Susie Boniface: Articles re: McCann case

SHE WAS SNATCHED TO ORDER...
28 October 2007
Sunday Mirror
Susie Boniface in Praia da Luz

PRIVATE investigators hired by Kate and Gerry McCann believe Madeleine was snatched "to order" and has been smuggled to Africa.

The detectives - who have solved several missing child mysteries - are trawling through lists of Portuguese paedophiles who may have stolen Madeleine for a wealthy client and taken her to Morocco - where a blonde girl fetches a high price.

They are NOT looking for UK sex offenders.

Kate and Gerry hired Spanish detection agency, Metodo 3, last week and asked the firm to probe all possible explanations for the four-year-old's disappearance.

The Barcelona-based experts believe a rich North African commissioned a Portuguese sex offender to kidnap Madeleine on the night of May 3 while her parents were at dinner.

They suspect an insider at the Ocean Club resort, where the McCanns were staying, tipped off the paedophile ring after realising they left their children alone at certain times in the evenings.

A source said:

"When people think private detectives they think retired coppers sitting in a grotty office above a pub.

"Metodo 3 are the very opposite of that. They are proper operators.

"In terms of finding Madeleine, they are looking at known Portuguese paedophiles - not Spanish, French or UK sex offenders. The main line of investigation centres on the belief that Madeleine is most probably being held against her will somewhere in the north of Morocco.

"A blonde girl is a valuable commodity in a place like north Africa. If she has been bought, she is alive. We cannot offer any information on who that client is at this stage, but we suspect the person who took her did so with the help of someone connected to the Ocean Club.

"That person would have been able to build up a picture of the McCanns' movements over the week before the disappearance."

The probe coincides with a massive pounds 80,000 ad campaign in southern Spain - the area which the detectives think Madeleine's kidnapper would have travelled.

The Spanish port of Tarifa is just a 35-minute fast ferry ride from Tangiers in Morocco and is a known people-smuggling route.

Portuguese police on its border with Spain were not told of Madeleine's disappearance until May 4, the day after she went missing, leaving the crossings open.

ANYONE with any information about Madeleine McCann can call the Metodo 3 hotline on 0034 902300213 or email maddie@metodo3.es

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SUNDAY MIRROR - TWO VERSIONS OF FOLLOWING ARTICLE / PAPER EDITION & ONLINE EDITION


I SAW HIM TAKE MADELEINE
Grant Hodgson and Susie Boniface In Praia da Luz
Sunday Mirror
28 October 2007

Image:Jane Tanner

EXCLUSIVE THE SEARCH FOR MADELEINE DAY 178


'It was 9.15pm and he looked a bit odd' 'But I never imagined girl was Maddie'

A friend of Kate and Gerry McCann has described for the first time the moment she believes she saw Madeleine being snatched.

Jane Tanner is haunted by the image of a man "striding urgently" away from the McCanns' apartment with a barefooted child slumped in his arms.

She admits thinking he "looked a bit odd" but says she never imagined the youngster he was carrying could be four-year-old Madeleine...until the alarm was raised 45 minutes later that she was missing. And by then it was too late.

Jane was dining with Kate and Gerry on the night Madeleine disappeared. She saw the man when she went to check on her own daughter. It was her description which led to an artist's impression of a man carrying a child released earlier this week. Jane, 36, told a friend:

"I never in a million years would have imagined that it was Maddie being carried away.

"The first thing that raced into my head after finding out she was missing was this person I'd seen."

As Kate and Gerry began a frantic hunt for their daughter, horrified Jane twice told police about the dark-haired man she'd seen walking off carrying a child. The first time was at 11.15pm, then again at 3am. She was astonished that detectives failed to release the information to appeal for witnesses for another 22 days.

Jane and partner Russell O'Brien, also 36, from Exeter, Devon, were among seven friends who were holidaying with the McCanns in Praia da Luz. All nine were dining together at a tapas restaurant on the night Madeleine disappeared.

