It has been a case that has prompted what police described as “unprecedented” speculation, with senior officers faltering under the glare of the social media spotlight.
A week after Nicola Bulley first went missing near her home in Lancashire on 27 January, Lancashire constabulary said they believed she had most likely fallen in the River Wyre. Despite being armed with only the basic details of her disappearance, social media was quick to doubt that theory.
