Brazil uses forensic science to trace gold's origin and tackle illegal mining in the Amazon
Associated Press
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A forensic expert handles a gold-bearing sample during analysis at the National Institute of Criminalistics in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)Gustavo Geiser, a federal police forensics expert, stands beside the reference collection of gold samples seized in investigations across the Amazon and neighboring countries at the National Institute of Criminalistics in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)Bags containing soil and sediment samples collected during federal police operations against illegal mining are stored for forensic analysis at the National Institute of Criminalistics in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)Gold samples seized during federal police investigations are displayed at the National Institute of Criminalistics in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)A laboratory container labeled mercury is visible at the National Institute of Criminalistics in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)A federal police forensic expert works at an electron microscope analyzing gold samples at the National Institute of Criminalistics in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)
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A forensic expert handles a gold-bearing sample during analysis at the National Institute of Criminalistics in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)