Gerry McCann had gone to check on Madeleine and her twin brother and sister at about 9.05pm. Ten minutes later, Jane left the tapas bar and was on her way back to her apartment to check on her own daughter when she saw the man heading away from the McCanns' apartment, down the hill.

Jane's friend said:

"It was about 9.15pm when Jane saw the man. She said that although he looked a bit odd and the child he was carrying had bare feet on a cold night, she never in a million years thought it could have been Maddie. You see a lot of people taking children to and from a nearby creche around there.

"Jane also had just passed Gerry and another man, Jeremy Wilkins, talking in the street, so she assumed that Madeleine had just been checked on.

"Suddenly this man scoots across in front of her with the child, which she thinks is a bit strange because the child was in pyjamas and had no shoes or socks on. He wasn't running, he wasn't walking, but he was striding. It was like an urgent walk.

"Jane knows it was a child from the size of the person being carried. It was obviously a small child. There was no doubt in her mind. There have been reports the child was held in a blanket. But Jane says that is not true."

Jane arrived at her apartment, checked on her daughter and then returned to the tapas bar. Soon after, Jane says that another friend Matthew Oldfield, 37, and her partner Russell headed off to make their checks on the kids. But Jane's daughter had become ill and Matthew came back to fetch her.

On his way back - between 9.30pm and 9.45pm - he stopped and listened at the door of the McCanns' apartment but did not enter.

"Jane finished her meal and went up to the apartment straight away to see her daughter," the friend said. "Around 10 or 15 minutes later, Kate discovered that Madeleine was gone.

"Jane heard shouting outside and came out and saw Matthew's wife Rachel, who told her Maddie was missing.

"The first thing that came into Jane's head was this person she'd seen. She felt complete horror. Kate was screaming 'She's gone, she's gone' and there was a huge panic."

The local civilian police force arrived to carry out door-to- door inquiries, knocking on Jane's door at 11.15pm. "She told police about the man as soon as they arrived in her apartment," the friend said. "She also then told detectives during her interview with them in the early hours of the morning of May 4 and Gerry was present at that interview.

"Jane did feel that her sighting was taken seriously but it was frustrating that the police didn't realise a description of the man immediately."

The height of the man - aged around 35 with black hair, wearing a maroon shirt, camel-coloured trousers and black or brown shoes - was also miscalculated by cops when they converted feet into metres.

Jane says the person she saw was 5ft 9ins rather than 5ft 8ins as previously reported. She is also adamant the child was not wrapped in a blanket.

Jane will be asked to recount what she saw over the coming weeks when she and the other friends are re-interviewed by Portuguese police in the UK.

Last night it emerged that Kate and Gerry might have to wait a YEAR to see police files on them explaining why they are suspects.

Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas reported that prosecutors have applied to judge Pedro Frias to extend the deadline by giving the case "special complexity" status.

The paper said Madeleine's parents were told yesterday they might have to wait until August 2008 to see police papers outlining the case against them. They deny any involvement in her disappearance.

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HORROR AS I REALISED.. IT WAS HIM
28 October 2007
Sunday Mirror
Grant Hodgson and Susie Boniface in Praia da Luz

EXCLUSIVE THE SEARCH FOR MADELEINE DAY 178
'It was 9.15pm and he looked a bit odd' 'But I never imagined girl was Maddie'

A FRIEND of Kate and Gerry McCann has described for the first time the moment she believes she saw Madeleine being snatched.

Jane Tanner is haunted by the image of a man "striding urgently" away from the McCanns' apartment with a barefooted child slumped in his arms.

She admits thinking he "looked a bit odd" but says she never imagined the youngster he was carrying could be four-year-old Madeleine...until the alarm was raised 45 minutes later that she was missing. And by then it was too late.

Jane was dining with Kate and Gerry on the night Madeleine disappeared. She saw the man when she went to check on her own daughter. It was her description which led to an artist's impression of a man carrying a child released earlier this week. Jane, 36, told a friend:

"I never in a million years would have imagined that it was Maddie being carried away.

