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A rescue lifeboat is a boat rescue craft which is used to attend a vessel in distress, or its survivors, to rescue crewmen and passengers. It can be hand pulled, sail powered or powered by an engine. Lifeboats may be rigid, inflatable or rigid-inflatable combination hulled vessels.

Overview[link]

There are generally three types of boat, in-land (used on lakes and rivers), in-shore (used closer to shore) and off-shore (into deeper waters and further out to sea). A rescue lifeboat is a boat designed with specialised features for searching for, rescuing and saving the lives of people in peril at sea or in estuaries.

In the United Kingdom and Ireland rescue lifeboats are typically vessels manned by volunteers, intended for quick dispatch, launch and transit to reach a ship or individuals in trouble at sea. Off-shore boats are referred to as 'All-weather' and generally have a range of 150-250 nautical miles. Characteristics such as capability to withstand heavy weather, fuel capacity, navigation and communication devices carried, vary with size.

A vessel and her crew can be used for operation out to, say, 20 nautical miles (37 km) away from a place of safe refuge, remaining at or on the scene to search for several hours, with fuel reserves sufficient for returning; operating in up to gale force sea conditions; in daylight, fog and darkness. A smaller IRB inshore rescue boat / ILB inshore life boat and her crew would not be able to withstand (or even survive) these conditions for long.

In countries such as Canada and the United States, the term 'motor lifeboat', or its US military acronym MLB, is used to designate shore-based rescue lifeboats which are generally manned by full time coast guard service personnel. On standby rather than on patrol mode these vessels are ready for service rather like a crew of fire fighters standing by for an alert. In Canada, some lifeboats are 'co-crewed', meaning that the operator and engineer are full time personnel while the crew members are trained volunteers.

Types of craft[link]

Inflatable boats (IB), (RIB) and (RHIB)[link]

Older inflatable boats, such as those introduced by the RNLI and Atlantic College in 1963, were soon made larger and those over 3 metres (9.8 ft) often had plywood bottoms and were known as RIBs.^{[citation needed]} These two types were superseded by newer types of RIBs which had purpose built hulls and flotation tubes.^{[citation needed]} A gap in operations caused the New Zealand Lifeguard Service to reintroduce small 2 man IRB's, which have since been adopted by other organisations such as the RNLI as well.^{[citation needed]}

Ships[link]

Larger non-inflatable boats are also employed as lifeboats. The RNLI fields the Severn class lifeboat and Tamar class lifeboat as all-weather lifeboats (ALB). In the United States and Canada, the term motor life boat (MLB) refers to a similar (though slightly smaller) class of non-inflatable lifeboats, the latest of which is the 47-foot Motor Lifeboat.^[1]

History[link]

China[link]

The earliest lifeboat stations and service with a documented history operated along the middle reaches of the Chang jiang or Yangtze, a major river which flows through south central China. These waters are particularly treacherous to waterway travellers owing to the canyon like gorge conditions along the river shore and the high volume and rate of flow. The 'long river' was a principal means of communication between coastal (Shanghai) and interior China (Chongqing, once known as Chungking).

These riverine lifeboats were of a wooden pulling boat design, designed with a very narrow length-to-beam ratio and a shallow draft for negotiating shoal waters and turbulent, rock strewn currents. They could thus be maneuvered laterally to negotiate rocks, similar to today's inflated rafts for 'running' fast rivers, and also could be hauled upstream by human haulers, rather than beasts of burden, who walked along narrow catwalks lining the canyon sides.^[2]

United Kingdom[link]

The first lifeboat station in Britain was at Formby beach, established in 1776 by William Hutchinson, Dock Master for the Liverpool Common Council.^[3]

The first non-submersible ('unimmergible') lifeboat is credited to Lionel Lukin, an Englishman who, in 1784, modified and patented a 20-foot (6.1 m) Norwegian yawl, fitting it with water-tight cork-filled chambers for additional buoyancy and a cast iron keel to keep the boat upright.

