By By ERIKA PICKLES / Niles Daily Star
NILES – When the Berrien County Sheriff's Department dive team heads to the waters for training sessions, it's always a possibility something will be discovered.
That was just the case Wednesday afternoon.
Divers were training by the canoe landing of the Saint Joseph River, near Bond Street when, according to Lt. Don Goulooze, one of the divers discovered the vehicle.
"We called Clark's Towing to come get it out and got as much information off it as we could when it came to the surface," Goulooze said.
The vehicle, a 2001 loaded Chevy S-10 Blazer, was reported stolen in Oct. 2005 out of South Bend, Ind.
"It looks like this was done deliberately. The keys were still in the ignition, the car was in drive and the windows were rolled down, to make it sink faster," Goulooze said.
It was believed the vehicle was in at least 15 feet of water.
As of this morning, it was unknown if the vehicles owner had been contacted, but the car was turned over to Progressive Insurance Company.
"We may put this on Crime Stoppers, just to see if we can get any leads on who may have done this. The case will be reopened though," Goulooze said.
Although the vehicle had been underwater for almost two years, Goulooze said it really wasn't in bad shape.
"Except for being dirty and finding a few fish inside of it, it's surprisingly not in bad condition. At one time it was a very good looking vehicle," Goulooze said.
Anyone with information should contact the Berrien County Sheriff's Department.