"The first thing that raced into my head after finding out she was missing was this person I'd seen."

As Kate and Gerry began a frantic hunt for their daughter, horrified Jane twice told police about the dark-haired man she'd seen walking off carrying a child. The first time was at 11.15pm, then again at 3am. She was astonished that detectives failed to release the information to appeal for witnesses for another 22 days.

Jane and partner Russell O'Brien, also 36, from Exeter, Devon, were among seven friends who were holidaying with the McCanns in Praia da Luz. All nine were dining together at a tapas restaurant on the night Madeleine disappeared.

Gerry McCann had gone to check on Madeleine and her twin brother and sister at about 9.05pm. Ten minutes later, Jane left the tapas bar and was on her way back to her apartment to check on her own daughter when she saw the man heading away from the McCanns' apartment, down the hill.

Jane's friend said:

"It was about 9.15pm when Jane saw the man. She said that although he looked a bit odd and the child he was carrying had bare feet on a cold night, she never in a million years thought it could have been Maddie. You see a lot of people taking children to and from a nearby creche around there.

"Jane also had just passed Gerry and another man, Jeremy Wilkins, talking in the street, so she assumed that Madeleine had just been checked on.

"Suddenly this man scoots across in front of her with the child, which she thinks is a bit strange because the child was in pyjamas and had no shoes or socks on. He wasn't running, he wasn't walking, but he was striding. It was like an urgent walk.

"Jane knows it was a child from the size of the person being carried. It was obviously a small child. There was no doubt in her mind. There have been reports the child was held in a blanket. But Jane says that is not true."

Jane arrived at her apartment, checked on her daughter and then returned to the tapas bar. Soon after, Jane says that another friend Matthew Oldfield, 37, and her partner Russell headed off to make their checks on the kids. But Jane's daughter had become ill and Matthew came back to fetch her.

On his way back - between 9.30pm and 9.45pm - he stopped and listened at the door of the McCanns' apartment but did not enter.

"Jane finished her meal and went up to the apartment straight away to see her daughter," the friend said. "Around 10 or 15 minutes later, Kate discovered that Madeleine was gone.

"Jane heard shouting outside and came out and saw Matthew's wife Rachel, who told her Maddie was missing.

"The first thing that came into Jane's head was this person she'd seen. She felt complete horror. Kate was screaming 'She's gone, she's gone' and there was a huge panic."

The local civilian police force arrived to carry out door-to-door inquiries, knocking on Jane's door at 11.15pm.

"She told police about the man as soon as they arrived in her apartment," the friend said. "She also then told detectives during her interview with them in the early hours of the morning of May 4 and Gerry was present at that interview.

"Jane did feel that her sighting was taken seriously but it was frustrating that the police didn't realise a description of the man immediately."

The height of the man - aged around 35 with black hair, wearing a maroon shirt, camel-coloured trousers and black or brown shoes - was also miscalculated by cops when they converted feet into metres.

Jane says the person she saw was 5ft 9ins rather than 5ft 8ins as previously reported. She is also adamant the child was not wrapped in a blanket.

Jane will be asked to recount what she saw over the coming weeks when she and the other friends are re-interviewed by Portuguese police in the UK.

Last night it emerged that Kate and Gerry might have to wait a YEAR to see police files on them explaining why they are suspects.

Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas reported that prosecutors have applied to judge Pedro Frias to extend the deadline by giving the case "special complexity" status.

The paper said Madeleine's parents were told yesterday they might have to wait until August 2008 to see police papers outlining the case against them. They deny any involvement in her disappearance.

The paper said the request came because Portuguese police are still waiting for full DNA results from a UK lab and the chance to quiz the Tapas Nine - the McCanns and their holiday friends - on British soil. Yesterday it was also reported that detectives are still waiting for the couple's UK phone operators to send a list of their calls the night Madeleine disappeared.

