3.3. Sample collection and preparation
In 29 out of the 30 cases for this study, the conventional sample
taken from the deceased was a bone (Table 1). For the one case
where a bloodstain was obtained,the post mortem interval was the
equal shortest in the study at 3 days – when blood may still be
available for collection from the body. The VIFM’s mortuary
operations have a triage approach for sample collection depending
on the condition of the deceased. Where blood is available in
decomposed cases, itis the preferred sample type due to the ease of
sampling in the mortuary and for DNA processing in the MBL. A
toenail sample was still taken from this case to compare to the
bloodstain.
For the purposes of this research, toenail samples were