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Nicola Bulley: Private dive team brought in as last images of missing mum released
Private dive teams have join the search to help find Nicola.
A team of private divers have joined search efforts to find missing mum, Nicola Bulley as last images of her from her doorbell camera have been released.
In what is now into the 10th day of the search for the missing mum-of-two, divers from the private Specialist Group International (SGI) are now assisting Lancashire Police. The firm’s founder, Peter Faulding, said he had offered the team’s services free of charge to the force.
The 45-year-old mum was last seen by a member of the public on a riverside dog walk in St Michael’s on Wyre, in Lancashire, on Friday January 27th. Police believe she may have fallen into the River Wyre.
The mortgage advisor was captured on the doorbell camera of her home as she went on the school run before her disappearance. The images show her getting ready to set off on the four-mile journey from her home. Dressed in her walking boots and hooded raincoat, she is seen opening the boot of the family car as her dog, Willow, jumps in the back.
The private team of drivers have already been scouring the water as they join a team of volunteers, along with mountain rescue, sniffer dogs, drones and helicopters, but no trace of Ms Bulley has yet been found. The firm’s founder, Peter Faulding said: “We’re bringing extra divers, and we also bring hi-tech sonar.
“It gives us double the resources so we can cover an extremely large area.”
Police said SGI’s offer to assist in the search was ‘taken up after speaking with Nicola’s family’, saying: “We continue to lead an extensive and far-reaching multi-agency search using a wide range of specialist equipment and resources.”
Hoping the extra help would bring the family ‘answers’, friend, Emma Wight, added: “Following the theory or hypothesis of the police that Nicola is in the river, we need some evidence to back that up either way.”
After she was last sighted, Ms Bulley’s phone was found on a bench by the Wyre, along with a dog harness, some 25 minutes later.
It was still logged in to a conference call.
Lancashire Police have said there was no evidence of ‘anything untoward’ happening to her or any third-party involvement.
With Detective Superintendent Sally Riley saying officers were ‘as sure as we can be that Nicola has not left the area where she was last seen and that very sadly for some reason she has fallen into the water’.
Detectives said they were open to new information and criticised the online abuse of people who had been helping their inquiry, declaring it ‘totally unacceptable’.
Ms Bulley’s disappearance has drawn a lot of attention on social media with thousands of people commenting on the ongoing search. Many have wished the family well while some people have been speculating about what might have happened by discussing the family’s finances and relationships.
According to the BBC, Ms Bulley’s friend Heather Gibbons said ‘vile’ theories being shared online were hurtful, and that she was concerned that as Ms Bulley’s daughters get older ‘they will be able to look back and they will be able to see everything that was said’.
As reported by the Manchester Evening News, a spokesperson for Lancashire Police said: “The speculation and abuse on social media aimed at some people who are merely assisting our enquiry is totally unacceptable.
“We would urge people to remember that we are investigating the disappearance of Nicola, and the priority is Nicola and her family. We want to find her and provide answers to her family.”
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Police appeal for witnesses after woman killed in Greater Manchester crash
The incident has left many in shock in the Bromley Cross area
Police have made an appeal for witnesses after a woman was killed in a major crash in Greater Manchester.
The three-car smash happened in Bromley Cross, Bolton on Thursday March 30th just before 11.50am.
Greater Manchester Police officers are now asking to speak to anyone who witnessed the accident on Darwen Road which left one woman dead and a man and a woman hospitalised with serious injuries.
The force are appealing for any dashcam, CCTV and doorbell footage to be submitted.
Sergeant Phillip Collingwood of GMP’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit said: “This was an extremely tragic incident in which someone has lost their life and two others have sustained serious injuries.
“Our thoughts remain with the families affected who are being supported by specialist officers.
“No arrests have been made and enquiries are ongoing. If you can help, then please contact our Serious Collision Investigation Unit on 0161 856 4741, quoting incident 1304 of 30/03/2023.”
As reported in The Bolton News, since the crash, tributes have been paid to the woman who tragically lost her life yesterday afternoon.
The incident saw Darwen Road shut for hours while police, paramedics and ambulance helicopters were in attendance at the scene.
Two cars were seen heavily damaged following the crash as Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service worked swiftly to cut people out of the vehicles.
The incident has left many in shock in the Bromley Cross area.
Information can also be reported online at www.gmp.police.uk. Alternatively, details can be passed via 101 or anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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Paul O’Grady’s husband shares last photo they took together
‘Unbeknownst to us back in January this would be our last ever holiday together’
Paul O’Grady’s husband Andre Portasio has spoken out and shared the last photo the couple took together.
