Abstract
Dear editor
According to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has resulted in a reduction in criminal activities globally. However, by contrast, Pakistan has experienced an increased crime rate, with the National Initiative Against Organized Crime (NIOC) reporting that crimes in Pakistan have continued unabated during the pandemic. One terrorist attack in a tribal district of North Waziristan and three different cases of large-scale drug trafficking were reported in May 2020. Further, incidents of kidnapping, rape, extortion, domestic violence, cyber-harassment and human trafficking have also been reported. Issues in governance and security during the pandemic and changing pattern of crimes necessitate novel strategies, training, infrastructure and preparedness to control COVID-19-related crimes. Criminologists have also confirmed that this pandemic is creating fresh opportunities for mafias and criminals to commit organised crimes.1,2
In May 2020, 326 personnel tested positive for COVID-19, of whom 241 were police officers. 3 The World Health Organization (WHO) defined a standard protocol and stressed the need for personal protective equipment (PPE) in deployed forces. The government of Pakistan then implemented Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CCrP) 1898, which urges the deployment of law-enforcement personnel without the use of PPE. Therefore, police officers have performed their duties without practicing safety measures. Although the government has issued standard operational protocols for law-enforcement agencies, but still crime control, legal proceedings and forensic casework analysis have become a huge challenge because COVID-19 has affected all sectors of society, including police, lawyers, forensic experts and clinicians.
As a consequence of ongoing criminal activities, even during lockdown, forensic experts and police officers continued to perform their duties, and many of them unfortunately acquired COVID-19. Later, organisations became stricter in emphasizing the need to practice safety measures. However, the availability of full PPE kits has remained limited. A full PPE kit includes gloves, face shields, N95 masks, covered boots, goggles and a full-sleeved gown. Globally, most law-enforcement agents are not provided with full PPE kits instead they are using only common surgical masks and sanitisers. So far, the existing literature has only discussed the importance of PPE for health-care professionals, while other professions, such as security and law-enforcement officers, are in situations with a similar risk.
Due to the increased crime rate in Pakistan, forensic experts are at risk of acquiring COVID-19 during death investigations, autopsies and the transfer and storage of samples. Forensic practitioners are not aware of victims’ travel or medical histories. Almost 50% of COVID-19-positive patients are asymptomatic carriers, and it has also been described that COVID-19 remains active in dead bodies for several hours. 4
Forensic science is an important part of the criminal justice system that had been relatively ignored in Pakistan for a long time. However, the government has made substantial progress in the field over the last decade. Currently there is only one fully operational state-of-the-art forensic science laboratory (Punjab Forensic Science Agency) while the other two forensic agencies in KPK and Sindh province have recently been established and will help to strengthen quality investigations in the future once they are fully operational. The current increase in crime rates during the COVID-19 pandemic has raised serious legal challenges because some workers have acquired COVID-19 due to excessive fieldwork. Police officers are dealing with a workload that is twice its normal size because the police are currently engaged in routine activities, as well as implementing Section 144 of the CCrP. Likewise, forensic experts are also regularly screened to detect the presence of COVID-19, and this additional burden of regular screening also prolongs casework proceedings.
In conclusion, both COVID-19 and the increase in crime rates are likely to cause delays in forensic casework analysis and result in challenges in legal proceedings. There is an urgent need to provide full PPE kits to law-enforcement agents, security agents and forensic scientists to minimize the spread of COVID-19 and to help prevent other pandemic-associated legal challenges.