The first boat specialized as a lifeboat was tested on the River Tyne in England on January 29, 1790, built by Henry Greathead. The design won a competition organised by the private Law House committee, though William Wouldhave and Lionel Lukin both claimed to be the inventor of the first lifeboat. Greathead's boat, the Original (combined with some features of Wouldhave's) entered service in 1790 and another 31 of the same design were constructed. The 28 feet (8.5 m) boat was rowed by up to 12 crew for whom cork jackets were provided. In 1807 Ludkin designed the Frances Ann for the Lowestoft service, which wasn't satisfied with Greathead's design, and this saved 300 lives over 42 years of service.^[4][5] Double-ended designs could operate a rudder from either end so there was no need to turn.

The first self-righting design was developed by William Wouldhave and also entered in the Law House competition, but was only awarded a half-prize. Self-righting designs were not deployed until the 1840s.^[4]

These lifeboats were manned by 6 to 10 volunteers who would row out from shore when a ship was in distress. In the case of the UK the crews were generally local boatmen. One example of this was the Newhaven Lifeboat, established in 1803 in response to the wrecking of HMS Brazen in January 1800, when only one of her crew of 105 could be saved. The UK combined these local efforts into a national organization in 1824 with the establishment of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. One example of an early lifeboat was the Landguard Fort Lifeboat of 1821, designed by Richard Hall Gower.

In 1851, James Beeching and James Peake produced the design for the Beeching-Peake SR (self-righting) lifeboat which became the standard model for the new Royal National Lifeboat Institution fleet.^[6]

The first motorised boat, the Duke of Northumberland, was built in 1890 and was steam powered.^[7] In 1929 the motorized lifeboat Princess Mary was commissioned and was the largest ocean going lifeboat at that time able to carry over 300 persons on rescue missions. The Princess Mary was stationed at Padstow Cornwall, England. ^[8]

USA[link]

The United States Life Saving Service (USLSS) was established in 1848. This was a United States government agency that grew out of private and local humanitarian efforts to save the lives of shipwrecked mariners and passengers. In 1915 the USLSS merged with the Revenue Cutter Service to form the United States Coast Guard (USCG).

In 1899 the Lake Shore Engine Company, at the behest of the Marquette Life Saving Station, fitted a two-cylinder 12 hp (9 kW) engine to a 34-foot (10 m) lifeboat on Lake Superior, Michigan. Its operation marked the introduction of the term motor life boat (MLB). By 1909 44 boats had been fitted with engines whose power had increased to 40 hp (30 kW).

The sailors of the MLBs are called "surfmen", after the name given to the volunteers of the original USLSS. The main school for training USCG surfmen is the National Motor Lifeboat School (NMLBS) located at the Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment at the mouth of the Columbia River, which is also the boundary separating Washington State from Oregon State. The sand bars which form at the entrance are treacherous and provide a tough training environment for surf lifesavers.

Canada[link]

CCGC Cape Sutil, a 14.6 metres (48 ft) motor life boat.

Canada established its first lifeboat stations in the mid-to-late 19th century along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, as well as along the shores of the Canadian side of the Great Lakes. The original organization was called the "Canadian Lifesaving Service", not to be confused with the Royal Life Saving Society of Canada, which came later at the turn of the 20th century.

In 1908, Canada had the first lifeboat (a pulling sailing boat design) to be equipped with a motor in North America, at Bamfield, British Columbia (province).

Modern lifeboats[link]

Modern life boats have been modified by the addition of an engine since 1890 which provides more power to get in and out of the swell area inside the surf. They can be launched from shore in any weather and perform rescues further out. Older lifeboats relied on sails and oars which are slower and dependent on wind conditions or manpower. Lifeboats of this type generally have modern electronic devices such as radios and radar to help locate the party in distress and carry medical and food supplies for the survivors.

The Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boat (RHIB) is now seen as the best type of craft for in-shore rescues as they are less likely to be tipped over by the wind or breakers. Specially designed jet rescue boats have also been used successfully. Unlike ordinary pleasure craft these small to medium sized rescue craft often have a very low freeboard so that victims can be taken aboard without lifting. This means that the boats are designed to operate with water inside the boat hull and rely on flotation tanks rather than hull displacement to stay afloat and upright.

