Episode
Forensic Files: Hot on the Trail
Overview
A serial arsonist was on the loose in Washington, DC. Each of the fires was started with the same type of incendiary device. The perpetrator was very careful and seemed to leave no evidence behind but there were clues in the ashes and it was up to forensic scientists to find them.
Details
- Series
- Forensic Files
- Season
- Season 10
- Episode
- Episode 38
- Air date
- 2006-05-10
- Runtime
- 23 min
Episode context
Hot on the Trail is Episode 38 in Season 10 of Forensic Files. It aired on 2006-05-10. The runtime is 23 min.
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Episode 37: Murder on the Menu
When the head chef of a historic Philadelphia restaurant was found dead, investigators interviewed the usual suspects: family, friends and coworkers. As they sifted through the evidence, police uncovered a chilling tale of debt and deceit.
Episode 39: High 'n Dry
When Genell Plude was found dead in her bathroom, the scene pointed to suicide. But a coroner's inquest and a unique application of forensic science gave investigators a different explanation for her death. It was a theory which, if true, could turn her husband Doug into the prime suspect.
More episodes from this season
Episode 36: Sole Searching
Now it's not only a fingerprint which can link a killer to a crime; a shoe print can be just as telling. Armed with little else, police hoped the shoe impressions found at a Lansing, MI crime scene would put their investigation of Audrey Nichols' murder back on track.
Episode 40: To the Viktor
Three homicides on two continents looked like professional executions. Investigators on both sides of the Atlantic needed to find out if they were related and, if they were, who or what they had in common.
Episode 35: Bump in the Night
The crime scene was awash with blood. The victim had been brutally murdered as he slept in his own bed. There were no foreign fingerprints in his home, but investigators did find a shoe impression in the mud outside physical evidence they hoped would lead them to the killer.
Episode 41: Wired for Disaster
A 29-year-old woman was killed instantly when a bomb exploded in her home. The device was so powerful that shrapnel was embedded in houses across the street. The bomber had not only knowledge and skill, but also a motive for murder.
Episode 34: Penchant for Poison
Three seemingly unrelated deaths proved to be serial murders. The killer had been careful – he used poison which had no taste or odor. Fortunately for investigators, it also had a unique chemical signature.
Episode 42: Wood-be Killer
A killer tried to incinerate and destroy everything that could link him to his crime. But in doing so, he inadvertently created new forensic evidence, evidence which came to light with a technique never before used in a criminal investigation.
Episode 33: Sunday School Ambush
When a woman's husband was gunned down in his own garage by intruders, investigators worked tirelessly to find the assassins. But when they discovered that a wound sustained during the attack by the grieving widow may have been self-inflicted, they turned to science to help them unravel a twisted tale of lust, greed and deception.
Episode 32: Garden of Evil
When a popular disc jockey was found murdered in a community garden, police swung into action. A sniffer dog and a blood spatter expert led police to the killer and he'd been much closer than they realized.
Episode 31: Material Witness
A teenager went missing after an evening of horseback riding. Her body was found a month later, three miles from her home. The killer unknowingly left trace evidence behind – tiny but unmistakable clues which pointed to him and him alone.
Episode 30: Moss, Not Grass
A young woman was found dead on a golf course in the Bahamas. The grass on that course was so distinctive, it had evidentiary value. The evidence led police to two suspects. Each blamed the other, and they had to find out who the killer was.