Nicola Bulley: Different witnesses speak of seeing 'tatty red van' on morning mom disappeared

As the search for missing mom-of-two Nicola Bulley enters its third week, witnesses have spoken out about seeing a "red van" in the local area on the morning of her disappearance.

Bulley, 45, suddenly went missing in Lancashire, England, on January 27 after dropping her two young daughters off at school and walking the family dog - as she did many mornings.

Per BBC News, Bulley had parked her car in St Michael's on Wyre and walked along the river with her dog, Willow. At 8:43AM, she was seen by a fellow dog walker who knows the mom. She then sent a work email and remotely logged onto a Google Teams conference call for a morning meeting with co-workers.

She also reportedly sent a text to a friend to arrange a play date with their children.

While on the call, she was seen by another dog walker at 9:10AM.

Roughly 25 minutes later, her phone was found - stilled logged into the work call - on a bench near the riverbank. Her dog's lead and harness were also found on the ground, and her springer spaniel was found running around the fields nearby.

Since the mom disappeared, the case has gripped the nation, with police previously sharing theories that Bulley had fallen into the river - although, diving experts have cast doubt on this hypothesis.

Police search the river near to where Bulley's items were found. Credit: REUTERS / Alamy

At this time, police are reportedly looking into 500 lines of inquiry regarding Bulley's disappearance - with authorities asking for around 700 motorists who were in the area at the time to come forward and provide more information and, hopefully, any dashcam footage.

Now, The Independent has reported that at least two people have come forward and reported seeing a "red van" in the area on the morning Bulley disappeared.

Speaking to The Times, one 55-year-old has said that they say a "tatty red van in Hall Lane outside a barn", adding: "I didn’t think anything at the time, but when I saw Nicola had gone missing, I called 101 and spoke to an operator."

And a second witness has told The Sun that they have also reported seeing a red van at around 9:40AM on the morning Bulley disappeared, adding that it "looked suspicious". This second witness says that they have since contacted the police to ask if any dashcam footage has been found of the alleged red van.

As of this writing, police have not issued a statement in relation to the red van nor have they confirmed the vehicle as being a part of their inquiries.

Additionally, following the many speculations circulating on social media regarding Bulley's disappearance, police have urged the public "to remember that we are investigating the disappearance of Nicola, and the priority is Nicola and her family. We want to find her and provide answers to her family."

Bulley's partner, Paul Ansell, has also said he would "never lose hope" of finding her.

Featured image credit: REUTERS / Alamy