IT was a hive of criminal activity, but for 70 youngsters from as far as Canberra and Brisbane, being involved in murder, drugs and sabotage was just the best way to kick start the July school holidays.
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The students were participants in the 15th annual Forensic Science Camp at The Armidale School (TAS).
The camp was first held in 1994 and attracted widespread interest after featuring on the former ABC TV science show Quantum.
Boys and girls, from government as well as independent schools in the city and the country, were divided into groups of four detectives.
They then solved fictitious felonies using a range of forensic techniques, including microscopy, chromatography, fingerprint analysis, cryptography and general science.
They analysed the evidence, identified and interviewed the suspects, ordered medical and scientific tests and searched criminal databases.
On the final day of the camp, a local magistrate conducted a "court case" in which the teams had the chance to convict their suspect.
The scenarios are developed by Camp Controllers, former participants who lead the camp.
Scenarios use procedures including blood typing, fibre testing and soil analyses to solve a range of crimes, from theft, to vandalism and murder.
Rosie Scanlan, a Year 8 student at Frensham, Mittagong, worked on a scenario where a fight in a bar was followed by two counts of murder.
"It was such a brilliant experience. I am so glad I had the chance to partake in it," she said.
"I found fingerprinting really great - it was so much fun to play with! The blood analysis and the ballistics test were fun as well, but I found keeping my evidence simple and organised in court a huge challenge.
The camping side was amazing, and the classrooms are all really high-tech."
Flying in from Detroit for his 11th camp was former TAS student Andrew Patterson, now an IT consultant.
"Certainly technology has evolved significantly since my first camp in 2001 and it has been great to watch how new technologies are being integrated into the camp each year," Andrew said.
"I always enjoy returning to see what new crimes have been created and seeing bright kids working on incredibly difficult problems over several days.
"I'm always delighted to see the deep satisfaction that campers have at the end of the camp and know they benefited from the truly unique experience the camp offers."