An insider said:

"Portuguese police say it is hampering their investigation. But you have to question why they've been so quick to jump on the McCanns when they've yet to see something as basic as their phone records."

Meanwhile Kate and Gerry are having panic buttons installed at home as police step down the round-the-clock vigil outside their house.

The couple have had a constant police guard since arriving back from Portugal seven weeks ago.

Heart specialist Gerry, 39, is returning to work on Thursday. He took twins Sean and Amelie to a park near his home in Rothley, Leics, yesterday.

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Madeleine McCann

'Poker face' Kate to sue

27 October 2007
The Sun
Clodagh Hartley and Antonella Lazzeri
Fury over 'interview act' slur

ANGRY Kate and Gerry McCann may sue over claims this week's emotional TV interview was "staged like theatre".

Kate, 39, was blasted as being like a "poker player" -and her heartfelt tears were called "part of the act" by a psychiatrist.

And Gerry, 39, "controlled" Kate in the Spanish TV broadcast, Jose Cabrera claimed.

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Antonella Lazzeri, Clarence Mitchell, Madeleine McCann, Robert Murat

POLICE WANT ANSWERS TO 14 QUESTIONS

MADELEINE - POLICE WANT ANSWERS TO 14 QUESTIONS
From Padraic Flanagan in Praia da Luz
25 October 2007
The Daily Express


What detectives demand to know

POLICE chiefs have drawn up a dossier of new questions for Kate and Gerry McCann about the night their daughter disappeared, it was revealed yesterday.

Detectives are travelling from the Algarve with an official request to interview Madeleine's parents and the seven friends with whom they were on holiday in Praia da Luz.

They will table 14 key questions in an attempt to break the deadlock in the stalled investigation.

The news came on the day Kate broke down and sobbed during a TV appearance in which she and Gerry spoke of their belief that Madeleine is still alive.

Investigators believe that members of the party – dubbed the Tapas Nine after the Spanishthemed restaurant they were in when Madeleine disappeared – may have been involved in the crime.

Gerry and Kate will be interviewed for the second time as official suspects but it will be the first interrogation in Britain.

The outcome of the interviews, to be held within days, could lead to Portuguese police naming other members of the group as official suspects. Under Portuguese law, detectives would have to declare them "arguidos" in order to ask them key questions about events leading up to the night of May 3 when Madeleine vanished.

Three detectives are now set to fly to Britain bearing a legal letter signed by a Portuguese judge, asking their counterparts in the UK to table the series of questions on their behalf.

It is likely the interviews will be conducted by officers from Leicestershire Police who have already been helping the investigation.

But Portuguese officers are hoping to be present during the interrogations, which will be the first to take place since the days immediately after Madeleine disappeared from the McCanns' holiday apartment at the Ocean Club resort.

The couple were dining at the restaurant on the complex with seven friends, Rachael Oldfield, 36, Matthew Oldfield, 37, Jane Tanner, 36, Russell O'Brien, 36, Fiona Payne, 34, David Payne, 41, and Dianne Webster, Fiona Payne's mother.

The interviews will be confined to questions covered in the formal request from the Portuguese judge.

Algarve detectives may ask for followup questions to be put to the group but it is only at the discretion of British police carrying out the interviews.

A source within the Policia Judiciaria said: "The presence of our investigators in the interrogation room is important because they can analyse the gestures and facial expressions of those who are interviewed.

"This is an important part of a criminal investigation. It is what they call behavioural analysis." The key questions reveal how Portuguese detectives are sticking to the theory that the McCanns, and possibly their friends, are involved in Madeleine's disappearance.

Her parents, and the family friends, have strenuously denied any involvement in Madeleine's disappearance and insist she was abducted. They also deny any wrongdoing.

Last night a friend of the McCanns said: "Kate and Gerry's friends are expecting to be interviewed again at some point and are happy to cooperate and do anything they can to help find Madeleine." One member of the group, Jane Tanner, has already told police how she saw a man carrying a child wrapped in a blanket near the Ocean Club complex on the night Madeleine disappeared. Miss Tanner told police that the man was heading towards the home of Robert Murat – the British expat who was named as the first official suspect.

