Murder Unmasked: The Forensics of Hidden Homicides

Burning is one of the methods used by perpetrators to hide homicidal acts. The intention is to destroy the victim’s identification and conceal the criminal act. We report a case in which the culprits poured accelerant and lit a fire to conceal a homicide that involved stabbing injuries to a male and a female victim. This case study shows that an accelerated fire in the open field could not combust the body completely, and the fire was an inefficient means of destroying evidence of a crime. Identification of the victim was possible through the proper collection of evidence. Time since death in a wholly burnt body was subject to significant variance. Internal injuries due to actual wounds were well preserved regardless of the severity of surface destruction by burn. Furthermore, the identification of victims and cause of death are beneficial to know the circumstances leading to the incident and to grab the perpetrators.