Nicola Bulley – latest: Police say ‘possibility’ dog walker left area on path not covered by CCTV

Police have said they think Nicola Bulley could have left the riverside on a path that was not covered by CCTV, as the specialist rescue team searching for her has indicated that it will pull out of the investigation within hours.

Peter Faulding described the case as “baffling” and told reporters that he was “absolutely 100 per cent” sure that Ms Bulley’s body was not in the stretch of river scoured by his team of divers and sonar equipment.

Ms Bulley disappeared 12 days ago shortly after dropping her two daughters off at school. Her phone was found still connected to a Microsoft Teams call on a bench by the riverbank, with her dog running loose nearby.

It comes after officers last night admitted it was still a “possibility“ she left the area by one path not covered by cameras which is crossed by the main road through the village.

Police were trying to trace dashcam footage from 700 drivers who passed along the road at the time she disappeared, around 9.20am.

Key Points

• Nicola Bulley’s body ‘may have been swept out to sea'

• Friend hits out at those making scene a ‘tourist spot’

• Stop taking law into your own hands, police urge

• New images show Nicola Bulley leaving home on day she disappeared

• Friend shares ‘11 facts you may not know’ about Nicola Bulley’s disappearance

Nicola Bulley’s body ‘may have been swept out to sea'

Wednesday 8 February 2023 09:59 , Andy Gregory

Nicola Bulley’s body may have been swept out to sea by now, the head of the specialist rescue team searching for her has said.

Peter Faulding told The Times that he believed Ms Bulley’s body could have reached the sea by now if she had fallen into the River Wyre, given the distance and the meandering course of the river.

Superintendent Sally Riley also told reporters: “The amount of technology that we have put into the river – clearly as time goes on, the open sea becomes much more of a possibility.”

Police would continue to search the river until they received guidance from national bodies to do otherwise, Supt Riley added.

Watch: Underwater search expert responds to claims he has 'ulterior motive'

10:00 , Emily Atkinson

Anger as selfie-taking conspiracy theorists make Nicola Bulley scene a ‘tourist spot’

09:35 , Emily Atkinson

A family friend of missing woman Nicola Bulley has said speculation about the disappearance was hard for the family to take as members of the public are taking selfies in the area, making it feel like a “tourist spot”.

Heather Gibbons spoke on the banks of the River Wyre while, below her, Peter Faulding and his team from Specialist Group International, used a sonar to scan the depths on day 12 of the search.

Family and friends of mother-of-two Ms Bulley, 45, have questioned the police “theory” that she probably fell into the water while walking her dog, after dropping her children off at school in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancs on January 27.

Anger as selfie-taking conspiracy theorists make Nicola Bulley scene a ‘tourist spot’

Nicola Bulley’s partner quizzed over ‘enemies and stalkers’

09:15 , Emily Atkinson

The partner of Nicola Bulley was asked yesterday if the missing 45-year-old had any enemies or stalkers as an expert fears she could have been kidnapped, reports say.

Peter Faulding, who was called in by the family to help find Ms Bulley, met her partner Paul Ansell and, according to The Mirror, asked if he could think of anyone who might want to harm her.

Speaking yesterday, Mr Faulding said: “I spoke to Paul last night and asked him if she had any enemies, any stalkers, the normal questions you would ask. And nothing, he said no. And she was totally normal that day when she left, nothing out the ordinary.”

The founder and CEO of Specialist Group International has not been shy in his criticism, describing the probe as “a mess” and claiming details in the case “don’t add up”.

Nicola Bulley’s partner ‘extremely upset’ after visiting river scene, says search expert

08:55 , Emily Atkinson

Nicola Bulley: 5 things forensics expert claims don’t add up about dog walker’s disappearance

08:35 , Emily Atkinson

A forensic expert leading the underwater search for missing Nicola Bulley has been left “baffled” by “strange” events in the mother’s disappearance.

The 45-year-old disappeared while on her regular dog walk in the quiet village of St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.

