases of Criminal Investigation

1. The criminal is identified.

2. The criminal is traced, located and arrested.

3. The fact or evidence to prove his/her guilt is gathered for introuction during trial.

Goals of Criminal Investigation

1. To determine whether a crime has been committed.

2. To legally obtain information or evidence.

3. To identify the persons involved.

4. To arrest suspects.

5. To recover stolen properties.

6. To present the best possible case to the prosecutor.

Modes of Investigation

1. Reactive Mode of the investigation addresses crimes that already happened or occurred.

2. Proactive Mode of investigation identifies and arrests suspects before crime will happen. It is designed to
catch a criminal in the act of committing a crime rather than waiting until a crime is reported by a concerned
citizen.

Is Investigation an art or science? Investigation is a mixture of an art and a science. Investigation is a science
because there are certain rules that should be followed to conduct a successful investigation and because the
pure and applied sciences play an increasingly important role in investigation. Investigation is considered as an
art because it depends on the skills of the investigation, including interpersonal communication and creativity
(Dempsey, 2007, p 30).

Criminal Investigation as an Art

Criminal investigation is considered as an art because it is not governed by rigid rules or fixed legal
procedures but most often based on intuition (logic and tested knowledge, immediate learning/consciousness)
and sometimes by chance. Most often than not, it is governed by:
a. Felicity/inspiration,
b. Intuition, and
c. Luck

It was Dr . Hans Gross who said that the criminal investigation is 95% perspiration, 3% inspiration and 2%
luck. This means that investigators should not only depend on inspiration or luck or else they will fail 95% in
their investigation. One hundred percent effort must be exerted because inspiration or luck may never come in
this way (Garcia, 2004).

Criminal Investigation as a Science

 Criminal Investigation is a science because it involves the application of knowledge of forensic sciences in
the process of identifying, locating, collecting, processing, and/or evaluating physical evidence (Manwong,
2004).

Steps in Criminal Investigation

1. Identification/Recognition of facts, information, evidence;

2. Collection of facts, information, evidence,

3. Preservation of forensic value (Legal Integrity);

4. Evaluation, processing of evidence and case; and
5. Presentation of evidence and criminal case.

Criminal Investigator Defined

Criminal investigator refers to the person who performs an investigation. Criminal investigator is also known
as prober and is considered as the superstar in the process of investigation (Cael % Agas, 2000).

. Police Investigator

Police investigator refers to a PNP uniformed personnel both Police Commissioned Officer (PCO) and the
Police Non-Commissioned Officer (PNCO's) conferred with the appropriate certification to investigate with
care and accuracy, by conducting step-by-step examination, through patient inquiry and meticulous observation,
data and other pertinent matters to support crime theories and establish relevant facts to aid in identifying the
offense and criminal offender, locating him and providing evidence of his guilt leading to the successful filling
and prosecution of the offense. A police investigator must be a graduate of Criminal Investigation Course
(CIC) for PNCO and the Investigation Officer Basic Course (IOBC) for PCO's (NAPOLCOM Circular No.
2013-002).

Police Detective

Police Detective refers to PNP uniformed personnel who was previously certified as a police investigator but
was able to complete 18 units of Master's Degree, and completed the Police Detective Course (PDC), and
acquired the requisite experience relating to investigation of cases and appearance in court duties to support the
successful filing and prosecution of offense (NAPOLCOM Circular No. 2013-002).

Case Manager

Case manager refers to a PCO who was previously certified as Police Investigator (PCO Category) but was
able to complete a Master Degree, completed the investigation Officers Management Course (IOMAC) and
recorded the number of required investigation and prosecution of cases (NAPOLCOM Circular No. 2013-002).

Roles of the Criminal Investigator

1. Determine whether a crime has been committed.

2. Identify the victim/s and the offender.

3. Locate and apprehend the offender.

4. Present evidence of guilt for the offender/s

5. Assist in case follow-up (De Vera, 2008)

Characteristics of Competent Criminal Investigator

1. Perseverance. It refers to steadfastness, persistence and resolution to bring the desired conclusion in spite
of obstacles connected with criminal investigation.

2. Endurance. This is ability of the investigator to last physically and mentally hence he/she must have the
extraordinary physical and mental energy, enduring sleepless nights and tiresome days.
3. Incorruptible honesty and integrity. This refers to the degree of honesty and integrity of the investigator on
several temptations over money that are offered to affect the investigation. Women and drinks are tricks of
temptations.

4. Intelligence and Wisdom of Solomon. This is very important in order that the investigator could easily
decipher falsehood from truth and separate the grain from the chaff.

5. Acting Activity. It refers to the ability of the investigator in stooping down to the level of a minor, the
prostitute or the slum dwellers, professionals or other members of elite during the investigation process.

