Two staff at Randox Testing Services in Manchester, England have been arrested and five others questioned as part of a criminal investigation that has been running since February. The National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) said that potentially more than 10,000 criminal cases could have been altered “by rogue scientists at a lab analyzing evidence of drug driving, violent crime, sexual offenses and unexplained deaths. Retests of samples have already led to cases being dropped and others appealed.”1
The majority of the cases, across 42 police forces in England and Wales and dating back to 2013, were traffic offenses like driving under the influence. The rest included violent crime, sexual offenses, and unexplained deaths. Retests so far have found no impact on cases of sexual offenses, violence or homicide, and Randox is funding the cost of the retesting.
However, retests have resulted in “50 traffic offenses including drug driving cases being discontinued, and two road deaths had been referred to the court of appeals.” 1 Retesting is complete or underway for about 70 percent of the highest priority cases. The rest are expected to be completed by the middle of 2018.
“The alleged manipulation emerged earlier this year when a data anomaly in a drug driving case was reported to Randox. It said it alerted police to the alleged tampering and was supporting the investigation by Greater Manchester Police.”1
