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All the important events from July 2008
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Gonçalo Amaral retired since midnight, to "savour
freedom of expression"
Tuesday 01 July 2008
Thanks to 'astro' for translation
The controversial coordinator, who was removed from the Maddie case, says he "leaves proud" and that
he is not "hurt". His last action was delivering the service mobile phone
The PJ's coordinator, Gonçalo Amaral, who was removed from the Maddie case over an opinion offence, is,
from today onwards, a free man. At midnight, he went into retirement and, according to what he told 24horas yesterday,
his first day "is going to be beautiful, with plenty to do and the ability to savour the plenitude of his freedom of expression".
Just enigmatic enough, Gonçalo Amaral, aged 49, had his last day at the PJ yesterday,
"a perfectly normal day". He arrived early, finished the operation into the process that lead, over the weekend, to the apprehension
of two and a half tons of hashish and the detention of six traffickers, and dispatched a few more cases. Before lunch, which
lasted from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m., the controversial coordinator of criminal investigation delivered his duty pistol, his badge
and his card at the Faro Directory. At the end of the day, around 5.30 p.m., he delivered his service mobile phone.
In the evening, he hosted an "intimate dinner, with two colleagues that came from
Lisbon into the Algarve on purpose".
In the investigation
In a statement to 24horas, Gonçalo Amaral revealed that the future includes
"continuing to work in the area of criminal investigation, maybe as a consultant". "But not as a detective", he guaranteed.
At the same time, the coordinator who is now retired from the PJ is going to carry out a stay at an Algarvian law office,
in order to "maybe exercise [law]" within a year.
Gonçalo Amaral is also going to take advantage of his retirement to "dedicate more
time to his wife and children" and assured that, despite everything, he does not leave the PJ with hurt feelings, because
the institution and its servants deserve him "the utmost respect". "I leave, proud of having served the PJ and of having worked
with very good people, excellent professionals that still remain here".
This, despite him confiding to 24horas, in a reference to the controversial
Maddie case, that "many people remained upset" with him in Portimão.
Maddie book "is ready"
Gonçalo Amaral, who spent 28 years at the Polícia Judiciária, which he entered as
an agent in 1981, having passed through many different departments, revealed to 24horas that the book about the Maddie
case "is ready". It was written during his brief holidays, before he returned to the PJ in May, to leave now into retirement.
But the publication depends on the "judicial secrecy" which was not lifted yet. The book promises fabulous sales figures,
both in Portugal and abroad, mainly in Great Britain.
Gonçalo Amaral speaks of pressures in the Maddie
case
RTP Video (Short 'taster' for 30 Minutos programme, Portuguese language)
2008-07-01
Gonçalo Amaral speaks of pressures in the Maddie case
Former coordinator for the investigation of the Madeleine case said pressures existed
around the process of the case for it never to be solved. Gonçalo Amaral says that the presence of the officer Clarence
Mitchell is proof of that and argued that neither researchers nor directors should be afraid of working.
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UK newspapers continue to report that the case files are expected to be archived. The Portuguese newspapers
emphasise that no decision has yet been made whether to charge the McCanns.
Read reports by clicking here
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The Spanish detective agency, hired by the McCanns in September
last year, have, so far, been paid a substantial sum from Madeleine's Fund to find Madeleine and
bring her home. The exact amount remains the subject of speculation.
On their newly revamped website, they state that 'The Directive Staff is composed by different
and complementary profiles to provide maximum professionalism in every action field', yet not one director can boast any skill
or experience in child abduction. Or, indeed, missing people of any age. Two of them do not even possess a Private Detective Licence.
The 7 directors of the company, and their declared specialities,
are:
1. Marita Fernández Lado, is Método 3 founder. She is currently the General Manager, and also
gives conferences and lessons, like "fight against the fraud" at the INESE, or a speech at the I Congress of Civil Responsibility
at the Bar Association in Barcelona. Private Detective Licence Nº: 1.153,
2. Francisco Marco Fernández, is the Services and Quality Director. Doctor in criminal
law by the Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, he is also member of the Intercomunitary Association of Private Detectives,
Master specialist in laws for societies, speaker at many university lessons and author of several legal books for the Aranzadi
Editorial. Private Detective Licence Nº: 769.,
3. Francisco Marco Puyuelo, is Método 3 Administration
and Writing Director. Attorney member of the Madrid and Barcelona Bar Associations, he also graduated as a graphologist at
the Modern School in Buenos Aires. He is currently working as the Administration Manager and Legal Consultant. Private
Detective Licence Nº: 539,
4. José Luís Marco Llavina is Director of the financial department. He holds a Bachelor’s
degree in Business Administration, majoring in Finance, from Bentley College (Mass., USA) and a Master's degree in Business
Administration – SAP from La Salle (Barcelona, Spain).,
5. Antonio Tamarit Febrero, Master Specialist in Fraud Investigation and Director of
the agency Método 3 in Madrid. He managed the company Tamesfor until he started
working in Método 3 in 1998. Private Detective Licence Nº:
695
7. Elisenda Villena Barjau, Private Detective specialized in Criminology and Security
Director. She created and directed the detectives agency EVB from 1989 to 2006, year of fusion with Método 3.
