Disappearance of Nicola Bulley: Police publish photo of “key witness”

– January 27th

The 45-year-old dropped her daughters, aged six and nine, to school in the mornings before walking their dog Willow in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.

Lancashire Police said the mortgage adviser, from nearby Inskip, was walking down a path along the River Wyre just before 9am.

She was spotted by a dog walker who knew her around 8.50am and their pets briefly interacted before separating, according to police.

At 8:53 am, Ms. Bulley emailed her boss before logging on to a Microsoft Teams call at 9:01 am.

She was seen by a second witness at 9.10am, the last known sighting.

At 9:30 am, Ms. Bulley’s team call ended, but her phone remained connected to the call.

About five minutes later, another dog walker found her phone on a bench by the river, and Willow darted back and forth between the two.

At 10.50am, Ms Bulley’s family and the school where her children were attending were notified of her disappearance.

Lancashire Constabulary launched an inquiry into Ms Bulley’s whereabouts the same day and asked witnesses to contact them.

– January 28th

Lancashire Constabulary deployed drones, helicopters and police search dogs as part of the major missing persons operation.

They were assisted by the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service, as well as the Bowland Pennine Mountain Rescue Team and the North West Underwater Search Team.

– January 29

According to reports from The Mirror, local residents held a meeting at the community center at 10.30am on Sunday to organize a search for Ms Bulley and around 100 people took part in the search.

Police urged volunteers to exercise caution, describing the river and its banks as “extremely dangerous” and saying activity in these areas posed “a real risk to the public”.

– January 30th

Superintendent Sally Riley of Lancashire Constabulary said police were “really open about what could have happened” and that they did not consider Ms Bulley’s disappearance to be suspicious.

– 31 January

Lancashire Police spoke to a potential witness, a man who had been walking a small white fluffy dog ​​near the River Wyre at the time of Ms Bulley’s disappearance.

Her family released a statement saying they were “overwhelmed by the support” in their community and that their daughters were “desperate to keep their mother safe.”

– February 1st

Ms Bulley’s parents, Ernest and Dot Bulley, spoke to The Mirror about the “horror” they were facing at the possibility of never seeing her again.

Her father told the newspaper: “We just dread the thought that we will never see her again, if the worst came to the worst and she was never found, how are we going to deal with that for the rest of our lives.”

– February 2nd

Lancashire Constabulary spoke to a second witness, whom they identified with the help of the public using CCTV, but they told police they had no further information to help their investigation.

Officers from the North West Police Underwater and Marine Support Unit searched the area near where Ms Bulley’s mobile phone was found, while police divers searched the River Wyre.

Meanwhile, Ms Bulley’s family appealed to the public to help her find her.

Speaking to Sky News, her sister Louise Cunningham said: “There has to be someone who knows something and all we ask is, no matter how small or big, if there is something you remember that isn’t right appears, please contact the police.

‘Report and get my sister back.’

Ms Bulley’s father said his family hoped her interview would “spark a light” that would lead to her being found.

– 3 February

Lancashire Police said they were working on a hypothesis that Ms Bulley may have fallen into the River Wyre.

Ms Riley pushed speculation but said it was “possible” that a “problem” with Ms Bulley’s dog could have led her to the water’s edge.

She urged the public to look out for items of clothing Ms Bulley had last worn and gave an extensive list.

Ms Bulley’s friends also shared heartfelt appeals over TV interviews, including Emma White, who told the BBC Ms Bulley’s daughters kept asking where she was.

– February 4th

Ms Bulley’s friend Emma White has challenged the police theory that she fell into a river, telling Sky News it was based on “limited information”.

She said: “When we’re talking about a life we ​​can’t base it on a hypothesis, we certainly need that factual evidence.

“The family and all of us are sticking to the fact that unfortunately we are no further than last Friday.”