A former senior detective has branded the police decision to release intimate personal details about missing mum-of-two Nicola Bulley "utterly ludicrous" and criticised the inquiry team's "shocking naivety".
Lancashire Police held a press conference on Wednesday aimed at quashing growing public speculation about Nicola, 45, who has been missing since January 27. They revealed then that she was classified as "high risk" as a result of "a number of specific vulnerabilities".
But the move only fuelled the speculation. And hours later, the force provoked outrage when it issued a further statement detailing mortgage adviser Nicola's health issues.
Peter Bleksley, a former undercover officer for the Metropolitan Police and star of Channel 4 show Hunted, joined the condemnation on TalkTV, the Mirror reported. He said: "With regard to the whole release of this information... I think if the family had endeavoured to keep these matters secret, there's a shocking naivety on behalf of the police. [Lancashire Police] have tried to suppress speculation, all they’ve done is fuel it.
"[It] was utterly ludicrous when they said there were private and personal matters which were the vulnerabilities around Nicola. But of course, don’t speculate about them."
The police team looking for Nicola, last seen walking her dog along the River Wyre, said that she had "in the past suffered with some significant issues with alcohol which were brought on by her ongoing struggles with menopause".
Nicola's family have said in a statement they were aware that these details would be made public, despite knowing "Nikki would have not wanted this". They also criticised the "appalling" nature of people "threatening to sell stories" about Nicola and said conspiracy theories and misinformation needed to stop.
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The statement from the police about Nicola's health sparked fury among MPs and others. Labour's Stella Creasy said: "The decision to disclose this level of detail on a missing person's private life, with no evidence that this is assisting in finding her, is deeply troubling. The police need to be much clearer as to why any of this helps find Nicola Bulley or support this investigation."
Conservative MP Alicia Kearns said she was "deeply uncomfortable" with the police releasing details about Nicola's "so-called 'vulnerabilities' on menopause and alcohol". "I struggle to ascertain how this will assist police in their search & investigations," she wrote, adding, "I do see how it would assist those wishing to victim-blame or diminish."
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