6. Oral and Written Communication. Every investigator should have a basic knowledge on both oral and
written communication in probing a certain issue in order that he/she will not suffer setback in getting the
accurate facts especially in the preparation of reports and or transmittal of information. This includes the use of
appropriate words in making a report and writing observations and descriptions of places, things and events.

7. Observation and description. The investigator should be a keen observer and knows how to accurately
describe anything. This is important in crime scene investigation and conduction an interview and interrogation.

8. Courage. It is the moral fortitude of the investigator to tell the truth irrespective of who gets hurt.

9. Knowledge on Laws. The investigator should have basic knowledge on legal matters concerning
investigation.

10. The power to "read between the lines". This refers to the ability of the investigator to interpret the words
or phrases encountered in the process of investigation into their deeper meaning in order to arrive with a
concrete meaning of a certain statement.

11. Technical Knowledge. This refers to the investigators capability of defence tactics, use of firearms and the
like. In many occasions, he/she will be alone in confronting, arresting, bringing to headquarters and
interrogating the suspect (Garcia, 2004).

UNIT 3. KEY PRINCIPLES IN CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION

Criminal investigation as discussed in the preceding sections is a process that involves several steps. To
complete a criminal investigation it must include its basic elements such as: recognition, collection, preservation
evaluation and presentation in the court.

Basic Elements of Criminal Investigation

1st Element: Recognition

Recognition involves the effort of identifying data, including physical things that may provide relevant
information regarding the criminal case being investigated. That is why recognition is otherwise known as
identification stage of investigation. The earlier the significant facts are identified, the sooner the case will be
solve. Significant things that must be recognized may be in form of bloodstains at the crime scene, neighbor
who accidentally saw/witnessed a burglary in progress, or bank record of a drug dealer. These are highly
relevant facts that can be used by the investigator, to be developed on a well-founded belief that a crime has in
fact been committed.

2nd Element :Collection . Collection refers to the act of gathering those identified data or facts, or physical
things that are significant to the case under investigation. Collection maybe done by scraping the bloodstains
found at the crime scene, interviewing the neighbor who saw the burglary, or examination of drug dealer’s
bankbook.

3rd Element: Preservation

 Preservation is a function that is almost simultaneously performed during the collection stage. It
includes the act of keeping the collected pieces of evidence in their substantive value. Preservation does not
only involve the process of packaging physical evidences in order that they can be safely transmitted to the
evidence custodian or to the crime laboratory but covers the process of maintaining the objectivity of facts or
information also gathered from the testimony of witnesses, victims or other persons involve in the criminal case.

4th Element: Evaluation

Evaluation refers to the process of determining the probative value of the evidence. Probative value
refers to the strength of the evidence or its worth/weight in successfully establishing a proof that a crime has in
fact been committed and that the suspect/accused is the one who is responsible for it.

5th Element: Presentation

Presentation is the primarily manifested in the courtroom. The investigator, with the help of the
prosecutor, must be able to present facts and information in a very simple and convenient manner in order to
convince the court and other parties involved in the criminal case about the validity and truthfulness of the
evidence they are trying to prove or establish (Weston & Wells, 1997).

Cardinal Points of the Criminal Investigation

According to Manwong(2004), investigation must seek to establish the six (6) cardinal points of
investigation, namely: what specific offense was committed; how the offense was committed; when it was
committed; where it was committed; why it was committed and who are involved persons. The 5 W’s and 1 H
are further presents as follows:

A. Who Questions: These are questions used to inquire on the identity of the victims or offended party, name
of suspects accomplices accessories and witnesses of the crime such as:
1. Who reported the crime? Who discovered the crime?

2. Who saw how the crime was perpetrated?

3. Who is the victim? Who had any misunderstanding with him/her?

4. Who is the offender/perpetrator/culprit?

5. Who are the companions, associates or accomplices of the perpetrator?

B. What Questions: The purpose of these types of questions is to find out what happened or what took place
before, during and immediately after the commission of the offense. Some questions are:
1. What happened?

2. What specific actions did the suspect/victim/witness do?

3. What is the nature of the crime?

4. What was/were the weapon/s or tool/s used by the culprit?

5. What were the pieces of evidence discovered at the crime scene?

C. Where Questions: These are questions that localize the place of the incident-the city or town, the district or
barangay, the street or road, the number of the house or building. The questions necessary in pinpointing the
particular location of the crime are:
1. Where was the crime discovered?

2. Where did the offense take place?

3. Where are the victim, witnesses or culprits?

4. Where do the victims/witnesses/culprits live?

5. Where was the suspect when he was apprehended?

6. Where were the weapons or tools used in committing the crime?

7. Where did the investigator secure or obtain the evidence?

D. When Questions: These are questions needed to determine and fix the time, day, month and year when the
crime was committed. These questions such as the following should be specified and as accurate as possible
1.When was the crime committed?