Murat, 33, was also placed in the frame by three other members of the McCanns' party.

Miss Tanner's hospital consultant partner Dr Russell O'Brien, Dr Fiona Payne and doctor's wife Rachael Oldfield, all claimed they saw Murat near the McCanns' apartment on the night Madeleine disappeared.

In July those three friends flew back to Portugal to confront Murat over his alibi during a tense five-hour grilling.

Murat – now set to be cleared – insisted he did not leave home that night and went to bed early after dining with his mother Jenny, 71.

Dr Payne's medical researcher husband David is said to have been one of the last people to see Madeleine.

He joined Kate and her children at the McCanns' apartment at 6.30pm on May 3 after Gerry asked him to check on them while he was having a tennis lesson.

Members of the party have told police they took it in turns to check on the children during the evening.

Police are said to be concerned at inconsistencies in the statements of the McCanns and their friends of the events that took place that night.

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Leveson Inquiry, Madeleine McCann, Robert Murat

How could police drop ash on clues?

22 October 2007
The Sun
Clodagh Hartley In Praia Da Luz and Antonella Lazzeri
Maddie parents' fury at evidence contamination

ANGRY Kate and Gerry McCann were "horrified" yesterday that cops' CIGARETTE ASH could have contaminated evidence about daughter Maddie's disappearance.

The blunder by careless Portuguese cops was discovered by forensic experts studying samples from the McCanns' apartment in Praia da Luz.

Yesterday a close friend of the McCanns, both 39, said: "It is outrageous to think that messy cops could have ruined vital evidence about Maddie's abductor."

The ash was dropped by at least three detectives who trampled in and out of the apartment on May 4, the day after Maddie, four, vanished.

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Antonella Lazzeri, Madeleine McCann

How could police drop ash on clues?

22 October 2007
The Sun
Clodagh Hartley In Praia Da Luz and Antonella Lazzeri
Maddie parents' fury at evidence contamination

Angry Kate and Gerry McCann were "horrified" yesterday that cops' CIGARETTE ASH could have contaminated evidence about daughter Maddie's disappearance.

The blunder by careless Portuguese cops was discovered by forensic experts studying samples from the McCanns' apartment in Praia da Luz.

Yesterday a close friend of the McCanns, both 39, said: "It is outrageous to think that messy cops could have ruined vital evidence about Maddie's abductor."

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Antonella Lazzeri, Madeleine McCann

McCann friends face new probe

McCann friends face new probe
22 October 2007
Daily Express
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.

Portuguese police have drawn up an official request for the group who holidayed with the couple to be formally interviewed.

Investigators believe members of the party - dubbed the Tapas Nine - may have helped the couple dispose of their daughter's body and covered up the crime.

Moves could be made to name members of the group as official suspects.

Under Portuguese law detectives would have to declare them "arguidos" in order to ask them key questions.

A team of high-ranking detectives and Portuguese public prosecutor Jose Cunha de Magalhaes e Meneses are now preparing to fly to Britain this week.

They will present a legal letter to their British counterparts signed by a Portuguese judge.

It is likely the interviews will be conducted by officers from Leicestershire Police who have been helping in the investigation.

Portuguese officers will ask to be present during the interrogations - the first to take place since the days after Madeleine disappeared from the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3.

The McCanns were dining with the seven friends at a tapas restaurant in the Ocean Club complex when Madeleine vanished.

Last night a friend of the McCanns said:

"Kate and Gerry's friends are expecting to be interviewed again at some point and are happy to co-operate and do anything they can to help find Madeleine."

The development was revealed yesterday by Portugal's most senior police officer Alipio Ribeiro.

Mr Ribeiro is head of the Policia Judiciaria which is carrying out the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance 172 days ago.

