Peter Faulding, an expert who led the independent specialist diving team that spent several days hunting for Nicola Bulley, has criticized police for withholding key information that could have helped their search.
The forensic diver had been a key figure in the hunt for the missing mother of two since she was last seen walking her dog near the River Wyre on January 27, but called off his independent search of the river after finding no trace of Bulley, 45, in the water.
His search had concentrated on the area near where her phone was found on a bench near where her dog was pacing agitatedly when it was believed that she may have fallen in.
However, he pointed out that most victims of accidental drowning are usually found within 5-10 meters of where they fall in, and claimed that it was unlikely she was in the river based on the information he had been told by the police.
In a new statement on Wednesday, Lancashire Police revealed that Bulley's case was treated as a "high-risk" missing person from the start because she had "specific vulnerabilities" which included "significant issues with alcohol" before her disappearance.
They added that officers had attended her home address after a report of concern for welfare 17 days before she disappeared.
The statement said: "Nicola had in the past suffered with some significant issues with alcohol which were brought on by her ongoing struggles with the menopause and that these struggles had resurfaced over recent months."
The police added that the issues "caused some real challenges for Paul [Ansell, Bulley's partner] and the family."
They explained: "It is an unusual step for us to take to go into this level of detail about someone's private life, but we felt it was important to clarify what we meant when we talked about vulnerabilities to avoid any further speculation or misinterpretation.
"We have explained to Nicola's family why we have released this further information and we would ask that their privacy is respected at this difficult time."
The release of Bulley's personal information led to widespread backlash from those following the case, as some believed it could "victim-blame" her for the disappearance by causing the narrative to focus on her issues with alcohol.
The move was also criticized by Faulding, who told Talk TV that he would have approached the search differently had the police revealed these factors to him and his team at the start.
He explained: "If I had been given that information it wouldn’t have been given to the media. It would have been confidential and I would have changed my whole search strategy.
"I assumed that Nicola had slipped into the river and it’s only two foot deep at the bottom of the bank - that’s why I’ve been so adamant that she’s not in that part of the river, we thoroughly searched it.
"If she had jumped in, or intended to take her own life, or walked off, or wherever she is, that would change my whole plan. She could have ended up in the sea. But it’s changed this and it’s really annoyed me."
Faulding added: "This is an awful case and I just wish it had been handled a lot better in the first place by giving certain information that would have helped us target that search in specific areas.”
He added in a further Talk TV interview that he would be offering up his services again to the family in the hopes of finding them "some sort of closure" on what happened to Bulley.
Lancashire Police have added that they are remaining "open-minded" about what happened to Bulley and are also considering whether a third party may have been involved or whether she left the area voluntarily.
They had initially stated that one of their main working hypotheses was that she fell into the water, but no trace of her has so far been found despite searches by divers as well as specialist sonar equipment.
Assistant Chief Constable Peter Lawson said that police had visited more than 300 premises - including a nearby abandoned house which has been searched "three times", spoken to 300 people, and received over 1,500 pieces of information regarding the inquiry.
The police added that online investigators have been a hindrance to the case after being "inundated with false information, accusations, and rumors that [are] distracting us from our work."
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