Sonia Geremia
Victoria Police Major Crime Fingerprint Unit

(1 day session)

Sonia is a Fingerprint Expert attached to the Victoria Police Major Crime Fingerprint Unit.  She is responsible for all fingerprint jobs generated by the Ethical Standards Department (ESD) and has examined numerous crime scenes including Homicides, Rapes, Armed Robberies, Major Drug Investigations and other major crime scenes for the purpose of recovering fingerprint evidence.  Her fingerprint expertise and evidence has been accepted by all courts within the State of Victoria including the Supreme, County, Magistrates, Coroners and Children’s courts. Sonia holds a Bachelor of Applied Biology/Biotechnology and a Diploma in Forensic Investigations/Fingerprint Investigations. She works closely with the VPFSC DVI/CBR Unit as a representative of the Victoria Police Fingerprint Branch as well as an advisor for biohazardous scenes.  Sonia has worked with the NSW Police Forensic Counter Terrorism and DVI Unit in relation to microbiological aspects of CBR.  She has undertaken Live CBRN Agent Training in Canada handling blister agents such as Sulphur Mustard, and nerve agents such as VX and Sarin.  She has undertaken training in all phases of Disaster Victims Identification (DVI).  Sonia has attended CBR scenes for the purpose of sampling and fingerprint examination, as well as DVI scenes, such as the Kerang Train Crash in 2007.

Recovery of Fingerprint Evidence in Hot Zones Workshop

The aim of this workshop is to share information in regards to Victoria’s capabilities in the recovery of latent fingerprints and the fingerprinting of deceased persons from contaminated scenes using all levels of personal protective equipment (PPE).

Basic fingerprinting techniques have been adapted to allow the safe recovery of fingerprint evidence from within a “hot zone”.  This workshop will describe the techniques used for each level of PPE, the challenges faced and potential problem areas.

It will be divided into two sections: 1. Recovery of Latent Fingerprints
2. Fingerprinting of Deceased Persons for the Purpose of Identity

This is an exciting and evolving area within the Victoria Police Fingerprint Branch in which extensive theoretical and practical research has been done, and improvements continue to be made.