Daily Express
MAY 2007
Did kidnapper slip out of the country?
7 May 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A 12-hour delay in alerting border police could have allowed kidnapped British three-year-old Madeleine McCann to have been taken out of Portugal. It took that long for officers to warn police on the frontier with Spain and to issue them a picture of Maddy.Last night, members of Maddy’s family vented their anger at the slow response in the critical early hours after she vanished. They claimed it was left up to holidaymakers and hotel staff to carry out the first searches for her.Acknowledged Sources: members of Maddy’s family / Kate McCann / Gerry McCann / Father Pacheco / Mark Warner firm
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Please please do not hurt her. Please do not scare her
8 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The mother of Madeleine McCann yesterday made an emotional appeal to her daughter's kidnapper, pleading: 'Please, please do not hurt her.' Clutching a photograph of her 'beautiful little girl' Mrs McCann, 38, begged the abductor to set three-year-old Madeleine free. Mrs McCann, a GP, set aside her heartache and addressed the abductor directly to camera in the hope her daughter will be returned safely.Acknowledged Sources: Mrs McCann / Marques Pereira, harbour captain at nearby Lagos marina
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Maddy 'was snatched to order'
9 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Kidnapped Madeleine McCann is in the clutches of an international paedophile ring which set out to snatch a child to order, it was claimed last night. The vile network, which has strong British connections, was operating in Portugal because of its lax sex offence laws. It is one of only two countries in Europe without a sex offenders' register.Acknowledged Sources: Campaigners / Sources / Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa / Manchester United's Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo / One British holidaymaker
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Maddy spotted with woman at garage?
10 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The heartbroken parents of Madeleine McCann yesterday revealed how they were desperately clinging on to the hope that their daughter is still alive. Their brave words came as it was revealed that police had been given CCTV footage with a possible sighting of three-year-old Madeleine. Images captured on cameras at a petrol station near the resort of Praia da Luz show a woman with a girl fitting Madeleine's description.Acknowledged Sources: Gerry and Kate McCann / A local shop owner / Anton Santana Carlos, the Portuguese ambassador to Britain
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'Maddy had been left alone before'
10 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The parents of kidnapped toddler Madeleine McCann suffered new anguish yesterday as a Portuguese newspaper accused them of routinely leaving their children alone during their holiday. Citing police sources, the newspaper Correio da Manha said it was a practice that, while normal at Praia da Luz, may have made it easy for her kidnapper to plan the abduction. 'Police have reconstructed the holiday routines of the McCanns and have come to the conclusion that the children were left alone on other occasions, ' the newspaper said.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha / police sources / Armando Ferreira, president of the National Police Union / Maddy's uncle John McCann / Susan Healy
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Maddy is still missing but police call off the search
11 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The parents of missing Madeleine McCann faced fresh agony last night when police announced they were scaling down the search. Police and volunteers have been hard at work scouring the 150-square-mile area around the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz where Maddy was snatched from the family’s holiday apartment eight days ago. But the officer in charge of the investigation has decided to call off the local hunt because nothing has been found. The shock decision prompted increased criticism of their bungled inquiry into the abduction of the three-year-old Briton and the way the hunt for the toddler has been conducted.Acknowledged Sources: Police spokesman Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa / Portuguese-born Nuno Lourenco who lives in Germany
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Maddy police turn down £1m reward
12 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The hunt for little Madeleine McCann was dealt a new blow last night as Portuguese police refused the offer of a £1million reward...Acknowledged Sources: Officials in Portugal / Kate and Gerry McCann
...Businessman and father-of-three Stephen Winyard, 57, offered the reward for any information leading to Madeleine's return.
Madeleine's mother has also offered a £100,000 reward and British businessman Don Holmes, who runs an Algarve-based construction company, has put up a reward of £7,000. Vodafone is also reported to be considering offering a reward...
...Officials in Portugal said they could not accept the cash because under their laws it could prejudice the investigation...
(Note: Other newspapers stated "a colleague" of Kate McCann offered the £100,000 reward.)
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Police fear Maddy was drugged by kidnapper
Maddy 'sedated with chloroform' and then disguised by abductor
14 May 2007
David Pilditch in Praie da Luz
Portuguese police believe missing Madeleine McCann may have been drugged with chloroform by her abductor. Detectives have visited local pharmacies in the resort of Praia da Luz and nearby towns in their investigation, it was claimed yesterday. And the Daily Express can reveal police believe Madeleine's kidnapper may have cut or dyed the child's hair in an attempt to disguise her looks. Her family yesterday asked potential witnesses to look out for Madeleine's 'black flash' in her right eye - where her pupil runs into her blue-green iris. They have issued a poster headed: 'Look into my eyes!' which shows how distinctive Madeleine looks, even if an abductor tried to alter her appearance.Acknowledged Sources: A Portuguese police source / Susan Healy / Father Pacheco
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We believe Madeleine is safe and she's being cared for
15 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The parents of missing Madeleine McCann revealed the depth of their anguish for the first time yesterday - and spoke of their belief that she is still alive. In a moving interview, Kate and Gerry McCann said they would remain in Portugal until they were reunited with their daughter. They said they would continue to do everything to find her - and that was believed to include hiring private investigators.Acknowledged Sources: Kate & Gerry McCann / A source close to the family
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Maddy: Russian is quizzed over porn
17 May 2007
From Matt Drake and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A Russian computer expert was last night being questioned by Portuguese police over the abduction of Madeleine McCann. The startling new development came after it emerged he worked on a computer seized from the home of Robert Murat. He is believed to be Moscow-born Sergey Malinka, 22, who is based in Praia da Luz and set up a business website for Murat's property company Romigen.Acknowledged Sources: Locals / Tuck Price, a friend of the Murats / Murat's uncle, Ralph Everleigh
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Maddy suspect refuses lie test
20 May 2007
Exclusive from Matt Drake (w/David Pilditch)
The prime suspect in the hunt for missing Madeleine McCann last night refused an offer to take a lie detector test. Robert Murat, 33, insists he did not snatch the four-year old. But he has now hired a team of lawyers, fearing he could be arrested. Police in the Algarve confirmed Murat is their chief suspect but under Portuguese law they need further evidence before they can arrest him, let alone press charges.Acknowledged Sources: Police in the Algarve / Murat's aunt Sally Eveleigh / Tuck Price, a friend of the Murat family / a [McCann] family spokesman / reports
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We'll scour the globe for our Maddy
21 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann yesterday said they will travel to the four corners of the earth to search for their missing daughter. Kate and Gerry McCann plan to set off on a worldwide mission to find the four-year-old girl. They will use money from a fighting fund set up to help trace her. The couple are also planning to hire private detectives.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Madeleine's great uncle Brian Kennedy / Foreign Office spokeswoman / an unnamed British woman [who reported Malinka to police] / Murat's German girlfriend Michaela Walczuch
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Maddy suspect's PR deal
22 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The chief suspect in the likely kidnap of Madeleine McCann may cash in by selling his story. Oddball Robert Murat, 33, has contacted PR guru Max Clifford at his London office. Mr Murat, who claims he is innocent, wants Mr Clifford to represent him in any media deals.Acknowledged Sources: PR guru Max Clifford / Tuck Price / A police source / holidaymaker Mari Pollard
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Wearing a ribbon for Maddy
23 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The campaign to find Madeleine McCann was gathering new momentum yesterday with a host of celebrities wearing her symbolic yellow ribbon. Heading the star cast was footballer David Beckham, as he posed for pictures with leading actress Helen Mirren at the Greatest Britons 2007 awards in London...Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann
...Mr McCann also gave details of how money from the fund will be spent. He said: 'There will be significant legal expenses as a legal team has come in to advise us. 'That has lifted a great burden from our shoulders. And we will fund the website which is a great vehicle for information regarding Madeleine’s disappearance.'...
...Mr McCann refused to say whether he had met Robert Murat, 33, the Briton questioned by police as a suspect...
...Mr McCann revealed he visited the Leicester-based police incident room during his trip home...
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Prayers for Madeleine
24 May 2007
David Pilditch in Fatima central Portugal
It was a journey they had always wanted to make – but never imagined it would be in such heartbreaking circumstances. Kate and Gerry McCann's emotional pilgrimage yesterday to one of Europe's holiest shrines was to pray for a miracle for their daughter Madeleine.Acknowledged Sources: Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell / Anne McManus [Fatima pilgram from Ireland]
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Madeleine : Last photograph before she was snatched
25 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Laughing and carefree, this could be any three-year old enjoying a holiday in the sun with her family. But this is the last picture of little Madeleine McCann, taken eight hours before she was abducted. It is the latest image her parents have released in their mission to find their daughter. The picture was taken by her mother Kate. Wearing a sunhat to protect her from the sun, giggling Madeleine, who has two beads in her hair, is dressed in a pink top and white shorts...Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / close family members / Madeleine's uncle John McCann
...Portugal's Policia Judiciaria have failed to find a shred of evidence linking their chief suspect Robert Murat to her disappearance...
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Maddy's Parents: 'The Guilt Will Never Leave Us'
26 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Madeleine McCann's parents fought back tears as they told how they felt guilt that they weren't there when she was abducted. In their first interview Kate and Gerry McCann spoke about the 'darkness' they felt in the first hours and days after their daughter’s abduction. The couple told how they had made arrangements with other families to regularly check on their children on the night of May 3 while dining a short distance away.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann
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Three weeks on . . . the first description of snatch suspect
26 May 2007
David Pilditch
Police hunting for missing Madeleine last night issued their first detailed description of a possible suspect. The man was seen walking in Praia da Luz at around 9.30pm on the night the four-year-old was snatched from her bed in a holiday complex three weeks ago. Police described him as white, approximately 35 to 40 years old, of medium build and 5ft 10ins tall. They said he was wearing a dark jacket, light beige trousers and dark shoes. The man was said to have short hair.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa / A spokesman for the McCann family
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Audience with Pope for Madeleine 's mum
Audience With Pope For Maddy's Mum
28 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The parents of missing Madeleine McCann are to meet the Pope, it was revealed last night. Gerry and Kate McCann, both Roman Catholics, could be granted an audience with Benedict XVI as early as Wednesday. They are also to meet former England captain David Beckham in Madrid as part of their trip to Europe to raise awareness of their campaign to find Madeleine.Acknowledged Sources: unnamed key witness, a close friend of the Gerry and Kate[PJ files later shown to be Jane Tanner] / A family source said / Foreign Office liaison officer Clarence Mitchell / Local Jose Francisco
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Mobile phone experts join the Madeleine hunt
29 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Mobile phone experts like the ones who helped convict Soham murderer Ian Huntley, have been drafted into the hunt for Madeleine McCann. The specially-trained technicians from Britain will focus on the mobile records of suspect Robert Murat, 33, and pinpoint his exact location on the night Madeleine was snatched from her holiday apartment in Portugal.Acknowledged Sources: A [British] police chief / Gerry McCann / Portuguse police
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Emotional goodbye as Madeleine 's parents jet off to meet the Pope
"Mummy will be home soon"
30 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Distraught mother Kate McCann struggles to hold back tears as she bids an emotional goodbye to her son Sean yesterday. She hugged and kissed two-year-old Sean and his twin sister Amelie before flying out of Portugal for the first time since her daughter Madeleine was snatched. Still clutching Madeleine’s pink Cuddle Cat, with husband Gerry she left for Rome and a meeting with the Pope...Acknowledged Sources: Vatican source / police sources / British witness / close family source
...Last night police sources revealed that Madeleine’s Cuddle Cat may provide a vital clue in the inquiry. Officers declined to explain why, but the place and position the cat was found in were said to be 'highly significant'...
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Time stood still as Pope prayed for us
Pope's blessing for a mum in torment
31 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
It should have been their proudest day. Instead it was the most poignant. Kate and Gerry McCann met the Pope at the Vatican yesterday in the latest step of their search for daughter Madeleine. During the emotional meeting Pope Benedict XVI took hold of Mrs McCann’s hand and offered tender words of comfort and prayers. He also blessed pictures of Madeleine and her two-year-old twin brother and sister, Sean and Amelie.Acknowledged Sources: Clarence Mitchell / Kate and Gerry McCann / Trevor Kavanagh / Papal spokesman Father Federico Lombardi
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KATE AND GERRY: We get strength from each other
31 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The McCanns have given a touching insight into how they have kept going during the nightmare of Madeleine’s abduction by drawing on each other’s strengths and the support of friends and family. Yesterday, Kate McCann said: 'The first 72 hours really were the worst time for both of us. It was hard to get away from the dark places...Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann
...Asked if they could ever forgive Madeleine’s abductor Mr McCann said: 'When we have got Madeleine back we will think about who took her and what happened.' He added: 'When Madeleine went missing it started off with us thinking in terms of minutes until we found her. Then minutes became hours, days and now weeks. 'The first 48 hours was akin to having a bereavement. 'It was anguish, despair, guilt, helplessness all falling into one. But it is different from a death, where you grieve and try to move on. 'Madeleine is not dead. We have been thrown into an ongoing crisis of the unknown.'...
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Holiday flats 'were not searched'
31 May 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake
PORTUGUESE police hunting for Madeleine McCann faced further criticism last night for allegedly failing to search empty apartments yards from where she was snatched. Detectives in the Algarve have come under intense pressure over a growing catalogue of mistakes during an inquiry that critics fear has stalled. Another shortcoming came to light yesterday when it was revealed officers never carried out a full search of holiday apartments close to the crime scene. Many properties have metal shutters on their windows and doors that would have prevented any of the search teams seeing if anyone is inside...Acknowledged Sources: Businessman Michael Askew who owns a building company in Derbyshire
...Police gave the suspect’s height as three inches taller than the witness had said. It appears the mistake was made in the conversion from centimetres to inches...
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Daily Express Original URL: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/8449/Holiday+flats+
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JUNE 2007
Madeleine: Now psychics are probed
Madeleine : Psychic visions probed as police get desperate (Journalisted)
Police turn to psychics in Maddy search (Factiva)
1 June 2007
David Piditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Portuguese detectives struggling to solve the abduction of Madeleine McCann have resorted to investigating visions and 'sightings' of the youngster reported by psychics. Officers in the Algarve have compiled two, three-inch thick dossiers containing e-mails and messages from clairvoyants who are convinced they know the location of the missing four-year-old girl...Acknowledged Sources: Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa / A police spokesman / Kate McCann
...Yesterday, the detective leading the hunt, Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa, said he could not rule out the possibility that Madeleine’s captor will make contact through encrypted messages giving coded details about where to find the
little girl...