Yesterday, Mr Ribeiro told how he was now "optimistic" the case would be solved.

He also insisted that detectives had made dramatic progress in the inquiry and were close to a breakthrough.

He spoke out after appointing his deputy Paulo Rebelo to take over the investigation based at police headquarters in nearby Portimao.

Mr Rebelo has opened new lines of inquiry and has ordered a series of fresh searches. He is continuing to treat Kate and Gerry, both 39, as chief suspects.

In an interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais, Mr Ribeiro said:

"I am convinced that sooner or later we are going to have a result. I cannot say when. But I am optimistic.

"Many similar cases have lasted longer and were resolved in the end.

I think this will also happen in our case. We have an idea of what happened.

"We've performed a huge job analysing and discounting hundreds of leads and pieces of evidence. In every investigation there is a key moment, a click that clarifies everything and helps you to reach the end."

Of the plans to interview the McCanns' friends, he said:

"Formal letters of request are ready and will be sent in a few days with a police team and Portimao's public prosecutor."

One member of the group, Jane Tanner, 36, told police she saw a man carrying a child wrapped in a blanket near the Ocean Club complex on the night Madeleine disappeared. Miss Tanner told police the man was heading towards the home of Robert Murat - the British expat who was named as the first official suspect.

Murat, 33, was also placed in the frame by three other members of the McCanns' party.

Miss Tanner's hospital consultant partner Dr Russell O'Brien, 36, Dr Fiona Payne, 34, and doctor's wife Rachael Oldfield, 36, all claimed they saw Murat near the McCanns apartment on the night Madeleine disappeared.

In July the three friends flew back to Portugal to confront Murat over his alibi during a tense five-hour grilling.

Murat - now set to be cleared - insisted he did not leave home that night and went to bed early after dining with his mother Jenny, 71.

The face-to-face showdown was set up by detectives to discover whose story was true.

Dr Payne's medical researcher husband David, 41, is said to have been one of the last people to see Madeleine. He joined Kate and her children at the McCanns' apartment at 6.30pm on May 3 after Gerry asked him to check on them while he was having a tennis lesson.

Members of the party took it in turns to check on the children during the evening.

Police are said to be concerned at inconsistencies in the statements of the McCanns and their friends of the events that took place that night.

The McCanns' friends consistently deny any wrongdoing.

Police believe part-time GP Kate played a part in Madeleine's death in an accident in the couple's apartment.

They are working on the theory that she enlisted consultant cardiologist Gerry to help cover up the crime and dispose of her body.

Kate and Gerry categorically deny the claims, insisting they have been victims of a "black propaganda" campaign in the Portuguese press fuelled by leaks from detectives.

Continue Reading... Labels: David Pilditch, Express, Leveson Inquiry, Madeleine McCann

Inept.. Incompetent.. I'm incandescent

Inept.. Incompetent.. I'm incandescent
21 October 2007
People
Stewart Whittingham

EXCLUSIVE MADDIE: SHOCK NEW CLAIMS AGAINST POLICE

Gerry 's rage over claim cops didn't check evidence Key papers 'scattered all over the floor ' Weeks behind in putting records on crime computer

HORRIFIED

Kate and Gerry McCann were incandescent with rage last night after cops were accused of a catalogue of incompetence in the hunt for their missing daughter Madeleine.

Insiders claim vital evidence was ditched by boozy officers and crucial documents were ignored.

And weeks were wasted clearing up the mess to get the search for four-year-old Maddie back on track.

The appalling extent of the shambles came to light when Goncalo Amaral, the police chief leading the five month investigation into Maddie's disappearance, was fired.

Sources said replacement Paulo Rebelo, 45, arrived in the resort of Praia da Luz to find:

CRUCIAL papers scattered over the floor of police offices;

A HUGE backlog of files that took two weeks to put on computer; and

BIASED officers who were convinced Kate and Gerry had killed Maddie.

The findings came as beleaguered police faced unrelated accusations of corruption and failing to crack down on a major paedophile ring.

