While former detective chief inspector Simon Harding claims that Lancashire Police has “placed all of its eggs in one basket.” The force maintains that it is keeping an open mind over Nicola Bulley’s disappearance.
During the search for missing mother Nicola Bulley, investigators should adjust their messaging to the general public and maintain an open mind.
Officers have spent almost two weeks searching for Ms. Bulley, who vanished on January 27 along the River Wyre in St. Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, with an emphasis on the ten minutes between her last sighting and the discovery of her dog alone.
In the search for Ms. Bulley, underwater teams have combed the river, while others have requested dashcams and other evidence.
People have also arrived in the village to assist in the search, and a dispersion order has been issued. Since some have endangered their safety by searching in decrepit and abandoned structures.
Former detective chief inspector Simon Harding stated that Lancashire Police must alter the way it communicates with the public to “reassure others and prevent people from going to the crime site and taking matters into their own hands.”
“It can be pretty detrimental. Indeed, it can”.
I believe the difference here is that you do not have a cordoned-off area where you can conduct your research at your leisure, and you would want to conduct various testing in that river.
“There are police divers who are experts and do not necessarily require the assistance of others.
“We’ve done this, we’ve placed this CCTV, and we’ve undertaken this research,” you must say to stop people.
“The difficulty for me is with the messaging.”
The police are placing all of their “eggs… in one basket.”
Mr. Harding added that the police must maintain an open mind regarding what may have happened to Ms. Bulley, comparing the cops’ assertion that she fell into the river to “putting all the eggs in one basket.”
He also said he doesn’t think Ms. Bulley’s family trusts the police’s claim that she fell into the river.
“If you told a family everything that you knew, the facts that you knew – that she was in that river. They would be satisfied because you would be telling them that as a senior officer. And they would believe you,” he added.
“However, the family lacks this faith; they do not believe that.”
“Most probable scenario”
Lancashire Police said: “Since Nicola’s disappearance over two weeks ago, we have taken exceptional measures to locate her.
“This has necessitated a committed team of over 40 investigators reviewing hundreds of hours of CCTV and dashcam footage, meeting with numerous witnesses, doing digital inquiries, and studying hundreds of public submissions.
“Specialized resources from the police and other agencies, including underwater search teams, drones, horses, dogs, and the police helicopter, continue to comb the River Wyre and adjacent area from the shoreline out to sea.
“We have also talked with national experts in their respective fields, including environmental and tidal specialists. In the region where Nicola went missing, we also conducted a thorough ground search and a search of several properties.”
The force stated that it “continues to maintain an open mind regarding what may have happened to Nicola”. And that potential possibilities are being examined to eliminate them.
Nonetheless, it added: “We continue to feel that the most likely scenario is that Nicola fell into the river for some reason, based on the tremendous amount of work we have completed to date, but we have a committed team that is continuing to research all possibilities extensively.
“At this moment, there is no information or evidence indicating that a crime has been committed or that a third party is involved in Nicola’s disappearance, although the investigation is ongoing.”