Producer Portasio confirmed the death of his partner O’Grady earlier this week. The national treasure died ‘unexpectedly but peacefully’ on Tuesday evening aged 67. Portasio has shared a photograph of the two of them enjoying a holiday together as he revealed it was the last ever picture they shared together.
He thanked well-wishers and said he’s been ‘touched’ by all their support. In a post shared to his Instagram page on Thursday, Portasio wrote: “In time I hope to write to everyone individually and thank you for all posts, messages, phone calls, emails, cards and flowers of support.
“I much appreciate you all taking the time to reach out. I’m so very touched and I’m sure Paul would be too! Browsing for a picture I found the last picture we ever took together. “Unbeknownst to us back in January this would be our last ever holiday together.”
Alongside the caption he posted a picture of the pair sat on a boat together smiling in the sunshine. The couple married in 2017.
Addressing his husband’s death earlier this week, Portasio said in a statement: “It is with great sadness that I inform you that Paul has passed away unexpectedly but peacefully yesterday evening.
“We ask, at this difficult time, that whilst you celebrate his life you also respect our privacy as we come to terms with this loss.”
Hours earlier, O’Grady’s close friend Linda Thorson revealed the star died in his own bed with his husband by his side.
ITV has confirmed they will go ahead, as originally planned, and air O’Grady’s new series of For The Love of Dogs next month. The 11th series of the popular show was filmed late last year at the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and will begin on Thursday 13th April at 8:30pm on ITV1.
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Man who discovered James Bulger’s body dies in custody
He discovered the toddler’s body when he was just 14-years-old
The man who discovered the body of James Bulger has died in police custody.
James Riley, 44, discovered the toddler’s lifeless body when he was a teenager. He was with his brother Terrence Riley on a railway line in Liverpool in 1993 when they came across the horrific discovery —he was just 14 at the time, The Liverpool Echo reports.
Mr Riley was taken into custody at St Anne Street Police Station in Liverpool at around 9.45pm on March 14th 2023. He stayed the night in a cell but at around 5pm the next day, police staff found him lying on the floor needing medical attention.
They called for an emergency ambulance but when at the hospital, Mr Riley was confirmed dead. Mr Riley had a string of over 40 convictions for a range of offences.
His family say this was a result of trauma caused by his discovery of James’ body. Two-year-old James was abducted by two 10-year-old boys, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson, who tortured and murdered him in a crime that shook the UK.
In February 1993, grainy CCTV images showed James being led out of Bootle’s Strand Shopping Centre by the schoolboys. They led him to the disused Walton & Anfield railway station, near Walton Lane police station, where they committed the horrific act.
In May 2017, James Riley was sentenced to two years and four months behind bars after admitting a spate of commercial burglaries.
Sarah Holt, defending him in that case, said: “He has been a drug addict for a considerable period of time – all his adult life and in fact, most of his adolescence.
“His problems can be traced back to when he was 14, when he experienced a very traumatic event. It was an event I suggest that meant he is suffering from PTSD, though not diagnosed. He never sought counselling, he tells me.
“That led him at 14 to try crack cocaine and his problems really spiralled from thereon in.”
In 2021 Mr Riley was found dumped in a street wearing just his underwear and holding a knife after a gang sought money for a debt he owed.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court previously heard that what he encountered in 1993 left a lasting impact on his life. The court heard how Riley suffered with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of finding James’ body.
The Independent Office for Police Custody (IOPC) is now investigating Riley’s death. IOPC Regional Director Catherine Bates said: “This was a tragic incident in which a man has sadly died and our thoughts are with his family and loved ones.
“Merseyside Police referred this matter to us, and as he was in the custody of police at the time he became unwell, it is important there is a thorough and independent investigation.
“We will examine all relevant matters including the interaction officers had with the man on the street, and what happened after he arrived at the custody suite. We have made contact with his family to explain our role and will update them as our enquiries progress.”
Merseyside Police said previously officers are fully cooperating with the IOPC. A spokesperson for the force said: “We are aware that the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating the death of a 44-year-old man in police custody in Liverpool on Wednesday, March 15th.
“The force’s Professional Standards Department mandatorily referred the matter to the IOPC following the sad news that the man had passed away and we are fully cooperating with their investigation team. His next of kin have been informed and Merseyside Police would like to offer its condolences to the family for their loss.”
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