Inflatables (IB)s fell out of general use after the introduction of RIBs during the 1970s. Conditions in New Zealand and other large surf zones was identified and Inflatable Rescue Boats (IRB), small non rigid powered boats, were introduced by New Zealand and have been put into use in many other countries including Australia and the RNLI in the UK.^[9]

Australasia[link]

In Australasia surf lifesaving clubs operate inflatable rescue boats (IRB) for in-shore rescues of swimmers and surfers. These boats are best typified by the rubber Zodiac and are powered by an outboard motor. The rescue personnel wear wet suits.

Lifeboats are also operated inland at events, organisations such as the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS UK) provide coverage of rivers, lakes and such like.

Canada[link]

The Canadian Coast Guard Agency operates makes and models of motor lifeboats that are modified RNLI and USCG designs such as the Arun and the 47 footer (respectively).

Germany[link]

In Germany, the Deutsche Gesellschaft zur Rettung Schiffbrüchiger (DGzRS) has provided naval rescue service since 1865. It is a civilian, non-profit organisation and has a variety of boats and ships, the biggest being the 46 meter (150 ft) SK Hermann Marwede. The DGzRS operates from 54 stations in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. It has 20 rescue cruisers (usually piggybacking a smaller rescue boat) and 41 rescue boats. Voluntary organizations such as the German Red Cross (Wasserwacht) and DLRG provide lifeguarding and emergency response for rivers, lakes, coasts and such like.

SK John T. Essberger, one of the large 44m-class lifeboats of the Deutsche Gesellschaft zur Rettung Schiffbrüchiger (DGzRS) of Germany

Netherlands[link]

The Dutch lifeboat association Koninklijke Nederlandse Redding Maatschappij (KNRM) has developed jet-driven RIB lifeboats. This has resulted in 3 classes, the largest is the Arie Visser class: length 18,80 m, twin jet, 2 x 1,000 hp (750 kW), max. speed 35 knots (65 km/h), capacity 120 persons.

UK[link]

Severn class lifeboat in Poole Harbour, Dorset, England. This is the largest class of UK lifeboat, at 17 metres long

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (or RNLI) maintains lifeboats around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland manned by unpaid volunteers, many part-time, with equipment funded through voluntary donations.^[10] There are around 50 other Lifeboat Services that are independent of the RNLI in and around the UK that provide lifesaving lifeboats and lifeboat crews 24 hours a day all year round, manned by unpaid volunteers. Their stations operate inshore and offshore ("All Weather") lifeboats. Most Scandinavian countries also have volunteer lifeboat societies. The local branch of a society generally schedules practices, maintains a lifeboat and shed, and is contacted by commercial marine radio operators when a rescue is needed.

In Britain, the RNLI design and build several types of all-weather motor lifeboats, the Arun class kept permanently afloat, the Tyne class slipway-launched boat and the Mersey class carriage-launched boat. More recently the Arun replacement Trent and Severn class prototype models were delivered in 1992 with the first production Trent arriving in 1994 and the Severn in 1996. The first production Tamar class, replacement for the Tyne went into service in December 2005 and the FCB2 class replacement for the Mersey is being developed for deployment sometime in 2013.^[11]. The FCB2 class of lifeboat was on 11 April 2011 accepted as a proven design and given the class name of the Shannon. This continues the RNLI tradition of naming all weather lifeboat classes after United Kingdom rivers.^[12] Scarborough lifeboat station in North Yorkshire and Hoylake lifeboat station on the Wirral are two of the first stations to be allocated one of the new boats. Scarborough's Shannon class lifeboat will be named Frederick William Plaxton in his memory as he left a substantial legacy to the RNLI specifically to purchase Scarborough's next all weather lifeboat.^[13].

