title: Electrical resistivity survey to search for a recent clandestine burial of a homicide victim, UK.
abstract: This case report details an electrical resistivity survey to assist the search for a suspected 1-year-old clandestine burial of a murder victim in North Wales in the UK. Conventional search techniques (victim recovery dogs and probing) proved unsuccessful, and with a significant survey area and a high clay content soil precluding GPR as a geophysical search method, a resistivity survey was instead trialled. Ten resistivity grids were collected and site detrended with user-specified, contoured anomalies being generated. The resulting anomalies were compared to anomalies derived from similar-aged, simulated clandestine burial surveys. Seven anomalies with comparative sizes and amplitudes (±3Ω) of the simulated burials were identified within the search area and prioritised for further investigation. The shallowly buried victim was subsequently recovered outside the survey area.
authors.affiliation: School of Physical Sciences & Geography, Keele University, William Smith Building, Keele, Staffordshire ST5 5BG, UK. j.k.pringle@esci.keele.ac.uk
authors.forename: Jamie K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Pringle
authors.forename: John R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Jervis
mesh_terms: D002048:Burial; D019548:Crime Victims; D017097:Electric Impedance; D005260:Female; D044707:Forensic Sciences; D040362:Geographic Information Systems; D055593:Geological Phenomena; D006708:Homicide; D006801:Humans; D012987:Soil
chemical_list: D012987:Soil