Nicola Bulley news – latest: Divers return to river where missing mother’s body was found
Police divers have returned to the stretch of river where mother-of-two Nicola Bulley vanished.
The 45-year-old’s body was pulled from the River Wye, Lancashire in February, but a number of questions have been left unanswered.
A diving team was seen in the water not far from a weir and downstream from a bench where police believe Ms Bulley went into the water in St Michael’s on Wyre on 27 January.
Police divers were spotted in the River Wyre on 4 April and a brief clip was uploaded to YouTube. Lancashire Police said in a statement: “We can confirm we are carrying out some work on the direction of HM coroner.”
Ms Bulley vanished while walking her dog after dropping her daughters, aged six and nine, at school –sparking a huge search operation and intense media and public interest.
Her body was found in the river 23 days after she went missing, around a mile farther downstream from the bench on February 19.
An inquest into Ms Bulley’s death is to be held on 26 June.
Key Points
Police divers return to River Wyre six weeks after body of missing mother found
Timeline of Nicola Bulley’s disappearance
YouTuber spots divers wading through River Wyre
Lancashire Police share update with The Independent
10:59 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Lancashire Police has told The Independent that the search of the river where Nicola Bulley’s body was found ended last week and there are currently no plans to resume.
Urgent search for missing dog walker who vanished with pet on country walk
09:31 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Police have launched an urgent search for a woman who disappeared while out walking her dog.
Ausra Plungiene, 56, has not been seen since taking her pet out on Tuesday in Snowdonia, north west Wales.
She didn’t return home yesterday and prompting an urgent search.
This morning, the coastguard rescue helicopter was above Eryri, sweeping the area, according to reports.
Thomas Kingsley reports on this breaking news story:
Urgent search for missing dog walker who vanished with pet on country walk
Timeline of Nicola Bulley disappearance as police search river ahead of inquest
08:13 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Police have returned to the River Wyre six weeks after the body of missing mother-of-two Nicola Bulley was found there.
The 45-year-old mortgage adviser went missing on 27 January while walking her dog along the river at St Michael’s on Wyre, after dropping her two daughters – aged six and nine – at school nearby.
Her mobile phone was found a bench near the riverbank, still connected to a Microsoft Teams work call, with her dog Willow left running loose.
A huge police operation ensued as the search for Ms Bulley drew intense national attention, before Lancashire Police eventually announced that a body had been discovered among reeds and undergrowth in the River Wyre on 19 February.
Some six weeks later officers have returned to the river to carry out investigations on behalf of HM Coroner, ahead of an inquest set for 26 June in Preston.
Here is a timeline of events after her disappearance:
Timeline of Nicola Bulley disappearance as police search river ahead of inquest
All we know about Nicola Bulley’s disappearance
Tuesday 11 April 2023 23:31 , Andy Gregory
My colleague Liam James has compiled this explainer on what we know so far about the Nicola Bulley case:
All we know about Nicola Bulley mystery as police return to spot where body found
What have Nicola Bulley’s family said?
Tuesday 11 April 2023 22:47 , Liam James
After Nicola Bulley’s body was found, her family said they can let the mother-of-two “rest now”.
A statement released by the family read: “We will never be able to comprehend what Nikki had gone through in her last moments and that will never leave us.
“We will never forget Nikki, how could we, she was the centre of our world, she was the one who made our lives so special and nothing will cast a shadow over that.
During the lengthy search, Mr Ansell, 44, described the situation as “perpetual hell”. Ernie Bulley, Nicola’s father, said: “Every day is a struggle.”
Who was Nicola Bulley?
Tuesday 11 April 2023 22:10 , Liam James
Nicola Bulley was a 45-year-old mortgage adviser and mother-of-two living in St Michael’s on Wyre in Lancashire.
Paul Ansell, Ms Bulley’s partner, said she was “fun”, “loving”, “the most loyal friend you could ever have” and an “exceptional mum”.
