Turks and Caicos Governor John Kelly has thanked the Island for the loan of five officers for a probe into a drowning tragedy.

Mr. Kelly -- a former Deputy Governor of Bermuda -- wrote to Governor Thorold Masefield after the last three of the five-strong Island team sent to TCI returned home.

The TCI Governor said: "On behalf of the TCI government and people, I wish to express our deepest thanks for the assistance provided from Bermuda.

"I would be grateful if you would pass on these thanks to the Commissioner of Police and the Premier of Bermuda.'' The five strong team -- a mix of detectives and officers fluent in Creole or French -- were drafted in after a boat carrying refugees from the Caribbean island of Haiti went down off TCI.

The ancient sloop -- said to be packed with alleged illegal immigrants to Turks and Caicos -- capsised last month. Six people are known to have died.

Some survivors claimed warning shots fired by TCI marine police in a bid to get the boat to heave to hit a passenger.

But it is understood the sloop was raised and examined and investigators found no evidence of bullet damage. None of the dead suffered bullet wounds.

Acting Inspector Keith Cassidy, Sergeant Huron Vidal, and Pcs Trevor Knight, Sylvester Augustine, and Eric Wood travelled to TCI to help in the investigation.

Acting Det. Insp. Cassidy and Det. Cons. Eric Woods, the invesigative part of the team, returned home more than a week ago. But the three others remained to finish interviews with the 70 survivors of the wreck, whose native tongue is the French-based Creole.

He said three TCI police officers suspended after the incident -- understood to be the crew of the police patrol boat -- had been cleared and now been returned to duty.

But two crewmembers of the death-trap sloop have been charged in connection with the incident.

Mr. Kelly added the work of the Bermuda team was "of enormous benefit'' to the investigation, which is almost completed.

He said: "The Superintendent in charge of the investigation speaks most highly of the competence and effectiveness of all these men.

"They worked extremely hard and enabled the interviewing of the survivors, none of whom spoke English, to be completed very quickly.

"They were a great team and worked well with the officers of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police and others involved in the investigation.''