Diving expert criticises Nicola Bulley police for ‘failing to share information that would have helped search’

Peter Faulding claims police did not tell his team Nicola Bulley was considered ‘high risk’ as soon as the missing persons case was launched

The forensic expert who assisted police in the search for Nicola Bulley claims he wasn’t told the missing mother had “significant issues” - and says he would have taken a different approach if he had.

Peter Faulding claims police did not tell his team Ms Bulley was considered ‘high risk’ as soon as the missing persons case was launched after she disappeared on 27 January.

Mr Faulding said having this knowledge would have changed his team’s “whole search strategy”.

Forensics expert Peter Faulding led a search of the river last week (TalkTV)

Last week he led a private team of divers to assist police in the search for Ms Bulley, using sonar technology to see if anything was in the river that could help with the hunt, but came up empty-handed.

Taking to Twitter after learning of the news that Ms Bulley had struggled with alcohol problems, Mr Faulding said: “Update re Nicola Bulley. I can confirm that my usually trusted team and I were not passed this crucial information during our search, which would have changed search strategy.”

Speaking to Jeremy Kyle on TalkTV Mr Faulding later on Wednesday, 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.

“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.”

Mr Faulding, left, with Ms Bulley’s partner Paul Ansell on a visit to the riverside (PA)

His comments come amid growing criticism of Lancashire Police’s handling of Ms Bulley’s disappearance.

Earlier on Wednesday the force held a press conference to provide an update on the mother-of-two’s case, revealing she had been deemed high risk when she vanished due to “specific vulnerabilities”.

At the time detectives did not explain what that meant, but later that evening the force clarified it in a further statement.

“Sadly, it is clear from speaking to Paul [Ms Bulley’s partner] and the family that 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 statement said.

Detective Superintendent Rebecca Smith of Lancashire Police updates the media on the search (PA Wire)

Ms Bulley was last seen on the morning of Friday January 27 while walking her dog Willow (PA Media)

“This caused some real challenges for Paul and the family. As a result of those issues, a response car staffed by both police and health professionals attended a report of concern for welfare at Nicola’s home address on January 10,” the statement continued. “No one has been arrested in relation to this incident, but it is being investigated.

“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.”

But the decision to share this personal information has itself attracted criticism, with MPs among those calling for police to explain how it helps the search.