Dropping her children off at school, she took her spaniel Willow for a stroll by the river and was sighted at around 9am by a witness but despite an extensive search, she has yet to be found.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain reports:

5 things forensics expert claims don’t add up about missing dog walker disappearance

Map showing distance between spot where Nicola Bulley went missing and open sea

08:15 , Emily Atkinson

Police investigating the disappearance of Nicola Bulley yesterday said they are “extending the search out to sea”.

The mother-of-two, 45, was last seen on a riverside dog walk in St Michael’s on Wyre on Friday 27 January.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, superintendent Sally Riley of Lancashire Constabulary confirmed “our search of the river and the river banks extends out to the sea”.

Police were focusing “particularly on the area from Knott End out towards Morecambe”, she said.

Here is a map showing the distance between spot where Ms Bulley went missing and the open sea:

'Baffling case': Private rescue team confirm they are pulling out of Nicola Bulley search

07:55 , Emily Atkinson

People using site of Nicola Bulley’s disappearance as ‘tourist spot'

07:35 , Emily Atkinson

Friends of Nicola Bulley have become angered by “tourists” travelling to take photos for social media as the missing woman’s family awaits news.

Amateur detectives have reportedly also been criticised for turning up despite being able to offer no professional input.

Ms Bulley’s friend Heather Gibbons said: “The truth is if we look at it factually, no-one knows until we have some evidence.

“I think it’s incredibly hard, but up to a certain level, we understand it’s human nature. It’s natural for everyone to have speculation, because the truth is, nothing is making sense.”

Despite the turnout for the search being “amazing”, she added: “We have noticed it does feel like some people have come to maybe use it as more like a tourist spot, to do their own personal social media things which in some ways we see and understand but it is hard, there’s a lot of people around as it is.”

Police investigating 500 lines of inquiry

07:15 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Police investigating the disappearance of Nicola Bulley have said all possible lines of inquiry to find the mother-of-two are being “exhausted”.

A team of 40 detectives are working on approximately 500 different lines of inquiry, superintendent Sally Riley said.

More than 700 drivers who travelled through the village of St Michael’s on Wyre around the time the 45-year-old went missing are also being traced.

“At the moment there are around 500 active pieces of information and lines of inquiry that we’re working on to try and find answers for Nicola’s family,” superintendent Riley said.

Police investigating 500 lines of inquiry in search for Nicola Bulley

Man reveals how his brother disappeared on the same stretch as Nicola Bulley

06:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

A man has come forward to reveal how his brother disappeared on the same stretch of the river as missing Nicola Bulley 45 years ago.

Roger Jones, 16, vanished into the icy waterway on 27 January 1978, his brother Don has told The Daily Star.

Mr Jones said police and rescuers tried for hours to find his missing sibling and the search operation ended when the body washed up on a sandbank at low tide.

The body was found seven miles away from St Michael’s on Wyre, he added.

“He was obviously swept over the weir and into the tidal part of the river. It was just a case of waiting for what seemed inevitable.”

Police reject suggestion Nicola Bulley’s disappearance could be criminal

05:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Lancashire Police have reiterated that there is no indication that Nicola Bulley’s disappearance could be criminal.

Speculation online has led to the police reaffirming their position that any notion of criminal activity has been “checked out and discounted”.

Superindent Sally Riley, of Lancashire Police, reassured reporters during a press conference that “every single” potential suspicion had been thoroughly explored.

Read more here.

Police reject suggestion Nicola Bulley’s disappearance could be criminal

Search expert’s river hunt ends without solving ‘mystery’

05:00 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

An underwater search expert said the case of missing mother-of-two Nicola Bulley is a “complete mystery” after his team failed to find her.

Peter Faulding, who was called in by the family to help find Ms Bulley, met her partner Paul Ansell and told him she had still not been found.

Mr Faulding and his team from rescue operation Specialist Group International, have been searching the area around the bench, the “entry point” where it is believed by police Ms Bulley fell into the water.

But he said their three-day involvement ended on Wednesday after a “thorough and extensive search of the areas we were tasked with by Lancashire Police” found “no sign of Nicola”.

Read more here.

Search expert’s river hunt ends without solving missing Nicola Bulley ‘mystery’

Nicola Bulley’s partner visits spot where police believe she fell into river

04:15 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

The partner of missing mother-of-two Nicola Bulley has visited the spot where police believe she fell into the River Wyre.