Rebelo immediately SACKED 60 of the 100 cops involved in the search for Maddie.

A source admitted: "There was important material lying all over the place that hadn't been considered by investigators and a lot of key information was discarded.

"Putting all the papers in order has been a massive job."

A source close to Kate and Gerry revealed the 39-year-old couple's fury at the police failings - but welcomed Rebelo's clear-out.

The source said: "They are livid - they cannot believe how badly this has been mishandled.

"Not putting vital information on computer file is so amateurish. But at least the new man seems to know what he is doing."

And spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "We'd be very concerned to hear all the information in the police's hands has not been properly or effectively co-ordinated or collated.

"If Mr Rebelo is strengthening their system that's all to the good."

Rebelo was put in place after Amaral was fired for alleged incompetence - and for being too fixated on his belief Kate and Gerry had killed Madeleine.

Experts said cops FAILED to seal off the McCanns' holiday apartment for 24 hours after Madeleine vanished - meaning key forensic evidence was lost.

Staff at the holiday complex were NOT quizzed for 60 hours, NO roadblocks were set up and cops in neighbouring Spain were NOT alerted for 12 hours.

Rebelo was also told his predecessor had regular threehour boozy lunches when he accused Kate and Gerry of drugging and killing their daughter.
Rebelo confronted Amaral's team at a heated meeting and accused them of having "closed minds". He then fired 60 of them.

Mr Mitchell said: "When Mr Rebelo came in, Kate and Gerry were pleased because it meant a fresh attitude and approach to the case. If the new inquiry is moving in a new direction then that's good."

Rebelo has drafted in specialist murder detectives to join his team, who are almost certain Maddie was killed rather than snatched.

Mr Mitchell said: "Kate and Gerry still believe there is a possibility she's alive.

"But they are realistic enough to know there is a possibility she might be dead.

"If that is the case, any officer with expertise in that sort of inquiry would be welcomed."

Maddie vanished from the holiday apartment 171 days ago as her parents dined with friends nearby.

GP Kate and surgeon Gerry are said to believe she was grabbed by a paedophile - and they launched aworldwide campaign to find her.

But the couple, from Rothley, Leics, were named as official suspects in September.

Insiders say police now admit they have NO evidence against the McCanns.

Meanwhile, a Portuguese court has heard how a top cop allegedly helped a woman run a prostitution racket from a bar. She is said to have given him sex in return.

And the country is bracing itself for a court case about a worldwide paedophile ring which has preyed on more than 100 kids.

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Carvi Scandal, Clarence Mitchell, Gonçalo Amaral

Maddie's final gift for gran

20 October 2007
The Sun
Antonella Lazzeri and Clodagh Hartley
Hand print on plate

THIS is the poignant last gift from Madeleine McCann to her gran -given just days before she vanished.

The heart-shaped plate bears Maddie's little handprints and the touching message, "I love you Grandma and Grandad, From Madeleine 2007."

Maddie's devastated gran Susan Healy showed off the plate yesterday and said: "This is so special I feel like locking it in a safe.

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Antonella Lazzeri, Brian Kennedy, Forensic Science Services, Madeleine McCann

Maddie was still alive

Maddie was still alive
Exclusive New evidence gives fresh hope to McCanns
Ross Hall in Praia Da Luz
14 October 2007
The News of the World


TODAY the News of the World reveals key new evidence that PROVES Maddie McCann was abducted ALIVE.

The latest piece of the jigsaw centres on the moment mum Kate returned to their Portuguese holiday apartment and discovered her daughter gone.

Police have been told Kate KNEW instantly little Madeleine had been snatched because the bedclothes were in exactly the same position, raised above the mattress as if they were still lying over the child.

Supporters of the McCanns are adamant this meant she must have been carefully removed from the bed while asleep and taken, rather than just getting up and wandering off, which would have ruffled the bedclothes.

