San Diego RCFL

The San Diego Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory (RCFL) has supported the following cases.

"Gap Tooth Bandit" Bank Robberies

A suspect, christened the "gap tooth bandit," was identified in the robbery of several banks in the San Diego area. Authorities seized a computer from his residence, and provided it to the San Diego RCFL for examination. The demand notes found on the computer matched the demand notes that were presented during the robberies. Although the demand notes were not saved to the hard drive, the examiner was still able to retrieve them in the more obscure "print spooler" and temporary word processor files. Because of the detailed computer search and the examiner's skill, hidden fragments of valuable information were discovered and subsequently presented in the case against the gap tooth bandit.

Torture/Homicide Involving Identity Theft Ring

An individual involved with an identity theft ring was tortured and murdered by his co-conspirators over the division of illegally obtained money. The decedent's computer equipment was taken into custody because it appeared that it was used to manufacture counterfeit checks and false identification. The San Diego RCFL was asked to examine the computer systems, where they discovered extensive information about the identity theft ring. These findings were used during the trial to show motive for the torture and murder, and the suspects were convicted.

Internet Stalking Case

In 1999, the state of California enacted one of the toughest cyber stalking laws in the U.S. Shortly after the law's passage, the San Diego RCFL supported an Internet stalking case that was brought to trial. An ex-husband impersonated his ex-wife over the Internet by engaging in "cyber" relationships with several men. He gave the men his ex-wife's phone number and urged them to call her. When authorities seized the suspect's computer and provided it to the San Diego RCFL for examination, at first, the Examiners found no direct evidence in the active files. In time, they unearthed over 500 "chat" logs in the unused portions of the hard drive detailing the ex-husband's illicit activities on the Internet. When this information was presented at trial in 2000, the suspect was convicted of felony stalking charges.

Homicide Involving an Attorney and his Client/Girlfriend

A San Diego attorney began a relationship with a client who hired him to handle her divorce. When the client decided to reconcile with her husband, the attorney killed her alleging that it was a crime of passion and therefore not premeditated. When authorities seized the attorney's computer, they submitted it to the San Diego RCFL for examination. The Examiners located a suicide note written by the attorney stating that he planned on killing the former girlfriend and then himself. Prosecutors cited this note as evidence of premeditation, and the suspect was convicted of premeditated murder.

On-Line Dating /Attempted Murder

After establishing a relationship over the Internet, the couple decided to finally meet in person. The man left his home in Oregon and traveled to San Diego where the woman resided. After spending the weekend together, he attempted to bludgeon her to death. The victim survived the assault and identified her attacker. Authorities seized the computers of the victim and the suspect, and then requested the assistance of the San Diego RCFL. Examiners found numerous "chat" conversations on both computers, as well as the suspect's travel plans to San Diego. This evidence was presented in trial to substantiate the victim's account of what transpired, and the suspect was convicted for attempted murder.

North County Child Porn

Authorities received a tip that a person in northern San Diego County had possession of and was trading in child pornography. Authorities executed a search warrant of the suspect's residence and the San Diego RCFL Examiners assisted with the seizure of the computer systems and computer disks. After a thorough search of the computer systems, the RCFL Examiners found no evidence of child pornography images or any indications that the subject was trading illicit pictures. However, the RCFL Examiners did recommend that the seizing agency confiscate all loose floppy disks and compact disks. Upon reviewing the floppy disks, Examiners discovered "chat" logs showing the transfer of child pornography images over the Internet. Once these findings were presented to the suspect's attorney, the defendant immediately plead guilty.

Child Porn Floppy Disk Case

After authorities were notified that a subject possessed child pornography, they served a search warrant on his residence and requested the San Diego RCFL's assistance with the examination of the computer evidence. The RCFL Examiners recommended that all loose media such as floppy disks and the computer systems be impounded as well. When Examiners found no evidence of pornography on the computers, they set their sites on a box of what appeared to be 100 brand new floppy disks, still in the original packaging. The Examiners applied the "Disk Imager," a tool developed by the San Diego RCFL, to examine the disks, and found several unlabeled disks containing numerous child pornography images. This suspect plead guilty when presented with the evidence uncovered by the RCFL Examiners.

Narcotics Transportation by Boat

When local United States Customs officials inspected a speedboat entering the United States from Mexican waters, they found a single computer floppy disk. Customs officials believed that the boat was being used to smuggle narcotics, so they seized the floppy disk and asked the San Diego RCFL to examine it. The disk was in very poor condition, but after some work, the RCFL Examiners retrieved data showing extensive narcotics shipments and financial transactions. Authorities used this information to obtain several search warrants, which yielded large quantities of narcotics and cash.

Jogger Murder

A car struck a jogger in what appeared to be a hit and run vehicle incident. When authorities began to suspect that the wife might have played a role in the accident, they served a search warrant on the couple's residence and seized their home computer. The San Diego RCFL was asked to search the computer for any information that might be related to the husband's death. They found the husband's journal in an unused portion of the hard drive that contained entries describing his fear that his wife might try to kill him. The journal was subsequently used by the prosecution, along with other incriminating pieces of evidence, to convict the wife of murder.

September 11th Terrorist Attack

After the events on September 11th, 2001, the San Diego RCFL was asked to examine the computer systems that were seized as part of the investigation. The RCFL processed over twenty-nine separate service requests from San Diego and other parts of the country, and this included the examination of over forty computers and hundreds of pieces of loose media such as floppy disks. Concurrently, the Lab provided technical and operational assistance to the Newark Division of the FBI who were also inundated with requests stemming from 9/11. Thanks to the operational capabilities of the RCFL, the Lab was processed every request and provided key FBI personnel with much needed results in a matter of hours.

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