Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Robber Pleads Guilty After Leech Provides DNA

Posted by samzenpus on from the blood-sucker dept.

Australian police were able to use blood DNA from a leech to convict a man of a 2001 armed robbery. Peter Alec Cannon had picked up a leech near a safe at the scene of the crime. Forensic scientists took a sample of blood from the leech and that DNA profile was found to be a match to Cannon's after he was arrested and charged for another crime. And he would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for those meddling scientists and that mangy Annelida.

3 comments

  1. ...leeches by fireball84513 · · Score: 1

    leeches never lie!

    --
    "Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
  2. I'm trying to visualize a location... by John+Hasler · · Score: 1

    ...where one could "pick up a leech near a safe". Australians keep their money in swamps?

    --
    Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
    1. Re:I'm trying to visualize a location... by Spugglefink · · Score: 1

      Reading TFA, it sounds to me like the guy picked up a leech on his way to the robbery and happened to notice, remove, and discard it at the scene of that crime.