Eagle-eyed readers will notice that despite the final director being posted at No. 7, there are actually
only 6 directors listed. One hopes that Método 3's accounts show greater attention to detail.
So, what services can Método 3 supply to their clients?
The following are listed: Insurances, Financial, Legal, Franchises, Frauds, Mutual (Fraud) and Fakes
(Brand Fraud).
They declare: 'Our motto and objective is to invest all our efforts and dreams on the creation and development
of a European detectives association to fight against fraud'.
The company may well be well meaning in their attempts to locate Madeleine but,
it has to be said, if the McCanns had handpicked a detective agency that offered absolutely no obvious experience or
skills in locating their missing daughter they could not have chosen better.
There is not one mention of Madeleine McCann anywhere on their site.
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By Daisy Sampson
03 July 2008
PORTUGAL'S ATTORNEY General has said no decision has been taken on the investigation
into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.
Fernando Pinto Monteiro said the case continued to be assessed, despite Portuguese media reports on Tuesday
that police will close it due to lack of evidence.
Madeleine's parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, are both arguidos, or people of interest to the investigation,
along with Briton Robert Murat.
Mr Monteiro said the final report from the Policia Judiciaria (PJ) had been received by prosecutors, and
it "will be the object of careful analysis and consideration".
He added: "Public prosecutors will proceed to the overall analysis to determine whether or not other action
is necessary or whether the conditions are sufficient to rule that the investigation be closed and a final ruling made."
The statement noted that the case remained covered by judicial secrecy until mid-August.
The Correio da Manha newspaper said on Tuesday that sources within Portugal's judicial police said they
"do not have sufficient evidence to allow formal charges to be brought against the McCanns in the disappearance of their daughter".
The Jornal de Noticias said the police did not have enough evidence to charge either the McCanns or Mr
Murat with any wrongdoing. "The police have not found the guilty," the paper added.
A spokesman for the PJ told The
Resident: "We are aware of the situation. However, we do not know the origin of the information and claims in the Portuguese
media. We are now looking into the claims."
Private searches
McCann family
spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, told the BBC the family was awaiting confirmation of the latest media reports and if true, the
Portuguese authorities "must lift their arguido status as a priority".
"If they are true, it's to be welcomed that
Kate and Gerry are not to face any charges," he said. "It's quite right. They are innocent of any involvement in Madeleine's
disappearance. They have suffered enough."
Mr Mitchell said the family wanted to know whether police planned to stop searching for Madeleine and
if so, their information should be made public so the McCanns could continue their private investigation.
"What happens to all those leads, all those contacts? There are thousands of pieces of information in those files,"
he said.
The McCanns are due to go to the High Court on Monday to ask a judge to order some police files on the disappearance
of their daughter to be released.
Robert Murat's lawyer, Francisco Pagarete, said he had heard nothing from the Portuguese
authorities about the case being closed.
Asked whether he would welcome such a development, Mr Pagarete said: "Yes, we will, but it depends on the way it's going
to be dropped. If it’s going to be dropped because there’s not enough evidence connecting my client to this case
or if it’s going to be dropped because Robert hasn’t got any involvement in this case. Only the second way will
make us happy."
The Resident contacted Robert Murat, who said: "If this is true it would be fantastic but nobody has
told me anything," he said. "This has been said so many times to me we will just have to wait and see what happens."
Meanwhile,
Gonçalo Amaral, the inspector formerly responsible for coordinating the Madeleine McCann investigation, retired on Monday.
He told Portuguese news agency Lusa: "The only way I can acquire freedom of expression is to leave the police."
By Jerry Lawton
3rd July 2008
THE McCanns have hired more private detectives.
They will analyse secret police files the couple are determined to get their hands on.
