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Steve Swain, a former Detective Chief Superintendent with the Met Police Counter Terror Unit (PICTU) during the time of the 9/11 attacks, brings with him a wealth of frontline operational experience in criminal investigation.

He takes over the leadership of 3rd Forensic at a time when the company’s innovative technology is already delivering significant benefits to front-line officers at the Met in their fight against crime and disorder; and plans have been laid to extend these benefits to other law enforcement organisations, both in the UK and overseas.

Working closely with the Met, the expert team at 3rd Forensic has developed a world first in image management technology - the “FILM” database (Forensic Image Linking and Management). FILM enables police teams to get far more benefit from image evidence than has previously been possible – making effective use of images from CCTV and other sources, in the same way as fingerprints and DNA.

The Met is the first force in the world to adopt FILM, under the auspices of Detective Chief Inspector Mick Neville, Head of the Met Central Forensic Image Team. DCI Neville is internationally renowned for his work in promoting more effective use of CCTV to deliver performance improvements and cost savings in crime investigation and successful prosecution. As a result of DCI Neville’s work and the Met partnership with 3rd Forensic, FILM has been awarded a prestigious Home Office award for innovative security technology.

Since FILM was put into operation, the number of successful identifications of suspects in CCTV images in London has increased from the previous level of only three per cent to over 13 per cent.

In Operation Withern, dealing with the crime and disorder associated with the London street riots in 2011, FILM was confirmed as highly beneficial, even when a suspect’s facial features were not visible in any of the CCTV images gathered. When, as so often happens, a face is hidden by a balaclava, scarf or hood, identification can be made using the wealth of other descriptive data held in FILM.

For an interview with Steve or a demonstration of FILM contact Carol Jenkins on 07786132375

Note for Editors - FILM - Forensic Image Linking & Management – from 3rd Forensic

1 FILM: Summary:
• Greater Crime-Fighting Productivity - many more images from CCTV etc. gathered & processed;
• Improved Intelligence - from combined details of image data and crime data;
• More identifications - leading to more arrests and convictions.

2 FILM – An effective new tool in the fight against crime and disorder:
2.1 To retain public confidence and operate effectively in the current economic climate, police forces are turning increasingly to new technology to achieve their goals. The pressure for improved efficiency includes a war on excessive bureaucracy and paperwork; but it also means a concerted effort to exploit opportunities for improved cost-effectiveness in all areas of policing.
2.2 3rd Forensic Limited exists to help Law Enforcement teams achieve these goals by providing software solutions delivering more efficient and cost-effective ways to combat crime and disorder. In partnership with the MPS (Metropolitan Police Service), 3rd Forensic is focussing on the potential for images, captured from CCTV, mobile ‘phones, social media, custody suites, etc, to be used much more effectively in the fight against crime and disorder than has previously been possible.
2.3 The 3rd Forensic FILM solution is based on proprietary, award-winning image management software specifically designed to deliver game-changing results in this area. Developed in close collaboration with the Metropolitan Circulation Unit (MetCU), FILM is now a vital part of the overall image and crime case management system pioneered and established by the MetCU team.
2.4 FILM’s comprehensive software combines images and crime data and delivers accurate image search, linking and management capabilities. Using FILM, the MPS is proving that a disciplined image-based approach can be as valuable in the fight against crime and disorder as fingerprinting or DNA – and is often significantly more cost-effective. It is also clear that in many cases where neither fingerprint nor DNA evidence is available, effective image management is the only way that these crimes can be tackled. With FILM, identification of suspects is faster and crimes can be resolved more speedily and at lower cost than was previously possible.
2.5 For instance, the MPS team working on Operation Withern in the wake of the London street riots has acknowledged that without FILM it would have been impossible for them to process effectively all the CCTV images they had on their hands. In 2012, the MPS announced that

“In response to the challenges of managing such quantities of images of offenders, the Metropolitan Police Service has procured 3rd Forensics’ FILM system to allow the efficient cataloguing and searching of wanted images. This system was installed during the second quarter 2012 and will significantly streamline the process of circulating images.”
(Page 128 of the MPS report on the disorder of August 2011 entitled “4 Days in August”.)

2.6 Using FILM, the MPS has achieved a dramatic drop in the number of unidentified offenders and a four-fold increase in crime clear-up arising from CCTV evidence. This major step forward is making the use of images the third forensic discipline (after fingerprints and DNA); achieving law enforcement advantages that CCTV has long promised but never before delivered.

2.7 In daily use at Scotland Yard since April 2012, FILM has been welcomed as an important forensic tool throughout the UK police and security community. At the Security & Policing Exhibition 2013, FILM was one of only two innovations chosen from a strong field in the Home Office Security Innovation Awards. In their summing up, the independent panel of judges highlighted FILM’s
“… significant impact on crime prevention, its uniqueness .….. and excellent value for money”.

The award was presented jointly to 3rd Forensic Limited, in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Service.