Dive expert says Nicola Bulley ‘could have ended up in the sea’ after police reveal alcohol struggle
Dive expert who led hunt for Nicola Bulley says police NEVER told him she was battling alcohol issues and he could have searched differently if he’d known – amid growing anger that detectives have made the information about missing mother public
A diving expert involved in the search for Nicola Bulley said she ‘could have ended up in the sea’ after police revealed she was ‘high risk’ and had been struggling with alcohol.
Forensic search expert Peter Faulding said it is ‘absolutely outrageous’ the information was withheld from him, as it would have changed how he searched the stretch of the River Wyre in St Michael’s.
His comments follow Lancashire police revealing that the missing Ms Bulley, 45, suffered ‘significant issues with alcohol brought on by ongoing struggles with menopause’.
Police initially said she had ‘vulnerabilities’ yesterday but hours later shared more details, explaining they felt it was ‘important to clarify’.
However the decision to publicly share personal information about the mother-of-two’s has been called ‘deeply troubling’ by MPs and campaigners.
Lancashire Police revealed that mother-of-two Nicola Bulley, 45, had been struggling with alcohol issues brought on by ongoing struggles with menopause
Peter Faulding (pictured) said his method for searching the stretch of the River Wyre in St Michael’s would have changed had he been told about Ms Bulley’s vulnerabilities.
Ms Bulley vanished while walking her dog along the River Wyre in St Michael’s on January 27.
A briefing yesterday explained Ms Bulley was immediately classified as ‘high risk’ when she was reported missing due to her ‘vulnerabilities’.
Though on February 3, detectives stated that Ms Bulley was not unwell and not being treated for any illness.
The police also revealed that on January 10, officers did a welfare check at her home. They confirmed that no one has been arrested and that it is being investigated.
Peter Faulding previously said the mother-of-two could not be in the river, after conducting a search under the premise she had slipped in.
However, he now believes she could be much further down stream if she intended to take her own life.
Mr Faulding told Jeremy Kyle on TalkTV that: ‘If she had jumped in, intended to take her own life or walk off, that would change my whole plan.
‘She could have ended up in the sea.’
The police said it is an ‘unusual step’ to reveal such detail about someone’s private life, but that they we felt it was ‘important to clarify’ what they meant by ‘vulnerabilities’
Speaking to The Times, Mr Faulding said: ‘I find it absolutely outrageous this was not shared with me.
‘It’s disgraceful and someone needs to take responsibility for this.’
Nearly three weeks have now passed since Ms Bulley vanished, but a search expert advising the police told The Times that it can take up to 100 days to find a body in a river.
The expert, who was not named by the newspaper, said in some cases the body is never found.
On the day Ms Bulley went missing the river was flowing at a rate of 3.8 cubic metres per second.
Enough to carry her over the weir and off downstream, according to the expert.
In the highly-detailed public briefing from Lancashire Police, the force said it had an open mind but said there was no evidence anyone was involved.
It remains the the police’s ‘working hypothesis’ that Nicola fell into the river while taking her dog, though they were following a number of lines of inquiry.
Ms Bulley, 45, had been struggling with menopause, experts say women go through the menopause at the age of 51 years on average, although it can begin when someone is anywhere between 40 and 58 years old.
During this period the body goes through major hormonal changes, as the ovaries stop making estrogen and progesterone.
In the early stages this triggers hot flushes, night sweats and mood swings among other symptoms.
Reacting to the police announcement, Labour MP for Walthamstow questioned the decision to publicly reveal details about Ms Bulley’s personal life.
She tweeted: ‘The decision to disclose this level of detail on a missing person’s private life, with no evidence that this is assisting in finding her, is deeply troubling.
‘The police need to be much clearer as to why any of this helps find Nicola Bulley or support this investigation.’
Lancashire Police said that Nicola was immediately graded as ‘high-risk’ due to ‘specific vulnerabilities’
‘No evidence to indicate a criminal aspect or third party involvement’ in Nicola Bulley’s disappearance, Lancashire Police Assistant Chief Constable Peter Lawson said to a press conference this morning.
Silkie Carlo, of Big Brother Watch, said the decision to broadcast Ms Bulley’s health issues and hormone status was ‘serious invasion of her privacy with no obvious benefits for the investigation’
Many social media users felt the decision highlighted the police’s treatment of women – which has recently been under scrutiny following high-profile cases involving former officers such as Wayne Couzens and David Carrick.
Jamie Klingler, Co-founder of Reclaim These Streets, said that she ‘Was not invested in the Nicola Bulley story until the police started using her as a shield to protect their own incompetence.
‘This is not how to treat a missing woman. It is cruel to her babies and to her. And they do it all the time.’
Director of the Good Law Project, Jo Maugham, asked how the police will justify their decision if the mother-of-two is found alive.
He tweeted: ‘If, as we all hope, Nicola Bulley is found alive how will the police justify a breach of her confidentiality to, what looks like, manage their own reputation?’
While, Conservative MP for Rutland and Melton Alicia Kearns tweeted: ‘I am deeply uncomfortable with the police releasing Nicola Bulley’s so-called ‘vulnerabilities’ on menopause & alcohol.
‘I struggle to ascertain how this will assist Police in their search & investigations.
‘I do see how it would assist those wishing to victim-blame or diminish.’
The briefing earlier in the day revealed Ms Bulley’s long-term partner Paul Ansell had told them of a ‘number of specific vulnerabilities’ that caused them to treat her disappearance as ‘high risk’.
Detective Superintendent Rebecca Smith said: ‘As soon as she was reported missing, following the information that was provided to the police by her partner Paul, and based on a number of specific vulnerabilities that we were made aware of, Nicola was graded as high-risk.
‘That is normal in a missing person investigation with the information we were in possession of. As any senior investigating officer does, you form a number of hypotheses, that is scenarios which are possible from the information to hand.’
Yesterday, Assistant Chief Constable Peter Lawson, from Lancashire Police, said the force had undertaken an ‘unprecedented amount of work’ in searching for Nicola.
He said this had included visiting more than 300 premises, speaking to almost 300 people and receiving roughly 1,500 pieces of information.
Senior investigating officer Detective Superintendent Rebecca Smith said at the time: ‘Those vulnerabilities based our decision-making in terms of grading Nicola as high risk and have continued to form part of my investigation throughout.’