GP Kate and heart consultant Gerry's new Brit-based investigators will work alongside Metodo 3 –
the Spanish-based agency employed to find their daughter Madeleine nine months ago.
Portuguese police have kept details of their 14-month probe secret.
But the McCanns' lawyers will demand case files are handed over if the police close the investigation.
The lawyers claim the couple have a right to the files so they can conduct their own search for their daughter.
The files include all witness statements and evidence collected since three-year-old Madeleine's disappearance
from her holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, on May 3 last year.
Detectives have passed them to prosecutors but, according to police leaks in Portugal, they do not have
enough evidence to charge anyone.
They plan to archive the case as unsolved and keep details of their investigation secret in case new evidence
arises and it is re-opened.
But the McCanns, both 40, from Rothley, Leics, insist they should be shown the files so they can carry
on searching for Madeleine.
The couple's spokesman Clarence Mitchell last night told the Daily Star: "We are widening and deepening
the investigative resources. Kate and Gerry will be doing everything within their power to get their hands on the police files
they believe could help in the search for their daughter."
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McCanns listed to appear in court on Monday HMCS
Court 20
Before MRS JUSTICE HOGG
Monday, 7 July, 2008
At 10:30 AM
IN OPEN COURT
FD07P01121
McCann
Applications/Summonses in Court as in Chambers
FD06P01276
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Related press report:
'The case is listed to be heard in open court on July 7 in the Family Division of the High Court in London,
and is expected to be contested by Leicestershire Police, according to legal sources.' Telegraph
Madeleine McCann: I am convinced she is dead, says former
Portuguese police chief Telegraph
By Nick Allen
Last Updated: 6:18PM BST 04/07/2008
The former Portuguese police chief who led the investigation into the disappearance
of Madeleine McCann has said he is "convinced" she is dead.
Goncalo Amaral said: "I am convinced of it, yes,"
Mr Amaral, 48, was removed from the case last October after publicly criticising British police.
He said today: "I am not saying that the English police were under the command of the McCanns, but they
were influenced, as we were.
"In a way, we were all influenced by the campaign that they organised, according to which the girl was
alive and had to be found."
Mr Amaral retired earlier this week, saying he wanted to have "freedom of expression" over the case.
He described the decision to remove him from the investigation as "unjust and dangerous" and is expected
to publish a book as soon as judicial secrecy restrictions are lifted, probably in mid-August.
Portuguese police have already closed their investigation.
The final case report has been passed to the Portuguese authorities who are due to review the completed
file and decide if further action is required.
Madeleine went missing in May 2007, days before her fourth birthday, from a holiday flat in the Portuguese
resort of Praia da Luz as her parents dined at a nearby restaurant.
The McCann family and the British media have strongly criticised the Portuguese judicial police's handling
of the investigation and Amaral's lack of communication.
Amaral subsequently claimed that British police had "been investigating leads created and cultivated"
by Madeleine's parents and had "forgotten that the couple are suspects in the death of their daughter."
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By Rod Chaytor
05/07/2008
Kate and Gerry McCann are taking British police to court to try to get clues
in the hunt for missing Madeleine.
The hearing in the High Court in London on Monday looked likely to be adjourned earlier
this week when Portuguese police seemed to be about to open their files.
But McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell yesterday confirmed it will go ahead.
Their lawyer will argue they have the right to see material held by Leicestershire Police,
who have been running the British end of the enquiry for the Portuguese.
The police are expected to argue that their leads and evidence form the basis for a possible
criminal case and should be kept confidential.
Kate and Gerry are on holiday and will not be in court.
A family friend said: "We are hopeful of a decision. Leicestershire Police have been privy
to vital information which could be of great help to the private investigators looking for Madeleine."
Portuguese prosecutors are deciding whether to investigate further or close the file.
Kate and Gerry McCann, both 40, from Rothley, Leics, fear that would leave them permanently
branded as official suspects over Madeleine's disappearance, in Praia da Luz in May 2007.
Jul 5 2008
KATE and Gerry McCann will ask the courts on Monday to grant them access
to details of the police search for their missing daughter Madeleine.
Lawyers will argue they have a right to see files held by Leicestershire Police, who have
been working with Portuguese authorities.
It's thought the police will argue that the evidence they have forms the basis of a possible
criminal case and should be kept confidential.
A family friend said: "Kate and Gerry will still be pressing in Portugal for disclosure of the files
there but information held in the UK could give the hunt for Madeleine a massive step forward."