On Wednesday, Paul Ansell spent 10 minutes on the riverbank near the bench where Ms Bulley’s phone was found, still connected to a work Teams call.

She vanished after dropping her daughters off at school and going on her usual dog walk on 27 January.

Read more here.

Partner of Nicola Bulley visits spot where police believe she fell into river

Speculation over Nicola Bulley disappearance 'hurtful' for family, police say

03:30 , Joe Middleton

Nicola Bulley: 5 things forensics expert claims don’t add up about dog walker’s disappearance

02:30 , Joe Middleton

A forensic expert leading the underwater search for missing Nicola Bulley has been left “baffled” by “strange” events in the mother’s disappearance.

The 45-year-old disappeared while on her regular dog walk in the quiet village of St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.

Dropping her children off at school, she took her spaniel Willow for a stroll by the river and was sighted at around 9am by a witness but despite an extensive search, she has yet to be found.

5 things forensics expert claims don’t add up about missing dog walker disappearance

Search for Nicola Bulley ‘extending out to sea,’ police say

01:30 , Joe Middleton

Police investigating the disappearance of Nicola Bulley are “extending the search out to sea”.

The mother-of-two, 45, was last seen on a riverside dog walk in St Michael’s on Wyre on Friday 27 January.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, superintendent Sally Riley of Lancashire Constabulary confirmed “our search of the river and the river banks extends out to the sea”.

Police were focusing “particularly on the area from Knott End out towards Morecambe”, she said.

Search for Nicola Bulley ‘extending out to sea,’ police say

Nicola Bulley: Underwater search expert responds to claims he has ‘ulterior motive’

00:30 , Joe Middleton

An underwater search expert has responded to online claims that he is assisting with efforts to find Nicola Bulley due to an “ulterior motive.”

Peter Faulding, head of Specialist Group International, told TalkTV that those speculating about him are “heartless individuals.”

Mr Faulding has been assisting with searches in the River Wyre, close to where the mother-of-two disappeared on Friday, 27 January.

“This is what you get for trying to help people. I have given my life to helping families looking for missing loved ones. Do our job searching in dark murky waters for a drowning victims,” he tweeted.

Nicola Bulley: Underwater search expert responds to claims he has ‘ulterior motive’

'Baffling case': Private rescue team confirm they are pulling out of Nicola Bulley search

Wednesday 8 February 2023 23:30 , Joe Middleton

Could ‘Human Mole’ who tackles MI6 mysteries hold key to Nicola Bulley’s disappearance?

Wednesday 8 February 2023 22:30 , Joe Middleton

The mystery of a missing mother-of-two who disappeared while walking her dog has captured the nation’s attention, with no hint of an answer in sight.

Nicola Bulley vanished on a riverside path in Lancashire nearly two weeks ago, and now a man dubbed the ’Human Mole’ is hoping to help find out what happened.

Forensics expert Peter Faulding joined the search for Ms Bulley this week, after raising concerns about the police theory she slipped and fell into the River Wyre.

The founder and CEO of Specialist Group International has not been shy in his criticism, describing the probe as “a mess” and claiming details in the case “don’t add up”.

But what do we know about him, and how qualified is he to make such assessments? Martha McHardy explains.

The ‘Human Mole’ forensics expert who could hold key to Nicola Bulley’s disappearance

Anger as selfie-taking conspiracy theorists make Nicola Bulley scene a ‘tourist spot’

Wednesday 8 February 2023 21:30 , Joe Middleton

A family friend of missing woman Nicola Bulley has said speculation about the disappearance was hard for the family to take as members of the public are taking selfies in the area, making it feel like a “tourist spot”.

Heather Gibbons spoke on the banks of the River Wyre while, below her, Peter Faulding and his team from Specialist Group International, used a sonar to scan the depths on day 12 of the search.

Family and friends of mother-of-two Ms Bulley, 45, have questioned the police “theory” that she probably fell into the water while walking her dog, after dropping her children off at school in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancs on January 27.

Anger as selfie-taking conspiracy theorists make Nicola Bulley scene a ‘tourist spot’

Partner of Nicola Bulley visits scene as diving expert quits search

Wednesday 8 February 2023 20:30 , Joe Middleton

The partner of missing mother-of-two Nicola Bulley has been back to the riverbank where she vanished.

