A forensic search expert and diver who has been heavily involved in the search for missing mum Nicola Bulley has said he would have changed his search strategy if he'd been told about her "vulnerabilities".
Peter Faulding, who had been called in by Nicola's family to help with the search, said his methods would have been different had he known that Nicola had issues with alcohol related to her difficulties coping with the menopause. It comes after police today revealed that Nicola was being treated as a "high risk" missing person and then explained why.
Mr Faulding had previously questioned the theory that she had fallen in the river. However, he now concedes that Nicola "could have ended up in the sea" if she "had jumped in, intended to take her own life or walk off".
UPDATE: Nicola Bulley search expert Peter Faulding explains exactly what he should have done differently
He had previously said that if Nicola had ended up in the river her body would have been found. And he had said it was "impossible"' that her body made it to the sea, reported Lancashire Live.
He had told Mail Online: "If she slipped down the bank she wouldn't go far. The rocks would hold her in place and she'd only have been waist deep.
"She could have stood there and asked for help because people do walk by. She'd have needed to be pushed extremely hard from behind to have launched herself into the deep water and experienced police divers have searched that thoroughly."
However, after the police press conference today (Wednesday, February 15), Mr Faulding tweeted: "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."
And he He told Jeremy Kyle on TalkTV that: "If she had jumped in, intended to take her own life or walk off, that would change my whole plan.
"She could have ended up in the sea."
On Wednesday evening Lancashire Police issued a statement that read: “We have described how Nicola had some vulnerabilities at the time she went missing and we just wanted to expand on that a little.
“Sadly, it is clear from speaking to Paul 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.
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“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 10th.
“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.”
UPDATE: Nicola Bulley search expert Peter Faulding explains exactly what he should have done differently
The force has come under criticism after quickly ruling out foul play when Ms Bulley vanished after dropping off her daughters, aged six and nine, at school on January 27 in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.
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