INTRODUCTION TO

CRIMINAL
INVESTIGATION
• A criminal investigation is usually conducted by law
enforcement officers who has the responsibility to
identify, collect, and gather pieces of evidence at the
crime scene for a specific purpose.
• Criminal investigation is an applied science that involves the
study of facts that are then used to inform criminal trials. A
complete criminal investigation can include SEARCHING,
INTERVIEWS, INTERROGATIONS, EVIDENCE
collection and preservation, and various methods of
investigation. Modern-day criminal investigations commonly
employ many modern scientific techniques known
collectively as forensic science.
• Applied science is the application of
existing scientific knowledge to practical
applications, like technology or inventions.
 SEARCHING

• Search and seizure is a procedure used in many civil law

and common law legal systems by which police or other
authorities and their agents, who, suspecting that a crime
has been committed, commence a search of a person's
property and confiscate any relevant evidence found in
connection to the crime.
 INTERVIEW

• The goal of an investigative interview is to obtain accurate,

reliable and actionable information. The method aims at
maximizing the likelihood of obtaining relevant information
and minimize the risks of contaminating evidence obtained in
police questioning.
 INTERROGATION
• It is the most serious level of questioning a suspect, and
interrogation is the process that occurs once reasonable grounds
for belief have been established, and after the suspect has been
placed under arrest for the offence being investigated. Reasonable
grounds for belief to make such an arrest require some form of
direct evidence or strong circumstantial evidence that links the
suspect to the crime.
 DIRECT EVIDENCE

• Evidence in the form of testimony from a witness

who actually saw, heard, or touched the subject of
questioning. Evidence that, if believed, proves
existence of the fact in issue without inference or
presumption.
 EXAMPLES OF DIRECT EVIDENCE INCLUDE:
• Security camera footage showing a person breaking into a store and
stealing items;
• An audio recording of a person admitting to committing a crime;
• Ballistics tests that show a bullet was fired by a specific firearm;
• Eyewitness testimony that a person saw the defendant commit a
crime;
 CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE

• It is proof of a fact or set of facts from which one

could infer the fact in question. For example, that a
suspect is seen running away from a murder scene
with a weapon in hand is circumstantial evidence he
committed the murder.
 EVIDENCE

• The means sanctioned by the Rule of court, as

ascertaining in a judicial proceeding, the truth
respecting a matter of facts( Rules on
Evidence).
 MEANS SANCTIONED BY RULES OF COURT

• Sanctions, in law and legal definition, are penalties or other

means of enforcement used to provide incentives for
obedience with the law, or with rules and regulations.
Criminal sanctions can take the form of serious punishment,
such as corporal or capital punishment, incarceration, or
severe fines.
 AS ASCERTAINING IN A JUDICIAL
PROCEEDING

• Evidence, in law, any of the material items or

assertions of fact that may be submitted to a
competent tribunal as a means of ascertaining the
truth of any alleged matter of fact under investigation
before it.
• To the end that court decisions are to be based on truth founded on evidence,
a primary duty of courts is to conduct proper proceedings so as to hear and
consider evidence. The so-called law of evidence is made up largely of
procedural regulations concerning the proof and presentation of facts,
whether involving the testimony of witnesses, the presentation of documents
or physical objects, or the assertion of a foreign law.
• The many rules of evidence that have evolved under
different legal systems have, in the main, been
founded on experience and shaped by varying legal
requirements of what constitutes admissible and
sufficient proof.
 THE TRUTH
• A. The ultimate objective of the rules of evidence is to render justice by arriving at the
truth of a matter in dispute i.e by knowing the facts and the meaning of these facts .
• b). Factual or moral truth- the truth which the court seeks to know
• C. Judicial truth- the truth as found by the courts based on the evidence presented to it
• d) Ideal or perfect justice- when the judicial truth is likewise the factual truth.

•
 RESPECTING A MATTER OF FACTS
• the fact to be established or the point in controversy must be capable
of being proven or ascertained by the rules of evidence. The rules do
not apply and cannot be used to answer questions or controversies
involving religion or faith; dogma, philosophy, literature, fantasy or
fiction or those which are purely speculative.

