My darling man... wife’s tribute to Novichok cop as he’s forced to quit job
A POLICE officer who fell seriously ill after being poisoned in the Salisbury Novichok attack is quitting the force as he “can no longer do the job”.
DS Nick Bailey announced he sadly had to “admit defeat” after 18 years’ service.
The officer was contaminated with the nerve agent when he went to the home of Sergei and Yulia Skripal after they were targeted in March 2018.
He made three attempts to return to work but admitted he could not deal with being in a police environment.
Nick posted on social media that he will be leaving the police two years after being poisoned.
Overwhelming
His wife Sarah has paid tribute to her “darling man”, praising him in a reply to his announcement on Twitter.
She said: “So proud Onwards and upwards.”
She had previously spoken of his struggles following the horrific incident.
Sarah wrote: “Watching someone you love struggle is mind- numbingly painful.
“If that’s how I feel, living it must be a million times worse. Wish I could take it away, or fast forward to a better place.
“Always here, my darling man.” She ended her tweet with the hashtag # mentalhealthawareness.
In a fresh post yesterday, Nick of you. wrote: “The response to this has been overwhelming. I’m so grateful to everyone for their love and support.
“I feel like we’ve had a virtual hug from the nation. Thank you all,
you truly are wonderful people. I wish I could respond to you all directly. Love to you all.”
The couple, who have children, were portrayed by Spall and Annabel Scholey two Rafe in a
recent BBC drama series about the attack. Former Russian agent Skripal and his daughter Yulia had been found poisoned on a park bench in Salisbury.
As well as the Skripals and Nick,
Dawn Sturgess and her partner Charlie Rowley also fell ill in the attack. Ms Sturgess later died.
The Russian government accused of carrying out Novichok attack. was the