Nadia Fell, 39, a friend of the late mother, said Bulley was “the most amazing mum ever” and added: “Anything that needed doing for the school – PTA stuff – she was always there for it.”
In the latter stages of the search, police controversially revealed Bulley had been struggling with alcohol use and symptoms of the peri-menopause before her disappearance.
Evidence requires ‘further evaluation’, says coroner
Tuesday 11 April 2023 21:29 , Andy Gregory
An inquest opener at Preston Coroner’s Court in the days after Nicola Bulley’s body was found was told maxillofacial surgeon Andrew Ian Edwards had examined her dental records, which had been obtained by police from her dental surgery.
Senior coroner Dr James Adeley said the surgeon found restorative work carried out was identical, adding: “I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities, and more, that positive identification has been made.”
Dr Adeley said remaining evidence gathered by police and the post-mortem examination required “further evaluation” as he scheduled a full inquest for June.
“This will allow time to collate the facts of the case and allow the experts involved to finalise the findings from investigations that still need to be undertaken,” the coroner said.
Body of Nicola Bulley identified by dental records, inquest told
Nicola Bulley: What investigations have been launched and why?
Tuesday 11 April 2023 20:54 , Andy Gregory
Since Nicola Bulley disappeared, the police, social media sleuths and the media have all received widespread criticism.
The following report looks at what investigations have been launched since her body was recovered and why they are deemed necessary:
Nicola Bulley: What investigations have been launched and why?
Peter Faulding’s diving team suspended from NCA experts database
Tuesday 11 April 2023 20:21 , Andy Gregory
In a development since Nicola Bulley’s body was identified, law enforcement sources told The Times newspaper in February that Peter Faulding’s team of divers, Specialist Group International, had been suspended from the National Crime Agency’s Expert Adviser Database while a review was carried out.
Mr Faulding and his team were asked by Ms Bulley’s family to carry out a search of the river using their high-tech sonar equipment. Mr Faulding later said his brief been to search “the water”, not the “reeds”, after Ms Bulley’s body was found.
It is unclear whether they have since been reinstated to the list.
Watch: Body found in River Wyre identified as missing mother Nicola Bulley
Tuesday 11 April 2023 19:53 , Andy Gregory
What do we know about events on 27 January
Tuesday 11 April 2023 19:20 , Andy Gregory
At 8.26am on 27 January, Nicola Bulley left her home with her two daughters, dropping them off at school and engaging in a brief conversation with another parent around 15 minutes later, according to Lancashire Police.
She then took her spaniel Willow for a walk along the River Wyre at 8:43am, and was seen by a dog walker who knew her at around 8.50am, with their pets interacting briefly before they parted ways, according to the force.
At 8.53am, Ms Bulley sent an email to her boss, followed by a message to her friends six minutes later, before logging on to a Microsoft Teams call at 9.01am. She was seen by a second witness at 9.10am, the last known sighting.
Her phone was back in the area of the bench at 9.20am before the Teams call ended 10 minutes later, with her mobile remaining logged on after the call. At 9.33am, another dog walker found her phone on a bench beside the river, with Willow darting between the two.
At 10.50am, Ms Bulley’s family and the school attended by her children were told about her disappearance. Lancashire Constabulary launched an investigation into Ms Bulley’s whereabouts on the same day and appealed for witnesses to contact them.
Timeline of Nicola Bulley disappearance as police search river weeks after body found
Tuesday 11 April 2023 18:51 , Andy Gregory
We have compiled this up-to-date timeline of events in the days, weeks and months since Nicola Bulley’s disappearance:
Timeline of Nicola Bulley disappearance as police search river ahead of inquest
Nicola Bulley inquest to be held on 26 June
Tuesday 11 April 2023 18:19 , Andy Gregory
The inquest into Nicola Bulley’s death is scheduled to take place on 26 June at County Hall in Preston.
Confirming the presence of officers at the River Wyre some six weeks after her body was discovered on 19 February, Lancashire Police said it had been “carrying out some work on the direction of HM coroner”.
