The head diver in the search for Nicola Bulley was made a "scapegoat" and is "one of the world's best", a former police officer has said. The 45 year old had been walking her dog near the water before she went missing. Mr Faulding's Specialist Group International (SGI) joined the search for Nicola and asserted that she 'was not in that section of the river' three days later.
The private specialist group, which has assisted 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, using what Mr Faulding described as 'state of the art' sonar technology. But Mr Fauling has faced criticism over his assertions Nicola, a missing mum-of-two, was not in the River Wyre.
Mark Williams-Thomas, a former detective who has also been vocal on the case, has defended Mr Faulding."Pete Faulding is a friend & went up to help for free-he will think b4 offering help again," he wrote."He & his teams ability is amongst the best in the world to find bodies on land & water.
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"He has been made a scapegoat, Lancashire police searched that whole area already before Pete arrived". Having failed to find her body, Mr Faulding explained his £55,000 sonar can only scan the water and cannot travel through reeds.
Mr Faulding was called in by the family to assist but said he was "baffled" after he failed to find her. Neither his team or police divers found any trace of Ms Bulley in the section of the river they searched over three days.
Mr Faulding said he had only cleared the area around the bench where her mobile phone was found, and that the tidal section beyond the weir was "an open book", according to MailOnline. "We weren't searching the reeds, our job was to search the water," he said.
He also said he refused to be the "fall guy" for the probe. He explained: "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."
