Nicola Bulley went missing on Monday, January 27, after a riverside dog walk in St Michael's on Wyre, Lancashire. As the search widens to find the missing mother-of-two, Nicola's partner, Paul Ansell, is reported to have privately shown frustration with the police's efforts, according to reports.
According to a report by Manchester Evening News, Mr Ansell, 44, is dissatisfied with the progress being made and has asked officers to broaden their search for Nicola. He allegedly did not receive a response to his request to hold a joint press conference with police last week.
Peter Faulding, a forensic search specialist and diver assisting the family. He told the Mail: “I think he’s struggling to get answers that he wants. He just wants to know where Nicola is. Faulding continued: “He vented his frustrations to the family liaison officers last week in front of me when I was there. There’s a feeling that there’s just a lack of imagination and willpower."
In a heart-breaking addition to his statement to the publication, Faulding added: "Paul is just lost, really. He's got no partner, the kids are missing their mum, and he's absolutely in pieces."
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Officers have stood firm on their belief that Nicola fell into the river at St Michael's on Wyre, with a police team seen searching the waterway this week. An alleged witness has claimed they saw two suspicious men wearing "dark clothing" and "hoods or hats" before and on the morning of Nicola's disappearance.
The man described their behaviour as "strange" to The Mirror, with the pair attempting to hide their faces. He added that despite the fact they were carrying fishing rods, they did not appear to have bait or a tackle box with them.
The witness only reported his sightings to police on January 29 following the news of Nicola's disappearance, with police contacting him nine days later to take his full account.
News also emerged that local anglers on the River Wyre had only been contacted this week. Officers were informed that there were no fishers along the river that day, with one angler saying: "The only people that were on the river that day were dog walkers. I can guarantee you that.
“It sounds like they are trying to work out if anyone was fishing on the river that day and saw something, but nobody was.”
Reports have indicated that Mr Ansell thinks that Nicola's keys to her Mercedes car might hold important indicators, as she had them when she went missing. A close family friend has said that they even called the car firm to see if "they could be tracked".
“Paul has been clear about Nikki’s keys being missing from the get go,” the Mirror was told. “In the local searches he specifically asked people to keep their eyes open for them and even organised for people to go out with metal detectors.”
Police have been tight-lipped on the keys or if this is why they are prioritising the river theory. Another local fisherman added that even if Nicola had slipped into the river, it would take months to find her as she would have been swept out to sea by the undercurrents.
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