USA[link]

The United States Life Saving Service began using motorised lifeboats in 1899. Models derived from this hull design remained in use until 1987.

Today in U.S. waters rescue-at-sea is part of the duties of the United States Coast Guard. The coast guard's MLBs, an integral part of the USCG's fleet, are built to withstand the most severe conditions at sea. Designed to be self-bailing, self-righting and practically unsinkable MLBs are used for surf rescue in heavy weather.

36' (foot)[link]

The 36-foot (11 m) T model was introduced in 1929. At 36 ft 10 in (11.23 m) length overall, 10 ft 9 in (3.28 m) beam and with a two-ton lead keel, she was powered by a 90 hp (67 kW) Sterling gas engine and had a speed of nine knots (17 km/h). From the early days of the 20th century the 36 MLB was the mainstay of coastal rescue operations for over 30 years until the 44 MLB was introduced in 1962.

Built at the Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay, Maryland, 218 36 T, TR and TRS MLBs were built between 1929 to 1956. Based on a hull design from the 1880s, the 36 TRS and her predecessors remain the longest active hull design in the Coast Guard, serving the Coast Guard and the Life Saving Services for almost 100 years, the last one, CG-36535, serving Depoe Bay MLB Station in Oregon until 1987.

52' (foot)[link]

In the mid-1930s the USCG ordered 2 52 foot rescue life boat for service where there was a high traffic of merchants ships and heavy seas that had a high capacity in the number of person that could be rescued of approximately 100 and could tow ten fully loaded standard life boats used by most merchant vessels..^[14]

Unlike the older 36' foot, the 52' foot had a diesel engine. One was built and stationed at Sandy Hook, New Jersey, the other in Oregon. IN time the Sandy Hook boat was transferred to the Pacific Northwest. http://www.uscg.mil/history/boats/docs/52FootWoodenHulledMLB.pdf

44' (foot)[link]

During the 1960s the Coast Guard replaced the 36-foot (11 m) MLB with the newly designed 44 foot (13 m) boat. These steel-hulled boats were more capable and more complicated than the wooden lifeboats they replaced.

In all 110 vessels would be built by the Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay between 1962 and 1972 with an additional 52 built by the RNLI, Canadian Coast Guard and others under license from the USCG.

The last active 44' MLB in the United States Coast Guard was retired in May 2009,^[15] however these boats are still in active service elsewhere around the globe. The 44' MLB can be found in many third world countries and is faithfully serving the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol in Australia and the Royal New Zealand Coastguard Federation. The current engine configuration is twin Detroit Diesel 6v53s that put out 185 hp (138 kW) each at a max RPM of 2800.

30' (foot) surf rescue boat[link]

Another surf capable boat that the Coast Guard has used in recent years is the 30' surf rescue boat (SRB) introduced in 1983.^[16] The 30' SRB was self righting and self bailing and designed with marked differences from the typical lifeboats used by the Coast Guard up until the early 1980s. The 30' SRB is not considered to be a MLB, but was generally used in a similar capacity. Designed to perform search and rescue in adverse weather the vessel is generally operated with a crew of two, a surfman and an engineer. The crew both stand on the coxswain flat, protected by the superstructure on the bow and stern. The boat's appearance has caused many to comment that it looks like a "Nike Tennis Shoe".

Since 1997 the introduction of the faster 47' MLB and the phasing out of the 44' MLBs made the 30 footers obsolete. The class of vessels underwent an overhaul in the early nineties to extend their life until the newer and faster 47' motor lifeboats came into service, and in the late 1990s most of the 30 footers were de-commissioned. One still remains on active duty at Motor Lifeboat Station Depoe Bay in Depoe Bay, Oregon and is used almost daily. This station was host to the last 36' motor lifeboat in the late 1980s.

47' (foot)[link]

The USCG has since designed and built new aluminum 47-foot (14 m) lifeboats and the first production boat was delivered to the USCG in 1997.

The 47 MLB is able to withstand impacts of three times the acceleration of gravity, can survive a complete roll-over and is self-righting in less than 10 seconds with all machinery remaining fully operational. The 47 MLB can travel at 25 knots (46 km/h) to reach her destination.