•
• A criminal investigator looks for clues and evidence
to determine whether a crime has been taken place. If
a crime has been committed, the investigation; to
identify the guilty party, to locate the guilty party: and
provide evidence of his guilt.
 THE ETYMOLOGY OF CRIMINAL
INVESTIGATION
• The word investigation came from the old French
investigacion which means “a searching into” and from the
latin word “investigationem” which means “a searching for”.
Investigation therefore refers to searching into either
individual or properties.
 THE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
• Criminal Investigation refers to the collection of facts to accomplish
the threefold aim:

• to identify the guilty party,

• to locate the guilty party:
• and to provide evidence of his guilt
through criminal proceedings.
• Criminal Investigator is a law enforcement
officer who are trained, disciplined and
experienced to conduct criminal investigation
and the one who can carry the objectives of
criminal investigation.
• The investigator is sometimes called the superstar in the
process of investigation in which in all instance’s investigator
use his discretion – the wise use of his judgement.
• When to Investigate? The police officer initially
conducts investigation when one of the following
occur;
complaint filed
• crime committed or crime is in progress
•3. drug related offense
•
• 5. operation of organized crime
•
• Organized crime is a category of transnational,
national, or local groupings of highly
centralized enterprises run by criminals to
engage in illegal activity, most commonly for
profit.
• 6. suspect is under arrest & detention
•
• 7. suspect is at large and or fugitive from
justice
 “AT LARGE”

• It means the suspect is not under arrest or

detention not being a wanted person in the eyes
of the law, and therefore cannot be lawfully
arrested without a warrant.
 FUGITIVE FROM JUSTICE”

• This is obtained when “an individual who, after

having committed a criminal offense, leaves the
jurisdiction of the court where such crime has taken
place or hides within such jurisdiction to escape
prosecution.
• Is necessarily an escape from detention or an escaped
from prisoner while serving by virtue of a final
judgement rendered by a court of competent
jurisdiction who can be legally arrested (par. C, Sec 5,
Rule 113, Rules of Court) without the necessity of a
warrant of arrest.
• As a general rule; in all criminal investigation or proceedings
probable cause must be well established. Without probable
cause, police cannot arrest a person nor avail the issuance of
warrant of arrest or search warrant.
• Probable Cause means the facts and circumstance that
would endanger a well-grounded belief that a crime
has been committed and the person to be arrested
committed it.
 PHASES OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION’

• 1. The identification of criminal.

• 2. The criminal is traced, located and arrested.
• 3. The pieces of evidence to prove the guilt of the accused are
gathered.
• 4. Pieces of evidence are presented in court.
 THE CONCEPT OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
AS AN ART AND A SCIENCE

• Criminal Investigation is an ancient science that may

have roots as far back as 1700 BC.
•  It is a science because it involves the application of
knowledge of forensic sciences in the process of
identifying, locating, collecting, processing, and/ or
evaluating physical evidences.
 GOALS OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
1. To determine whether a crime has been committed.
2. 2. To legally obtain information or evidence.
3. 3. To identify persons involved (suspects/ victims/ witnesses.)
4. 4. To arrest suspects.
5. 5. To recover stolen properties.
6. 6. To present the best possible case to the prosecutor.
 IMPORTANCE OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION

• 1. It provides the facts of a crime and provide with solutions.

• 2. It helps the five pillars of the Criminal Justice System in recognizing
and identifying criminal and provide justice to offended party, offender
(as the case maybe,) and in promoting social justice.
• 3. An aid in enforcing the laws and the protection lives and properties.
• As a general rule, all crime incidents must be recorded in the
official police blotter – is a 18”x12 logbook that contains the
daily registry of all crime incident reports, official summary
of arrest, and other significant events reported in the police
station.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF AN INVESTIGATOR:

• 1. KNOWLEDGEABLE, this refers to the

investigator who exhibit understanding about
crime, evidence, law, to include the suspect and
the victim.
• 2. PERSEVERANCE, refers to the steadfastness,
persistence and resolution to bring the desired
conclusion in spite of obstacles connected with
criminal investigation.
• 3. ENDURANCE, this refers to the ability of
the investigator to withstand hardship in the
conduct of investigation to include the ability to
last physically and mentally.
• 4. HONEST AND INTEGRITY, the investigator must
always observe the moral conviction of doing the
right thing in all circumstances. There is the ever
temptations of money, women and drinks, etc., that
influence the result of investigation.
• 5. THE INTELLIGENCE AND WISDOM OF SOLOMON,
this is very important in order that the investigator could
easily decipher falsehood from truth and separate the gain
from the chaff as king Solomon did when he settled disputes
of child`s ownership between the two mothers.
• 6. ACTING ABILITY, it is the ability to go down to
the level of the subject (minor, the Prostitute or the
slum dwellers, or the level of the other professionals
or the members of the elite.
• 7. GOOD IN ORAL AND WRITTEN
COMMUNICATION, this is the ability of the
investigator as he mingles with the community to
include in making a concise report.
• 8. THE KEEN POWER OF OBSERVATION AND
DESCRIPTION, these are very important in crime
scene investigation and in interview and interrogation.
9. COURAGE, it is the moral fortitude to tell the truth
no matter who will be hurt.
• 10. THE POWER TO “READ BETWEEN THE LINES, this
is the ability of the investigator to interpret the words or
phrases encountered in the process of investigation in their
deeper meaning in order to arrive with an accurate meaning of
a certain statement.
• 11. KNOWLEDGE OF MARTIAL ARTS AND
FIREARMS PROFIENCY, this will help the
investigator in defending himself when confronting,
arresting, and interrogating the suspect.
 OTHER QUALITIES OF INVESTIGATOR

