Judith (Judy) Yorke disappeared from a party in Matapihi in 1992. Photo / File
An earthmoving contractor who helped search for the body of missing Tauranga woman Judy Yorke says in his view the Matapihi orchard she disappeared from was not searched thoroughly enough.
However, the initial lead detective of the case says police could not have dug up the area any more unless there was "strong evidence to prove they needed to".
Tauranga man Stan Goodrick says he was phoned by police back in 1993 to help with the search for Yorke not long after her disappearance.
He was an earthmoving contractor by trade and did a lot of excavation work, he said.
He said he was asked to meet officers at the property in Matapihi where she was last seen and police told him they believed she was buried somewhere near a dead horse on the site.
He was told they had a person who they were ready to arrest but they needed physical evidence, he said.
Officers were searching the area with a "very small ground-penetrating radar" he said was about the size of a wheelbarrow. He recalled it did not come up with anything of interest.
There were close to 35 officers at the scene, many being new recruits and trainees, he said.
He said they asked him to remove topsoil in a couple of small areas beside a shelterbelt row of trees.
"When the topsoil is scraped away, it leaves the clay soil beneath exposed and then it is easy to see a change in colour where that clay soil has previously been disturbed indicating something is possibly buried there."
He found some bones but it was quickly determined they were from an animal, possibly a horse, he said.
He said he was asked to strip a few other areas but nothing else was found.
"Police were running out of time and decided to end the search there."
He said the total area uncovered was only about 10m by 3m and he was "surprised" more of the several-acre paddock wasn't explored.
At the time, he told officers he would be happy to bring in a larger digger to continue working the area but "they didn't seem to think it was important".
He contacted police again a few years later telling them they needed to expose a larger area but nothing eventuated, he said.
"I have in the course of my excavation work, which spans more than 40 years, found five human bodies that have been buried. These were all determined to be pre-European.
"I would love the opportunity to further my work at the site in Matapihi in the hope of bringing closure for Judith's family.
"I am very good at what I do and I believe police have not searched there properly."
Alan Collin was the lead investigator of the Yorke case back in 1992 but a promotion in 1993 meant he had to leave the investigation before the Matapihi search.
Collin said he oversaw many searches and recalled the Matapihi search was "massive".
"There is no guarantee if she was there that we would have actually been able to find her."
Collin said early on in the investigation, they had an Auckland police helicopter fly over the site with specialised heat detection equipment used to find buried bodies.
He said corpses let off heat as they decomposed. They found a number of animals in the search but had no luck with Yorke.
It was "very difficult" to find a body and police would have been under "budget constraints", he said.
"Police could not have kept digging unless there was strong evidence to prove they needed to."
He said Tauranga police dealt with a number of homicides around that time and they did not have the resources.
Detective Senior Sergeant John Wilson from the Bay of Plenty Police said police were confident a "thorough and comprehensive" investigation was carried out following Yorke's disappearance.
He said this included multiple searches in several areas, where "inquiries determined there was good cause to do so".
He did not address Goodrick's call for further excavation of the orchard.
"This remains an open investigation and police would still very much like to be able to bring closure for Judith's family," Wilson said.
"We know that new information regarding her disappearance could come to light and we would encourage anyone who can assist to come forward."
Anyone with information can make contact with Detective Sergeant Rob Lemoto via 105 reference number 921101/7300.