There are 117 operational with a total of 200 scheduled to be delivered to the USCG. A further 27 models are being built by MetalCraft Marine under license to the Canadian Coast Guard.

Response boat-medium[link]

The Response boat-medium is a replacement for the 41' boats and the USCG plans a fleet of 180 in the USA.

Gallery[link]

• 

  SK Hermann Marwede, a 46m-class cruiser of the (DGzRS) in Germany

• 

  The Wiecher en Jap Visser- Politiek, Dutch RIB lifeboat

• 

  A 47 MLB.

• 

  Lifeboat tender of the Oosterdam showing the "face mask" over the front windows, and the rolled-up tarp that can be brought down over the entry port to make the boat watertight

• 

  Southport lifeboat station, England

• 

  Inside Southport lifeboat station, England

• 

  Southport inshore rescue boat on trailer

• 

  Southport inshore rescue boat on trailer showing special tractor which steers with an articulated front end, which is somewhat wedge-shaped to push obstructions aside

• 

  US Coast Guard Motor Life Boat CG-36535 off Nehalem River MLB Station, c. 1975

• Djibouti-PatrolBoat.jpg

  One of four refurbished 44 foot patrol boats supplied to the Djibouti Navy

• 

  A USCG Response boat-medium their latest addition

• 

  Canadian Coast Guard Arun class medium endurance motor lifeboat

See also[link]

United States Coast Guard portal

References[link]

Books[link]

• John A Culver; The 36 foot Coast Guard motor life boat (1989 J.A. Culver)
• Bernard C. Webber; Chatham, "The Lifeboatmen" (1985 Lower Cape Pub., ISBN 0-936972-08-4 )
• Robert R. Frump, "Two Tankers Down: The Greatest Small Boat Rescue in U.S. Coast Guard History. (2008, Lyons Press. www.twotankersdown.com)

External links[link]

Look up lifeboat in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: lifeboats

• Solent Rescue - Independent Lifeboat Rescue Organisation
• I-Lifeboat UK - Independent Lifeboats Serving the UK
• Roberts Bank Lifeboat, Delta BC, Canada
• The Ryder Lifeboat

USA 36 MLB

• CG-36500 History of a 36 MLB

USA 44 MLB

• US Coast Guard Datasheet on the 44 MLB
• 44 Motor Life Boat A personal website on the 44 MLB
• CG-44355 A 44 MLB on display in New Jersey
• Axis Historical Society A 44 MLB in Australia
• Waiheke Volunteer Coastguard A 44 MLB in New Zealand
• SSS601 Viking A 44 MLB Sea Scout Ship in Washington

USA 47 MLB

• US Coast Guard Datasheet on the 47 MLB
• Textron Marine contractor for the USCG 47 MLB
• MetalCraft Marine contractor for the CCG 47 MLB
• military.com

Coast Guard Agencies

• Canadian Coast Guard
• USCG National Motor Life Boat School USCG Station Cape Disappointment, WA
• Royal National Lifeboat Institution United Kingdom
• sea-rescue.de Lifeboat services around the world

Lifeboat may refer to:

• Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape
• Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues
• Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen
• Lifeboat (film), a 1944 movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock
• "Lifeboat" (Stargate SG-1), television episode from season 7
• Lifeboat ethics, proposed by Garret Hardin based on the metaphor of a lifeboat
• Lifeboat sketch, a sketch shown on Monty Python's Flying Circus
• Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), a lifeboat-providing charity in the UK and Ireland
• International Lifeboat Federation (ILF), global organisation that unites and represents the world's operational marine rescue services
• Lifeboat, a 1972 album by the Sutherland Brothers
• Lifeboat (game), a negotiation card game published by Gorilla Games in 2002
• Lifeboat, a 2008 album by Jimmy Herring
• "Lifeboats", a song on Snow Patrol's 2008 album, A Hundred Million Suns

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)

Rescue team in Dresden, Germany, in 2006

Helicopter rescue

Real Helicopter rescue in Malta in 2007

Patient in mountain rescue stretcher

Rescue comprises responsive operations that usually involve the saving of life, or prevention of injury during an incident or dangerous situation.

