Danish police fingerprint error may have allowed criminals to escape justice

A major error in the Danish police fingerprint system, AFIS, has potentially allowed criminals to evade justice. Between 2014 and 2023, fingerprint coding was missing from thousands of criminal cases, preventing the connection of crime scene evidence to potential suspects.

The error was discovered in 2023 by an investigator from the National Unit for Special Crime (NSK), but the National Police (Rigspolitiet) did not inform the Independent Oversight of Evidence until 2025. Danish Justice Minister Nicolai Wammen has issued sharp criticism regarding the delay in reporting such a serious flaw.

An investigation by NSK into 10 percent of the affected cases revealed matches between individuals and 77 pieces of evidence across 35 serious criminal cases. While the National Police stated that fingerprints alone cannot serve as sole evidence in a trial, they are currently reviewing the status of these cases to determine the full extent of the impact.