The grieving friends and relatives of 19-year-old Trey Swan remember him as a special person any parent would be proud of.

Mr. Swan died early on Monday morning in mysterious circumstances in the water off North Shore. Police have appealed for witnesses.

Mr. Swan is the son of Brian and Sherry-Lynn Swan and brother to Shaun, 17, Stefon, 14, and Sharai, 24, and last night his mother said: "It will be difficult for all of us. He was a big part of the family. His presence will be missed by us all."

Mr. Swan was described as a hard-working, honest and ambitious young man whose goals included going abroad to school and building a house in the near future. He was brought up in the church and enjoyed going to the movies, playing pool, attending social events at the Seventh Day Adventist Church and spending time with his family. He had many friends.

"He was very positive and had an outgoing personality. He was just a likeable young man," said Mrs. Swan. Trey attended the Harrington Sound Primary School where he served as a House Captain and Prefect and then went on to Berkeley Institute where he graduated in June, 2000.

As a participant in the Outward Bound programme, Mr. Swan travelled to Wales and completed the Silver expedition.

He was also an avid tennis player and in 2001 attended the prestigious Van Der Meer Tennis Camp in Hilton Head, South Carolina.

After graduating he travelled to Nantes, France as an exchange student in the Youth for Understanding Programme. In one year he became a fluent writer and speaker of the French language.

In September he started the Associate Degree Transfer Programme at Bermuda College. He had planned to major in business and dreamed about attending Howard University in D.C. after he had completed his time here.

Mr. Swan said Trey once spoke of becoming an actuary while his mother added that he was considering some other aspect of finance as a career goal. This summer, he began his third summer as a student at the Bank of Bermuda.

However, it was only one of three jobs to which the young man was committed. On Saturdays he could be found doing construction for Vincent Trott and on Sundays he was a gas attendant at a gas station. According to his mother, each week three quarters of the money he made went into a savings account as he was trying to secure enough to buy property on which to build a house.

"He had a goal that he wanted to save his money and buy property and he never spent his money wastefully," Mrs. Swan explained.

She added that the family has received a great deal of support from friends and loved ones including from staff members at the Bank of Bermuda, where Mrs. Swan also works. Bank of Bermuda President Henry Smith said: "I'm not sure I knew him personally. I do know his parents. From what I've heard he's a wonderful kid.

"We are absolutely devastated. I'm sure everyone at the bank agrees. Our sympathies are with his parents and family. It's a terrible thing."

Mr. Swan's family challenged the details of the death as reported by the media as of yesterday, saying they were "unfounded". They said they wished not to share what they believed happened to their son as the death is still under investigation by Police.

Anyone who may have seen Mr. Swan on North Shore Road, Devonshire early on Monday morning or at any point before his death in the water off Penhurst Park is asked to contact Central CID at 295-0011.