Man, 34, arrested over footage shot inside police cordon
Tuesday 11 April 2023 17:47 , Andy Gregory
A man was arrested last month over footage shot from inside a police cordon on the day Nicola Bulley’s body was found in the River Wyre.
The 34-year-old man from Kidderminster was arrested on suspicion of malicious communications offences and perverting the course of justice in connection with the investigation to find Ms Bulley.
My colleague Martha McHardy has the full report:
Man arrested over footage shot inside Nicola Bulley police cordon
Social media algorithms fuelled online interest in Nicola Bulley case – experts
Tuesday 11 April 2023 17:05 , Emily Atkinson
Social media algorithms that reward and encourage controversial content fuelled the waves of online interest in the Nicola Bulley case, experts have claimed.
More here:
Social media algorithms fuelled online interest in Nicola Bulley case – experts
Three reasons why it may have taken so long to find Nicola Bulley’s body
Tuesday 11 April 2023 16:30 , Emily Atkinson
A body belonging to missing mother Nicola Bulley was finally found on 19 February, around a mile away from where she was last seen on the river in St Michael’s on Wyre in Lancashire.
Ms Bulley had disappeared on 27 January while walking her dog Willow after dropping her children off at school earlier that morning.
Police said two walkers, who used a path well trodden by officers, found her body, which was formally identified the following day.
Matt Mathers reports:
Three reasons why it may have taken so long to find Nicola Bulley’s body
Map: Where police searched – and where a body was found – after Nicola Bulley’s disappearance
Tuesday 11 April 2023 15:55 , Emily Atkinson
A map showing the exact location where a body was found in the search for missing dog walker Nicola Bulley, compared to where she was last seen and where her phone was found has been released.
Martha McHardy reports:
Map shows where police searched and where body was found in Nicola Bulley search
YouTuber spots divers wading through River Wyre
Tuesday 11 April 2023 15:25 , Emily Atkinson
Police divers were spotted wading through the River Wyre on 4 April and a brief clip was uploaded to YouTube.
The diving team was seen in the water not far from a weir and downstream from a bench where police believe Ms Bulley went into the water in St Michael’s on Wyre on 27 January.
In a statement shared today, Lancashire Police said: “We can confirm we are carrying out some work on the direction of HM coroner.”
Footage shared to social media by YouTuber Maria Solarz shows the divers returning to the scene, with one diver filmed “floating on his back” along a stretch of river.
Ms Solarz shot the video while on a “nice quiet walk” with her son and friend.
The divers are seen wading through the waist-level water before floating down the river near a weir, close to where the mother-of-two went missing.
Recap: Timeline of Nicola Bulley’s disappearance
Tuesday 11 April 2023 15:07 , Emily Atkinson
A body was found in the search for Nicola Bulley after a tip-off by members of the public in February.
The 45-year-old, was last seen on Friday 27 January at around 9.20am while walking her dog alongside the River Wyre in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.
Ms Bulley’s phone was found, apparently still connected to a Microsoft Teams work call, on a park bench nearby, along with the harness and lead for her dog, Willow, a springer spaniel.
Her body was found in the river 23 days after she went missing, around a mile farther downstream from the bench on 19 February.
Questions still hang over the circumstances of the protracted search for Ms Bulley as we await the results of an inquest and a long list of investigations.
In the meantime, here is a timeline of how the case unfolded:
Timeline of Nicola Bulley disappearance as body found in search for missing woman
Police divers return to River Wyre six weeks after body of missing mother found
Tuesday 11 April 2023 14:51 , Emily Atkinson
Police divers have returned to the River Wyre six weeks after Nicola Bulley’s body was found in the water.
Footage has been shared on social media showing the divers in the water.
Officers are seen wading through the water next to the weir close to where the 45-year-old’s phone and her dog Willow were found on the morning she disappeared on 27 January.
My colleague Thomas Kingsley has the details:
Nicola Bulley: Police divers return to river after body of missing mother found