Paul Ansell, who has spoken of the “perpetual hell” of not knowing what has happened to Ms Bulley, spent around 10 minutes close to a bench overlooking the River Wyre in St Michael’s on Wyre, as day 12 of the search continued in the Lancashire village.

But he was told by underwater search expert Paul Faulding, called in by the family to help in the hunt, that Ms Bulley, 45, had still not been found.

Partner of Nicola Bulley visits scene as diving expert quits search

Police reject suggestion Nicola Bulley's disappearance could be criminal

Wednesday 8 February 2023 19:30 , Joe Middleton

Nicola Bulley: 5 things forensics expert claims don’t add up about dog walker’s disappearance

Wednesday 8 February 2023 18:24 , Joe Middleton

A forensic expert leading the underwater search for missing Nicola Bulley has been left “baffled” by “strange” events in the mother’s disappearance.

The 45-year-old disappeared while on her regular dog walk in the quiet village of St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.

Dropping her children off at school, she took her spaniel Willow for a stroll by the river and was sighted at around 9am by a witness but despite an extensive search, she has yet to be found.

5 things forensics expert claims don’t add up about missing dog walker disappearance

'Baffling case': Private rescue team confirm they are pulling out of Nicola Bulley search

Wednesday 8 February 2023 17:29 , Joe Middleton

Police divers now focusing on stretch of river approaching sea

Wednesday 8 February 2023 16:21 , Andy Gregory

Peter Faulding has indicated that this will be his specialist team’s final day scouring the river for Nicola Bulley, after three days of searching with divers and sonar yielded no sign of her.

Search teams from Lancashire Police and the Coastguard, including divers, are now focusing on the 10 miles or so of river downstream of the bench, where the River Wyre empties into the sea at Morecambe Bay.

Nicola Bulley’s family ‘distraught’, says diver

Wednesday 8 February 2023 15:59 , Andy Gregory

Nicola Bulley’s family are “distraught”, Peter Faulding has said, as he announced that his team had found no sign of the missing dog walker in their three-day search of the river.

“Paul’s extremely obviously upset, he wanted to go and see where the original entry point was again, and the water’s a bit lower than it was originally when Nicola went missing. And he’s, he’s clear that, well all the family are clearly distraught like anyone will be,” the diver said.

“And it’s just, it’s not a nice place to be. And I’m just trying to explain what work we’re doing. And give him some confidence that Nicola is not in that river over there.

“Normally we find them, this is an unusual situation. And hopefully Nicola will appear somewhere or pop up somewhere, I don’t know.

“But with that, I’m, I’m totally baffled by this one, to be honest. Normally a drowning victim goes to the bottom. There was a bit of flow on the river that day. But normally we recover them within a few metres.”

Diver ‘100 per cent’ sure Nicola Bulley’s body not in river searched by his team

Wednesday 8 February 2023 15:07 , Andy Gregory

Here is more from Peter Faulding, as he tells Channel 4 News that he is “absolutely 100 per cent” confident that Nicola Bulley’s body is not in the stretch of water searched by his team.

Specialist team to pull out of search later today after finding no sign of Nicola Bulley

Wednesday 8 February 2023 14:38 , Andy Gregory

The specialist rescue team will be pulling out of the search later today after finding no sign of Nicola Bulley in the section of the river where she went missing, the company’s founder Peter Faulding has said.

“We are happy that the area where Nicola’s phone was found and the harness, we’ve thoroughly searched it all the way down to the weir and up to the bridge about a mile upstream, and we’ve confirmed to Paul [Ansell] that there’s nothing in that area,” Mr Faulding told reporters.

“That’s been dived by police dive teams three times as well, and on the day that Nicola went missing it was dived in the afternoon by police dive teams with no sign of Nicola.

He added: “I’ve worked on some weird cases but this is a baffling case for someone whose mobile phone was found there, and I would have expected Nicola to have been found that afternoon by the police dive team.