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Madeleine : New DNA clue to kidnap
Madeleine police in DNA break through
2 June 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Detectives believe that they have found the DNA of Madeleine McCann’s kidnapper. The evidence was discovered in the bedroom where the four-year-old girl was sleeping when she was snatched. It does not belong to any of the McCann family or chief suspect Robert Murat, 33. And police sources in Portugal said there was no link to Russian Sergey Malinka, 22, who has also been questioned over the disappearance. The discovery by forensic scientists proves a stranger was in the family’s Ocean Club Resort apartment in Praia da Luz. And the DNA is the first piece of hard evidence police have found in the investigation since Madeleine was taken on May 3. A Portuguese police source said: 'There is a new suspect. This could be vital evidence in the search for Madeleine. Tests detected DNA corresponding to six people in the bedroom. Five were linked to the McCann family, the other shows there was a stranger in Madeleine’s room.'Acknowledged Sources: police sources in Portugal / Portuguese police source / Tuck Price spokesman for Murat / source at the Instituto Nacional de Medicina Legal laboratory in Coimbra / Diane McCann, wife of Gerry’s brother John
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We'll sell our house if we have to pay to get Madeleine back
4 June 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann said yesterday they are prepared to sell everything they own to get their daughter back. Kate and Gerry McCann spoke out after Portuguese police suggested that four-year-old Madeleine may have been kidnapped for a ransom. Senior detectives in Portugal are working on the theory that the kidnapper may have held back on making a demand after being panicked by the huge publicity over the case.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa
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Madeleine appeal on TV tonight
5 June 2007
From Matt Drake and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann are to make a Crimewatch appeal on TV tonight in an attempt to uncover vital clues about their daughter's abduction. Gerry and Kate McCann will issue a plea for information because they believe someone in the UK may have information about the missing four-year-old. But they will not be allowed to stage a reconstruction, which could have helped provide new leads, because strict Portuguese law prevents the release of any details of the investigation. Also, details of exact times and eye-witness descriptions that would normally be broadcast on the BBC1 programme will not be shown.Acknowledged Sources: Gerry McCann / source close to the family
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We are not suspects
7 June 2007
David Pilditch in Berlin
THE parents of Madeleine McCann were publicly forced to deny involvement in their daughter’s abduction yesterday. Stunned Gerry and Kate McCann faced fresh torment after a German Radio reporter wanted to know their reaction to those 'pointing a finger' at them. The confrontation came at a news conference in Berlin where the couple had taken their campaign to raise awareness over missing four-year-old Madeleine. Mrs McCann looked appalled as Sabina Mueller asked her: 'How do you feel about the fact that more and more people seem to be pointing the finger at you, saying the way you behave is not the way people would normally behave when their child is abducted?' The reporter went on: 'They seem to imply you might have had something to do with it.'Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Sabina Mueller / source close to the family
...The family is launching a wristband to raise cash and awareness of Madeleine’s plight. A similar scheme launched by a local newspaper sold more than 20,000 in the family’s home county of Leicestershire. The newspaper’s yellow and green bands have so far raised more than £26,000 for the Find Madeleine fighting fund...
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Why I had to ask this difficult question
7 June 2007
David Pilditch
The journalist who confronted Madeleine McCann's parents in Berlin yesterday defended her actions, writes David Pilditch. Sabine Mueller said she had asked the question after discussing the case with her boyfriend and hearing the views of a psychologist on radio yesterday morning. Ms Mueller, who has worked for German Radio for 14 years, said: 'I was aware it was a difficult question but I felt it was a question that needed to be asked. I do not suspect the McCanns of being involved...Acknowledged Sources: Sabine Mueller, German journalist
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'She was snatched to order by gang '
Maddy: 'She Was Snatched To Order By Gang'
Anonymous caller tells police: I know where Madeleine is (Factiva headline)
8 June 2007
David Pilditch in Amsterdam
The search for kidnapped Madeleine McCann switched to Spain yesterday amid fears that she has been snatched to order by a paedophile gang. The move came after a Spanish investigative journalist claimed that a convicted paedophile had been hired by two other people to abduct Madeleine, left. Antonio Toscano, who covers missing person stories, claims the man is a member of an international ring which specialises in snatching children. He said the man was spotted in a bar in Seville – just a two-hour drive from the Portuguese border – a week before Madeleine was kidnapped from the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz. The Spanish paedophile allegedly told locals that he planned to head to the Algarve in the days leading up to Madeleine's abduction 'to visit friends'.Acknowledged Sources: Antonio Toscano, Spanish journalist / Locals [Praia da Luz] / A Spanish source / flight crew of [McCann's] eight-seater jet / A British police source / Gerry McCann
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Police poster swoop on Madeleine aunt
9 June 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Praia da Luz
Portuguese police were at the centre of a new row yesterday after members of kidnap victim Madeleine McCann's family were manhandled by armed officers as they tried to put up 'missing' posters. Madeleine's aunt, Philomena McCann, said she and a cousin were escorted from Lisbon airport by gun-toting police. 'They just don't want to admit a child was snatched in their country,' she said yesterday.Acknowledged Sources: Philomena McCann
...And yesterday, Madeleine's abduction was linked to South America for the first time. A phone call by a man claiming to know where Madeleine was being held came from a mobile phone registered in Argentina, it was revealed...
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Madeleine : Police chief quizzed over torture of mother
11 June 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A senior police officer investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has been charged over a violent attack on the mother of another missing girl. Yesterday it was revealed that Goncalo Amaral is one of five officers formally accused of torturing a confession from Leonor Cipriano. She is alleged to have been assaulted after her nine-year-old daughter, Joana, disappeared in September 2004.Acknowledged Sources: spokesman for Madeleine's parents
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I know for sure who snatched Madeleine says top investigator
13 June 2007
David Pilditch in Seville
A Spanish investigative journalist claimed yesterday he was '100 per cent certain' he knew the identity of Madeleine McCann’s kidnapper. Antonio Toscano, 36, insisted the four-year-old was snatched by a mysterious criminal mastermind who belongs to an international paedophile ring. He claims the shadowy figure, himself a convicted paedophile, snatched Madeleine to order on the instructions of two other people.Acknowledged Sources: Antonio Toscano / Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell / police chief Olegario Sousa
...But yesterday Toscano told the Daily Express how he began investigating The Frenchman after receiving a tip-off from a mutual associate a week after Madeleine was taken from her family’s holiday apartment in the Algarve...
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'Madeleine is buried here'
14 June 2007
David Pilditch and Matt Drake in Odiaxere Portugal
Message to the police from man who pinpointed the grave of two girls murdered by paedophiles AN anonymous letter writer last night claimed that he knew where missing Madeleine McCann's body was buried. Detectives believe the writer is the same man who last year provided the location of two murdered Belgian girls. Madeleine's parents were plunged into fresh agony as Portuguese police prepared to launch a grim dig for a shallow grave in a remote area of deserted scrubland just nine miles from where the four year-old was snatched on May 3...Acknowledged Sources: Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf / A close family friend / a man who has seen the Madeleine letter / A Dutch police spokesman / Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa
...The letter was sent to the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf in Amsterdam, which passed it on to the Portuguese Policia Judiciaria...
...The family have now been left without an official spokesman after their liaison officer from the Foreign Office, Clarence Mitchell, returned to Britain on Tuesday. Mr Mitchell travelled back via Amsterdam, where he spent the night before flying on to East Midlands airport yesterday. Last night he denied his visit to Holland had any connection with the letter...
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Madeleine hunt delay brings yet more agony
15 June 2007
From Matt Drake and David Pilditch in Odiaxere
The parents of missing Madeleine McCann were dealt a new blow yesterday as Portuguese police again delayed searching a key site. They were due to begin excavating at a remote area of scrubland where an anonymous letter writer claims the four-year-old is buried. One report said the search had been delayed by driving rain. But others suggested it could have been called off before it had even begun.Acknowledged Sources: Police spokesman Olegario Sousa / Gerry McCann / De Telegraaf / Dutch police spokesman Rob Van der Veen
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JULY 2007
Madeleine : The search is now at 'the critical stage'
16 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The prime suspect over the kidnapping of Madeleine McCann is to face further interrogation by Portuguese detectives this week. Expatriate Robert Murat, 33, will be quizzed as sources reveal that the probe into the four-year-old's abduction has reached a 'critical' stage. A police source told the Daily Express: 'After a series of interviews last week, the investigation is moving forward and we now believe that the inquiry has reached the critical stage.'Acknowledged Sources: A police source / Robert Murat / Kate McCann
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Madeleine: Mum's New Hope
17 July 2007
David Pilditch
The search for Madeleine McCann went global yesterday after Harry Potter author JK Rowling urged stores around the world to display a poster of the missing girl along with her new book. Kate and Gerry McCann hope hundreds of thousands of bookshops selling the English language edition of the author’s seventh and final book will alert Madeleine’s disappearance to customers...Acknowledged Sources: JK Rowling / Kate and Gerry McCann
...The main image highlights Madeleine’s distinctive 'black flash' in her right eye which streaks from her pupil through her green-blue iris. Underneath her image are the words: 'If you have seen me please contact your local police agency.' The McCanns, who designed the poster with JK Rowling, hope the initiative will help Madeleine’s image become as recognisable as the teenage star of Rowling’s books...
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Harry Potter book launch helps hunt for Madeleine
17 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The search for Madeleine McCann went global yesterday after Harry Potter author JK Rowling urged stores around the world to display a poster of the missing girl along with her new book. Kate and Gerry McCann hope hundreds of thousands of bookshops selling the English language edition of the author's seventh and final book will alert Madeleine's disappearance to customers...Acknowledged Sources: JK Rowling / Kate and Gerry McCann
...The main image highlights Madeleine's distinctive 'black flash' in her right eye which streaks from her pupil through her green-blue iris. Underneath her image are the words: 'If you have seen me please contact your local police agency.' The McCanns, who designed the poster with JK Rowling, hope the initiative will help Madeleine's image become as recognisable as the teenage star of Rowling's books...
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We saw top suspect at Madeleine kidnap flat
18 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
More witnesses have cast fresh doubt on the alibi of the prime suspect in the hunt for the kidnapper of Madeleine McCann. The Daily Express can reveal that locals claim they spotted a man matching Robert Murat's description outside the holiday apartment where the four-yearold was snatched from her bed on May 3...Acknowledged Sources: locals [Praia da Luz] / A police source / Portuguese police sources / Robert Murat
...Dr O'Brien's partner, Jane Tanner, is believed to be the witness who told police she saw a man rushing away from the resort carrying a small child wrapped in a blanket...
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Madeleine : Suspect to be quizzed again
Maddy: Suspect Faces Third Grilling
19 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The chief suspect in the hunt for missing Madeleine McCann faces fresh questioning by Portuguese police. Ex-pat Robert Murat, 33, will be asked to give a new statement to detectives at police headquarters in Portimao in the next few days. He will be quizzed for the third time after more witnesses cast fresh doubt over his alibi. Portuguese locals claim they spotted a man matching Murat's description outside the apartment where Madeleine, four, was snatched from her bed on May 3.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese locals / A source close to the family / Kate McCann / Madeleine's great-uncle Brian Kennedy
...Her parents are now planning a new life in Portugal as they insisted y esterday they would not return home without their daughter. Kate and Gerry McCann told how they 'cannot contemplate' going back to Britain without Madeleine. The couple are willing to quit their jobs as they concentrate all their efforts into finding her...
...Madeleine's great-uncle Brian Kennedy is chairman of a special fund to help the search for the little girl. It has raised £900,000. He said: 'We're going to need it. There are big bills coming in for things we've produced, for travel, for accommodation while Gerry and Kate are out there. 'They're not wealthy and there's no way we could carry on without it'. Asked about criticism the McCanns would not have had so much help if they weren't doctors, he said: 'It's true we have friends we could call on that others may not have – and we used them. We called in favours. 'Any parent wherever they are, whatever they do, should get the same publicity as Madeleine has and if we can do anything through the fund for others then we will.'
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Madeleine parents meet police chief to hear new evidence
20 July 2007
David Pilditch in Paria da Luz
The parents of kidnapped Madeleine McCann have met the Portuguese detective leading the search. Kate and Gerry McCann spent two hours with Guilhermino Encarnacao, head of the Policia Judiciaria in the Faro region. The briefing came as new evidence emerged following a series of interviews.Acknowledged Sources: A source / Gerry McCann
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Madeleine : Police reveal new clues
20 July 2007
David Pilditch in Paria da Luz
THE parents of Madeleine McCann have spent two hours being briefed about new clues in the kidnap investigation. Kate and Gerry McCann had intense talks with Guilhermino Encarnacao, the detective in charge of the hunt to find the missing four-year-old. The couple met with the detective at the British Consulate in Portimao on Wednesday, amid reports that the case had reached a 'critical' stage.Acknowledged Sources: Gerry McCann
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Madeleine - 'I saw the kidnapper take her'
21 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
POLICE have uncovered details of the escape route taken by missing Madeleine McCann’s abductor, it was revealed yesterday. The sensational new development came at the end of a week of intense activity in which police sources said the 78-day-old investigation had reached 'a critical stage'. A new witness has reported seeing a man rushing past the tiny Nossa Senhora church in Praia da Luz towards the seafront at around 9.30pm on May 3, just after Madeleine was snatched from her bed at the Ocean Club resort.Acknowledged Sources: A police source / Gerry McCann / Police sources
...It’s believed the new witness, thought to be a Portuguese local, is one of a number of people who were interviewed by detectives last week...
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MADELEINE - Why she's still the name on everyone's lips
21 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
TODAY is the 78th day since Madeleine McCann disappeared. The three months since then have been a time of unimaginable agony for her parents. Yet, because of the nature of this story, the whole of Britain, and indeed the wider world, remains in a state of suspended fear and hope.Acknowledged Sources: David Pilditch
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Madeleine 'smuggled out of the country on a boat'
23 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Police believe Madeleine McCann was smuggled out of Portugal on a boat, the Daily Express can reveal. Detectives are working on the theory after uncovering details of the escape route the youngster's kidnapper is believed to have taken. The suspect was seen rushing towards the seafront in the Algarve holiday resort of Praia da Luz.Acknowledged Sources: Witnesses / Marina manager Ingrid Fortunato / A police source /Gerry McCann
...Portuguese officers are investigating whether Madeleine was first taken to Lagos Marina along the coast. Witnesses say they saw a man and woman carrying a blonde child towards the marina hours after Madeleine was snatched...
