Forensic geophysics is a scientific technique that uses non-invasive surveys to locate hidden underground or underwater objects and features. It has been used to locate victims' remains and bring murderers like Myra Hindley, Fred West, and Andrew Pountley to justice by rapidly surveying large areas where clandestine burials were suspected. While ground penetrating radar helped expose Fred West's crimes, geophysics has only been sporadically and variably successful in forensic investigations, though it could also locate buried weapons, money, or signs of human activity when a target contrasts with its background materials.

1. Forensic Geophysics

2. • Myra Hindley,Fred West and Andrew Pountley
have something in common. A specialist
scientific search technique has been employed
to bring them to justice and their victims to
rest – the technique is forensic geophysics.
• “ the study of locating and mapping hidden
objects or features that are underground or
underwater.”

3. • Geophysical methods have the potential to aid
the location and recovery of human remains as
they can, non-invasively, very rapidly survey
extensive areas where suspected clandestine
burial has taken place.
• Fred West used Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR)
to raised the profile of forensic geophysics, but to
date, geophysics has only been used sporadically
and with varied success.

4. • It should be noted that as long as there is a
geophysical contrast between between a
“target” and the background materials, then
other items could be resolved, such as buried
weapons, money caches and even evidence of
human occupation or excavation.