Journal of Forensic Chemistry and Toxicology

Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body by applying pressure, holding & moving muscles and body tissues. This therapy releases stress and advance the function and health of the body. This therapy involves an element of trusts from massage therapists but in recent years there have been a rise in number of sexual assault by massage therapist. The therapist during massage therapy maliciously touches or passes demeaning comments to partially dressed customers. The clients after the incident do not come forward to register a complaint and some victims even feel ashamed to discuss as if they did something wrong or invited the sexual assault. Moreover, the investigating agencies are also facing difficulties in ascertaining the sexual assault charges as several cases regarding sexual assault in massage parlors are still lying pending with many laboratories due to unavailability of facilities or appropriate scientific methods. Hence, need of the hour is to unequivocally establish a technique for analysis of massage oil related sexual assault cases. In this paper inner wears of victim were analysed by two techniques i.e. ATR-FTIR and GC-MS. Various fragrance additives of massage oil alongwith some other chemical components including lignan, phytosterols, triterpene, sesquiterpene, antioxidant, saturated fatty acid, di-ester and skin conditioning agent that were originally contributed from the body odour & cosmetics/perfumery products of victim on her inner wears were detected. This research publication does have societal outreach as it makes the public at large aware about these unreported & hidden sexual crime committed by massage therapist under the guise of massage in massage parlors and delineate an urgency to apprehend these massage therapist. Their wrongful act in the guise of massage can be proved scientifically and can put them behind the bar.

The frequent use of dried chilli powder in dacoity and murder cases is routine and quite common practice in criminology. The main active ingredient is “Capsaicin” a flavonoid which is highly pungent and causes lachrymatory effects. The next most important ingredient is “Capsanthin” a carotenoid which imparts colour to chilly (Capsicum). Capsicum is normally classified by its extractable colour and this important factor determines the quality of the final product. The extractable colour was determined by American Spice Trade Association (ASTA) which refers to the international standard for measuring the extractable colour by Spectrophotometry. Our study was carried out in three stages. Stage 1 involves the utility of various solvents namely methanol, acetone, hexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate and the contribution of these solvents for efficient pigment extraction was examined thoroughly and comparatively. Stage 2 involves the utility of ASTA method for the measurement of total extractable colour of Capsicum powder by UV-Vis Spectrophotometer. Stage 3 involves the identification of any added commercially available dyes by Thin Layer Chromatography and Spectrometry. Technical Application: The uniqueness of total extractable carotenoids property is made use of in this study and helps in connecting the crime with the criminal in murder and dacoit cases and also in trade mark violation cases of comparing questioned and standard brand samples and to find out the presence of adulterants such as commercially available dyes.

Forensic photography has become an important tool in the medicolegal system, so as to it give a complete picture for investigating crime scenes. It is the easiest and effectual way to capture the crime scene, in a way what could’ve happened that even the most illustrative and descriptive words could not do. However, appropriate selection and implementation of the proper photography and computer equipment combined with effective training and correct workflow patterns is required for incorporating photography into the field of forensic practice with proper documentation. This paper highlights basic aspects to gain clear and focused photographs both in living individuals and Medicolegal Postmortem examination. The paper contains the propositions for a draft protocol for Forensic Photography in Crime Scene Examination, Medicolegal examination, postmortem examination and examination of exhibits. The authors aim to make a guiding document by virtue of their experience so as to guide the young Forensic Medicine experts/ Forensic Scientists.

Forensic autopsy plays a crucial role in death investigations. It deals with the identification of cause, manner and time since death of deceased for the judgement by criminal justice system. A thorough examination frequently leads to the efficacious of an autopsy. It initiates with the external examination of the body and further proceeds according to the history of deceased. The postmortem examination of a deceased who is expected to have a serious infectious disease that can be transmitted during autopsy called infectious autopsy. So, medical experts need to take more precautions while performing autopsies on infectious bodies. Disease could be spread in many numerous ways. Some diseases are commonly transmitted during autopsy i.e. human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), viral hepatitis B and C, and tuberculosis infections. The risk is at increasing level for obtaining these types of postmortem infections especially in the cases where the death cause is unidentified. The use of standard precautions during an autopsy can minimize the risk of the transmission of infections. The present article highlights the risk of contagious diseases during autopsy and preservation of artefacts of deceased suffering of highly infectious disease COVID -19.