...And on Saturday the Daily Express told how a witness saw a man dashing past the tiny Nossa Senhora church in Praia da Luz at around 9.30pm on May 3. He was rushing down hill towards the seafront. Police are treating the sighting as "significant"...
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Madeleine 's dad in talks with chief US lawyer
24 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The father of missing Madeleine McCann had a meeting with US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales yesterday. Consultant cardiologist Gerry McCann, 39, flew to Washington DC to discuss new legislation concerning child harm. Mr McCann, who lives in Rothley, Leics, is on a four-day visit to learn more about how other nations handle cases of child abduction and abuse.Acknowledged Sources: Gerry McCann
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Madeleine 's parents: We are not to blame
Maddy Dad: We Are Not To Blame
25 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The father of Madeleine McCann yesterday defended his decision to leave his daughter alone on the night she was snatched. Consultant cardiologist Gerry McCann was grilled by American TV networks about why he and his wife Kate did not hire a babysitter to watch their three children as they dined with friends...Acknowledged Sources: Sol magazine / Gerry McCann
...The McCanns have faced increased criticism after details were leaked to the Portuguese media of alleged inconsistencies in some of the statements which have been made by the McCann family and their friends. An article in Sol magazine accused Madeleine's parents and families in their holiday group of forming a 'pact of silence'...
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We'll fight the smears
25 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The father of Madeleine McCann was yesterday forced to defend his decision to leave his daughter alone on the night she was snatched. Gerry McCann went to the White House yesterday and met the staff of First Lady Barbara Bush as he publicised the case in America. The consultant cardiologist was also on a fact-finding mission to learn how American police deal with child exploitation and abduction.Acknowledged Sources: Sol magazine / Gerry McCann
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Madeleine - Now her parents face hate campaign
26 July 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Stote
The parents of Madeleine McCann have become the victims of a vicious hate campaign in Britain, it emerged yesterday. Several websites have been bombarded with 'nasty and offensive' messages accusing Kate and Gerry McCann of not doing enough to protect their daughter from being snatched. One website was even forced to ban people from leaving messages about the case after being blitzed with "spiteful" contributions.Acknowledged Sources: Leicester Mercury Editor Nick Carter / Madeleine's great-uncle Brian Kennedy / Gerry McCann
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Anger as friend told suspect: You're a liar
Maddy: Chief Suspect Accused Of Lying
27 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Madeleine McCann suspect Robert Murat was accused of lying by a friend of her parents in a finger-pointing outburst, it was alleged yesterday. Details emerged for the first time of the face-to-face showdown between Murat, 33, and three key witnesses. Portuguese detectives set up the confrontation after members of Kate and Gerry McCanns’ holiday party cast doubts over the British ex-pat’s alibi.Acknowledged Sources: Murat spokesman Tuck Price / Portuguese newspaper Sol
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How Madeleine Suspect Murat 'Changed Alibi'
28 July 2007
David Pilditch
Madeleine McCann suspect Robert Murat changed his alibi when questioned by police, it was claimed yesterday. The British expat is said to have told friends he was with his German girlfriend when Madeleine was snatched from her family’s holiday apartment. But Murat – he is the only official suspect in the case – told Portuguese detectives that he was with his mother on the night the four-year-old disappeared.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspaper Sol / a police source
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Madeleine : Now parents' holiday friends hit by slurs
30 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
FAMILY and friends of Madeleine McCann have been hit by new smears in Portugal. Relatives spoke out after Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry and their friends were accused of maintaining a pact of silence over the events of the night the girl was snatched. One report claimed police were concerned over inconsistencies in their statements and were treating the nine as suspects.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspaper Sol / Philomena McCann / Justine McGuinness
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Madeleine: Specially Trained Police Fly In
31 July 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A team of British experts in crimes against children have flown to Portugal to help in the hunt for missing Madeleine McCann. The Cracker-style psychologists have been drafted in by senior Portuguese detectives as the inquiry into the four-year-old’s abduction yesterday reached a 'critical' stage. The team includes senior police officers and criminologists specially trained in tackling child sex abuse and abduction cases.Acknowledged Sources: A Portuguese police source / Justine McGuinness / Madeleine’s grandmother, Eileen McCann / Gerry McCann
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AUGUST 2007
Team of UK experts fly in to create a profile of abductor
1 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Team of UK experts fly in to create a profile of abductor THE parents of missing Madeleine McCann have met with senior detectives hunting for their daughter's kidnapper. Kate and Gerry McCann were given the latest update on the investigation into the four-yearold's abduction on Monday. It came after a team of British experts jetted into Portugal to aid the 90-day inquiry.Acknowledged Sources: Gerry McCann
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MADELEINE
3 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Dramatic breakthrough in search as kidnapped girl is spotted in Belgium THE hunt for Madeleine McCann switched to Belgium last night after a series of 'highly credible' sightings. A young girl matching four-year-old Madeleine's description was spotted with a suspicious-looking couple at a restaurant in the town of Tongeren near the Dutch border.Acknowledged Sources: Dutch report / One witness, a child therapist / Belgian police spokesman / Kate McCann
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Desperate parents in new appeal
4 August 2007
David Pilditch in Huelva
The mother of Madeleine McCann spoke of her heartache yesterday as she launched a new appeal to find her daughter. GP Kate McCann, 39, told how she 'has to keep believing' that four-year-old Madeleine will be found alive. Kate and husband Gerry travelled to Huelva, in southern Spain, to start the new campaign. The couple spent more than three hours in the city putting up posters of Madeleine at train and bus stations, asking shop owners to display them and handing them to tourists.Acknowledged Sources: Kate McCann
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Sniffer dogs back at suspect's home
6 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Teams of Portuguese and British police officers have scoured the villa of chief suspect Robert Murat in a bid to find evidence which will lead them to Madeleine McCann's abductors. Officers with pick-axes and spades dug up the garden and used special probes to check if the earth had been disturbed in a dawn raid on Saturday morning...Acknowledged Sources: former Portuguese police detective Paulo Brissos / Kate McCann / Mr Murat's spokesman Tuck Price
...Two specially-trained sniffer dogs were brought in from Britain in a bid to detect Madeleine's scent...
...Officers have carried out a fingertip search for clues in other properties connected to Murat as well as the apartment where Madeleine was staying with her family at the Ocean Club complex. The cocker spaniels brought in by the British police have also been combing the resort's beach and rugged coastline...
...Yesterday, former Portuguese police detective Paulo Brissos said: 'Portugal does not have dogs with a capacity for identifying dead bodies as the chemical used to train them in the simulation of the odour of dead bodies is expensive. 'They bring in foreign dogs to look for dead bodies, as they are trained to do this. The Portuguese dogs are only trained to look for live bodies.'' ...
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Maddy: Major New Breakthrough
6 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
British detectives believe the kidnapper of Madeleine McCann was working with an accomplice, it was sensationally revealed yesterday. Police have taped off the home of chief suspect Robert Murat and have been digging up his garden. But they have been covertly tailing and videoing the suspected accomplice for weeks after being alerted by his suspicious behaviour.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspaper Sol / A source close to the family
...The revelation comes after a Portuguese newspaper reported new details of a suspect. It was said that Irish expatriate Martin Smith spotted the man near the town’s church at 9.50pm on May 3, the night Madeleine was snatched. Mr Smith insisted the suspect was not Murat, 33, who he had seen drunk in a local bar earlier that evening. If accurate, his testimony casts fresh doubt over Murat’s alibi...
...As the dramatic developments unfolded, the couple faced fresh heartache after reports in Portugal claimed Madeleine had been killed inside the holiday apartment. Sol newspaper reported the property was sealed off last Wednesday and two British sniffer dogs were sent in. The report said: 'According to investigation sources, one of the dogs indicated the death of the little girl inside the apartment.' The report claimed evidence showed Madeleine had been moved out of the bedroom to another room inside the apartment. But the dogs lost her trail at a back window, indicating Madeleine may have been covered when she was removed...
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Madeleine blood clue
7 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Traces of Madeleine McCann's blood have been found in the holiday apartment where she was last seen, it was sensationally reported last night. An attempt had allegedly been made to wipe away the evidence, which was said to have been found on the missing four-year-old girl's bedroom wall. Reports say the potential breakthrough was discovered by a British police sniffer dog, which had been brought in to help boost the investigation. Portuguese police sources last night confirmed that blood samples had been found at the apartment.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese police sources / Portuguese newspaper Jornal De Noticias / Critics / Ex-Surrey Police detective Mark Williams-Thomas / Portuguese police spokesman / A source close to the McCanns / Murat's lawyer, Francisco Pagarete
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Madeleine lookalike snatched by pervert
7 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A gun victim now fighting for his life could hold the key to the whereabouts of Madeleine McCann. Detectives were last night waiting at the hospital bedside of the unidentified Swiss man. He was blasted in the chest by alleged child abductor Urs Hans Von Aesch, 67, in a remote village in Switzerland.Acknowledged Sources: Hans Peter Eugster, a Swiss police spokesman
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We didn't kill our Madeleine
In our hearts we know she's alive
8 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann were last night forced to deny they had killed their daughter. They told friends of their torment over allegations that the couple or members of their party were responsible for her death. Portuguese newspapers have reported that detectives now believe Madeleine died in the family's holiday apartment at the Ocean Club complex in Praia da Luz.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspapers / A source close to the couple / Portuguese police spokesman Olegario Sousa / well-respected Diario de Noticias
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MADELEINE
Maddy: Police Intercept Parents' Phone Calls
9 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann have been bugged by police investigating the disappearance of their four-year-old daughter, it was sensationally claimed last night. Newspaper reports in Portugal say Kate and Gerry McCann and their friends have had their phones tapped and emails monitored. It is alleged that conversations between the couple and members of their holiday party have provided police with valuable new lines of investigation.Acknowledged Sources: Rachael Oldfield / Diario de Noticias / Gerry McCann / Leandro Silva
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Friends: End these disgusting smears
9 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Many friends of Madeleine McCann’s parents broke their silence yesterday to voice their at the hate campaign against the couple. One, Rachael Oldfield, told of her anger over the smears against the McCanns and the friends with whom they had been on holiday in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz. She spoke out over allegations that the McCanns, or members of their party, were responsible for Madeleine’s death. It has been reported that detectives were preparing to abandon the theory that Madeleine was abducted from the family’s Ocean Club apartment.Acknowledged Sources: Rachael Oldfield / Jornal De Noticias / Fiona Payne
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Murat Lawyer: Why Don't These McCanns Go Home?
10 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The lawyer acting for Madeleine McCann kidnap suspect Robert Murat yesterday launched an astonishing attack on the four-year-old’s parents. In a bitter outburst, Francisco Pagarete insisted locals now just wanted 'these b****y McCanns' to leave Portugal and return to Britain. He criticised the couple for leaving Madeleine and two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie alone during their holiday in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz, accusing them of 'strange behaviour'. And he hit out at the McCanns for leaving the twins behind during a series of foreign trips to raise awareness of Madeleine’s plight.Acknowledged Sources: Francisco Pagarete / Kate McCann
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Parents: We won't let bullies beat us
10 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
THE parents of Madeleine McCann insisted yesterday that they would not be bullied out of Portugal by the vicious hate campaign against them. Defiant Kate and Gerry McCann were forced to speak out after a series of 'deeply hurtful' smears. Kate said: 'We will never go through anything worse than being parted from Madeleine. 'We will not be leaving or be forced out. I am not prepared to be bullied into doing something that I don't want to. 'We can cope with a lot and we still have a lot of strength but this speculation and the actions of the Portuguese press has been hurtful, intrusive and disrespectful to our other two children. 'The press here have badly overstepped any reasonable line.'Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann
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Twins quit creche after Kate is caught in crush
10 August 2007
David Pilditch
MADELEINE McCann’s parents suffered further anguish yesterday when they were compelled to stop taking their twins to the resort creche because other parents were “getting upset”. Matters came to a head on Tuesday when Kate could not get out of the Mark Warner Ocean Club creche with her two-year-old twins, Sean and Amelie, because of a media scrum.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Ocean Club / spokesman for Mark Warner
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MADELEINE
New British suspect hunted by the police - Riddle of 'lost' hour
11 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
DETECTIVES searching for Madeleine McCann have identified a new British suspect, it was claimed yesterday. It is alleged he helped in the initial searches for Madeleine in the hours after she vanished exactly 100 days ago. Police are also concentrating on a "missing hour" before the alarm was raised. They are re-examining events in the crucial period between 9pm and 10pm on May 3. The suspect is reported to have flown to Portugal from Britain a few days earlier.Acknowledged Sources: Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa / "A source" / Gerry McCann
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What happened in the 'lost' hour?
11 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
THE investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is now focusing on a "missing hour" before the four-year-old vanished, it was reported yesterday. Sources have told how detectives are concentrating their inquiry on the events that took place between 9pm and 10pm on May 3. Reports say Gerry McCann checked on Madeleine and two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie at 9.05pm, when he found that everything was fine.Acknowledged Sources: Sources / Reports / Leaked police reports / Rachael Oldfield
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Is Robert Murat about to be cleared?