“I was determined to find Nicola but one good thing is that I didn’t want to find a body, so I’m happy we haven’t found Nicola’s body, which can lead to other areas. We don’t know if Nicola’s alive. This is just a baffling case.”

“After the end of today, then we’ve done what we’ve come to do. We’ve cleared the area for the police and the family. We can say that in the top section of river and some of the section going down towards the sea, she’s not in that part. Further down the estuary I can’t comment on because we’re not searching that.”

Still a ‘possibility’ that Nicola Bulley left by one path not covered by CCTV, say police

Wednesday 8 February 2023 14:05 , Andy Gregory

Lancashire Police said on Tuesday that it was still a “possibility” that Nicola Bulley left the area by one path not covered by cameras which is crossed by the main road through the village.

Officers were trying to trace dashcam footage from 700 drivers who passed along the road at the time she disappeared, around 9.20am.

Detectives have discounted ‘every single’ criminal suggestion in case

Wednesday 8 February 2023 13:33 , Andy Gregory

Detectives have looked at “every single” potential suspicion or criminal suggestion that had come in and discounted them, Superintendent Sally Riley said on Tuesday.

Her comments came after suggestions were made that Ms Bulley’s phone could be a “decoy” and questions were raised about gaps in CCTV coverage of the area where she vanished from. The lead and harness for Willow, her springer spaniel, were also left on or close to the bench.

Rescuers resume search of river by boat

Wednesday 8 February 2023 12:59 , Andy Gregory

Rescuers are again back out on the River Wyre today searching for Nicola Bulley, 12 days after she disappeared at the beauty spot.

Nicola Bulley’s partner in apparently lengthy discussion with rescuers

Wednesday 8 February 2023 12:30 , Andy Gregory

Nicola Bulley’s partner Paul Ansell appears to be in lengthy conversation with the private rescue specialists searching for the missing dog walker.

Nicola Bulley’s partner ‘speaking to private search chief’ at scene

Wednesday 8 February 2023 12:04 , Andy Gregory

Nicola Bulley’s partner Paul Ansell and her friend Emma White are currently inside an incident support unit set up by the specialist diving team near the river, according to ITV’s Anna Youssef.

They have reportedly spoken with the team’s founder Peter Faulding.

Five things forensics expert claims don’t add up about Nicola Bulley’s disappearance

Wednesday 8 February 2023 11:30 , Andy Gregory

The forensic expert leading the underwater search for missing Nicola Bulley has been left “baffled” by “strange” events in the mother’s disappearance.

Here are five things Peter Faulding is puzzled by:

• Why Nicola Bulley’s mobile phone was left on the bench

• The behaviour of her dog

• ‘No screams were heard’

• The scene not closed off to public

• No body has been found in the river – despite an extensive search

My colleague Maryam Zakir-Hussain has more details in this report:

5 things forensics expert claims don’t add up about missing dog walker disappearance

Anger as selfie-taking conspiracy theorists make Nicola Bulley scene a ‘tourist spot’

Wednesday 8 February 2023 10:28 , Andy Gregory

A family friend of Nicola Bulley has said speculation about her disappearance was hard for the family to bear as members of the public are taking selfies in the area, making it feel like a “tourist spot”, Pat Hurst reports.

Heather Gibbons spoke on the banks of the River Wyre while, below her, Peter Faulding and his team from Specialist Group International, used a sonar to scan the depths on day 12 of the search.

“We have noticed it does feel like some people have come to maybe use it as more like a tourist spot, to do their own personal social media things which in some ways we see and understand but it is hard, there’s a lot of people around as it is, so yes, if you are here to join the search, we are really appreciative,” she said.

Anger as selfie-taking conspiracy theorists make Nicola Bulley scene a ‘tourist spot’

Forty detectives working on Nicola Bulley case

Wednesday 8 February 2023 09:27 , Andy Gregory

A team of 40 detectives are working on Nicola Bulley’s case, Lancashire Police has said.

They are investigating hundreds of lines of enquiry and pieces of information, more than 1,000 of which have been submitted by members of the public, according to Superintendent Sally Riley.

Police ‘not starting to go into houses'

Wednesday 8 February 2023 09:03 , Andy Gregory

Police have said they “are not starting going into houses because that’s not where the inquiry is leading us”, as they warned people against criminal entry to riverside properties in the search for Nicola Bulley.