Tools used might include search dogs, search and rescue horses, helicopters, the "jaws of life", and other hydraulic cutting and spreading tools used to extricate individuals from wrecked vehicles. Rescue operations are sometimes supported by special vehicles such as fire department's or EMS heavy rescue vehicle.

Overview[link]

Ropes and special devices can reach and remove individuals and animals from difficult locations including:

• Air-sea rescue
• Cave rescue
• Combat search and rescue
• Confined space rescue
• Fast water rescue
• Ice rescue
• Mines rescue
• Rope rescue
• Search and rescue
• Ski patrol
• Urban search and rescue
• Vehicle rescue
• Wilderness rescue

Rescue operations require a high degree of training and are performed by rescue squads, either independent or part of larger organizations such as fire, police, military, first aid, or ambulance services. In the US, they are usually staffed by medically trained personnel as NFPA regulations require it.^{[citation needed]}

Old meanings[link]

In former centuries the word "rescue" had other meanings: for example, there is an old record of a countryman living where Wythenshawe is now, being prosecuted in a local law court for "making rescue" of a pig which had been seized as a distress for non-payment of money owed.^{[citation needed]}

See also[link]

• Animal rescue
• Diver rescue
• Extraction (military)
• Extrication
• Lifeboat
• Rescue robot
• Technical rescue
• Emergency management

External links[link]

The Wiktionary entry for rescue Media related to Rescue at Wikimedia Commons

It has been suggested that Operation Anagram be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Proposed since July 2010.

Peter Tobin^[1] (born 27 August 1946) is a convicted Scottish serial killer and sex offender now serving a sentence of life imprisonment for the murders of three young women.

Prior to his first murder conviction, Tobin served ten years in prison for a double rape committed in 1993, following which he was released in 2004. In 2007, he was sentenced to life with a minimum of 21 years for the rape and murder of Angelika Kluk in Glasgow in 2006. Skeletal remains of two further young women who went missing in 1991 were subsequently found at his former home in Margate. Tobin was convicted of the murder of Vicky Hamilton in December 2008, when his minimum sentence was increased to 30 years, and of the murder of Dinah McNicol in December 2009. Tobin has been labelled a psychopath by a senior psychologist,^[2] and by professor of criminology David Wilson, who also wrote a book on the killer connecting him with the Bible John murders of the late sixties.^[3]

Early and personal life[link]

Tobin was born in Johnstone, Renfrewshire, the youngest of seven children. He was a difficult child and in 1953, aged seven, he was sent to an approved school. He later spent time in a young offender institution, and in 1970 was convicted and served jail terms in England for burglary and forgery.

In 1969, Tobin moved to Brighton, Sussex, with his 17-year old girlfriend, Margaret Louise Robertson Mountney, a clerk and typist, whom he married on 6 August that year. They split after a year and she divorced him in 1971. In 1973 in Brighton, he married a local nurse, 30-year-old Sylvia Jefferies. They had a son and daughter, the latter of whom died soon after birth. This second, violent, marriage lasted until 1976, when she left with their son. Tobin then had a relationship with Cathy Wilson, who gave birth to a son in December 1987. Tobin married her in Brighton in 1989, when she was 17. In 1990, they moved to Bathgate, West Lothian. Wilson left Tobin in 1990 and moved back to Portsmouth, Hampshire, where she had grown up. All three later gave similar accounts of falling for a charming, well-dressed Tobin who turned violent and sadistic during their marriages. In May 1991, Tobin moved to Margate, Kent, and in 1993, to Havant, Hampshire to be near his younger son.^[4][5]

Convictions[link]

Rape of juveniles[link]