11 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
FRIENDS AND FAMILY SAY HE HAS COME CLOSE TO SUICIDE DURING THE MADELEINE McCANN INVESTIGATION. NOW AS THE CASE SEEMS SET TO BE DROPPED THEY REVEAL WHAT LIFE HAS BEEN LIKE FOR THE ONLY OFFICIAL SUSPECT FOR three months he has been at the eye of the storm in the most highprofile child abduction case in history. Robert Murat's life changed for ever at 7am on May 14, when police officers knocked at his door and took him in for questioning over the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. Following 19 hours of interrogation, police named him as an "arguido" – the Portuguese legal term for a suspect. And, more than three months later, he remains the only person officially under suspicion.Acknowledged Sources: Francisco Pagarete / Sally Everleigh / Robert Murat / Murat's mother / Murat's friend / Tuck Price
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Madeleine : She is alive
Madeleine: She Is Still Alive
13 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate and Gerry McCann insisted they would continue praying for a miracle after enduring their most traumatic week since the four-year-old vanished. Consultant cardiologist Gerry, 39, vowed: “We will never give up looking for Madeleine.” He spoke out after detectives leading the search said publicly for the first time that they believed she is dead.Acknowledged Sources: Gerry McCann / Police / McCann friends
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Mum: Every day is a nightmare
13 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
BRITISH police have found a second trace of blood at the apartment where Madeleine McCann was snatched, it emerged yesterday. The blood is alleged to have been discovered by sniffer dogs on a curtain in the bedroom of her parents, Kate and Gerry. The discovery came as Kate spoke of her daily struggle to carry on, more than 100 days after the four-year-old’s disappearance in Portugal on May 3.Acknowledged Sources: Kate McCann / spokesman for the McCanns / Chief Inspector Olgario Sousa / Alipio Ribeiro / Friends of the couple
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Madeleine: New British 'Suspect' Insists He's Innocent
14 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A BRITON told yesterday how he became caught up in the investigation into missing Madeleine McCann after suspicious staff at a hire car firm tipped off police. , 34, rented a blue Opel Corsa in Portugal five days before the four-year-old vanished. Staff at rental firm Sixt, based at Faro airport, raised the alarm when he returned the vehicle on May 6 – because it was fitted with a child seat and they believed he was travelling alone.Acknowledged Sources: Lawyer James Gorrod, friend of Russell O'Brien & Jane Tanner / Charlotte Gorrod, friend of Russell O'Brien & Jane Tanner /Diario de Noticias
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Madeleine 's angry parents tell police: We want answers
Maddy Parents: We Want To Be The First To Know
15 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate and Gerry McCann have demanded showdown talks with detectives leading the hunt for their daughter Madeleine. The distraught couple are angry at the lack of information about how the investigation is progressing. Their plea comes as senior detectives follow up fresh leads uncovered during a major review of the case by British officers. Police are said to be moving away from the theory that Madeleine was abducted from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3 – 104 days ago. It has been reported that detectives now believe the foury ear-old was killed inside the flat – either by accident or murder.Acknowledged Sources: source close to the family / Gerry McCann / Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa
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Police: We know who killed her
Police: We Know Who Killed Madeleine
16 August 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
DETECTIVES leading the Madeleine McCann investigation now know the identity of her killers, it has been sensationally alleged. Reports in Portugal claim police are convinced the four-year-old died inside her family’s holiday flat in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz - even though blood traces found in the apartment were NOT hers. And senior investigators are said to be ready to swoop within days on new suspects who have been identified.Acknowledged Sources: Diario de Noticias / A Portuguese police source / Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa
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We did not give our children medication
16 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
THE parents of Madeleine McCann have denied giving their other two children drugs to stop them waking up on the night of her alleged abduction. Police in Portugal are baffled why Madeleine's twin brother and sister never stirred the night she disappeared from her holiday apartment. Detectives had hoped that the two year-olds Sean and Amelie could be key witnesses in the case and provide vital clues about their sister's fate. But reports in Portugal claimed detectives had abandoned plans to try to coax information gently out of the toddlers – because they slept through the whole ordeal.Acknowledged Sources: A source close to the family / A police source / A family friend
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Madeleine we are just hours from the solution
17 August 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Detectives were just "hours away" last night from solving the mystery of Madeleine McCann's disappearance. Portugal's top police officer Alipio Ribeiro made the announcement as sources revealed the net was closing on new suspects in the case. It is the first time such a high-ranking officer has spoken publicly since Madeleine vanished 106 days ago. Mr Ribeiro, head of Portugal's Policia Judiciaria, said senior officers were preparing for a major breakthrough. They are working on the theory that Madeleine died on the night she disappeared. The announcement follows reports that detectives know the identity of her killers.Acknowledged Sources: Alipio Ribeiro / Reports in Portugal / A spokesman for the Forensic Science Service / Police sources in Portugal
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Madeleine 's parents were never suspects
17 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
THE parents of Madeleine McCann are not suspects in her disappearance, Portugal's top police officer insisted last night. Alipio Ribeiro, head of the Policia Judiciaria, was forced to speak out over a growing smear campaign against Kate and Gerry McCann. In his first detailed statement on the case the police chief said: "The parents have never, ever been suspects." Mr Ribeiro was critical of his officers over a string of leaks which have led to "deeply hurtful" accusations.Acknowledged Sources: Alipio Ribeiro / Eileen McCann / Kate and Gerry McCann / Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa / Robert Murat's sister Samantha
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Madeleine DNA shock
Maddy: DNA Shock
18 August 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Sensational new evidence has been unearthed in the hunt for missing Madeleine McCann, it was revealed last night. Forensic experts are examining at least six vital fresh clues which police believe will provide a significant breakthrough in the investigation. The fresh evidence, which is being examined for DNA, has been gathered from vehicles seized by the police and a beach. Among the 10 vehicles forensically examined was one driven by the McCanns and another by Robert Murat, who remains the only official suspect in the case.Acknowledged Sources: Spanish newspaper El Mundo / One source at the laboratory / A family friend
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Twins told: Madeleine has gone
18 August 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate and Gerry McCann have finally told their two-year-old twins that their beloved big sister has gone missing. The couple took the painful decision to explain the heartbreaking truth about Madeleine to two-year old Sean and Amelie after speaking to child psychologists. Desperate to protect them from the grim reality of their four-year-old sister’s abduction, Kate and Gerry had explained her absence by saying she had gone on holiday.Acknowledged Sources: A close family friend / Kate and Gerry McCann
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Widow with vital clues was never questioned
18 August 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A British widow has come forward with new information which could help Portuguese detectives solve the mystery of Madeleine McCann’s disappearance, the Daily Express can reveal. Ex-pat Pamela Fenn, who is in her 70’s, has told police she has three "bombshell" clues she believes could be vital to the inquiry. In the weeks before Madeleine disappeared Mrs Fenn scared off an intruder who had apparently let himself into her apartment with a key.Acknowledged Sources: A police source / A friend of Mrs Fenn / Portuguese police source / Scottish woman
...A friend of Mrs Fenn told The Daily Express last night: "She is an elderly lady who is quite nervous and was very shaken up after the break-in. "She was surprised that neither the police nor the McCanns had approached her for information before. "Even though she lives in the apartment directly upstairs the police had never tried to get in touch with her to ask her if she saw or heard anything the night Madeleine disappeared...
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Madeleine: British suspect to be arrested in hours
20 August 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A British suspect is to be arrested as early as tomorrow following a breakthrough in the search for Madeleine McCann. Detectives in the UK are expected to swoop after receiving information from colleagues in Portugal. The development comes after DNA tests on a number of vehicles in Praia da Luz, including those driven by the McCanns, their group of friends and Robert Murat, who remains the only official suspect.Acknowledged Sources: A police source on the Algarve / A police source / A family friend
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Madeleine: Mum's fury at 'you killed her' slur
ANGRY: Kate McCann
24 August 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
The mother of Madeleine McCann faced more anguish last night after a TV reporter was accused of hinting that she may have killed her own daughter. Kate McCann was said to be “horrified and deeply upset” by the remarks from Sandra Felgueiras, one of Portugal’s top presenters. Kate and her husband Gerry were so incensed that they were ready to sue to protect their reputations.Acknowledged Sources: Sandra Felgueiras / A source close to the couple / Dr Russell O’Brien / Justine McGuinness / Gerry McCann
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SEPTEMBER 2007
How McCanns recruited the world's help to find their girl
Hunt for Madeleine day 128
8 September 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
When Madeleine disappeared, her parents launched an extraordinary and unprecedented campaign to find her. Police in Portugal faced fierce criticism over their slow response to the then three-year-old's apparent abduction. The country's secrecy laws prevented even basic appeals for information being made. So backed up by family and friends, Kate and Gerry led the way in organising a worldwide search for their daughter.Acknowledged Sources: Sabina Mueller / Gerry McCann
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Madeleine: Police to search shrine for body
17 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Police in Portugal believe Madeleine McCann may be buried at one of the holiest sites of the Catholic Church. Officers were last night planning to launch a search at Fatima in central Portugal. Devout Kate and Gerry McCann made a pilgrimage there three weeks after their daughter vanished from their holiday apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz. Just four days later they rented a car which police believe the couple used to return to the shrine and dispose of Madeleine’s body.Acknowledged Sources: A source close to the investigation
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Let me speak out demands judge
17 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The judge examining evidence against Kate and Gerry McCann has asked for consent to speak out. Judge Pedro Daniel Dos Anjos Frias has applied to override Portugal's strict secrecy laws and discuss the investigation for the first time. The sensational development has led to speculation that the McCanns are about to be charged with killing their daughter Madeleine and hiding her body. The application has been made to the Superior Magistrates Council in Portimao on the Algarve.Acknowledged Sources: Judge Pedro Daniel Dos Anjos Frias / a legal source in Portugal / Carlos Pinto de Abreu, the McCanns' family lawyer / Leandro Silva
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Branson to the rescue with £100,000 gift
Branson to the rescue with a £100,000 gift for legal costs
17 September 2007
Martin Evans and David Pildtich in Praia da Luz
The McCanns’ bid to clear their name received a huge boost last night when billionaire Richard Branson pledged £100,000 to help fund their legal battle. The couple, who quit Portugal last week after being accused of killing their daughter Madeleine, have appointed a team of British lawyers to defend them. They are being represented by Michael Caplan QC who successfully fought efforts to extradite Chilean dictator General Pinochet from the UK, and by celebrity lawyer Angus McBride who has defended footballer John Terry and comic actor Chris Langham.Acknowledged Sources: A source close to the Virgin boss / Father Haynes Hubbard
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Police case falls apart
18 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Judge refuses to recall the McCanns Impossible to detect sedatives in hair But slurs against the parents continue The case against Madeleine McCann's parents was on the verge of collapse last night after Portuguese police were refused permission to re-interview them. The investigating judge, who is examining 4,000 pages of evidence, has ruled that any further interrogation should take place in the UK. The dramatic move, which means Kate and Gerry will not be forced to return to Portugal immediately, has led to speculation that the case against them is about to be thrown out.(Judge Pedro Daniel Dos Anjos Frias)Acknowledged Sources: Allan Jamieson, one of the UK's top DNA specialists / the McCanns / Leaks at the weekend
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My struggle to control Madeleine
18 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Police in Portugal are now trying to blacken the name of Kate McCann. Yesterday they called in a team of crime psychologists to help them build up a case against her. Detectives believe that she killed Madeleine while "she was in an unstable state of mind".Acknowledged Sources: Flash! magazine / Kate McCann / A Portuguese police source / Brian Healy / Gerry McCann
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‘Our case against the McCanns is strong’
19 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Portuguese police last night mounted a robust defence of their investigation against the McCanns and insisted: our case is strong. Police sources hit out after it was suggested their case against the couple was close to collapse after a judge rejected their application to bring the McCanns back to Portugal for questioning. And they made it clear that they are determined to continue to build a case against the couple which they believe will lead to a successful prosecution.Acknowledged Sources: Police sources / Diario de Noticias / Sources close to the couple
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Madeleine: Her mother is innocent
19 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
The case against Kate McCann will be demolished by explosive new evidence, it was revealed yesterday. She and husband Gerry have admitted Madeleine’s DNA was discovered in a car they hired 25 days after she disappeared. But lawyers will prove the traces come from sweat on a pair of the four-year-old’s sandals and a set of pyjamas that had not been washed. The McCanns had placed the items and other treasured belongings of Madeleine’s in the back of the Renault Scenic.Acknowledged Sources: A source close to the investigation / sources close to the family / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine : Police will question two priests on Algarve
19 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann want to question two priests they believe could hold crucial information. Portuguese police are convinced Kate and Gerry McCann “confessed” to killing their daughter during a private meeting with one of the clergymen in Praia da Luz. They want to formally question the men in an attempt to persuade them to break their religious vow of silence.Acknowledged Sources: Father Jose Manuel Pacheco / Father Haynes Hubbard / Susan Hubbard
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Maddy – Now the mystery deepens
20 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The fate of Madeleine McCann remained shrouded in mystery last night after a judge ruled that her parents would not have to be questioned again. Kate and Gerry McCann were said to be “relieved and encouraged” after detectives were forced to admit they had no new evidence against them. Legal sources in Portugal said a statement from the public prosecutor’s office late yesterday meant the case was again wide open and all lines of inquiry were being investigated.Acknowledged Sources: Legal sources in Portugal / Luis Bilro Verao, General Prosecutor for the district of Evora / Clarence Mitchell / Portuguese lawyer Artur Rego / A police source in Portugal
...It has been reported that they found hair and bodily fluids – not blood – that matched Madeleine’s DNA in the McCanns’ Renault Scenic, which was hired 25 days after she disappeared. In particular, Portuguese police sources revealed that clumps of her hair were found, which could only have come from her corpse...
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Scientists put faith in DNA
20 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
British scientists last night insisted that forensic evidence they are examining could help police build a powerful case against Kate and Gerry McCann. Experts carrying out tests on samples of Madeleine's DNA insisted they were "very confident" that the material was reliable. A source at the Forensic Science Service (FSS) in Birmingham, where the tests were carried out, said DNA samples had been obtained from the entire McCann family. Scientists have eliminated the possibility that body fluids found in the couple's hire car came from either of the McCanns' two-year-old twins, Sean and Amelie. They contain an 88 per cent match to Madeleine's DNA.Acknowledged Sources: A source at the Forensic Science Service (FSS) in Birmingham / Clarence Mitchell / A family friend / One expert
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Now police bug parents and track every move they make
20 September 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
and Martin Stote in RothleyAcknowledged Sources: Reports in Portugal / a source / former senior detective
Kate and Gerry McCann are being bugged by police it was revealed last night. Portuguese detectives have used sophisticated surveillance equipment as part of a round-the-clock operation to monitor their movements. The couple's phones have been tapped and listening devices were placed in the apartment where they were staying in Praia da Luz. Yesterday it was claimed hitech surveillance has continued since the couple returned to their £600,000 home in Rothley, Leicestershire, 11 days ago. It is alleged British police are also taking part in the bugging operation. And it is believed a satellite tracking system is being used to trail the movements of their car.
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Body hunt at incinerator
21 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Madeleine - Was she burned at pet crematorium? McCanns will take a lie detector test The hunt for Madeleine McCann took a dramatic new twist last night as Portuguese detectives swooped on a makeshift pet crematorium. As Madeleine's parents revealed they are prepared to take a lie detector test to clear their names, officers questioned the owner of the site, asking him repeatedly if he had ever met the couple. The interrogation came just 24 hours after a judge ordered a series of fresh searches on the Algarve in a bid to crack the four-and-a-half-month-old case.Acknowledged Sources: Eef Hoos, Dutch criminal, owner of Creon Starlight pet crematorium / Eef Hoos neighbor
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Madeleine's Gone! Madeleine's Gone!
