Underwater Criminal Investigator
The Underwater Criminal Investigator course is UCI Diver’s foundation course designed to give you the knowledge, skills, and abilities to succeed and survive as a true professional Underwater Criminal Investigator. It is a 4-day hands-on training program that involves one day of classroom and three days of intensive open-water training including searching for real evidence underwater. NePSD is the only other training company that does it!
After the completion of the course, the students are certified through UCI and through PADI, the largest training agency in the world. This is so the training you receive will contribute to both your professional and recreational diver portfolio.
Topic’s include: Overview of Public Safety Diving/Underwater Criminal Investigations, Performance Base Training, Liability Issues for the Public Safety Diver, Diver Readiness, Equipment Readiness, Information Readiness, Establishing a Crime Scene, Interview Techniques, Crime Scene Photography and Sketching, Advanced Underwater Communications, Medical Aspects, Search Patterns, Location and Marking Evidence, Evidence Recovery and Preservation, The Oxidation Process, Metal Preservation , Nonmetal Evidence Preservation, Fingerprints, Body movement in Water, Body Recovery in Water, Chemical and Polluted Water Diving, Light and Heavy Salvage, Vehicle Recovery, Case Preparation, Courtroom Testimony and more!
This course prepares you by building up your search skills, molding you into a true recovery diver. Our focus is on developing your underwater recovery skills which in turn increases your comfort level and your contribution to the search. This level of training can actually change an entire team’s attitude, confidence, and abilities to serve their communities.
As you can see, there’s a lot behind the making of a true “Underwater Criminal Investigator”. We believe the stronger your foundation, the better prepared you will be for what awaits you in this ever-changing and demanding underwater field. Our goal at UCI is to make you a part of the investigation; a contributor to the case; and a part of the investigative team. Not just someone that’s called because you have scuba gear.
To attend the training, you must meet the following prerequisites:
- You need to be an Advanced Open Water or equivalent diver with any nationally recognized diving agency or military or commercial diver.
- You need to be 18 years old or older
- And a member of law enforcement, fire, or rescue department or if you are in a position to assist your community, state, or government in underwater criminal investigations or with other public safety diving assignments.
Students must supply their own scuba gear including full wet suit (or dry) with hood, gloves, and two tanks. You can wear a full-face mask or half-mask. No electronic communication due to the rope pull and hand squeeze training. All search and recovery equipment will be provided by UCI.
Master Underwater Criminal Investigator
UCI Diver’s Master Underwater Criminal Investigator Course is the only program of its kind in the world and is UCI’s advanced training program designed to focus on several special areas of Law Enforcement Diving that need to be truly understood and mastered. To attend, you must be a UCI graduate!
The Master UCI course puts together all the training and skills the Underwater Criminal Investigator has achieved during the foundational course and expands body, vehicle and evidence recovery techniques to an advanced level.
After completing the course, the students are certified through UCI and through PADI, the largest training agency in the world in the 5 listed courses below which includes the coveted Master Underwater Criminal Investigators certification . You receive two certifications for every course taken! This is so the training you receive will contribute to both your professional and recreational diver portfolio. If that wasn’t enough, if you are certified as a Rescue Diver, you qualify for the PADI Master Diver rating as well. It does not get any better than that!
The Master’s Program consist of the following 5 courses:
Body Recovery Specialist
This course specifically focuses on advanced body recovery techniques to include surface body bagging, weighted body recovery techniques and conducting detailed grid systems searching for badly decomposed bodies.
Vehicle Recovery Specialist
This course specifically focuses on advanced vehicle recovery techniques to include lifting vehicles with lift bags. The students will become proficient in conducting UCI’s own designed lifting techniques using UCI’s designed Vehicle Lifting System, the UCI-VLS, the safest vehicle lifting technique and best vehicle lifting system in the world!
Evidence Recovery Specialist
This course specifically focuses on advanced evidence collecting techniques that includes packaging and evidence handling, electrolysis, superglue fuming and fingerprint development. The students search skills and capabilities are enhanced as well as their comfort level to make them a more competent diver on the bottom.
CSI Metal Detector Specialist
This course specifically teaches all aspects of land and underwater crime scene metal detector use. The students will become highly proficient in the use of metal detectors, their function, capabilities and search techniques.
Master Underwater Criminal Investigator
The Master Underwater Criminal Investigator course allows the Master students to demonstrate their understanding in all areas of underwater criminal investigations by having them process, document and recover actual criminal evidence. No other PSD course in the world does this!
UCI’s Master’s program is the FIRST and ONLY program of its kind in the world and no other Dive Training Agency or Public Safety Diving agency offers these certifications or these programs. If they do, they are following our lead! As you can see, UCI sets the standards and leads the way for others to follow.
The Master’s program is only open to UCI graduates and continues to build on the knowledge, skills and abilities they already obtained through the Underwater Criminal Investigator’s course.
The Master’s Program is an intensive training program that involves classroom and open water training. Students must supply their own scuba gear including full wet suit (or dry) with hood, gloves and two tanks. All search and recovery equipment will be provided by UCI.