Italian Murder Case Wins The 2017 DNA Database Hit Of The Year Award

New international award brings attention to the value of using criminal offender DNA database to solve crime and bring closure to victims and families

VIENNA, May 17, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Gordon Thomas Honeywell Governmental Affairs (GTH-GA) has awarded the inaugural DNA Database Hit of the Year award to the Italian Carabinieri and Polizia di Stato for its dedicated work on the Yara Gambirasio murder case.  The winning case was selected from 50 cases submitted by 15 countries, and was chosen by a panel of seven international judges with career backgrounds in forensic DNA.   The award was announced during the annual Human Identification Solutions (HIDS) Conference held in Vienna, Austria.

"The DNA Hit of the Year Award is designed to bring increased awareness to the incredible power of forensic DNA databases to solve crime and provide closure to victims and their families.  It also recognizes the dedication of investigators and forensic scientists throughout the world who use DNA databases to pursue justice," said Tim Schellberg, GTH-GA's President.  

The judges selected the Italian case from five finalist cases.  The four runner-up cases were from China, Austria, and two from the United States.  A full list of submitted cases and a presentation describing this year's award and case highlights can be found at www.dnaresource.com/hitoftheyearmain.html

Yara Gambirasio (of Brembate di Sopra, Italy) was murdered on November 26, 2010.  To identify the suspect, whose full DNA profile was found at the crime scene, Italian authorities developed the world's largest known DNA mass screen database.   Using this tool, investigators and analysts embarked on a complex and exhaustive familial DNA searching scenario that ultimately led to an arrest on June 14, 2015.  The suspect was convicted on July 1, 2016.  "I have never seen a case where so much effort was put into finding a suspect through the use of DNA.  The men and women of the Italian Carabinieri and the Polizia di Stato should be commended for their tireless work to identify the person that matched the DNA left at the crime scene," said Rock Harmon, Retired Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Alameda County, California (USA), and one of the judges for the 2017 Gordon Thomas Honeywell Governmental Affairs Hit of the Year Award.

About GTH-GA

Gordon Thomas Honeywell Governmental Affairs is globally recognized as experts in forensic DNA database policy, legislative, and law.  For nearly twenty years, consultants at GTH-GA have consulted in over 50 countries and states on legislation and policies to establish or expand criminal offender DNA databases.