Those close to Kate and Gerry-still official suspects in the 164-day mystery are convinced the revelation should clear the couple and switch the investigation back to finding their four-year-old.

A Portuguese source told us:

"People keep asking how did Kate know so quickly that Madeleine had been taken and not just walked out.

"But it's obvious. When she put Maddie to bed the child was all tucked up around the shoulders, and when Kate realised she was gone all the sheets were still neatly in place.

Suspect 

"A child of that age wouldn't have been able to get out of bed without moving a thing. Someone had clearly been in and carefully lifted her out. Kate realised that right away.

"This evidence must now refocus the police attention. Kate and Gerry should be released from their suspect status."

Another vital clue pointing to kidnap came two months ago when the News of the World revealed how Maddie's treasured Cuddle Cat toy had been found on a high ledge in the room, out of her reach.

Portuguese police are aware of the new evidence but continue to point the finger at Madeleine's anguished parents.

Close friends of the McCanns have always known about the clue but have been unable to make it public because of strict Portuguese privacy laws.

Alarmingly, the News of the World has also discovered that other holidaymakers and neighbours in the same Praia da Luz apartment block have never been asked for DNA samples-even though many helped with the search on the night Maddie went missing.

Pamela Fenn lives in the apartment directly above the one rented by the McCanns and came into close contact with the couple that night.

She told us: "I've not been required to give a sample or provide fingerprints."

Another apartment owner said he was surprised not to have been checked out.

"I'd have thought it was important for us to give DNA samples, so we could be ruled out if nothing else," he said.

"There were lots of us helping out that night and you'd think our DNA would be all over the place."

The McCanns have always vehemently denied all allegations and are now putting together a defence case they are convinced will clear their names.

They are hoping the appointment of Paulo Rebelo, Portugal's second most senior cop, to head up the case will help shift the focus away from them. Rebelo replaces Goncalo Amaral, sacked after he accused British police of being manipulated by the McCanns.


Pounds 1.5 m reward for Maddie's safe return: details at notw.co.uk

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Gonçalo Amaral, Lori Campbell, Madeleine McCann, News of the World, Ross Hall

Kicking sailor 'clue' to body

Kicking sailor 'clue' to body
Exclusive Missing Madeleine Day 164
The Sunday Mirror
14 October 2007
Lori Campbell

Portuguese police are becoming increasingly convinced Madeleine McCann's body was dumped at sea.

Officers drafted in to revitalise the investigation will reinterview a key witness who saw a sailor acting suspiciously after the tot disappeared.

Nanny Charlotte Pennington told last night how the man was kicking at something in the hull of his vessel in Praia da Luz, where the family had been staying, two days after Madeleine vanished.

Charlotte, who was working at the Mark Warner holiday complex where their apartment was, ran to get a friend to see what was happening but by the time they returned the boat - and the sailor in yellow fluorescent jacket - had gone.

The next day Charlotte spotted the man, wearing what she thought was the same jacket, and contacted police.

Charlotte, 20, said at her home in Leatherhead, Surrey: "I'm really pleased they are taking this seriously because it means they aren't just looking at the McCanns as suspects."

Her sighting of the sailor - and his possible involvement - was described by a police source as "credible".

Local council leader Manuel Borba reckoned the chances of finding Madeleine in the area were now virtually nil.

Mr Borba, who spent two weeks searching, said: "I personally looked in 40 wells. I'm not going to say that it's impossible the body has been hidden here but I don't believe that it has."

Police will finally receive results from DNA samples taken from the McCanns' hire car and their apartment in the next few days.

The Portuguese hope they will provide a breakthrough - and possibly back their theory that Madeleine's parents helped dispose of her body after she died accidentally.

In a sign of increasing desperation, detectives are studying a map sketched by Chilean mystic Isabel Avila of an area where she claims Madeleine can be found. It suggests she is near a bridge and masts.

 

Continue Reading... Labels: 2007, Lori Campbell, Madeleine McCann, News of the World, Ross Hall