21 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate McCann’s heart-breaking reaction when she realised her daughter Madeleine was missing can be revealed for the first time today. Rushing into the tapas restaurant where her husband and friends were dining, she screamed: “Madeleine’s gone! Madeleine’s gone!” Sources close to the McCanns have broken their silence about the crucial sequence of events in an attempt to prove there is no way the couple could have harmed their daughter. The fresh version of events differs significantly from that which the Portuguese police have been working on and which added to the cloud of suspicion hanging over the couple. Initially it was thought that Kate McCann began shouting, “They’ve taken her! They’ve taken her!” when she discovered that the three-year-old was not in the apartment.Acknowledged Sources: Sources close to the McCanns / a friend who was dining with the [McCanns] that night / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine: The Missing 7 Hours
22 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Madeleine McCann was not seen by anyone except her parents for seven hours in the time leading up to her disappearance, it was sensationally claimed yesterday. Baffled detectives in Portugal are focusing their inquiry on the lost hours and believe the period holds the key to the investigation. Police sources revealed that despite exhaustive inquiries they cannot confirm the whereabouts of part-time GP Kate, 39, and her daughter after 1.29pm on May 3. The source said Kate's movements were unaccounted for until she sat down to have dinner with friends at a tapas restaurant within their holiday complex at around 8.40pm. Police are probing a series of alleged inconsistencies in the statements of Kate and husband Gerry – who have been named as official suspects – and their holiday friends. Officers believe Kate killed her daughter by accidentally giving her an overdose of sleeping pills.Acknowledged Sources: Police sources / one expert [re: time of last photo] / a source close to the family / Sources in Portugal / Portuguese newspaper 24 Hours / Mark Williams-Thomas / a source close to the McCanns / a member of their [the McCanns] group
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Kidnapper 'was hiding in apartment'
22 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Madeleine's father is convinced she was abducted by someone hiding in the apartment when he checked on his children, he claimed last night. Gerry McCann told friends he is sure the kidnapper was already inside the property when he last saw his daughter alive at 9.05pm on May 3. He believes the intruder had broken in through the unlocked patio doors and was lying in wait. The McCanns, who remain suspects, think he carried Madeleine through a bedroom window at the front of Ocean Club apartment 5A.Acknowledged Sources: A source close to the family
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Article Full Text
Ex-SAS men join the hunt
24 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann have hired a security firm which employs ex-SAS men to find their daughter. They have taken this dramatic step because police are no longer hunting an abductor. Portuguese police are so convinced that the little girl is dead they are focusing all their efforts on bringing her killers to justice. [Control Risks Group]Acknowledged Sources: None given
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'McCanns are lying'
24 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Portuguese police believe Gerry and Kate McCann are using friends to hide their role in killing Madeleine. The Daily Express can reveal that their seven holiday friends may now be named as suspects as police believe they are hiding the truth about Madeleine’s death. The dramatic move comes as it was reported that former chief suspect Robert Murat is to be told he will not face charges over the four-year-old’s disappearance. Ruling him out of the four-month investigation will leave Kate and Gerry McCann as the sole suspects. Last night police sources said the decision could have a devastating impact on the McCanns’ defence.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspaper / a source in Portugal / A Portuguese police source
...Yesterday it was reported in Portugal that a new witness, an unnamed Irishman, told police he was in the same spot as Miss Tanner at the same time and saw no one...
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'Find body or McCanns will escape'
25 September 2007
From Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Prosecutor's ultimatum to Portuguese police Police searching for Madeleine McCann have been told: Find her body or her parents will escape prosecution. The stark warning was issued by the District Attorney's office in Portugal as police chiefs admitted that the case against Kate and Gerry McCann is now hanging by a thread. The admission that charges are unlikely ever to be brought comes almost five months after Madeleine disappeared.Acknowledged Sources: A police source / A [McCann] family friend / prosecutor, Antonio Cluny / Portuguese newspaper 24 Hours / a well-placed Policia Judiciaria source / senior Portuguese criminologist
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Now a 'photo' of Madeleine in Morocco
26 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Police investigate snap of mystery blonde child This is the photo that could prove Madeleine McCann is alive and being held in Morocco. Interpol is investigating the picture of a very frightened blonde girl being carried by a gang of Moroccans. It was taken from a car window by a Spanish couple in Zinat, in the north of the African country, on August 31. The group was walking along a road in the direction of Tangiers and the blonde head of the little girl can be seen behind the woman's shoulder.Acknowledged Sources: Clara Torres / unnamed Spanish mother / Spanish government official / A friend of the McCanns
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Riddle of McCanns' day out
28 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
The McCanns' trip to Spain after Madeleine's disappearance was under scrutiny last night by increasingly desperate Portuguese police. Senior officers were studying CCTV footage tracing the trip made by Kate and Gerry McCann in their Renault Scenic hire car three months after she went missing. As part of their "black propaganda" against the couple, investigators told how they are liaising with their Spanish counterparts who have handed over videos that help pinpoint the McCanns' exact movements on August 3. The couple set off that day to Huelva in south-west Spain to highlight Madeleine's disappearance. But a Portuguese newspaper claimed yesterday that the Policia Judiciaria believe the trip could provide a "significant breakthrough" in their investigation. Portuguese detectives are understood to be working on the theory that the McCanns used the highly publicised trip as cover before secretly burying their daughter's body.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha / A source close to the McCanns / Clarence Mitchell / a friend of the couple / Friends of the McCanns / Portuguese police source
...The couple set off at 9am for the 130-mile trip to Huelva from the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz, where Madeleine vanished on May 3. The journey normally takes two hours but the McCanns did not arrive in the city until 12.15pm...
...The McCanns had planned to make the trip the previous day but cancelled at the last minute after Gerry complained he was feeling unwell...
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Police: We know she is dead . . . and when
Police: We Know Maddie Is Dead
29 September 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Kate McCann faced fresh smears yesterday over claims that she killed her daughter while her husband played tennis. Police are said to be convinced that Madeleine died in her family's holiday apartment after 7pm on May 3. It is alleged Kate, 39, cannot account for a 90-minute period when she is said to have been left alone with her three children.Acknowledged Sources: friends of the McCanns / Clarence Mitchell / Portuguese newspaper Diario de Noticias / Spanish police
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OCTOBER 2007
Madeleine: She is in Morocco
1 October 2007
From Tony Bonnici and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
I saw her, says reliable new witness . . . but police say she fell down steps The hunt for Madeleine McCann is focusing on Morocco after another credible sighting was made by a British tourist two months after she disappeared. Samantha Peart, 43, said she saw a girl matching Madeleine's description in a remote village in northern Morocco on July 10. She reported the sighting to local police after returning home and the information was passed on to Portuguese detectives but she has heard nothing since.Acknowledged Sources: / Samantha Peart / Spanish tourist Isabel Gonzalez / Gerry McCann
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Now police say she fell down the steps
1 October 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Madeleine McCann's parents faced new smears yesterday after it was reported their daughter died falling down stairs. It is claimed Portuguese police are "100 per cent certain" Madeleine was killed in an accident at her family's holiday apartment - and Kate and Gerry covered-up the tragedy. The theory is Madeleine, four, wandered out and stumbled before hitting her head on a ceramic tile staircase leading from their patio to the street.Acknowledged Sources: Sources in Portugal / Portugal's 24 Hours newspaper / the couple's friends / Clarence Mitchell / A police source / Sir Richard Branson
...A separate report yesterday said the couple, both 39, first fell under suspicion after the British team were called in. It is claimed the new National Police Improvement Agency gave a checklist of what should be done - including re-focusing on the McCanns and new forensics. A police source said: "There is a mantra British detectives use in big investigations: 'Clear the ground from under your feet'. "In this case it meant look at the apartment and the closest circle to Madeleine - her family. They should've been the first people to be looked at properly, and police failed to do so."...
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Madeleine's family: She was drugged . . . but not by her parents
Madeleine was drugged but it was by kidnapper says her grandmother
2 October 2007
Martin Evans and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The parents of missing Madeleine McCann now believe she was drugged before being snatched by an abductor, it was claimed last night. Madeleine's grandmother said the family now accepted there was a chance the little girl had been sedated before being carried out of the holiday apartment in Praia da Luz almost five months ago. Eileen McCann - Gerry's mother - said it was the only explanation for why Madeleine did not scream when she was taken from her bed.Acknowledged Sources: Eileen McCann / A PJ source / Robin Hoole, who worked for the FSS laboratory in Birmingham / Allan Scott, a lecturer in forensic science at the University of Central Lancashire
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Madeleine detective kicked off case after blasting British police
3 October 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
The Portuguese detective leading the Madeleine McCann case was sacked last night. Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral was booted off the inquiry hours after launching an astonishing public attack on British police – claiming they had been duped by Kate and Gerry McCann. Disgraced Amaral has been removed from the case, demoted to the rank of inspector, and stripped of his role as regional head of the Policia Judiciaria.Acknowledged Sources: A Portuguese police spokesman / a friend of the McCanns / Clarence Mitchell / a Portuguese police source / Diario de Noticias
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Kate and Gerry: We'll fly back to Portugal
4 October 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Faro
Madeleine McCann’s parents are happy to fly to Portugal to meet whoever replaces sacked Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral in the investigation into their daughter’s disappearance. Friends also revealed last night that the couple were anxious in case the wait for a replacement delayed the search for four-year-old Madeleine. “If the new head of the investigation were to say he would like to meet them, they would do that, but it has not been discussed at the moment,” said one source.Acknowledged Sources: McCann friends / Family contacts / Sources in Portugal / Jornal de Noticias / A police source / Correio da Manha / Carlos Anjos, president of the Judicial Police Inspectors Union
...Sources in Portugal said the decision to kick Amaral off the inquiry was “politically motivated” and that he had been removed from the inquiry to prevent a diplomatic crisis with Britain...
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Madeleine : Nobody in charge for a week
4 October 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Faro
The hunt for Madeleine McCann has been thrown into chaos following the sacking of Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral. Authorities in Portugal last night admitted the situation may not be resolved for days and tomorrow's national holiday means a decision over his replacement could be delayed until next week. Madeleine's parents are happy to fly to Portugal to meet whoever replaces the ousted police chief but it is thought that more "heads will roll". Friends revealed last night that the couple were anxious in case the wait for a replacement delayed the search for their four-year old daughter.Acknowledged Sources: Authorities in Portugal / McCann friends / A police source / Amaral friends
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Kate and Gerry: We'll fly back to Portugal
4 October 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Faro
Madeleine McCann’s parents are happy to fly to Portugal to meet whoever replaces sacked Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral in the investigation into their daughter’s disappearance. Friends also revealed last night that the couple were anxious in case the wait for a replacement delayed the search for four-year-old Madeleine. 'If the new head of the investigation were to say he would like to meet them, they would do that, but it has not been discussed at the moment,' said one source. 'They hope that the Portuguese authorities will see that the position is filled as urgently as possible because there is still a need for Madeleine to be found.'Acknowledged Sources: McCann friends / Family contacts / Sources in Portugal / Jornal de Noticias / Justice Minister Alberto Costa / Correio da Manha / Carlos Anjos, president of the Judicial Police Inspectors Union
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Truth about the Madeleine police
6 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz and Rachel Porter
In the week that the top detective was sacked and his deputy quit, we reveal the lies, boozy lunches and alleged incompetence of a farcical investigation Another day, another casual stroll through the sunny streets of Portimao from his office to that little bistro round the corner, where the seafood is fresh and everybody knows his name. When the Madeleine McCann case landed on the desk of chief inspector Gonçalo Amaral this summer, this daily ritual might, quite reasonably, have fallen to the bottom of his list of priorities. As the world's press set up camp on the police station doorstep and demanded regular progress reports, surely Amaral had quite enough on his plate without having to snap open another lobster.Acknowledged Sources: 'Sources'/ Portuguese newspaper Expresso / Roy Ramm, a former Scotland Yard commander / Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas / Carlos Anjos / A police source
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Police Search Lake For Body
15 October 2007
David Pilditch and Martin Evans in Praia da Luz
Police divers were last night preparing to trawl a reservoir in the hunt for Madeleine McCann. Detectives believe her body may have been weighed down with rocks and dumped in the Barragem de Bravura lake, nine miles from Praia da Luz. The search is one of a series to be carried out in the next few days, a Portuguese newspaper claimed yesterday. The operations will centre on an area within a 10-mile radius of the Ocean Club apartment from where Madeleine disappeared on May 3, aged three.Acknowledged Sources: UK police / Friends of the McCanns / A source close to the investigation / Clarence Mitchell / police sources
...Experts at the Forensic Science Service laboratory in Birmingham have spent more than two months analysing evidence collected by detectives in the Algarve. Police there believe the DNA findings will provide them with enough evidence to bring charges against the McCanns...
...Yesterday it was reported that all lines of inquiry would be reopened, including the possibility that Madeleine was snatched from the family's apartment. But police sources have revealed Mr Rebelo will continue to treat Madeleine's parents as the chief suspects...
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Her parents are innocent insists nanny
15 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
A key witness in the Madeleine McCann investigation says she saw a man acting strangely outside the family's apartment. Nanny Catriona Baker, from Manchester, looked after the McCanns' children at the Ocean Club complex in Praia da Luz. She witnessed the family's movements and behaviour during their week-long break and fed Madeleine at the Kids' Club less than three hours before she disappeared. Ms Baker, 20, was moved to Greece by the Mark Warner holiday company in the aftermath of Madeleine's disappearance on May 3. It is understood she had built up a strong bond with the family and has spoken in glowing terms of their happy and relaxed manner.Acknowledged Sources: Catriona Baker
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Madeleine mafia fear
Maddy: Mafia Fear
16 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz and Tom Whitehead in London
Chilean psychic Isabel Avila says Maddy 'is in Portugal and in bad condition.' Madeleine McCann may have been kidnapped by an international paedophile network linked to Russia and lawless former Soviet states. These countries are at the centre of a vile industry that makes millions of pounds from horrific films and pictures of children being sexually abused. A leading expert on paedophile crime told the Daily Express yesterday: 'They especially target blonde children and there are strong grounds to believe that Madeleine might well be a victim. 'These people are totally unscrupulous and the countries where they operate are beyond the reach of police or the law. 'There are huge profits being made from child pornography. I have had to watch some of the films in the course of my work and they are disgusting beyond belief.'Acknowledged Sources: A leading expert on paedophile crime / A British woman who owns a local restaurant / 'A source'
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Parents' car hid a corpse
17 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
It was under carpet in boot say police BODILY fluids found in the car hired by McCanns could only have come from a corpse it was claimed yesterday.Acknowledged Sources:
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New hunt for body of Madeleine in massive Wilderness Reservoir
17 October 2007
David Pilditch in Odiaxere
Portuguese police yesterday began searching a remote reservoir for the body of missing Madeleine McCann. Officers from Portugal’s Civil Guard spent more than two hours at Barragem da Bravura lake nine miles from Praia da Luz. Detectives believe the four-year-old’s body may have been weighed with rocks and disposed of in the huge expanse of water. Yesterday the police, dressed in high-visibility jackets, began the mammoth task of scouring the man-made lake known as the Wilderness Reservoir.Acknowledged Sources: None given
...It comes as it was reported that forensic results carried out in Britain showed evidence that a decomposing corpse had been hidden in the boot of a car hired by Madeleine’s parents...
