The Kent Police Department this week credited the King County Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) with playing a critical role in solving crimes throughout 2023.
Kent Police Commander Bava shared recent statistics, revealing that the department was the most frequent user of AFIS services in King County, accounting for 25% of the system’s workload.
AFIS is a specialized unit within the King County Sheriff’s Office that processes crime scenes for fingerprint evidence. These scenes can range from auto thefts to murder investigations, each presenting unique challenges for obtaining usable prints. According to the department, AFIS successfully retrieved valuable fingerprints in 82% of the cases in which they were called, leading to the identification of 1,478 suspects.
In 2023, Kent officers called upon AFIS to assist in processing a wide range of crime scenes, with auto thefts being the most frequent at 370 scenes. Other significant case types included commercial burglaries (132), robberies (62), and carjackings (33). The successful use of AFIS has been a key factor in Kent’s efforts to combat crime and bring offenders to justice.
Here’s the table with the breakdown of cases AFIS responded to in Kent in 2023:
CASE TYPE | # OF SCENES IN 2023 |
---|---|
Auto Theft | 370 |
Commercial Burglary | 132 |
Robbery | 62 |
Residential Burglary | 28 |
Vehicle Prowl | 10 |
Assault | 27 |
Carjacking | 33 |
Death Investigation | 15 |
Theft | 13 |
Hit & Run Injury | 1 |
Malicious Mischief | 5 |
Eluding | 3 |
Hit & Run Property | 2 |
Kidnapping | 3 |
Other (see note) | 4 |
Harassment | 1 |
Home Invasion | 1 |
Larceny | 1 |
Possession of Stolen Property | 2 |
Rape/Sexual Assault | 1 |
Suspicious Circumstances | 2 |
TOTAL | 716 |
The department noted that while officers can still collect fingerprints at crime scenes, AFIS is typically called in for more complex or severe cases where their specialized expertise can make a significant difference.
“Major atta boy to our Officers and Detectives for aggressively using this awesome team and their tools to ID Kent’s suspects,” police said.