Inquest into death of Nicola Bulley cost Lancashire County Council more than £11,000
A council spent thousands on additional security measures following fears 'armchair detectives' could disrupt the inquest into the death of Nicola Bulley.
The mother, known as Nikki, vanished after dropping her daughters, aged six and nine, at school before taking her usual dog walk along the River Wyre in St Michael's on Wyre, Lancashire in January.
Her phone, which was still connected to a work Teams call, was found on a bench overlooking the water.
Her body was found in the river around a mile farther downstream from the bench, three later, on 19 February.
After her disappearance and the family's plight were picked up across social media, Lancashire Council were forced to spend thousands ensuring online sleuths did not disrupt her inquest.
In total, Lancashire County Council spent £11,049.70 to hold the inquest at Preston County Hall, a Freedom of Information Request by LancsLive revealed.
This included:
FGH Security staffing: £4,114.80
Relocation of pre booked events and meetings: £3,675.00
Auditel Engineer: £1,600.00
Traffic management team: £950
Security sundries (Bags, Tags, lanyards, badges, barrier hire): £378.72
Catering: £331.18
When an inquest into Nikki's death started, at County Hall in Preston on 26 June, Lancashire's Senior Coroner Dr James Adeley addressed a packed council chamber and issued a stern warning.
Dr Adeley said: "If anybody has the slightest inclination or is contemplating disrupting this inquest they should be aware this may amount to contempt of court.”
The planning of the inquest had taken months with security a clear priority.
Although inquests are public hearings after fears those who had disrupted the investigation into Nikki's disappearance might turn up both the public and press were required to register in advance.
On 26 June, mounted police officers patrolled the streets around County Hall, road closures were put in place to allow parking for TV crews and barriers were erected at the main entrance.
Private security firm FGH provided guards to man the doors of the building and the rooms inside while one was even stationed at Preston Coroner's Court in Fulwood in case anybody decided to turn up there.
The majority of coroner's officers and clerks were involved in the running of the inquest and several other events had to be moved elsewhere at cost.
In the run-up to the inquest the coroner's court had been inundated with phone calls and letters from individuals who put forward their own theories.
Despite the inquest concluding that Nikki's death was nothing more than a tragic accident her family said they were still being tormented by social media abuse. In a statement read out by their lawyer they said: "Sadly we feel the need to raise and address the issue of social media.
"It’s upsetting that we continue to receive negative targeted messages and still wildly inaccurate speculation being shared on numerous platforms.
"We encourage people to look at the facts, the evidence which had been heard during the inquest, and the conclusion reached by the coroner, to ignore any amateur views and opinions and be mindful of the impact that words bring."
In response, Lancashire County Council said: "For guidance, this was an important undertaking and it was vital it was conducted in such a manner to alleviate some concerns of potential disruption and ensure that people could attend live Coronial proceedings safely and securely."
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