NAB establishes forensic science laboratory

Facilities include digital and fingerprint forensics

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has established a forensic science laboratory to help with investigations of corruption cases.

Cutting the ribbon for the laboratory, NAB Chairman Qamar Zaman Chaudhry said that a concept of combined investigation team (CIT) had been introduced where investigation and prosecution officers are now working as a team to ensure transparency and merit in the conduct of investigations, a statement said.

“NAB is using all its resources to come up with the expectations of the nation as we consider the eradication of corruption our national duty,” he said.

He added that the forensic science lab includes facilities for digital forensics, fingerprint forensics and for verifying questionable documents.

The lab would help retrieve documents from electronic devices such as cell phones, computers, iPads and networks and its preservation to determine who the author of questionable handwriting, identity questionable typescripts and printed documents to detect forgeries in questioned documents to determine interpolation, additions or overwriting and substitution of papers, and to work on questionable fingerprints for comparison and identification purposes.

He added that under the proactive approach, NAB had been engaging different governmental and non-governmental organisations and civil society in its fight against corruption.

Chaudhry said that with the help of this properly functioning lab, investigation officers probing different high-profile corruption cases would be able to conduct complaint verifications, inquiries and investigations transparently and on merit. The NAB chief said that the anti-corruption watchdog recognises the centrality of training as a tool for improvement and maintaining the quality of its manpower.

He said that a standardised syllabus for all investigation officers, refresher and capacity building courses on accounts, general financial rules, digital forensic of questionable documents and fingerprint analysis had been formulated by NAB to ensure quality and uniformity. It would also help NAB in achieving standard application of SOPs, laws and rules, he added.

The performance objectives of training programmes would be continuously evaluated so as to form a basis for subsequent review and improvements in future training needs, he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 7^th, 2017.