15 February 2023 , 16:04
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A social media influencer has been arrested and fined after travelling to film footage of the location where Nicola Bulley went missing.
Mortgage adviser and mum of two Nicola, 45, disappeared on January 27 while walking her brown spaniel Willow along the River Wyre in the tight-knit village of St Michaels on Wyre in Lancashire.
It comes as the lead investigator in the case, Detective Investigator Rebecca Smith, has condemned amateur sleuths coming to the area acting as 'wannabe detectives'.
Dan Duffy, from Darwen, was detained by police on Friday on a public order offence and issued with a £90 fine.
Video footage of the arrest was uploaded to YouTube by Dan himself on his channel Exploring With Danny, which has 206,000 subscribers. His TikTok account @exploring_with_danny has 80.7k followers.
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In the clip Duffy, wearing a black vest top, can be seen handcuffed and standing next to a police officer who was holding his arm.
Addressing the camera, he said: "Hi guys, I'm being arrested on a public order offence. They've had an allegation.
"As you all know I was in search to find the missing woman Nicola but this is what it's turning into. No freedom of speech."
Police are searching for Nicola Bulley (Nikki Bulley - Mortgage Adviser/Facebook)
The mum disappeared while walking her springer spaniel Willow (Lancashire Constabulary / SWNS.C)The video then showed Duffy being taken away in a police car before a title card read '20 hours in the police station arrested on a public order offence for searching for missing woman Nicola Bulley'.
Duffy was then seen standing on the back step of a police van giving the middle finger with both hands.
A final title card read 'left the police station with no further charges'. The video was uploaded to YouTube on Monday (February 13) and has been viewed more than 11,000 times.
A Lancashire Constabulary spokesperson told LancsLive: "A 36-year-old man from Darwen was arrested under Section 4 of the Public Order Act - Fear/Provocation of Violence. He was given a Fixed Penalty Notice."
Duffy is among a number of people to have travelled to St Michael’s on Wyre to film videos for his TikTok channel 'Exploring_With_Danny', which has seen gone offline with the username bringing up a 'couldn't find this account' message.
TikTok star Dan Duffy (Exploring with Danny/Youtube WS)Videos showing Duffy searching the riverside and nearby buildings by nightfall have gained as many as 1.2 million views on TikTok.
He was also involved in a confrontation with a man, believed to be a local resident, while broadcasting live on TikTok from outside a property in the village.
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Duffy's arrest comes after police were given the power to break up groups causing a nuisance in the village where Nicola vanished on January 27 following reports of people coming into St Michael’s on Wyre and filming properties for use on social media.
Ms Bulley seen on the morning she went missing (Lancashire Police)A 48-hour dispersal order was imposed last week as the focus of the huge search for the missing mum-of-two shifted towards the sea.
A number of other people were warned about their behaviour as the force warned it will not tolerate criminality, including trespass and criminal damage.
Officers had previously warned members of the public not to “take the law into their own hands” by breaking into empty or derelict riverside properties to try to find the mortgage advisor.
It comes as amateur sleuths and social media video-makers have “distracted significantly” from police efforts to find Nicola, the lead investigator in the case has said.
Assistant Chief Constable Peter Lawson (L) and Det. Supt. Rebecca Smith (Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)At a press conference at Lancashire Police HQ on Wednesday, the BBC asked if “social media video makers and wannabe detectives have been an annoyance or a hindrance in the enquiry”.
Detective Superintendent Rebecca Smith said: “Yes, it has significantly distracted the investigation. In 29 years’ police service I’ve never seen anything like it. Some of it’s been quite shocking and really hurtful to the family.
"Obviously, we can’t disregard anything and we’ve reviewed everything that’s come in but of course it has distracted us significantly. But as long as we are prioritising, which we do constantly on the information that’s coming in, that will not distract us from the priority actions that we’ve been completing.”
St Michael's on Wyre, Lancashire, as police continue their search for Nicola (PA)Two people were also arrested on suspicion of sending malicious communications over Nicola's disappearance. Police said it received reports over the weekend of messages being sent to Wyre Council members.
A 49-year-old man from Manchester and a 20-year-old woman from Oldham have been arrested on suspicion of malicious communications offences. The man has been bailed pending further inquiries until May 12 while the woman remains in custody.
Meanwhile Nicola's friends and neighbours, including her next-door neighbour and friend Charlotte Drake, have continued to flock to a bridge over the Wyre to lay yellow ribbons with messages which say they still hope she will be found safe and well.