According to information presented at the beginning of Nicola Bulley’s inquest at Lancashire Coroner’s Court, dental records allowed for the identification of her remains.
Less than a mile from where she went missing, the 45-year-old mother of two was found on Sunday on the banks of the River Wyre.
At Preston Coroner’s Court, an inquest into her death began today at noon.
During the brief hearing, which was missed by Nicola’s family, no cause of death was disclosed.
Nicola Bulley, 45, was last seen on the morning of January 27 while walking her dog close to St. Michael’s on Wyre in Lancashire along a walkway along the River Wyre.
After leaving off her girls, ages six and nine, at school on January 27, the 42-year-old mortgage advisor from Inskip in Lancashire disappeared while walking her dog in Saint Michael’s on Wyre.
Senior coroner Dr. James Adeley stated before the inquest that he had gotten in touch with consultant maxillofacial surgeon Andrew Ian Edwards to request that he compare dental records that had been received by police from the Great Eccleston dentistry office.
He stated: “On February 20 at 2.15 p.m., he examined the body that was discovered in the River Wyre near Rawcliffe Road in St. Michael’s on Wyre.”
According to Dr. Adeley, the surgeon discovered that the restorative treatment was comparable.
In addition, he said, “I am satisfied on the balance of probability that positive identification has been made.”
“The family has been advised of the date, time, and location of the start of the inquest and has chosen not to attend for reasons I can quite appreciate,” coroner Dr. James Adeley said.
He claimed that any more evidence acquired by the police and the results of the post-mortem examination needed “further consideration,” and that a full inquest was likely to take place in June once it was determined whether a Home Office pathologist was available.
This, he continued, “will give time to compile the case’s facts and give the specialists involved a chance to finalize the findings from investigations that still need to be conducted.”
After Nicola went missing on January 27, police and divers conducted extensive searches for her for more than three weeks.
Police were rushed to the river on Sunday after hearing that two walkers had discovered a body.
On Monday, the body’s official identification as Nicola’s was made public during a news conference held at the Lancashire Police headquarters later that day.
They chose not to address the harsh criticism they had received for making certain details of Ms. Bulley’s private life public, though.
The police also declined to say why it took 23 days for them to discover her body in the river.
Following the announcement, Nicola’s family released a devastating statement in which they expressed their “worst fears had been confirmed.”
They remarked, “We will never be able to fully understand what Nikki had to go through in her final moments, and that will never leave us.”
“How could we forget Nikki? She was the center of our universe and the reason our lives were so unique, and nothing can ever change that.”
The ones who care about our daughters the most will provide them with the assistance they require.
“Our hearts sincerely break for others who have lost loved ones,” they continued. Keep your faith alive.
Finally, Nikki, you are no longer listed as missing; you have been located, and we can finally allow you to rest.
We’ll take it from here. We adore you, always have and always will.
