Nicola Bulley latest: police say ‘alcohol vulnerabilities’ caused missing mum to be classed as ‘high risk’

Police have said they were called to Nicola Bulley’s house weeks before she disappeared as a result of “significant issues with alcohol”.

Lancashire Constabulary released a statement to clarify “vulnerabilities” the mum-of-two had, which led her to be categorised as a high-risk missing person. Nicola was last seen on 27 January walking her dog next to the River Wyre, in St Michael’s, Lancashire, after dropping her two daughters off at school. Police have said they believe she fell in and there was no criminal involvement.

On Wednesday evening, 15 February, the forced release a statement to explain the “vulnerabilities”, which they said had caused challenges for her partner Paul Ansell and their family.

It said: “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. This caused some real challenges for Paul and the family.”

Police revealed that officers were called to the family home in St Michael’s in relation to these issues on 10 January, just weeks before Nicola vanished. The force said the incident was still being investigated, although no one had been arrested.

“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 10 January,” Lancashire Police said.

“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.”

At a press conference earlier in the day, Det Supt Rebecca Smith had said Nicola had “vulnerabilities” but refused to go into detail. She said this was out of respect to Ms Bulley’s family and the “unimaginable pain and distress” they are going through

She told a press conference: “It’s normal in any missing person investigation that you obviously gather as much information at an early stage about the person in question, which is no different and we did that with Paul.

“I’m not going to go into the details of those individual vulnerabilities. I’ve asked you to respect the family, who are going through unimaginable pain and distress at this moment. But those vulnerabilities based our decision-making in terms of grading Nicola as high risk and have continued to form part of my investigation throughout.”

Police said in the press conference on Wednesday (15 February) that there is still “no evidence to indicate a criminal aspect or third party involvement” in Nicola’s disappearance.

Det Supt Smith says detectives considered a range of hypotheses for her disappearance. Explanations being considered include the theory that Nicola could have gone into the river, that there was third-party involvement, or that she could have left the field voluntarily. She said these hypotheses have all remained in place throughout the investigation and are being regularly reviewed.

Det Supt Smith said her main hypothesis early on in the investigation, based on the information at the time, was that Nicola went into the river. She added that these hypotheses and all lines of inquiry are being continually reviewed.

She said: “There is not a single piece of information or evidence to suggest there is any third-party involvement. I made clear that it was my working hypothesis at that time, based on the facts, that the main hypothesis I was working on at that time was that Ms Bulley had gone in the river. This has been misconstrued in the press."

Assistant Chief Constable Peter Lawson added: “I would emphasise that it remains the case there is no evidence to indicate a criminal aspect or third party involvement in Nicola’s disappearance. However, the officers involved in the investigation are the same experienced specialists and many senior officers who are concerned with the investigation of the most serious and complex crimes.”

Mr Lawson added that an “unprecedented” amount of work has gone into the investigation to find Ms Bulley and the force has a dedicated team of more than 40 detectives working on the case.

Officers are looking through “hundreds of hours of CCTV, dashcam footage, speaking to numerous witnesses, carrying out digital enquiries and examining hundreds of pieces of information submitted by the public”, he said.

Police address ‘false accusations and rumours’

De Supt Smith said the force is being “inundated with false information and accusations and rumours which is distracting us from our work”, and addressed speculation that has been circulating online and in the press.

Commenting on myths surrounding a derelict house on the other side of the river, she said the property has been searched three times with the permission of the owner. A red van that was spotted in the area where Ms Bulley went missing was also not suspicious, she believes.

She then addressed talk about the presence of fishermen in the area at the time, adding: “There’s also been mention of a number of fishermen that have been seen that morning who, again, were described as suspicious.

"I myself don’t find it suspicious that fishermen would be in the area of a river that morning or carrying fishing rods. But there was some suggestion one of these males might have been looking to cover his face.

"We have numerous appeals for these fishermen to come forward. We have made contact with the local clubs and we have also ascertained the time the witness passing down that road.

"I’ve checked the CCTV at the Grapes pub, which covers that end of Garstang Road, and we can’t see any of those fishermen at that time of day.

"But we are continuing to try and trace these people again. I would urge that they are not necessarily suspicious to me, but I’m really keen to trace them to make sure that there is no further information that they can give us that will assist."

Police have spoken to several witnesses who saw Nicola before she disappeared and said they are currently looking at 500 pieces of "active information" in the search.

Officers say they have been keeping an open mind but are working on the theory she fell into the River Wyre. They have focused their investigation on a crucial 10-minute window between 9.10am to 9.20am when her movements are unaccounted for.

Despite extensive searching of the River Wyre, which included enlisting the help of specialist underwater search teams, her body has still not been found. Detectives have now extended their search for her to the sea, saying finding her there “becomes more of a possibility”.

Meanwhile, Ms Bulley’s friends and neighbours, including her next-door neighbour and friend Charlotte Drake, have continued to flock to a bridge over the Wyre to lay yellow ribbons with messages which say they still hope she will be found safe and well.

You can watch more video coverage on the Nicola Bulley case via the Lancashire Post YouTube channel.