On 4 August 1993, Tobin attacked two 14-year old girls at his flat in Leigh Park, Havant, after they called to visit a neighbour, who was not in.^[6] They called at Tobin's flat and asked if they could wait there. After holding them at knifepoint and forcing them to drink strong cider and vodka, Tobin sexually assaulted and raped them. He then turned on the gas taps and left them for dead but they both survived the attack. To avoid arrest, Tobin went on the run and hid with a religious sect in Coventry, West Midlands, under a false name. He was later captured in Brighton, after his blue Austin Metro car was found there.^[7]

On 18 May 1994, at Winchester Crown Court, Tobin entered a plea of guilty and received a 14-year prison sentence. In 2004, the 58-year-old Tobin was released from prison and moved back to Paisley.^[7]

Angelika Kluk murder[link]

It has been suggested that Murder of Angelika Kluk be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Proposed since December 2009.

In September 2006, Tobin was working as a church handyman at St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church in Anderston, Glasgow. He had assumed the name "Pat McLaughlin" to avoid detection, as he was still on the Violent and Sex Offender Register following his 1994 convictions for rape and assault. An arrest warrant had been issued for him in November 2005 after he moved from Paisley without notifying the police, but he was not discovered until he became a suspect in a murder case at the church. In May 2007, he received a further 30-month sentence for breaching the terms of the register.^[8][9][10]

Angelika Kluk was a 23-year-old student from Skoczow, near Krakow in Poland. She was staying at the presbytery of St Patrick's Church, where she worked as a cleaner to help finance her Scandinavian Studies course at University of Gdańsk. She was last seen alive in the company of Tobin on 24 September 2006, and is thought to have been attacked by him in the garage attached to St Patrick's presbytery. She was beaten, raped, and stabbed, then her body was concealed in an underground chamber beneath the floor near the confessional in the church. Forensic evidence suggested that she was still alive when she was placed under the floorboards. Police found her body on 29 September,^[11] and Tobin was arrested in London shortly afterwards.^[12] He had been admitted to hospital under a false name, and with a fictitious complaint.^[13]

A six-week trial resulted from the evidence gathered under the supervision of Detective Superintendent David Swindle of Strathclyde Police and took place at the High Court of Justiciary, Edinburgh, between 23 March and 4 May 2007.^[14]

The trial judge was Lord Menzies, the prosecution was led by Advocate Depute Dorothy Bain, and the defence by Donald Findlay QC.^[15] Tobin denied raping and murdering Kluk and claimed she had consented to have sex with him.

Tobin was found guilty of raping and murdering Kluk and was sentenced to life imprisonment, to serve a minimum of 21 years. In sentencing Tobin, Judge Lord Menzies described him as "an evil man".^[16]

Vicky Hamilton murder[link]

In June 2007, Tobin's old house in Bathgate, West Lothian was searched by police in connection with the disappearance of a 15-year-old girl, Vicky Hamilton, who was last seen on 10 February 1991, as she waited for a bus home to Redding, near Falkirk. She had been visiting her older sister, Sharon, in Livingston and was waiting to change buses in Bathgate. The last sighting of her was as she was eating chips on a bench in the town centre. Tobin is believed to have left Bathgate for Margate, in Kent, a few weeks after her disappearance.^[17]

Tobin's house at 50 Irvine Drive, Margate. The bodies of Vicky Hamilton and Dinah McNicol were found in the garden.

On 21 July 2007, Lothian and Borders Police released a statement that they had "arrested, cautioned and charged a male in connection with the matter and a report has been submitted to the Procurator Fiscal", but did not immediately confirm the identity of the man arrested.^[18] The investigation later led to a forensic search of a house in Southsea, Hampshire in early October 2007, where Tobin is believed to have lived shortly after leaving Bathgate.^[19]

On 14 November 2007, Lothian and Borders Police confirmed that human remains found in the back garden of 50 Irvine Drive,^[20] a house in Margate occupied by Tobin in 1991, were those of Vicky Hamilton.^[21]

After a month-long trial, Tobin was convicted of Hamilton's murder on 2 December 2008 at the High Court in Dundee.^[22][23]

