University of East Anglia scientists who found a way to identify illegal drug use and a person’s identity simultaneously through a simple fingerprint test have secured £300,000 of investment to help develop their business.

Spin-out company Intelligent Fingerprinting has developed “reagent kits”, which for the first time could give police a tool with which to carry out roadside drugs testing.  The kits can detect nicotine, cannabis, methadone and cocaine.Now the firm is also looking at kits which could test for traces of explosives, which could be crucial in anti-terrorism work.The cash is being given to Intelligent Fingerprinting by Synergis Technologies, a privately-owned early-stage investment firm based in London, and the Iceni Seedcorn fund. Prof David Russell, founder of Intelligent Fingerprinting said: “By simultaneous detection of personal identity and illicit substances, we are able to offer law enforcement agencies the ability to create personal profiles which are, otherwise unavailable. “The ability to perform rapid and non-invasive drug tests on-site not only has applications in law enforcement and border control but also institutional testing such as in prisons and where safety-related functions need to be performed.”