Charismatic fugitive Joseph Schepis Jr. -- tagged the master of disguise -- faces deportation today after coming within an ace of pulling off the ultimate fast one.

First, Police believe, he faked his drowning while fishing on an American lake.

Then he fled to paradise in Bermuda -- for a new life, away from the clutches of the law.

Only Joseph Schepis had now become Adrian Roberson. And his Hamilton Parish parents became his aunt and uncle.

It was the sort of plot to launch the careers of mystery writers.

The master of disguise -- said to be an extrovert with a magnetic personality -- had pulled off a virtuoso performance. Or so it seemed.

But although the mask had changed, the face remained the same.

Just three months into his new life, Joseph Schepis pressed the self-destruct button.

He was unmasked after stealing $2,300 worth of scuba gear from South Side Scuba between April and June this year.

In court he gave the name Adrian Roberson, a 41-year-old from South Carolina.

The magistrate heard Police found the equipment at his uncle's Hamilton Parish home, where he was house-sitting.

Roberson admitted five theft charges, was fined $600, and kept in custody because he could not pay.

Shortly afterwards Police blew his cover.

They had netted a man wanted in South Carolina as part of Operation Intercept -- a multi-jurisdictional task force that tracks down fugitives involved in serious felonies.

Schepis, 35, reappeared in Magistrates' Court, and admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice by using a false name, and contravening the Immigration Act.

The court was told he had entered Bermuda on March 21 on an American airline, claiming he would be living with his aunt and uncle.

His unmasking was a tremendous coup for Bermuda Police.

It was also a triumph for old-fashioned Police work, and liaising with Interpol and the United States authorities.

"We did a background check, and examined finger prints and dates of birth,'' explained Supt. Wayne Perinchief.

"There was a thorough investigation. It was really good Police work which got the results. We are delighted.'' The probe was spearheaded by Det. Con. Peter Clarke and Det. Sgt. Franz Williams, from Eastern CID.

"They both should be applauded for being so thorough and astute,'' said Supt.

Perinchief.

Mr. Ike Hilton, an investigator with the US Marshall's office in South Carolina, told The Royal Gazette Schepis faces a possible minimum 15 years in prison over an alleged firearms violation.

It is believed to have been this charge, he claimed, which led to Schepis seemingly faking his death on March 21.

"That is one of the allegations.'' About two weeks before a federal court appearance Schepis' wife had dropped him off for an afternoon fishing trip on Lake Murray, said Mr. Hilton.

Sporting a camouflage cap and jacket, he rented a boat, and headed out with two full tanks of gasoline.

An hour later his boat floated up to a private dock at Bear Creek. Schepis was missing.

Wildlife officials found fishing tackle in the boat arranged neatly, the motor in neutral, and the ignition off. The ropes of its anchor were in a meticulous coil.

Rescuers searched for day by boat and aircraft as local newspapers, including The State, picked up on the "Lake Murray mystery''.

The disappearance captured the imagination of people in the area.

Schepis, a certified scuba diver and an excellent swimmer, was presumed drowned.

But Police had their nagging suspicions. They had a gut feeling the former Army serviceman was very much alive, not least because of his past.

Schepis, who has also gone by the names Joseph Flynt and David Dwain Darring, was deemed an "armed career criminal'' under federal law after racking up three violent felony convictions.

He has served time in Washington state for robbery and rape. His latest charge was of being a felon in possession of firearms, said Mr. Hilton.

Federal agents had found two rifles, a 12-guage shotgun and a pistol, after searching his mobile home in northeast Columbia.

Local investigator Doug Walters told The State Schepis was a "master at changing his appearance''.

"I hate to admit it, but he's good,'' he said.

Schepis reportedly portrays himself as a caring person, who more than once has saved someone's life. The claims have not been substantiated.

"I'm supposed to be this big, macho Sicilian, but I'm not,'' he was quoted as saying in The State.

An alert was later flashed out over the Lake Murray disappearance, and even though officially presumed dead, Schepis became a wanted man.

The arrest in Hamilton bore those hunches out.

It is thought, according to The State, Schepis may have assumed the identity of 41-year-old Columbia plumber Mr. Adrian Roberson.

Their paths crossed just once -- Mr. Roberson's ex-wife married Schepis about a year ago.

Supt. Perinchief said Schepis survived by his wits once in Bermuda. He lived as many tourists would -- it was nothing lavish.

Unable to work without a permit, he hung around the scuba shop, the scene of his undoing.

Supt. Perinchief described Schepis as "wily and resourceful''.

"I'll tell you one odd quirk about him. He has the ability to get out of handcuffs very easily ... We believe he used a comb. He is certainly a clever guy.'' Such ability was once demonstrated while Schepis was being taken from jail to the courthouse, Supt Perinchief recalled.

It will soon be a skill which two US marshals will have to be very wary of.

Otherwise the master of disguise may have another surprise ace up his sleeve.

Joseph Shepis.