Article: Expert: criminals always leave clues; Even a torn paper towel can help forensics capture a murderer.(News)

BYLINE: Thandi Skade

Regardless of how insignificant an item may seem at the time - a piece of plastic or glass, a cigarette butt or even a torn paper towel - never discard it.

This was Captain Sietze Albertse's advice on how act at a crime scene.

Albertse, a member of the SAPS Criminal Records Centre and Forensic Science Lab, says that people often do not realise the consequences of cleaning up or throwing away items after a crime has taken place.

He used the example of how a piece of paper towel proved to be a vital piece of evidence in linking a suspect to a murder.

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