MORE "LOST" DNA

"Lost" DNA samples usually turn up when someone really looks for them but fortunately in this case that will not have to be relied upon. If DNA can be "lost" from a high-profile matter such as this one, it tells us a lot about how unsatisfactory it is to rely on government laboratories

A man who has fought bureaucracy for 25 years to find out who murdered his brother has now been told DNA data which could nab the killer has been lost. Brian Jones said he and his family had been forced to fight for the truth about his brother Anthony, who disappeared in Townsville in 1982. He campaigned to set up Missing Persons Week to help others find missing relatives and had fought for years to get a death certificate for Anthony. It took two decades badgering authorities before an inquest was finally held, which concluded that an unknown person had murdered the Queenslander.

The final straw came a few months ago when Mr Jones was told Brisbane's John Tonge Centre had lost a DNA profile based on mouth swabs given by his elderly father Kevin. He thought the vital information had been put on police databases six years ago when his father, now 81 and living in Perth, had given it to West Australian police. But inquiries by the Brisbane police missing persons unit found neither the police nor the JTC had any record of the DNA profile.

"The idea was if someone's body was found they could match it with the DNA," he said. "My father had to give another DNA sample. "Dad was happy to do it again, anything that would help my missing brother, but I think it's unfair to impose on an 81-year-old man like that. "It's a breach of trust. People just expect they (police) will process that sort of thing in a normal way and not lose it."

A Queensland Health spokeswoman said the Ombudsman was satisfied with changes the JTC had made since 2001 to prevent similar mistakes. "In July the Health Minister Stephen Robertson made a sincere apology to Mr Jones for any distress caused to him and his family," she said.

Report here




(And don't forget your ration of Wicked Thoughts for today)