Drug trafficker alters fingerprints with skin implants and evades capture for 15 years
A drug trafficker was able to hide from authorities for 15 years by, incredibly, replacing the skin on his fingertips with micro-implants. The procedure took several years to complete, according to The Guardian.
The man, whose name hasn't been released, was from Spain but was posing as both a Peruvian and sometimes Croatian citizen using fake ID.
Via The Guardian:
"The suspect had modified and changed his fingerprints to such an extent that they were no longer recognisable," said the statement.
"As well as cutting and burning, he had used micro-implants of skin. He had also had a hair transplant to avoid being recognised."
A police spokeswoman told the Guardian: "He'd used very sophisticated methods to alter the fingerprints of both hands so that he couldn't be identified. He used skin implants to change the shape of his prints so that the scars beneath couldn't be detected. It was a very sophisticated, specialist process that took place over a number of years."
He was arrested on Tuesday while carrying two encrypted phones.