Palm Bay police receive new, faster DNA equipment

Palm Bay police have obtained new equipment that could generate DNA results in criminal cases in less than two hours.

“This is one of the best crime-fighting tools we’ve seen in decades,” Palm Bay Police Chief Doug Muldoon told Local 6 news partner Florida Today of what the department is touting as a Rapid DNA analysis kit.

Palm Bay police will hold a news conference on Friday to formally announce a partnership with the California-based company IntegenX Inc. that created the portable microwave oven-sized, mini-lab that can provide onsite analysis of blood and other biological samples.

The device is the first of its kind to be put to use at a U.S. law enforcement agency, police and company officials say.

The goal, police say, is to match samples taken from a crime scene to a suspect or create a DNA profile that can be added to a database. A sample from a homicide scene or sexual assault sent to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement state lab typically takes months to return results.