The very idea that the case ‘doesn’t sit right’ with you and only you — not the trained, specialist officers in a position to uncover the truth of what happened to Bulley — is the highest, most morbid form of arrogance possible. Maybe these types of people comfort themselves with the idea that they’re doing it for the greater good; if you have a hero complex, you probably still think you’re helping people. But if casting yourself as the hero in your own Agatha Christie novel takes precedence over the wellbeing of Bulley’s family and friends, who have repeatedly requested privacy during this time, then it’s insulting to even pretend to care.

What’s most disturbing about the fascination surrounding Nicola Bulley, who is also the subject of a Facebook group with over 25,000 users, is that it isn’t an isolated incident but part of a recurring pattern not just in the UK, but all over the world. The most immediate comparison that comes to mind for me is Gabby Petito, a US woman who disappeared in September 2021 and, in the process, became an internet sensation. From TikTokers flocking to her last-seen locations to Redditors making ‘awards’ for posters in the Petito-dedicated subreddit, this case was true crime culture at its worst. But the saddest part is that, despite the rightful outcry over people exploiting Petito’s death for their own personal fantasies, this trend has continued.

When 12-year-old Ava White was tragically killed in Liverpool last year, I saw for myself how TikTok was awash with conspiracy theories suggesting that another girl in her class had orchestrated the murder, with dozens of users disclosing the child’s identity without any forethought for the implications it might have on her life. Then, there was Sabrina Prater, a newly out transgender woman who had people so convinced that she’d kidnapped people and was mistreating her animals, that she had her pet dogs taken away from her. In reality, Prater’s only crime was dancing in a partially renovated house and generally, according to countless social media users, just giving off ‘bad vibes’.

Where’s the line between helpful and harrowing for amateurs ‘investigating’ Nicola Bulley?