CSI in the Sky: Students learn how drones aid investigations

Twenty-five Trine University students, along with high school students from Angola and Kendallville, learned how learned how drones aid law enforcement during a special presentation on Oct. 20.

During the “Drone Detectives: CSI in the Sky” event, the Fort Wayne Police Department Pilot Investigation Team, hosted by Trine’s Cold Case Unit, set up a crime scene in the parking lot of the university’s Best Hall, then flew drones to demonstrate searches, documentations and investigations.

A projection screen allowed those on the ground to see what the information conveyed by the drones.

Piecing together the scene from above

Lillian Dafforn, a criminal justice major from Churubusco, Indiana, said she was particularly interested in how the drone could piece together a crime scene using images taken from different mapping points.

She plans to work for the Department of Natural Resources, which uses thermal drones to help find missing persons or use drones in general to cover more area at a faster pace.

“The knowledge they brought about the different uses for drones was amazing,” she said.

Faith Owen, a criminal justice major from Garrett, Indiana, who plans to work in crime scene investigations and crime analysis, said she attended the event to learn more about how the Fort Wayne Police Department utilizes advanced technology in everyday crime scene investigations.

“Before attending this event, I was not fully aware of how advanced technology use has become in the criminal justice field,” she said. “Now, I have a much better understanding of how drones can be used in the process of investigating crime scenes, documenting evidence and capturing key details in crimes in an efficient, timely manner.”

She was particularly interested when the specialists had one of their drones run a pre-programmed route.

“The drone was able to scan the scene from above within several minutes,” she recalled. “The photographs obtained from this route are high-quality and can be meshed together in a short period of time. It was fascinating how this 3D model proved to be much more efficient compared to typical crime scene investigation methods. The drones sped up the process of gathering photographs of the scene and documenting evidence, as well as measurements between key points.”