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Police trying to make Kate crack
18 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Police last night relentlessly piled up the pressure on the mother of missing Madeleine McCann. The new officer in charge of the investigation put Kate McCann at the centre of two dramatic developments. He was granted permission by a judge to seize her diary and announced that she will be subjected to a minute-by-minute reconstruction of the night Madeleine disappeared. Mr Rebelo is said to have ordered the minute-by-minute reconstruction to test the accounts of part-time GP Kate and heart consultant Gerry, both 39, with statements made by the seven friends on holiday with them. Investigators hope to use the reconstruction to shed light on alleged contradictions in evidence given by different members of the party, who were dining at a nearby tapas restaurant when Madeleine, three, disappeared from the family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz 168 days ago.Acknowledged Sources: Police sources / Clarence Mitchell / Portuguese newspaper 24 Hours
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Priest: I was deceived
18 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The priest who provided comfort for Kate and Gerry McCann after their daughter vanished spoke for the first time yesterday of his relationship with the couple and said: 'I was deceived.' Father Jose Manuel Pacheco broke his silence and told how he had made a mistake forming a close bond with the couple who were later made suspects over Madeleine’s disappearance. Father Jose Pacheco, 46, said he did not regret offering all the help he could to two 'lost souls.'Acknowledged Sources: Father Jose Manuel Pacheco / one of Pacheco's colleagues / Algarve Bishop Manuel Quintas
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Gerry's fears for Kate hours before disappearance
19 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Madeleine McCann’s father Gerry was allegedly concerned about his wife Kate’s state of mind on the night their little girl vanished, it emerged yesterday. Heart consultant Gerry was said to have been so worried, he asked a friend to check on Kate and their children. It was claimed that Gerry spoke to fellow medic David Payne shortly before 6.30pm, as Gerry was having a tennis lesson at the Ocean Club complex in Praia da Luz.Acknowledged Sources: 'one source' / David Payne / Portuguese newspapers
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Madeleine visits me at night says 'hysterical' Kate
19 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate McCann's mother yesterday revealed that her daughter often wakes in the night thinking Madeleine has come into the bedroom. Susan Healy, 61, spoke of her daughter's mental anguish and said she had suffered from sleeplessness since Madeleine went missing. Mrs Healy said: 'Sometimes during the day there will be periods when she is absolutely devastated, hysterical, bereft. This probably happens once or twice a day, ' she told ITV News. She added Kate also has had difficulty sleeping, or wakes during the night. Referring to a conversation they had earlier this week, Mrs Healy said: 'I asked her, did the twins come and wake you up? Sometimes they get into bed with Kate. 'No, ' she said. 'Madeleine came'.'Acknowledged Sources: Susan Healy / unnamed 'high-ranking' police source / Portuguese newspaper 24 Hours / A second source / Clarence Mitchell / A family friend
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3 minutes to dump her body
20 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Crime experts revealed yesterday that it would have taken less than three minutes to hide Madeleine McCann's body. The specialists insisted that was all the time it would have taken for a suspect to remove her from her family's holiday apartment and return to the resort. The crimebusters concluded that Madeleine's parents – or any member of their holiday party – could have disposed of her body without raising suspicion. The independent Portuguese team carried out their own reconstruction of events the night that Madeleine vanished. They found it was 'highly unlikely' she could have been taken from the apartment at the Ocean Club resort by an abductor on foot because it would have attracted too much attention. Using a special computer programme, the experts found it would have taken less than 30 seconds to reach the church in Praia da Luz where a 'trail of death' leading from the apartment is said to have ended.Acknowledged Sources: Crime experts / Former police inspector Fransisco Moita Flores / Professor Paulo Sargento, of Lusofana University in Lisbon / A [McCann] friend
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Parents: We can prove we didn't sedate our children
20 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Scientific tests now support the denials by Gerry and Kate McCann that they ever sedated their children, it emerged yesterday. The development further undermines an essential plank in the case being prepared by the Portugese police. The development suggests other scientific and DNA test results will explain other disputed allegations against them. The tests were carried out on the couple's two-year-old twins, Sean and Amelie, as part of their defence case. It could reduce the likelihood of them being charged.Acknowledged Sources: Clarence Mitchell / Friends of the McCanns / Portuguese police / unnamed Policia Judiciaria source / Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas
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McCann Friends Face New Probe
22 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Portuguese police chief wants holiday couples interrogated FRIENDS of Kate and Gerry McCann face new interrogations by detectives about the night their daughter disappeared it was revealed last night.Acknowledged Sources:
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Article Full Text
It's a witch-hunt says top policeman
22 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Britain's former top police officer last night insisted Kate and Gerry McCann have been the victims of a 'witch-hunt'. Ex-Metropolitan Police chief Lord Stevens said there was no hard evidence over Madeleine because of the 'sheer inadequacy' of the Portuguese police investigation. He said detectives made the fatal mistake of not treating the couple as suspects from the start. Lord Stevens said: 'Among the many things the Portuguese police should have done that night, but didn't, was treat the McCanns as the prime suspects. That's what I'd have done. It's a matter of statistical fact that three out of four child murders are committed by the parents.Acknowledged Sources: Ex-Metropolitan Police chief Lord Stevens
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'McCanns or a friend must be to blame'
23 October 2007
EXCLUSIVE David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Madeleine McCann’s disappearance could only be the fault of her parents or a family friend, it was claimed yesterday. A crucial eyewitness accuses the McCanns of being irresponsible parents. The waiter who served them on that fateful night says he cannot understand why they did not use the resort’s £10-a-night babysitting service. He even goes on to claim that he told police: 'I did not think she had been taken by an abductor. 'I told them it had to be one of the family or a friend. It had to be someone close.' Jose Batista, 45, broke almost six months of silence to give the most detailed account yet of the McCanns’ holiday and the build-up to Madeleine’s disappearance.Acknowledged Sources: Jose Batista / Clarence Mitchell / close friend of the couple
...'The group did check on their children regularly,' he told the Daily Express. 'I know that because I often took food to the table and found one of them was not there. 'I would take it back to the kitchen to heat it up. But it was always the men who went to check, never the women. 'The only time I can remember Kate McCann leaving the table was the night that the little girl disappeared...
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Madeleine: Father Played Tennis After She Vanished
24 October 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The father of Madeleine McCann stunned hotel staff by organising a game of tennis while the massive hunt for his daughter was under way, it was revealed yesterday. Waiter Jose Baptista, 45, told how the staff were amazed by the calm demeanour of Gerry McCann and his wife Kate in the agonising days after Madeleine disappeared. Heart specialist Gerry, 39, is also said to have regularly wandered down to the tapas bar at the family's holiday complex where he was given free bottles of wine to take back to his apartment. Mr Baptista added that staff at the Ocean Club resort in Praia da Luz rarely saw the McCanns display any emotion away from the TV cameras. 'If my kid disappeared I'd go insane. I wouldn't be able to function. They'd have to lock me away,' said Mr Baptista.Acknowledged Sources: Jose Baptista / A source close to the couple's lawyers
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DECEMBER 2007
Gerry and Kate 'still the prime suspects'
1 December 2007
From Nick Fagge and David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate and Gerry McCann are still regarded as the prime suspects in the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine despite inconclusive findings from DNA evidence. Portuguese police will come to Britain next week to re-interview the seven friends who were dining with the couple on the night the little girl vanished, a highly placed source claimed yesterday. It shatters the couple’s hopes that they will be cleared by Christmas. Investigators say that while findings revealed at a DNA summit this week did not give them enough evidence to bring charges, they do provide the legal basis to demand further interviews of the McCanns’ friends and relatives on British soil.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese investigators / Leaks in Portugal / Portuguese daily newspaper 24 Horas / Portuguese daily newspaper Correio da Manha / British Embassy in Lisbon / sources close to the investigation / Clarence Mitchell
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Quiz on 10 'fingers of suspicion'
3 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate and Gerry McCann face being quizzed about 10 'fingers of suspicion' pointing at them over the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine. Portuguese detectives could fly to Britain to sit in on make-or-break interviews as early as this week, a police source last night. They want to put more questions to the couple's friends - the Tapas Nine - before interrogating the McCanns. Portuguese prosecutor Jose Cunha de Magalhaes e Menezes will this week seek permission from the Home Office.Acknowledged Sources: a police source
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New DNA tests could unlock the mystery of lost Madeleine
Tests 'To Unlock' Maddy Mystery
4 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Seventeen human cells could provide a major breakthrough in the Madeleine McCann mystery, it was revealed yesterday. The DNA samples are being examined by scientists in Britain and Portuguese detectives believe the evidence could unlock an investigation which is now in its eighth month. Experts are trying to establish whether the cells match Madeleine's DNA and so help investigators discover what happened to the youngster. The samples are being analysed by the Forensic Science Service laboratory in Birmingham which has developed sophisticated techniques not available in Portugal.Acknowledged Sources: Guilhermino Encarnacao, head of the Policia Judiciaria in the Algarve / Forensic scientist Dr Ronald Denny
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Madeleine: Police To Call McCanns Back
5 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
They want parents and Tapas 9 friends for new quiz in Portugal Police want Kate and Gerry McCann to return to Portugal before Christmas for fresh interrogations over the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine. The couple could be forced into a confrontation with witnesses or be made to appear in an identity parade. Their holiday friends are also expected to be asked to fly out for the meeting. The development comes as the group prepares for new interviews in Britain. Police want to question the Tapas 9 over a series of alleged inconsistencies about events on the night of May 3 when Madeleine vanished from a holiday flat in Praia da Luz as they dined nearby.Acknowledged Sources: A source close to the case / Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha / Portuguese expert Fatima Pinheiro / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine : Now ministers may block new police quiz
6 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Madeleine McCann's parents will know within 48 hours if the Government will let them face a new grilling over her disappearance. The Portuguese prosecutor was last night set to request permission from the Home Office to re-interview Kate and Gerry and their holiday dinner friends – known as the Tapas Nine. Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, 44, will then decide if further questioning can take place. Detectives believe the secret of Madeleine's fate lies with the group and are relying on the new interviews to crack the case. But they have long been wary about British Government involvement in the investigation and fear further political interference. They were suspicious when they discovered that Madeleine's heart surgeon father Gerry, 39, who sits on a Government medical advisory committee, received personal telephone calls from Prime Minister Gordon Brown.Acknowledged Sources: A source close to the investigation
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Madeleine : Detectives probe father's phone call to friend
7 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Police believe mobile phone evidence will solve the mystery of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, it was revealed y esterday. Detectives in Portugal are studying records of conversations between Kate and Gerry McCann and their holiday friends during a 10-day period around the time Madeleine went missing. Yesterday sources in Portugal said police believe the phone calls are the key to solving the investigation which has now entered its eighth month. Experts are reported to have already identified one 'suspicious' call after expanding their search over a longer period.Acknowledged Sources: sources in Portugal / Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha / Former Surrey Police detective Mark Williams-Thomas
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Madeleine parents make fresh plea for witnesses
8 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate and Gerry McCann yesterday launched another desperate plea for witnesses to their daughter Madeleine’s disappearance. They believe British holidaymakers might have information that will unlock the investigation, now in its eighth month. Private detectives hired by the couple when Portuguese police named them suspects in September have chased leads in Europe and Morocco, but failed to make a breakthrough.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann
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British police should turn screws on parents say the Portuguese
Police told: turn up the heat
10 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Portuguese police want British officers to get tough on Madeleine McCann’s parents to make them 'targets of pressure' and avert a whitewash in the UK, it is claimed. Senior Portuguese detectives last night raised concerns that British police will not get at the truth with Kate and Gerry McCann because interrogations will not be tough enough. The Portuguese fear that during 'make-or-break' interviews, British police will 'go easy' on the McCanns and the friends they were on holiday with in the Algarve when four-year-old Madeleine vanished. Portuguese law allows suspects and witnesses to be quizzed more confrontationally.Acknowledged Sources: Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas / Clarence Mitchell
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'Suspicions' over the Tapas Nine summit
11 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann held a secret summit with the seven holiday friends who dined with them in Portugal the night their daughter disappeared. Portuguese police were last night said to be 'highly suspicious' of the cloak-and-dagger meeting between members of the so-called Tapas Nine. Senior detectives reacted with fury after discovering Kate and Gerry met with the group to 'talk tactics' over the case. It was the first time they had all met since Madeleine vanished on May 3 in the resort of Praia da Luz. Friends of the couple described the meeting as a 'highly emotional'' and 'deeply sad'' reunion.Acknowledged Sources: Friends of the couple / Legal sources in Portugal / One source close to the couple / a source close to the investigation
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Priest 'Bans' Madeleine
12 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The priest who once gave comfort to Kate and Gerry McCann has had his church stripped of all memories of their missing daughter. Father Jose Manuel Pacheco ordered the removal of scores of green and yellow ribbons which were put up as a symbol of hope in the days after Madeleine vanished. Posters and photographs of Madeleine which used to fill the windows of every restaurant, bar and business in the village of Praia da Luz have also been taken down.Acknowledged Sources: a close friend of Father Jose Manuel Pacheco / Another friend / Canadian Meri Hanlin / Local resident Rui Rodriquez / Clarence Mitchell
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McCanns 'Guilty Of Extreme Negligence'
13 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
He accused them of 'extreme negligence' in leaving Madeleine and two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie alone in a holiday flat as they dined out with friends. Manuel Domingues Borba said the couple should have been forced to stay and face justice in Portugal. And he said the case had left a stain on a peaceful community with no history of major crime.Acknowledged Sources: mayor of Praia da Luz, Manuel Domingues Borba / town hall officials
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How could they leave a child?
