Nicola Bulley police to be investigated over home visit before disappearance

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Police watchdogs have launched an investigation into a welfare check on Nicola Bulley carried out days before she was last seen.The Independent Office for Police Conduct says it will assess the actions of officers on January 10 this year after Lancashire Police referred itself to the regulator last week.

The force said it sent a car to Ms Bulley's home in Inskip, four miles from where she went missing, to carry out a welfare check that day.Officers have since revealed that Ms Bulley, whose body was recovered from the River Wyre on Sunday after more than three weeks of searching, had a set of "vulnerabilities" that had classed her as a "high risk" individual.

These were later disclosed as problems with alcohol and hormone replacement therapy she was taking to deal with the effects of menopause – a revelation that prompted furious criticism of the force.The IOPC confirmed it had launched an investigation into the contact Lancashire Police had with Ms Bulley on January 10, 17 days before she went missing in St Michael's on Wyre as she walked family springer spaniel Willow.

A spokesperson said: "Following a referral by Lancashire Constabulary on Thursday, we have started an independent investigation regarding contact the force had with Nicola Bulley on January 10 2023."We were notified by the force that an officer attended the family home on that date as part of a welfare check.