Lina Al Amiri: The Dubai Police expert who became the first female criminal profiler in the Middle East

“In the 11th grade, I got acquainted with genetics. Believe it or not, I wasn’t interested in biology or science at first – I wouldn’t say I liked it,” she said. However, the biology teacher ignited her interest in the subject.

She joined the Dubai Police in 2013 and worked in the Biology and DNA Division, moving in 2015 to work in Forensic Evidence and Criminology.

As part of her work, she has to study the case materials, conduct interviews with children and adults, apply the relevant tests and finally write reports that explain her expert opinion, which is presented in court cases.

When she submits a victim profile, the analysis includes the impact of the crime on the person’s life. For suspect profiles, she studies their lifestyles as this helps in assessing sentencing. A judge sees the profiles and issues the most appropriate sentence accordingly.

Lina completed her studies at the University of Crete in Australia, specializing in two areas – a BA in Forensic Biology and a BA in Criminology and Criminal Justice – graduating in 2013.

Acquired a third specialization in Criminal Profiling in 2020, remotely at the Institute of Forensic Criminology.

Lina has been fond of analysis since childhood. “If there’s a puzzle in front of me, I’ll spend hours on it solving it, as I enjoy the process. I feel that I have tremendous energy that helps me in this area. I love putting the pieces together; my brain switches into problem-solving mode.

Lina has always dreamed of changing society. “I like to help people. If you ask me what are your hobbies, the answer is that I like to serve people. And criminal profiling helps me help others,” she said.

Lina’s uncle works in the investigation department of the Dubai Police, but the first person who introduced her to police work was her aunt. “She loved to read detective stories — they were little books with illustrations in them. As a child I loved looking at the drawings.’

Lina said she had to separate her criminal profiling work from her personal life. She’s trained not to bring cases home, which can be unsettling since she deals with cases like murderers.

“Because of the very deep analysis that goes in, it’s almost like I’m starting to see [suspect] in front of me everywhere — that’s a challenge. But it also gives me the motivation to finish my work as there is still justice to be done,” she explained.

Another challenge she faced was comments about why she was working in a field that was “not for a woman”. Lina, however, has always focused on the bigger picture—serving people. “My parents are my biggest supporters. I achieved my mother’s dream.”

The department currently uses a technique that analyzes emotions from people’s voices. The technology is like an assistant or helper that gives Lina an indication to pay special attention to specific parts during her interviews with the people on the case.

Lina has handled at least 858 cases since joining the Criminal Evidence Unit, performed 3,028 forensic examinations and conducted 340 forensic interviews.

Many of the cases she analyzes are divorce cases. “I wish even if they were divorced, they would work together for the sake of the children,” Lina said.

She explained that she meets with all parties – the mother, the father and the children – in a “neutral place”, such as a school or one of the community centers the police work with, to minimize the child’s exposure to the profiling process. “This process is not easy for a child.”

Lina also applies tests to determine whether the child’s psychological state is stable or not. There are other cases – family problems, sexual harassment, rape, murder, harassment, vandalism, among other crimes.

One of the cases she worked on – a homicide case – took her 174 hours. She reviewed more than 300 records and photos, in addition to going to the crime scene.

“It’s very important as a criminal profiler to go to a crime scene and understand the circumstances.”

In the end, she came up with about 38 recommendations for various departments. “They have helped us make significant progress in the investigation. That was a breakthrough.”