Tobin was again defended by Donald Findlay QC and the prosecution was led by the Solicitor General for Scotland, Frank Mulholland QC. The prosecution case went beyond the circumstance of Tobin having lived at the two houses in Bathgate and Margate in 1991, and consisted of eyewitness testimony of suspicious behaviour by Tobin at the Bathgate house,^[24] evidence to destroy his alibi,^[25] and forensic evidence of DNA and fingerprints left on a dagger found in the Bathgate house, on Hamilton's purse and on the sheeting in which her body was wrapped.^[26]

When sentencing Tobin to life imprisonment, the judge, Lord Emslie, said:

"You stand convicted of the truly evil abduction and murder of a vulnerable young girl in 1991 and thereafter of attempting to defeat the ends of justice in various ways over an extended period... Yet again you have shown yourself to be unfit to live in a decent society. It is hard for me to convey the loathing and revulsion that ordinary people will feel for what you have done... I fix the minimum period which you must spend in custody at 30 years. Had it been open to me I would have made that period run consecutive to the 21 year custodial period that you are already serving."^[27]

On 11 December 2008, Tobin gave formal notice to court officials that he intended to challenge the guilty verdict and overturn the prison sentence imposed on him. Tobin's defence team was not required to describe the grounds for this appeal until a later date in the appeals process.^[28] Tobin did not proceed with his appeal, and it was dropped in March 2009.^[29]

Dinah McNicol murder[link]

Dinah McNicol, an 18-year old sixth former from Tillingham, Essex, was last seen alive on 5 August 1991, hitchhiking home with a male companion from a music festival at Liphook, Hampshire. He was dropped off at Junction 8 of the M25, near Reigate, and she stayed in the car with the driver. She was never seen again. After her disappearance, regular withdrawals of £250 were made from her building society account at cash machines in the UK south coast counties of Hampshire and Sussex, out of character for McNicol, who had told friends and family she intended to use the money in her building society account to travel, or further her education. In late 2007, Essex Police reopened the investigation into her disappearance, following new leads.^[30]

On 16 November 2007, a second body was found at 50 Irvine Drive in Margate, later confirmed by police to be that of McNicol.^[31]

On 1 September 2008, the Crown Prosecution Service served a summons on Tobin's solicitors, formally accusing him of McNicol's murder, and this trial began in June 2009. The trial was postponed and the jury discharged in July 2009, the judge ruling that Tobin was not fit to stand trial pending surgery.^[32] The case resumed on 14 December 2009 at Chelmsford Crown Court.^[33] On 16 December 2009, after the defence had offered no evidence, a jury found Tobin guilty of McNicol's murder after deliberating for less than fifteen minutes and Tobin subsequently received his third life sentence, with a recommendation by the judge that his life sentence should mean life.^[34] Police are now reopening 'Operation Anagram', to trace Tobin's past movements and his possible involvement in a further 13 unsolved murders which includes the three Bible John victims. Tobin is reported to have claimed 48 victims in boasts made in prison.^[35]

Bible John connection[link]

The conviction of Tobin has led to speculation that he is Bible John.^[36] There are similarities between photographs of Tobin from that era and the photofit artist's impression of Bible John, and Tobin had moved from Glasgow in 1969, the same year as the killings officially ended. It had been alleged that Tobin is driven to violence by the menstrual cycle, something which has long been suspected as the motive behind the Bible John murders.^[37] Police have not commented upon any similarities, but said that any surviving forensic evidence will be rechecked.^[38] Although DNA had been used to rule out a previous suspect, detectives believe a DNA link to Tobin is unlikely due to a deterioration of the samples through poor storage.^[36]

Peter Tobin also had a religious upbringing, as he was forced to attend Mass every day by his parents. Bible John was heard by Helen Puttock's sister referring to the Bible. Another similarity is that eye-witnesses told police that the suspect had one tooth missing in his upper-right area of the mouth; Dental Records proved that Peter Tobin had a tooth removed around the late 1960s.

References[link]