There?s no hiding place for criminals who try to dump evidence into the sea because the Bermuda Police have polished up their sub-aquatic investigation skills with the help of a US Police diving expert.

It may only have been a few wrecked scooters that were pulled from the waters of Clarence Cove beside Admiralty House yesterday, but had there been murder weapons or even bodies at the bottom, the Police divers scouring the seabed would have known exactly how to maximise their chances of obtaining vital evidence.

Even beneath the waves, fingerprints on a suspect item can remain for days.

It is that kind of knowledge and more that the Bermuda Police Underwater Search and Recovery Team were being taught by Virginia State Police first sergeant Michael Berry.

Sgt. Berry has been an expert police diver for 25 years and was brought to the Island by Bermuda Police to give a week-long underwater investigation course.

?Police investigations underwater are the same as recovering evidence on land. There is documentation and packaging skills and lifting techniques,? said Sgt. Berry.

?Let?s say a murder weapon was in the water. We have to look for clues such as where the person who last had it was standing. We have to mark where it is and document it and think about submerged fingerprints which can last for days. The goal is to get all the evidence to the lab.?

Across the US, Canada and now Bermuda, Sgt. Berry has been passing on his expertise to major police departments and even the FBI.

A few years ago during the US anthrax scare, he was brought in to hunt for evidence beneath frozen lakes in Maryland.

Sgt. Berry is no stranger to Bermuda having visited 15 years ago when he came across ?a bunch of bikes? underwater while snorkelling.

Watching the Police swimming in the aquamarine shallows it is possible to imagine they are just having an easy day out, but nothing could be further from the truth as underlined by Sgt. Berry?s unequivocal professional philosophy: ?No fun dives ever.?

When the officers dip beneath the waves they are looking for lost or stolen property, dumped motorbikes and cars, weapons and in some instances people who have drowned.

Christopher Taggett took over as Bermuda Police dive team leader a year ago. He said: ?I wanted to see what I could do to give the dive team the best training possible to improve our skills.?

He contacted Jon Coon, regional manager in Bermuda for the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, who recommended contacting Sgt. Berry.

Fresh out of the water at Clarence Cove, where a couple of dumped scooters were recovered with the aid of floatation bags, P.c. Taggett said: ?What we are doing here is recovering stolen property. The dive team is usually between six and ten strong. If there is a large job the dive team supplements the Marine Police.?

He said the training from Sgt. Berry has sharpened the skills of his dive team towards collecting evidence and carrying out underwater investigations.

P.c. Taggett added: ?He has shown us a few short cuts and brought a wealth of knowledge. He is a wonderful person to have come and assist us in our dive programme.?

During the past week the Police divers have been searching the seabed around various locations including Barrs Bay and Dockyard, finishing off at the cove by Admiralty House.