Nicola Bulley: Officer who exposed Jimmy Savile's crimes will probe mystery disappearance of mother

Former detective Mark Williams-Thomas is set to join the search for Nicola Bulley
PA
Georgina Cutler

By Georgina Cutler


Published: 13/02/2023

- 14:45

The search for missing mum Nicola Bulley has entered its third week

A detective who exposed Jimmy Savile is set to explore “all the options” as he joins the Nicola Bulley investigation.

Mark Williams-Thomas says he will work to dismiss conspiracy theories circulating about what happened to the mum-of-two who vanished on January 27.

The former police officer said he would have tackled the case differently from the beginning after police failed to secure a crime scene as thousands travelled to the area.

Williams-Thomas, who also investigated the disappearance of Madeline McCann, will investigate the area where Nicola was last seen in St Micheal's on Wyre.

Police officers walk along a footpath in St Michael's on Wyre, Lancashire, as they continue their search for missing woman Nicola Bulley, 45, who was last seen on the morning of Friday January 27, when she was spotted walking her dog on a footpath by the nearby River Wyre. Picture date: Sunday February 12, 2023.
Ex-police officer Mark Williams-Thomas also worked on the Madeline McCann case
Peter Byrne

Officers have been criticised for not cordoning off the area following Nicola’s disappearance which could have held forensic evidence.

Williams-Thomas said he would be treating the case as a "critical incident being dealt with as suspicious".

"Within 48 hours I would have treated this in the same fashion as a murder or abduction.

“I think police have been right to say they have an open mind – the problem that they have got is that they also said it wasn’t criminal,” he told the MailOnline.

Police believe she may have fallen into the River Wyre and was swept out to the Irish Sea but are “open” to other possibilities.

No evidence of Nicola has been found and officers have now moved their search to a wider area.

It comes after a witness phoned police the day before Nicola went missing to report two men carrying fishing rods and wearing hats or hoods made him feel “uneasy”.

The witness heard about Nicola’s disappearance after returning from a weekend away and despite multiple calls to police did not hear back until nine days later.

A yellow ribbon with a message of hope written on it, is tied to a bridge over the River Wyre in St Michael's on Wyre, Lancashire, as police continue their search for missing woman Nicola Bulley, 45, who was last seen on the morning of Friday January 27, when she was spotted walking her dog on a footpath by the nearby River Wyre. Picture date: Sunday February 12, 2023.
Yellow ribbons have been left on the footbridge near to where Nicola Bulley was last seen
Peter Byrne

Officers were also given new CCTV footage from a garage covering the last 24 hours before Nicola went missing.

Over the weekend yellow ribbons and handwritten notes were left on the footbridge near to where the 45-year-old went missing.

"We need you home, Nicola," "praying for your safe return" and "I love you" were among the heartbreaking messages left.

Her partner, Paul Ansell was also spotted tying a ribbon to the bridge after saying he is "100 percent convinced" she is not in the river.

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