• A. Superior reasoning ability – the ability to analyze

logically a multitude of facts and determining how they
interrelate. This is related to critical thinking.
• -This method of reasoning challenges one to adopt an attitude
of fair-mindedness, intellectual caution and openness to
questioned common or assumed beliefs.
 B. IMAGINATION AND CURIOSITY

• Imagination- is forming mental images of what is

not present or creating new Ideas by combining
previous experiences.
• Curiosity- is a desire to learn
• C. Intuition- immediate apprehension or cognition,
quick and ready insight.
D. Observation ability- the ability to observed, noting
and recording of facts (using the sense of seeing and
hearing)
 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF CRIMINAL
INVESTIGATION

• This code of Hammurabi ruled from 1792 to

1750 BC
• Is considered to be the oldest known code of law from the Old
Babylonian period. The code is also one of the earliest
examples of the idea of presumption of innocence, and it also
suggest that both the accused and accuser have the
opportunity to provide evidence.
• It consists of 282 laws, with scaled punishments
known as Lex Taliones which means “an eye for
an eye, a tooth for a tooth”
 ONE OF THE BEST KNOW LAWS FROM
HAMMURABI`S CODE WAS:

• Ex. Law #22: “If any one is committing a

robbery and is caught, then he shall be put
to death”
• Ex. Law #129: “If the wife of a man has been caught
lying with another man, they shall bind them and
throw them into the waters. If the owner of the wife
would save his wife then in turn the king could save
his servant.”
• Ex. Law #196: “If a man destroys the eye of another
man, they shall destroy his eye. If one breaks a man`s
bone, they shall break his bone.
• ; 5th CENTURY B.C., ROME: Rome created the first specialized
investigative unit. It was named as QUESTORS or TRACKERS of
MURDERER. Roman civilian accepted the role of quasi police with a
sense of civic responsibility, they often made citizen arrest.
• 6th CENTURY B.C. ATHENS: Unpaid magistrates (judges), were
appointed by the citizens to make decisions for the cases presented to them.
 TIME OF ALFRED THE GREAT

• In the later part of the 19th Century, England`s king,

Alfred the Great established a system of “multiple
pledge” (social control), which organized for the
security of the country into several levels:
• 1. TEN TITHING – One hundred persons are grouped into
one under the charge of a High Constable.

• 2. TITHING – Ten persons are grouped together to protect

one another and to assume responsibility for the acts of the
group`s members. The one who heads this group is called
Tithing Man
• *SHIRES* - The divisions of a specific geographic
area. It is being controlled by the king and governed
by a Shire-reeve, or Sheriff.
 TIME OF EMPEROR AUGUSTUS

• At about the time of Christ, Rome: The Roman

Emperor Augustus picked out special, highly
qualified members of the military to form the
following.
• 1.PRAETORIAN GUARD – This was considered the first
police officers; their job is to protect the palace and the
emperor.
• 2. PRAEFECTUS URBI – Their function is to protect the
city. They have both executive and judicial power.
• 3. VIGILES OF ROME – The vigiles began as fire fighters, they were
eventually also given law enforcement responsibilities and they
patrolled Rome`s streets day and night. They vigiles could be
considered the civil police force designed to protect citizens.
• It is form them that the word “VIGILANTE” came from.
 TIME OF WINCHESTER

