British police inspector Mark Harrison, of the National Centre for Police Excellence (NCPE), said the hounds had been used in the hunt for the murderer of Holly Wells (10) and Jessica Chapman (10) in Soham, Cambridgeshire, in August 2002.
The dogs ultimately helped bring 29-year-old school caretaker Ian Huntley to justice.
"The dogs that we have here include two from South Yorkshire Police and one of those is the only one in the world trained to detect human blood," said Insp Harrison. "The other is a victim recovery dog and helps us find human remains."
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/top-dog-team-used-to-help-gardai-sniff-out-clues-26360760.html2 June 2005 One of the dogs is the only one in the world trained to sniff out human blood.
In a joint operation between the FBI and Britain's National Crimes and Operations Faculty, the dogs have all been trained to sniff out scents which are weeks or even months old.Det Insp Harrison said the dogs are presented with a scent which they then try to follow.
He said: "
Many people think in the 21st century machines are the answer, not something hairy and smelly like a dog, but our tests show us that there is no machine that can come anywhere close to what these dogs can do.
"The scent is collected in a scientific way using a machine and the dogs will take the scent not off a person but will smell what we call a scent pad.
"Sometimes the scent hasn't even come into contact with the person. We have a machine which can suck a specific scent from the air and the dogs will follow that."
Det Insp Harrison has been involved in a number of high-profile cases. He co-ordinated a team of sniffer dogs in the search for Bromham teenager Tom Potter who went missing in January this year. His body was later found in the River Great Ouse.
He was also played a major role in the Soham murder investigation, leading three forensic teams and 20 officers in a fingertip probe of killer Ian Huntley's home. Before that he was involved in the operations to try and find Surrey schoolgirl Mily Dowler and Essex teenager Danielle Jones.
Last year Det Insp Harrison was awarded the MBE for his work in helping track down missing people.Read more at:
http://www.bedfordtoday.co.uk/news/specialist-joins-hunt-for-abigail-s-attacker-1-1086115Tom Potter went missing in January and tracker dogs led police to the river.
A diving team failed to find him but a walker spotted the body several weeks later and police believe he may have been trying to find a short cut.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/beds/bucks/herts/4243018.stm