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2000 April Report of the Auditor General of Canada
Exhibit 7.7—A Single Fingerprint Can Lead to Numerous Convictions
On 28 February 1995, two shots were fired from a stolen van on a Montreal street, killing a man in a nearby car. The van was soon recovered, along with a single latent fingerprint on a map in the van. The print was transmitted to the central site in Ottawa. Within the hour, the gunman had been identified. When confronted with the evidence of the fingerprint identification, he agreed to become an informant. He was also convicted of five counts of murder, 13 counts of conspiracy to commit murder, and various weapon offences. His testimony aided in the arrest and conviction of numerous gang members.
Source: RCMP Performance Report to Parliament, 1998-99