2. When was it discovered?

3. When was the police notified?

4. When was the victim last seen?

5. When was the suspect arrested?

E. Why Questions: These are questions that endeavor to ascertain the motives, causes antecedents, previous,
incident, related facts background occurrences that might help explain the commission of the offense. Why
questions are as follows:
1. Why did the offender do it?

2. Why did he/she kill the victim?

3. Why didn't he/she just let the victim go?

4. Why didn't the suspect surrender?

F. How Questions: These are designed to help the investigator determine how the crime was committed, the
means/tools that were employed, how the crime was discovered and how the culprit entered the building/ room.
The following questions are very significant in preparing the modus operandi file or report:

1. How did the suspect get near to the victim?

2. How did he/she perform the crime?

3. How did the criminal get all the necessary information?

4. How did the criminal get away from the crime scene?

5. How was the crime scene search conducted?

What are the purposes of of the 5 W’s and 1 H in Criminal investigation?

1. They aid the investigator in searching the crime scene or other places which maybe sources of evidences
2. They guide the investigator in formulating questions in interviewing complainant witnesses and other
interested parties or in the process of interrogation a suspect.

3. They assist the investigator and the desk officer in making brief statements of facts in the logbook/police
blotter and in reports.

4. They help the investigator in preparing the MODUS OPERANDI report-How was the crime perpetrated?

5. They assist the investigator in funishing a brief and concise criminal investigation report (Manwong,
2004).

Patterns, Leads, Tips, and Theories

Patterns, leads, tips, and theories are components of the investigation process that enable investigators to
learn and understand the facts of the occurrence with which they are dealing.

 Patterns are series of similarities that may link particular cases or indicate that the same person is
committing a series of crimes. Patterns could include time and day, day of the week, description of the
suspect, MO, type of weapon being used, type of victim, location and other variables
  Leads are clues or pieces of information that aid in the progress of an investigation. These can be
physical evidence or information received from the witnesses or other persons or through surveillance..
Anything that can assist an investigator in resolving an investigation refers to leads.
 Tips are leads provided by the citizens that aid in the progress of an investigation. Generally, tips
involve the identity of the suspect.
 Theories pertains to beliefs regarding the basis on the evidence, patterns, leads, tips and other
information developed and uncover in the case. These are important because they direct the
investigation.
 Detectives have to be very careful in building theories about a case, because if the theory is wrong, it
may lead them in the wrong direction (Dempsey, 2007,p.37)

What is the Golden Rule in Criminal Investigation?

“Never touch, alter, move, or transfer any object at the crime scene unless it is
properly marked, measured sketched and/or photographed.”
The purpose of this rule is to avoid the mutilation, alteration, and contamination (MAC) of the pieces of
physical evidence found at the crime scene (Garcia, 2004).

Methods of Recording the Investigation

1. Photographs

2. Sketching crime scene

3. Written notes (what you have seen or observed)

4. Developing and lifting fingerprints found at the crime scene

5. Gathering physical evidence

6. Plaster cast

7. Tape recording of sounds

8. Video tape recording of objects

9. Written statements of subject(s) and witnesses (Garcia, 2004)

Tools in Criminal Investigation

The so-called three tools in criminal investigation or sometimes called 3 I’s of criminal investigation are
the Information, Interview & Interrogation, and Instrumentation.

1. Information are the knowledge or facts which the investigator had gathered or acquired from persons or
documents, which are pertinent or relevant concerning the commission of the crime or criminal activities.

Classification of Information as to Sources:

A. Regular Sources. Information were taken from records, files from the government or non-government
agencies, news items. The bulk of applications of this nature re news items. Included also are news or TV
broadcast, intercepted radio, telephone messages and stored computer area.

B. Cultivated Sources. Information are funished by informants or informers.

C. Grapevines sources. When the information are disclosed by the underworld characters such as prisoners or
ex-convicts.

Aside from the data which were gathered by the investigator from other persons including the victim himself
and from:

a. Public records
b. Private records

c. Modus Operandi file

2. Interview and Interrogation are similar in the sense that, they are both ways of obtaining information from a
certain suspect or person that has knowledge on a crime.

Terms to Understand

The following are linked terms for purposes of interview and interrogation:

1. Interviewers refers to a person who conducts interview.

2. Interviewee refers to a person being interviewed.

3. Interrogation is the person who performs skillful questioning of hostile witnesses and suspects for
purposes of obtaining confession or admission

4. Interrogee is the subject of interrogation whether a suspect or a victim.

5. Suspect denotes any person associated to the commission of a crime. A suspect may also refer to any
person, whose guilt is considered on reasonable ground to be a practical possibility.

6. Witness is a person other than the suspect, who is requested to give information concerning an incident.
He/she may be a victim, complainant an accuser, a source of information, and an observer of the occurrence,
a scientific specialist who has examined physical evidence or a custodian of official document. He/she may
be a victim, complainant an accuser, a source of information, and an observer of the occurrence, a scientific
specialist who has examined physical evidence or a custodian of official document.