Danish police fingerprint error linked to potential wrongful conviction

A major error in the Danish police fingerprint register has come to light, potentially affecting up to 10,000 criminal cases. The issue was identified after two fingerprints found on a shopping bag from a Dutch supermarket suggested that a different individual may have been the perpetrator in a hash smuggling case.

Fourteen years ago, a man was sentenced to prison for the possession of five kilograms of hashish. However, his lawyer, Jens H. Bech, argues that the client may have received a lighter sentence had the police fingerprint database functioned correctly. The discovery of the fingerprints indicates that a possible perpetrator may have escaped prosecution due to the systemic failure in the registry.