ONE of the archaeologists who dug up gardens in Brighton in search of new victims of serial killer Peter Tobin, 63, has spoken of her disappointment at not finding a body.
•Lucy Sibun, pictured outside Tobin's former home in Marine Parade, found it hard trying to live a normal family life with her daughters Picture: Connors Brighton Press Associates Ltd
Mother-of-two Lucy Sibun - who helped uncover the bodies of Tobin victims Vicky Hamilton, 15, and Dinah McNicol, 18, in Kent - was desperate to bring some closure to other families.
Unlike the media and general public, the 37-year-old was told by police who they believed was buried in the gardens of Station Road and Marine Parade, and which families were sitting at home, waiting on tenterhooks for news.
For 15 days, she knew the next piece of earth to be overturned could reveal the tell-tale signs of a grave underneath.
Ms Sibun, who is senior forensic archaeologist at Archaeology South-East, a commercial branch of University College London, said: "It's all-consuming.
"It's been a long job, with long hours, and it takes all your concentration. You think about it all the time.
"You are constantly aware that you could discover something at any moment. It could be the next spade to turn over which gives you what you are looking for. It's exhausting, but you just keep going. I feel it now it's over, but when you are there, you just carry on.
"You need to do as good a job as you possibly can for the justice system and for the families. But we know now that there are families out there who still do not know what happened to their missing relatives, and I do feel disappointed for them, that we have not been able to answer any of their questions or doubts."
When she was not thinking about the families and victims, she thought of Tobin and the steps he might have taken while desperately trying to conceal another body.
Ms Sibun said: "In this case, there has been an awful lot of background.
"You are trying to understand the thought process (of Tobin], which may help you find what you are looking for. Everyone knows all about it, everyone's got a sense of what's been going on."
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Her daughters are just seven and ten and too young to understand the full ramifications of their mother's work. Ms Sibun admits she found it difficult to go home and concentrate on her family while her mind was still occupied by the horrors of her day job.
She said: "We try to carry on as much as normal.
