A specialist diver involved in the search for Nicola Bulley has apparently been taken off the National Crime Agency's list of experts, the Mirror reports. Peter Faulding declared that if the missing mum was in the River Wyre, he would find her using 'state of the art' sonar technology.
Specialist Group International (SGI) were brought in by police to thoroughly search the water for the mum-of-two and Faulding publicly announced that Nicola 'was not in that section of the river' three days later. The specialist group which has been involved in several high profile investigations spent two and a half days scanning a three-mile stretch of the river between St Michael's and Cartford bridge.
However, the team failed to find Nicola's body which was later found by walkers 23 days after she went missing on January 27. Law enforcement sources have now confirmed that SGI has been suspended while a review is carried out into how they missed the 45-year-old's body.
They were allegedly dropped from an official list of experts recommended to assist in investigations on the Expert Advisers database. A National Crime Agency spokesperson said that it "does not employ, endorse or accredit experts" on its adviser database.
The spokesperson continued: "The database is subject to continual review and its purpose is to maintain a list of expertise UK law enforcement can draw upon when required. We proactively seek feedback from customers regarding experts’ performance and contribution.
"The monitoring of performance equally applies to individuals and organisations who become involved in investigations without NCA engagement." Nicola's body was recovered from the River Wyre last week by police less than a mile downstream from where she was last seen walking her cocker spaniel Willow.
Officers received a tip from walkers who had spotted something in the water. Defending his team, Mr Faulding, 60 explained that his £55,000 sonar can only scan the water and cannot travel through reeds where the mortgage advisor's body was found.
He has also denied that he gave the family false hope by saying she wasn't in the river. He explained that his team was tasked with searching the 'non-tidal part' of the river past the bench where Nicola's phone was found.
They used 'high frequency side scan sonar' to search the riverbed and 'categorically' confirmed that the mum was not there. Faulding has not commented on reports that he has lost his status on the NCA database.
He confirmed that they did search where the body was found an that they didn't see Nicola 'on the days we searched'. In a previous statement he said: "The police underwater search teams and land search teams were searching for three full weeks and were also unable to find Nicola.
"Unfortunately, it was a member of the public that made a grim discovery, unconfirmed as yet to be Nicola. Sadly, the discovery was not found in the river but in the reeds at the side of the river which was not part of our remit as the side scan sonar does not penetrate reeds above or below the water."
He added: "A riverbank and wade search would be the only way to search this area and we were not involved or tasked with that search. The difference between these two search areas has caused a lot of confusion and unfair criticism towards myself and my team at Specialist Group International (SGI).
"My previous comments said that if Nicola was in the river, I would find her, still standing. My team and I at SGI did all we could to assist this family with only our best intentions.
"I am sure I can say this of everyone who has been involved in this difficult search." Nicola's disappearance gripped the nation and caused widespread speculation surrounding what had happened to her.
Since then, the police, social media sleuths and media outlets have been heavily criticised for how they handled the situation. Tiktok has warned users it will remove anyone spreading misinformation about the mum-of-two after the app was slammed for allowing conspiracy theories to spread on its platform during the search.
A mural has been painted in Nicola's memory in her home town as the family prepares for her funeral.
Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - sign up to our daily newsletter here.