Superintendent Sally Riley told reporters on Tuesday: “There are some properties along the riverside which are empty or derelict.

“Whilst it may be well intentioned that people think that that could be a line of inquiry, I would ask them to desist from doing that. In some cases it may be criminal if they are breaking in and causing damage or committing a burglary.”

She said officers have searched derelict riverside properties with the permission of owners.

“Because there is no criminal element yet identified, and we don’t expect there to be in this inquiry, then we’re not starting to go into houses because that’s not where the inquiry is leading us,” she added.

Police looking into 500 active lines of enquiry

Wednesday 8 February 2023 08:44 , Andy Gregory

Police have revealed they are looking into 500 lines of inquiry.

At a press conference on Tuesday, Lancashire Police Superintendent Sally Riley said: “At the moment there are around five hundred active pieces of information and lines of enquiry that we are working on to try and find answers for Nicola’s family.”

However, they also said the scale of efforts was “normal missing persons enquiry and does not indicate there is anything suspicious to this story”.

My colleague Liam James has more details:

Police reveale there are 500 lines of inquiry in search for Nicola Bulley

Map outlines missing dog walker Nicola Bulley’s last known movements

Wednesday 8 February 2023 07:45 , Shweta Sharma

Mother-of-two Nicola Bulley remains missing a week after she disappeared while out walking her springer spaniel Willow.

The 45-year-old mortgage adviser had just dropped off her daughters, aged six and nine, at primary school before setting out east along a towpath by the River Wyre in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, on 27 January.

She was seen by at least one fellow dog walker moments prior to vanishing.

Last spotted at approximately 9.15am, Ms Bulley has been described by Lancashire Police as a 5 ft 3in white woman with light brown shoulder-length hair wearing a long black gilet jacket with a hood, black jeans and olive green ankle wellington boots.

Map outlines missing Nicola Bulley’s last known movements

Specialist search chief hits out at ‘heartless individuals’ questioning his motives

Wednesday 8 February 2023 07:30 , Andy Gregory

The head of the specialist team helping with the search for Nicola Bulley has hit out at “heartless individuals” questioning his motives online, saying: “This is what you get for trying to help people.”

“I have no ulterior motive,” he told TalkTV at the scene. “I have given my time to many cases free of charge. We get paid to do police diving operations, okay, but I have offered my services for a whole week with April Jones. There was no media around that, I never gave any interviews for that and that’s it.

“The other one was Ellis Downes, the poor lad was left lying in the river. I came in, I found him and I done that totally free of charge for that family … I don’t need publicity, the press have come to me for this. If I don’t give information then I get slated, so I am damned if I do, I’m damned if I don’t.”

Nicola Bulley: Underwater search expert explains why he doesn’t believe missing dog walker is in river

Wednesday 8 February 2023 07:00 , Shweta Sharma

An underwater search for missing Nicola Bulley is continuing following a fresh appeal by her partner, who said her two daughters “desperately” miss her and “need her back”.

The search for Ms Bulley, 45, is entering its 12th day after she went missing on January 27 in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.

In a statement released on Monday through Lancashire Police, her partner Paul Ansell said: “I have two little girls who miss their mummy desperately and who need her back.”

Underwater expert explains why he doesn’t think missing Nicola Bulley is in river

Police say search leader Faulding not included in all investigation detail

Wednesday 8 February 2023 05:45 , Shweta Sharma

After a search leader said Nicola Bulley is not in the river, Lancashire Police Superintendent Sally Riley said Peter Faulding is not included in “all the investigation detail” about the missing dog walker.

It comes after the leader of underwater search experts SGI said he believes she has not been in the river and raised the prospect of “third party” involvement in her disappearance.

Ms Riley said: “Our search has not found Nicola in the river and then a re-search in parts by SGI has found the same. That does not mean... that Nicola has not been in the river.

“In the light of other inquiries being discounted from the investigation so far... clearly our main belief is that Nicola did fall into the river.

“Clearly Mr Faulding isn’t included within all the investigation detail any more than the members of the public are that I’m briefing through these sorts of press conferences.”