13 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The mother of the first official suspect in the Madeleine McCann case last night joined the growing backlash against the girl's parents. Jenny Murat, 71, angrily claimed her family was being punished because Kate and Gerry McCann left their daughter alone in their holiday apartment. Her estate agent son Robert, 34, was named as a suspect – or arguido – 11 days after Madeleine disappeared from the Ocean Club complex in Praia da Luz. Reports in Portugal say the expat is set to be cleared of being involved in the four-year-old girl's disappearance. But yesterday Mrs Murat accused the private detective agency hired by the McCanns of allegedly bribing witnesses into changing their stories.Acknowledged Sources: Jenny Murat / Clarence Mitchell
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We've done no wrong
13 December 2007
David Pilditch
The mother of the first official suspect in the Madeleine McCann case last night joined the growing backlash against the youngster's parents. Jenny Murat, 71, angrily claimed her family was being punished because Kate and Gerry McCann left their daughter alone. Her son Robert, 34, was named as a suspect, or arguido, 11 days after Madeleine disappeared from the Ocean Club complex. Reports in Portugal say the expat is set to be cleared of being involved in Madeleine's disappearance. But yesterday Mrs Murat accused Metodo 3, the private detective agency hired by the McCanns, of allegedly bribing witnesses into changing their stories.Acknowledged Sources: Jenny Murat
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'Madeleine will be back home with parents by Christmas'
14 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Amazing claim of the detectives paid £50,000 a month to find her The private investigator hired by Kate and Gerry McCann to search for their daughter claimed yesterday that Madeleine would be home for Christmas. Francisco Marco said he was certain Madeleine is alive and in the clutches of a paedophile gang. He claimed his team know who snatched her from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3. They were closing in on the gang, he said, and predicted Madeleine would soon be reunited with her parents.Acknowledged Sources: Francisco Marco / Clarence Mitchell / A source close to the Find Madeleine fund / A close friend of the McCanns / Spanish newspaper Metro
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'McCanns would be in jail if they were Portuguese'
15 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Kate and Gerry McCann would be behind bars by now if they were Portuguese, the host of the country's version of Crimewatch said yesterday. Hernani Carvalho said the couple had been given 'scandalously privileged treatment' over the disappearance of daughter Madeleine. Mr Carvalho, who fronts Portugal's top TV crime show, added: 'If they were Portuguese they would be in jail by now. There are lots of people up in arms with the scandalously privileged treatment that was given to the McCanns. Any Portuguese couple in these circumstances would have been jailed a long time ago.' The TV host believes that the McCanns should have been put in custody while the investigation continues and that they are guilty of leaving their children alone at the very least.Acknowledged Sources: Hernani Carvalho / Clarence Mitchell / mayor of Praia da Luz, Manuel Domingues Borba
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'Plan to keep Kate in custody'
15 December 2007
David Pilditch
A book has revealed that the detective in charge of the Madeleine McCann investigation was so convinced of her mother’s guilt that he discussed plans to remand Kate in custody. It also details the dramatic police interviews when Kate protested her innocence. In his book, The Guilt of the McCanns, Manuel Catarino describes what happened at Portimao police headquarters on September 7.Acknowledged Sources: Manuel Catarino / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine: Police quiz waiter for third time
17 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Detectives trying to solve the mystery of Madeleine McCann have questioned a crucial witness for the third time. Portuguese police believe he could prove that her parents are lying over her disappearance. Yesterday it emerged that the witness – a waiter at the tapas restaurant where Kate and Gerry McCann dined with their friends every night – has provided investigators with key evidence. The Portuguese man is said to have been the first person to see Kate McCann as she raised the alarm after discovering her daughter had gone missing from the family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz. He has allegedly given a dramatically different account of the events on May 3 from statements made by the McCanns and their friends. It is because the waiter’s testimony is considered so critical that he has been interviewed three times.Acknowledged Sources: one report in Portugal / Portuguese newspaper Diario de Noticias / Another waiter at the tapas restaurant, Jose Baptista / Clarence Mitchell
...But last night the McCanns’ spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, dismissed reports of the waiter’s testimony as 'all lies'. He conceded that Kate may have said 'They’ve taken her' at some point but they were not her first words...
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'Waiter's evidence will be trump card in police case against McCanns'
17 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Detectives trying to solve the mystery of Madeleine McCann have questioned a crucial witness for the third time. Portuguese police believe he could prove Madeleine's parents are lying over her disappearance. Yesterday it emerged the witness - a waiter at the tapas restaurant where Kate and Gerry McCann dined with friends every night - provided investigators with key evidence. The Portuguese man is said to have been the first person to see Kate McCann as she raised the alarm after discovering her daughter had gone missing from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz. He has allegedly given a dramatically different account of the events of May 3 from statements made by the McCanns and their friends.Acknowledged Sources: one report in Portugal / Another waiter at the tapas restaurant, Jose Baptista / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine : Witness goes on the run 'to protect his evidence'
18 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The key witness in the missing Madeleine McCann case was in hiding last night after fleeing Portugal. Police have sworn the waiter to secrecy over his vital testimony and know where he is. But friends say he is terrified his identity is about to be revealed and that he will come under pressure from rival factions in the case. He is scared of British and Portuguese government influence in the probe. Friends claim he is also wary of the team of private eyes hired by Kate and Gerry McCann to help find their daughter.Acknowledged Sources: friends of waiter (key witness)
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Police send new forensic evidence from McCann apartment after 230 days
19 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
New tests are to be carried out on forensic evidence discovered by investigators in the hunt for Madeleine McCann. Portuguese detectives believe that the DNA samples could provide a major breakthrough in the case. The evidence, thought to have come from the holiday apartment where Madeleine was last seen, will be sent to Britain for analysis by experts of the Forensic Science Service laboratory in Birmingham. The development indicates that Portuguese police are continuing to build a case against parents Kate and Gerry. They believe that Madeleine died in an accident in the family’s Ocean Club apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3.Acknowledged Sources: A Portuguese police source
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Now Madeleine police seize all phone records
20 December 2007
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Portuguese detectives are trawling the phone records of hundreds of residents in Praia da Luz in a major new operation to find Madeleine McCann. Investigators want to question everyone who made a telephone call after 9.30pm on May 3 – the night she vanished. The probe has been ordered by Paulo Rebelo, the new police chief in charge of the investigation. He hopes it will provide a breakthrough in the search for Madeleine, now in its eighth month. Sources said last night that Mr Rebelo was carrying out the massive trawl to uncover evidence of a potential conspiracy. Senior officers are still working on the theory Madeleine, four, died in an accident in her family’s Ocean Club apartment in the Algarve resort. Her parents Kate and Gerry were named as official suspects in September. Now detectives want to establish if anyone was involved in an operation to hide her body.Acknowledged Sources: local woman / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine - Parents: we fear we'll be charged
Madeleine: McCanns fear charges soon
9 January 2008
David Pilditch
Kate and Gerry McCann fear they will be charged over daughter Madeleine’s disappearance as Portuguese police begin the final phase of their bid to put the couple on trial. Sources close to the couple yesterday said they feared that after months of apparent inactivity, the investigation had developed a new momentum which appeared to be directed solely at proving the McCanns are guilty. A formal request demanding fresh interrogations and the seizure of Kate’s diary and Madeleine’s Cuddle Cat toy was sent from the prosecutors office on the Algarve on Monday and will be immediately served on Home Secretary Jacqui Smith. She will then pass it to Leicestershire police – possibly as early as tomorrow.Acknowledged Sources: Sources close to the McCanns / Leaks / Police sources on the investigation
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£10M Book And Movie Profits ‘Will Be Spent On Finding Madeleine’
9 January 2008
David Pilditch
The parents of Madeleine McCann faced a storm of criticism yesterday over a secret deal to turn her disappearance into a Hollywood blockbuster. Kate and Gerry sparked outrage after it was revealed they have held negotiations with leading producers over the movie rights. The couple – who are prime suspects in the case – are also considering book and TV deals in a package worth an estimated £10million. The windfall would help finance the search for Madeleine after concerns were raised that a special fund set up by the family was in crisis.Acknowledged Sources: angry donors / Clarence Mitchell / Pamela Blears / Geoff Lowe / Insiders / A source close to the couple
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Keep looking for her begs grandad
12 January 2008
David Pilditch
The distraught father of Kate McCann made a heartfelt plea to the public yesterday to carry on looking for his missing granddaughter Madeleine. Brian Healy, 68, told how he had 'never felt so helpless' after the little girl disappeared last May just six days before her fourth birthday. The family’s nightmare was compounded when Kate and her husband Gerry were made official suspects in September. Mr Healy, who lives with his wife Susan in Liverpool, asked people in Britain and abroad not to give up hope.Acknowledged Sources: Brian Healy / Shona Juliet-Adams
...Shona Juliet-Adams, 41, signed up three-year-old Kelsey Lynn Kudla in the hope of winning a contract for her to star as the missing youngster in the proposed film, Madeleine The Movie...
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Oprah bids £1M to get McCanns on her TV show
Madeleine: £1m war for McCann interview
26 January 2008
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
America’s top chat show hosts are locked in a bidding war for an exclusive interview with the parents of Madeleine McCann. Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters have each pledged £1million in an attempt to get them in front of the TV cameras, it emerged yesterday. And the McCanns, who remain suspects in their four-year-old daughter’s disappearance, are considering taking the cash from one of the rivals to top up a fund which was set up to help find her.Acknowledged Sources: Clarence Mitchell / A family source
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Suspect in sketch caught 'stalking' two children
26 January 2008
David Pilditch
A prowler closely resembling the sketch of a suspect believed to have been involved in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann was at the centre of a new kidnap alert yesterday. He was allegedly chased off by a terrified mother as he tried to abduct two young children from a beach. Portuguese police were called in after the sinister-looking man was spotted lurking near the youngsters aged four and five as they played on the seafront in the Algarve resort of Altura.Witnesses said he bore a striking resemblance to the suspect whose image was released this week in a new worldwide manhunt.Acknowledged Sources: A British woman / British holidaymaker Gail Cooper
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Drifter matches new Madeleine suspect picture
Drifter Matches New Madeleine Suspect
28 January 2008
David Pilditch in Altura Portugal
Investigators want to quiz a Portuguese drifter suspected of involvement in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. Detectives working for the youngster’s parents are to question Joaquim Agostinho, 42, in the resort of Altura. Jobless Agostinho bears a striking resemblance to an FBI artist’s drawing of a suspect seen lurking in Praia da Luz days before Madeleine disappeared. Witness Gail Cooper, 50, yesterday insisted he was 'the spitting image' of the man she saw.Acknowledged Sources: Gail Cooper / A source close to Metodo 3
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Madeleine police blast Home Office
30 January 2008
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is being stalled by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, it was claimed last night. Police chiefs in Portugal are said to be frustrated at Home Office delays over a formal request to question Kate and Gerry McCann. Detectives insist they sent a dossier of questions to Britain three weeks ago as they began final preparations to put the couple on trial in Portugal. The claim led to an angry exchange between officials in the two countries last night after the Home Office insisted it had still not received the file.Acknowledged Sources: A Portuguese police source / Home Office spokesman / A friend of the McCanns
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New clue hope on Madeleine
31 January 2008
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Investigators searching for Madeleine McCann were last night investigating new leads in the Portuguese resort where she went missing. Private detectives hired by her parents, Kate and Gerry, arrived in Praia da Luz to speak to potential new witnesses – raising hopes of a breakthrough. The team were carrying copies of a sketch of a 'creepy-looking' suspect who was seen acting suspiciously in the resort before Madeleine vanished last May. The sketch, drawn by an FBI artist, was commissioned by GP Kate and heart consultant Gerry, both 39, and was based on a description given by British holidaymaker Gail Cooper, 50.Acknowledged Sources: Clarence Mitchell
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FEBRUARY 2008
Parents 'were made suspects too fast'
4 February 2008
David Pilditch
The most senior policeman in Portugal yesterday admitted it may have been a mistake to name Madeleine McCann’s parents as suspects, writes David Pilditch. Alipio Ribeiro, the Policia Judiciaria’s national director, said the decision to name Kate and Gerry as arguidos may have been made too quickly and without thorough enough assessment. In a radio interview, Mr Ribeiro said: 'At the moment, at a distance, and with the experience I have as a magistrate in the public prosecutor’s office, maybe a different evaluation should have been made. I have no doubt about that.'Acknowledged Sources: Alipio Ribeiro / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine : Lake is searched after underworld tip-off
4 February 2008
David Pilditch in Silves Algarve
Divers from Britain were yesterday searching a remote reservoir in Portugal for the body of Madeleine McCann. A team of frogmen were trawling the massive Barr-agem do Arade lake 30 miles from Praia da Luz where the little girl went missing last May. They have recovered a length of plastic cord which has been handed to Portuguese police and are examining a large square-shaped block found at the bottom of the reservoir. Portuguese human rights lawyer Marcos Correia, 32, who is funding the search, said: 'It is logic that if you throw a body in the water you would tie it to something to weigh it down. 'It could have been a madman or a gang, I don’t know.' Correia claims that he was tipped-off by underworld sources that Madeleine’s body was dumped there within 48 hours of her disappearance. He is spending £1,000 a day on the operation after Portuguese detectives failed to act on information he passed on to them last May.Acknowledged Sources: Marcos Correia / Operation co-ordinator, Alan Wilson / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine detectives 'set to clear McCanns'
7 February 2008
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
Police in Portugal are preparing to shelve the investigation into Madeleine McCann's disappearance, it was reported yesterday. Senior detectives are also planning to revoke her parents' status as official suspects, it was claimed. The move follows a week of recriminations after police chief Alipio Ribeiro publicly announced that investigators might have been too hasty in implicating Kate and Gerry McCann. His comments angered legal officials and detectives working on the investigation, which entered its tenth month this week. But yesterday a Portuguese newspaper claimed that Mr Ribeiro might have spoken as part of a strategy intended to prepare the public for closing the case.Acknowledged Sources: Alipio Ribeiro / a Portuguese newspaper / Antonio Cluny / McCanns' Portuguese lawyers / Clarence Mitchell
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Madeleine : Parents in legal bid to clear name
9 February 2008
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The parents of Madeleine McCann are planning to launch a legal bid to clear their names over their daughter's disappearance. Yesterday Kate and Gerry McCann's Portuguese and British lawyers held crunch talks via a video conference between London and Lisbon. They discussed a bid to formally apply to the courts in Portugal to lift their status as official suspects. The move would allow them to focus on their worldwide search for Madeleine who vanished during a family holiday in the Algarve last May.Acknowledged Sources: Friends/ Clarence Mitchell / Rogerio Alves / police sources / Police union leader Carlos Anjo
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£50,000 detective bills drain Madeleine fund
11 February 2008
David Pilditch in Praia da Luz
The private investigators searching for Madeleine McCann are running up monthly bills of £50,000 just in expenses. Spanish detectives Metodo 3 are charging that sum to fund the day-to-day costs of 40 agents carrying out a worldwide hunt for the missing girl. The fees are being charged to the Find Madeleine fund set up by parents Kate and Gerry McCann after their daughter disappeared during a holiday in Portugal last May. The fund, which once stood at £1.2million after generous public donations, is now down to £500,000. It is paying for all the agents' travel expenses, flights and hotel bills. The search has taken them to Spain, Portugal and Morocco. The actual fees being charged by Metodo 3 for their detective work are only £8,000 a month, it was revealed yesterday. The fees were paid by the McCanns' wealthy benefactors - not the Find Madeleine fund which is paying the expenses.Acknowledged Sources: Clarence Mitchell/ Portuguese newspaper Expresso
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AUGUST 2008
'Fresh hope' for Madeleine
16 August 2008
David Pilditch
Gerry McCann told yesterday how Portuguese police documents revealed there was 'absolutely no evidence' his daughter Madeleine had been harmed. The hospital consultant said the investigation files had given him fresh hope that his little girl is still alive. In his first public statement since a 30,000-page police dossier was passed to the family, Mr McCann made a fresh public appeal for information. Mr McCann and wife Kate, both 40, have been studying the documents which were released to them after they were cleared of their arguido status and the police investigation was shelved.Acknowledged Sources: Gerry McCann
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SEPTEMBER 2008
Heartbreak diary reveals Kate's anger and despair
15 September 2008
David Pilditch
Kate McCann’s despair in the dark days following her daughter Madeleine’s disappearance was revealed for the first time yesterday. The devoted mother kept a secret diary that laid bare the anguish she and her husband Gerry were enduring. In one heartbreaking entry Kate writes: 'Can’t stop thinking about Madeleine, about her fear and pain. 'How can I go on knowing that her life could have ended like this? 'This week I have been quite overtaken by black thoughts. Please God, bring her back.' Last night experts said Kate’s emotions read like those of a bereaved mother.Acknowledged Sources: Chartered psychologist Dr Rick Norris/ Kate McCann Diary
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MAY 2009
Expert uncovers trail of blunders in Maddie search
Madeleine : How hunt was 'flawed from the start
1 May 2009
David Pilditch
A top British criminologist last night launched a scathing attack on the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. Former Surrey Police detective and child protection expert Mark Williams-Thomas revealed the full extent of the blunders which meant potentially vital clues were lost. And he told how a £1million ransom demand was not properly investigated. Mr Williams-Thomas, who carried out an independent review of the investigation, said the ransom demand came seven weeks after Madeleine vanished from Praia da Luz in Portugal on May 3 2007. He found details of the demand 'hidden away' in official police files. Mr Williams-Thomas wrote: 'This demand was received via a mobile phone voicemail from an adult male, where an English child was clearly speaking in the background. `Acknowledged Sources: Mark Williams-Thomas / sources close to the family
...He said he believed Madeleine woke up and was abducted after walking out of the apartment to look for her parents. But last night sources close to the family said the evidence showed she was taken from inside the apartment...