• 1285 A.D England: THE STATUTE OF

WINCHESTER was enacted establishing a
rudimentary criminal justice system in which most of
the responsibility for law enforcement remained with
the people themselves.
 THESE STATUTES OR LAWS WERE
PROMULGATED BY WINCHESTER.
• 1. The Watch and Ward Act
• 2. Hue and Cry System
• 3. Parish Constable
• 4. Keeping weapon at home for family security
•  1720`s, England: JONATHAN WILD – a master criminal
who became the London`s most Effective criminal
investigator.
• - He was the most famous THIEF-CATCHER in 1720`s. He
conceived the idea of charging a fee for locating and
returning stolen property to its rightful owners.
•  1750`s, England: HENRY FIELDING – He was
the creator and a magistrate of the Bow Street
Runners; he formed a group of police officers
attached to the Bow Street Court, not in uniform
performing criminal investigating functions.
•  1753, England: JOHN FIELDING – The “blind”
younger brother of Henry Fielding who took over the control
of the Bow Street Court in 1753. He also introduced the
practice of developing informants, printing wanted notices,
employing criminal raids, and bearing firearms and handcuffs.
•  1800, London: PATRICK COLQUHOUN – A prominent
London President who proposed the unique idea of creating
sizeable uniformed force to police the city of London in order
to remedy the public outcry concerning the increase of
criminality during the early 1800s.
•  811, France: EUGENE “FRANCOIS” VIDOCQ –
Established a squad of ex-convicts to aid the Paris Police in
investigating crimes. He worked under the theory of “Set a
thief to catch a thief.”
• -He is credited, as the founder of La Surete, France`s National
Detective Organization.
•  1829, London: ROBERT PEELS – The founder
and chief organizer of London Metropolitan Police.
He introduced the techniques in detecting crimes such
as detective concealing themselves, and secretly
photographing and recording conversation.
•  1835, TEXAS RANGERS was organized as
the first law enforcement agency with statewide
investigative authority. This is the forerunner of
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
•  (1847 – 1915), Dr. HANS GROSS – The earliest advocate
of criminal investigation as a science. Gross was a native of
Austria, born in Graz. Educated in law, he became interested
in investigation while serving as an examining magistrate. He
became a professor of Criminology at the University of
Vienna.
•  1852, U.S.A: CHARLES DICKENS is a great
novelist in which through his story entitled bleak
house, he introduced the term detective to the English
Language.
•  1852, U.S.A: ALLAN PINKERTON. This individual truly
deserves the title of “America`s Founder of Criminal
Investigation.”
• -Among methods pioneered by Pinkerton were; “shadowing,
roping, undercover.”
• -They work with the motto “We never sleep.”
•  1856, U.S.A: KATE WAYNE: The first woman detective in the
history of criminal investigation. She was hired by the Pinkerton Agency
and contributed to the resolutions of big cases of the United States of
America.
•  1909 – 1924 JOHN EDGAR HOOVER – He became the head of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation, which was established by the attorney
general from 1909 to 1924.
•  1866, U.S.A: THOMAS BYRNES
• -He is an unusually keen-minded individual who trained
his detectives in recognizing individual criminal
techniques. He founded the criminal “modus operandi,”
or method/ mode of operation.
•  1866 Liberty, Missouri, USA: THE JESSIE JAMES
GANG
• -Made the first hold-up which marks the beginning of the
gang`s 15 year hold-up and robbery spree (12 bank hold -ups
and 12 train robberies in 11 states). Clay County Savings
Association (CCSA) was their first victim and their take
$60,000,000.00.
•  1882, France: ALPHONSE BERTILLON
• -A French Police Clerk who introduced and established the
first systematic identification system based on the
Anthropological Signalment (Anthropometry).
• -He is considered as the founder of Criminal Investigation in
France.
•  1954, U.S.A: Dr. PAUL KIRK – The best-
known Criminalist who headed the Department
of Criminalistics at the University of California,
USA.
•  1966, U.S.A: MIRANDA vs ARIZONA – The US
Supreme Court established procedural guidelines for taking
criminal confession. The case is the origin of the present
Miranda rights of every accused under the custody of police.
• o MIRANDA RIGHTS originated from the American
jurisprudence. Mr. Ernesto Miranda, a Latino was accused of
KIDNAPPING and RAPE in the State of Arizona. The
Arizona Police interrogated Mr. Miranda exhaustedly leading
to his confession.
• o It was in this case, entitled Miranda vs Arizona (Ernesto
Miranda versus State of Arizona, USA) that the US Supreme
Court laid down the constitutional rights of the accused
during the custodial interrogation. It was incorporated in our
1973 Constitution and later in the 1987 Constitution of the
Philippines. This is known as the Miranda Rule, Doctrine, or
Warning.
 THE LAW OF PNP APPLICABLE IN CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION;

• 1. 1987 PHIL CONSTITUTION, Art 16, Sec 6 = “The state

established and maintained one police force, which shall be
NATIONAL IN SCOPE AND CIVILIAN IN CHARACTER,
to be administered and controlled by the National Police
Commission. The authority of the local executives over the
police shall be provided by law.”
• 2. RA No. 4864 = The law otherwise known as the Police Act of 1966; it
created the Office of the Police Commission (now National Police
Commission). It shall be their duty preserve peace and order; prevent the
commission of crimes; protect life, liberty and property; and arrest all
violators of laws and ordinances within their jurisdiction. They shall
exercise the general powers to make law. They shall detain an arrested
person only within the period prescribed by law. Approved September 8,
1966 authored by Cong. Teodulo C. Natividad.
• 3. RA No. 6975 = The creation of BFP, BJMP and
PNP under the Department of Interior Local
Government (DILG) Act of 1990. Subsequently were
given the privilege either to join the AFP or the PNP
within the period as provided therein.
• 4. RA No. 8551 = The PNP Reform and
Reorganization Act of 1998 which is now the
operational law that governs over the PNP, Approved
February 25, 1998.
• 5. RA No. 7438 = An act defining certain right
of person arrested, detained or under custodial
investigation.