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Tom
Packer
It
was
October
11,
2002
near
Turner
Valley,
Alberta.
There
wasn’t
much
to
go
on.
The
lock
on
the
gate
leading
into
the
field
had
been
sheared
with
bolt
cutters;
there
was
a
set
of
tire
tracks
in
the
snow,
the
head
of
a
freshly
killed
cow
moose
and
a
gut
pile.
There
were
no
witnesses
and
it
seemed
that
nothing
at
the
scene
would
assist
the
officer
in
identifying
the
person
or
persons
responsible
for
the
crime.
Making
the
most
of
what
little
evidence
he
had,
the
officer
took
a
meat
sample
from
the
moose
head
in
the
field.
He
knew
that
if
his
investigation
led
him
to
anyone
with
any
part
of
that
moose
in
their
possession,
the
Alberta
Fish
and
Wildlife
Forensic
Lab
could
use
DNA
typing
to
check
for
a
link
to
the
remains
of
the
dead
moose.
The
officer
had
few
options
so
began
contacting
meat
cutters
in
the
Calgary
and
High
River
area
to
inquire
if
a
cow
moose
had
been
delivered
for
processing.
On
Oct.
17,
2002
the
officer
learned
that
a
cow
moose
had
been
delivered
to
a
meat
cutter
for
butchering.
The
officer
inspected
the
moose
and
noted
that
the
head
appeared
to
have
been
cut
off
in
the
same
fashion
as
the
head
he
found
in
the
field.
There
was
a
general
moose
tag
attached
to
the
carcass
indicating
the
person
responsible
for
killing
the
animal.
A
meat
sample
was
collected
from
the
moose
for
DNA
analysis.
Both
meat
samples
that
had
been
collected
by
the
officer
were
sent
to
the
Alberta
Fish
and
Wildlife
Forensic
Lab.
If
the
DNA
typing
profile
(sometimes
referred
to
as
a
DNA
fingerprint)
from
the
head
matched
the
carcass
at
the
meat
cutters,
he
would
know
the
samples
came
from
the
same
moose.
The
officer
would
then
be
able
to
confirm
that
the
individual
named
on
the
general
moose
tag
was
involved
in
the
killing
of
the
cow
moose.
If
the
DNA
typing
profiles
did
not
match,
then
the
officer
would
know
that
the
head
in
the
field
and
the
moose
that
was
hanging
in
the
meat
locker
were
from
different
animals,
putting
him
back
to
square
one
with
no
witnesses
and
no
leads.
Dr.
Rick
Jobin,
the
scientist
in
charge
of
the
DNA
program
at
the
lab
has
developed
an
effective
test
for
DNA
typing
moose.
Jobin
had
used
this
DNA
test
to
analyze
the
genetics
of
hundreds
of
moose
from
three
populations
in
Alberta
as
well
as
moose
from
the
Yukon.
This
was
exactly
the
kind
of
investigation
that
DNA
labs
are
made
for
–
no
witnesses,
no
clues,
and
only
a
couple
of
samples
of
biological
material.
Unravelling
the
genetic
codes
in
these
meat
samples
was
going
to
tell
the
story.
Jobin
carefully
processed
the
samples.
He
extracted
DNA,
measured
the
quantity
of
DNA
extracted,
amplified
small
regions
of
the
DNA
in
what
is
known
as
a
polymerase
chain
reaction
(PCR)
process,
then
finally
obtained
the
DNA
typing
profiles
from
each
sample
by
measuring
the
size
of
the
amplified
regions
of
DNA.
The
results
of
the
analysis
were
clear
and
unambiguous.
The
DNA
typing
profiles
from
the
sample
of
the
head
at
the
kill
site
and
the
DNA
typing
profile
from
the
sample
of
the
moose
at
the
meat
cutter’s
matched.
Based
on
the
analysis
of
the
genetics
of
moose
from
three
Alberta
populations,
Jobin
was
able
to
calculate
the
chances
(random
match
probability)
of
two
individual
moose
having
this
DNA
typing
profile
was
one
in
103
billion.
It
was
time
for
the
officer
to
pay
the
person
named
on
the
moose
tag
a
visit.
Unfortunately,
it
would
prove
to
be
difficult
because
between
the
time
the
moose
was
killed
and
the
time
the
DNA
test
results
became
available,
the
suspect
had
moved.
The
trail
was
cold.
Refusing
to
give
up,
the
officer
contacted
another
enforcement
agency
to
make
an
inquiry
regarding
the
suspect.
By
chance
the
suspect
was
scheduled
to
appear
in
Calgary
provincial
court
on
unrelated
matters.
It
was
on
that
day
that
Calgary
Fish
and
Wildlife
officers
charged
the
subject
with
Wildlife
Act
offences.
Faced
with
DNA
evidence
from
the
lab,
the
man
indicated
that
he
would
plead
guilty
to
all
charges
and
pay
a
fine.
He
admitted
that
the
moose
in
question
had
been
killed
on
the
complainant’s
property
with
a
bow
and
that
he
did
not
possess
a
valid
moose
hunting
licence
for
that
area.
His
guilty
pleas
were
accepted
by
the
court
and
as
a
result
he
was
fined.
DNA
typing
is
a
powerful
technology
that
Fish
and
Wildlife
officers
can
use
for
the
protection
of
wildlife
populations.
Investigators
are
now
using
DNA
to
develop
leads
in
crimes
with
no
witnesses
and
to
turn
dead
end
investigations
into
successful
prosecutions.
Tom
Packer
is
a
forensic
biologist
with
the
Alberta
Fish
and
Wildlife
Division
in
Edmonton.
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