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Madeleine aged six
2 May 2009
David Pilditch
This is the extraordinary picture of Madeleine McCann as she may look today. The youngster's parents, Kate and Gerry, released the image as they launched a fresh search for their daughter - two years after she vanished while on holiday in Portugal. The computer-generated likeness was produced by a US forensic imaging artist to show how Madeleine might appear now, just days before her sixth birthday. GP Kate, 41, revealed that when she fi rst saw the image she 'did not know who that little girl is'. She is said to have found the image 'shocking and distressing. Madeleine's face appears thinner than before and her hair is slightly darker.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Clarence Mitchell
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(LONGER VERSION OF ARTICLE: "Madeleine aged six")
The new face of Madeleine
2 May 2009
David Pilditch
Kate and Gerry McCann yesterday released an extraordinary picture of their daughter Madeleine as she may look today. The computer-generated likeness was issued as they launched a fresh search for Madeleine, days before her sixth birthday and two years after she vanished while on holiday in Portugal. GP Kate, 41, revealed that when she first saw the image, produced by a US forensic imaging artist, she 'did not know who that little girl is'. She is said to have found the image 'shocking and distressing'.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Clarence Mitchell
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McCanns tell of new hope in the search for Madeleine
4 May 2009
David Pilditch
The parents of Madeleine McCann told yesterday of their renewed hope of a vital breakthrough in the search for their missing daughter. It comes as new details emerged of the clues Kate and Gerry helped uncover which has led to a fresh investigation into her disappearance. Private detectives hired by the couple are focusing on a sighting of a man seen carrying a small child towards the beach in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on the night Madeleine disappeared.Acknowledged Sources: Clarence Mitchell
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30 new sightings after Oprah show
7 May 2009
David Pilditch
Detectives working for the parents of Madeleine McCann were last night investigating 30 new sightings of their daughter, writes David Pilditch. A series of fresh leads emerged after the couple released an image of Madeleine that experts believe she might resemble two years after vanishing. Investigators received hundreds of phone calls and thousands of people visited the Find Madeleine website after the computer-generated image was screened on Oprah Winfrey’s chat show in America.Acknowledged Sources: Clarence Mitchell / Gerry and Kate McCann
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The scar-faced prowler seen at Madeleine flat
7 May 2009
David Pilditch
Shown in a chilling artist’s impression, this is the face of the new prime suspect in the hunt for missing Madeleine McCann. The scar-faced stranger was spotted watching the holiday apartment where Madeleine was snatched two years ago. The man was seen on five separate occasions by four witnesses in the days leading up to the little girl’s abduction. One British holidaymaker was so scared by the figure she grabbed her own young daughter and protectively pulled her away from him. The prowler – believed to be in his late 20s or early 30s – was described by one witness as being 'very ugly, with pitted skin and a large nose'.Acknowledged Sources: Sources close to the investigation / Clarence Mitchell
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AUGUST 2009
Madeleine : Aussie police close in on hunted woman
10 August 2009
David Pilditch
Detectives searching for Madeleine McCann were following up a series of new 'viable leads' last night as the hunt for the missing girl focused on Australia. Police in New South Wales are trying to track down a woman who matches the description of a Victoria Beckham lookalike at the centre of a fresh probe. Private detectives working for Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry, last week issued an e-fit picture of the woman who spoke to a British man in the marina area of Barcelona 72 hours after Madeleine vanished from her parent’s holiday villa in Portugal. The agitated, well-dressed woman with an Australian accent raised suspicion after asking the tourist: 'Are you here to deliver my new daughter?'Acknowledged Sources: A spokesman for the New South Wales Police Force / Clarence Mitchell / Australian woman, Judith Aron
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SEPTEMBER 2009
'Posh Spice' appeal raises 1,000 leads in Maddie hunt
22 September 2009
David Pilditch
The parents of Madeleine McCann have launched a fresh bid to trace a Victoria Beckham lookalike after an appeal sparked 1,000 new leads. Private detectives working for Kate and Gerry are pursuing a string of 'viable leads' after issuing an e-fit image of the potential new suspect. The investigators revealed last month that a glamorous woman with short Posh Spice-style hair had been spotted acting suspiciously in Barcelona 72 hours after Madeleine disappeared from her family’s apartment in a Portuguese holiday resort.Acknowledged Sources: Private detectives working for Kate and Gerry McCann / The McCanns / One witness
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NOVEMBER 2009
New hope for Maddie's parents as 2.5m a day watch plea on website
5 November 2009
David Pilditch
Investigators yesterday said they were a 'step closer' to finding Madeleine McCann after an astonishing response to a new global appeal. In just 24 hours, nearly 2.5 million people around the world viewed dramatic images of Madeleine in a campaign aimed at flushing out her abductor. Internet users in 160 countries have watched a special 60-second film targeted at those closest to the kidnapper. The campaign aims to shame loved ones into coming forward to reveal what happened to Madeleine.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Jim Gamble
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FEBRUARY 2010
McCanns win ban on accuser's book
19 February 2010
David Pilditch
The parents of Madeleine McCann spoke of their relief last night after winning a ban on a controversial book which claims their missing daughter is dead and they faked her abduction. A court in Portugal ruled the book, written by Goncalo Amaral, the former chief inspector who led the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance, violated the couple's rights. Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry, said the decision gave them renewed hope in the search for their daughter who vanished days before her fourth birthday during a family holiday in the Algarve. The couple are also seeking £1.08million in compensation for defamation in separate civil proceedings against Mr Amaral.Acknowledged Sources: The McCanns / Goncalo Amaral
Note: Portuguese Supreme Court later overturned book ban.
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MAY 2010
McCanns mark third year away from Madeleine
3 May 2010
David Pilditch
The parents of Madeleine McCann said prayers for their missing daughter yesterday as they prepared to mark the third anniversary of her disappearance. Kate and Gerry McCann attended a service at their local church in Rothley, Leics, with their twins Sean and Amelie. Madeleine vanished during a family holiday in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3 2007 – just days before her fourth birthday. Yesterday Kate and Gerry, both 42, released a new picture of Madeleine, hoping it will keep the focus on the search for their daughter.Acknowledged Sources: None given
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MARCH 2011
Kate's emotional battle to finish Maddie tribute
28 March 2011
Tracey Kandohla and David Pilditch
Heartbroken Kate McCann has been overwhelmed with emotion writing a book about her daughter Madeleine’s disappearance, friends revealed last night. Kate is now close to finishing the deeply-personal account of her nightmare, which she hopes will raise millions of pounds for the dwindling fund set up to find her daughter. Any money will pay for private detectives to continue the search for Madeleine, who went missing at the age of three in May 2007, during a family holiday in Portugal.Acknowledged Sources: a close friend / A family source
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MAY 2011
'She was beautiful even in her first scan'
9 May 2011
David Pilditch
Kate McCann told yesterday of her joy at giving birth to Madeleine. Kate McCann finally conceived after undergoing extensive IVF treatment. Kate, 43, met husband Gerry when they were young doctors working in different departments of Glasgow’s Western Infirmary before marrying in December 1998. She revealed how the couple were keen to start a family straight away. They began fertility treatment after Kate was diagnosed with endometriosis – a condition which affects two million women in Britain.Acknowledged Sources: Kate McCann
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Torment of Madeleine drove me to the brink of suicide admits Kate
9 May 2011
David Pilditch
Kate McCann told yesterday how the torment of her daughter’s disappearance drove her to the brink of suicide. Kate McCann revealed for the first time the 'crucifying anguish' she has endured since Madeleine vanished four years ago. And the 43-year-old GP explained how her despair had threatened to destroy her marriage. Kate, who is haunted by guilt and visions of her daughter being abused by a pervert, spoke of her fears that husband Gerry had stopped loving her. And she revealed how, in anger, she slept in another bedroom the night before Madeleine went missing because Gerry had 'abruptly' left dinner without her.Acknowledged Sources: Kate McCann
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Hell of being suspects in Madeleine hunt by Kate
10 May 2011
David Pilditch
Kate McCann has relived the nightmare moment when she and husband Gerry became suspects in the investigation into their missing daughter. Former GP Kate, 43, laid bare her shock and outrage after bungling Portuguese police tried to blame the couple over Madeleine’s disappearance. It followed a shambolic police hunt that had led Kate to break down in frustration and rage. In a deeply personal account, Kate described the horror of being hauled before detectives and subjected to a brutal interrogation.Acknowledged Sources: Kate McCann
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Madeleine is still alive; Her heartbroken parents are convinced she will be found
Heartbreak goes on as McCanns mark eighth birthday
13 May 2011
David Pilditch
Kate McCann is sure her daughter is still alive and insists she will never give up hope of finding her. The tormented mother pledged yesterday to carry on searching for Madeleine for the rest of her life – saying it was unthinkable the hunt for the missing girl would ever end. The former GP spoke out on Madeleine’s eighth birthday as she launched her highly personal book about her daughter’s disappearance. Kate, 43, explained why she had taken the decision to relive her nightmare by writing the heart-wrenching account in the 384-page book.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Home Secretary Theresa May / Officials / Downing Street
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PM defends decision to reopen case on Madeleine
14 May 2011
Alison Little David Pilditch
David Cameron last night defended his call for Scotland Yard to join the hunt for Madeleine McCann. Downing Street said the move was justified by the 'exceptional' nature of the case. As a row erupted over political influence on the police and use of resources, critics dismissed the Prime Minister's pledge as a 'PR exercise'. They warned it was setting a dangerous precedent for politicians to tell police what to do - and might not be a good use of time and money.Acknowledged Sources: David Cameron's official spokesman / Lib Dem peer Lord Bradshaw, vice-chairman of Thames Valley Police Authority / Metropolitan Police Authority member Lord Harris / A Metropolitan Police spokesman
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New hope that Madeleine's alive
18 May 2011
David Pilditch
Britain's top policeman has agreed to join the hunt for Madeleine McCann because he believes she may still be alive, he revealed yesterday. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson defended his decision to reopen the case, insisting there was 'always a chance' it could lead to Madeleine being reunited with her parents. Critics had branded the new investigation a 'ludicrous' waste of money which would tie up police resources while denying justice to other victims of crime.Acknowledged Sources: Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson / Metropolitan Police Authority member Jenny Jones
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SEPTEMBER 2011
Thirty British police in new hunt; Madeleine Yard expert to lead hunt for Maddie
9 September 2011
David Pilditch Tracey Kandohla
A new investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann was under way last night after senior Scotland Yard detectives flew to Portugal. Officers from a 30-strong squad specially set up to revive the search for Madeleine McCann, who vanished four years ago, met Portuguese authorities for the first time. The top secret talks took place last month but details emerged for the first time yesterday.Acknowledged Sources: Kate and Gerry McCann / Scotland Yard / Clarence Mitchell / family source / Sir Paul Stephenson / A police source
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