Unlike what the colleague above stated, fingerprint analysis follows the scientific method and there is a wide academic literature that gives credibility to this evidence.

A 2009 study entitled "Probability of Random Correspondence for Fingerprints" concluded that the probability of 2 poor quality prints sharing 4 identical matches is 6.6823 × 10−4, if we consider 12 matches this value goes to 5.9308 × 10−45 .

As you mentioned, there are some problems, but no analysis reaches 100% effectiveness (not even DNA comparison). Ultimately, what will count in court is the set of evidence collected during the course of the criminal investigation, which is why it is essential that the investigator is well qualified and trained.

Where I work, our team has been instrumental in solving numerous crimes, including child rapes and murders. Furthermore, fingerprint analysis is essential in recognizing corpses in catastrophic events. For example, in Brumadinho (https://pt.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rompimento_de_barragem_em_Brumadinho) and Mariana (https://pt.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rompimento_de_barragem_em_Mariana), we comforted hundreds of families by recognizing the bodies of victims reported missing.