91Èȱ¬

Our first case tells the story of a 24-year-old Irish nurse studying in Glasgow, who disappears after a night out with friends. Police focus on the last man she had been seen chatting to outside a nightclub, and they discover he rents a lock-up on a remote farm, where they discover her remains. But still they need tangible evidence. It takes an expert witness in soil analysis to link the suspect to the scene where the body was found. The physical evidence of the soil and the vegetation give up their secrets and help put the killer behind bars.

Our second case follows how, in December 2021, Police Scotland’s wildlife officers began an investigation into a case of suspected hare coursing – an illegal and barbaric blood sport.

Police receive a report of suspected hare coursing from eyewitnesses, and investigators are able to recover DNA from a hare carcass found at the location. They reach out to wildlife DNA specialist Dr Lucy Webster, who was responsible for a landmark conviction using dog DNA back in 2016.

Investigators then track down the suspects and retrieve DNA swabs from their dogs as crucial forensic evidence. Lucy’s lab analysis provides a partial DNA match for one of the dogs to ensure charges can be brought, leading to the conviction of three men.