Madeleine vanished while on holiday with her family in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007.
From correspondents in Lisbon
July 05, 2008
THE Portuguese former police chief who led the investigation into the disappearance
of British girl Madeleine McCann is "convinced" she is dead, according to an interview published today.
"I am convinced of it, yes," said Goncalo Amaral when asked if he believed she was dead,
in the interview published on the online edition of the weekly Expresso.
Mr Amaral said earlier this week he had retired in order to regain his "freedom of expression".
The senior detective was sacked from the case last October for criticising British police.
"I am not saying that the English police were under the command of the McCanns, but they
were influenced, as we were," said Mr Amaral, 48.
"In a way, we were all influenced by the campaign that they (parents Kate and Gerry McCann)
organised, according to which the girl was alive and had to be found," he said.
Mr Amaral, who described the decision to remove him from the investigation as "unjust and
dangerous", is expected to publish a book as soon as judicial secrecy restrictions in the case are lifted, probably in mid-August.
Portuguese police have closed their investigation. The final case report has been passed
to the Portuguese authorities who are due to review the completed file and decide if further action is required.
Madeleine McCann, known as Maddie, went missing in May 2007, days before her fourth birthday, from
a holiday flat in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz as her parents dined at a nearby restaurant.
The McCann family and the British media had strongly criticised the Portuguese judicial police's handling
of the investigation and Amaral's lack of communication.
Mr Amaral subsequently fired back via Portuguese media that British police had "been investigating leads
created and cultivated" by Madeleine's parents, "forgetting that the couple are suspects in the death of their daughter".
Maddie 'died in holiday flat' The Sun
By Lucy Hagan
Published: Today
MADELEINE McCann died in her family's holiday flat, the officer who led the
case into her disappearance claimed yesterday.
But ex-Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral said Maddie was not killed in the apartment.
He said he was convinced that Maddie — who vanished from the Portuguese resort of
Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007, shortly before her fourth birthday — will never be found alive. Amaral was kicked off the
case after five months for publicly criticising British police.
He stopped just short of accusing Maddie's parents Kate and Gerry of killing her, telling
Portuguese TV: "It's not that she was killed in the apartment, but she died there.
"The parents were suspects and there were indications which made them suspects."
In a separate interview, he accused British and Portuguese cops of being influenced by
a "campaign" by Kate and Gerry, of Rothley, Leics.
Their spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "Mr Amaral has consistently made these allegations.
Kate and Gerry and their friends have nothing to do with Madeleine's disappearance."
Portuguese authorities are due to review the completed case file to decide if further action
is required. That could let now-retired Amaral publish a book about the case.
Kate and Gerry McCann 'could be charged with neglecting
Madeleine' Mail on Sunday
By MAIL ON SUNDAY REPORTER
Last updated at 10:50 PM on 05th July 2008
Kate and Gerry McCann could be charged by Portuguese police with neglecting their
missing daughter Madeleine.
It is understood detectives have submitted their final report on the case to the country's attorney general.
Although it concludes there is no evidence that the couple were involved in the disappearance of their
daughter shortly before her fourth birthday, it leaves the McCanns open to charges of abandoning Madeleine and their twins
Sean and Amelie, then two, in their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3 last year, according to Portuguese newspapers`
A judicial source told the newspaper Correio da Manha: 'If it was a case of abduction,
as the parents themselves argue, it was they who created the necessary conditions for that to take place.'
Last night, the McCanns' spokesman said: 'This is the first we have heard of this. Any charges would be
vigorously contested.'
The McCanns are 'reluctantly' taking Leicestershire Constabulary to the High Court tomorrow to make it
hand over any evidence it collected during liaisons with its Portuguese counterparts in the hunt for Madeleine.
It is believed that the force refused to open its files to the McCanns, who believe British police may
have received calls from members of the public which could be helpful to private detectives working for the family.
'Madeleine is dead' claims ex-police chief in charge
of the case Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 9:57 AM on 05th July 2008
The former detective in the Madeleine McCann case has claimed the four-year
old is dead.
Goncalo Amaral, 48, said he was convinced Madeleine will not be found alive and said that
British officers only chased leads Kate and Gerry McCann wanted following up.
Amaral quit the force and handed over his gun and badge to bosses on Monday evening after
28 years as a police officer. He is now preparing to publish an "explosive" book on the case.
The father-of-three was in charge of the Madeleine investigation for five months before
he was kicked off the probe for publicly criticising his British counterparts.
'I am not saying that the English police were under the command of the McCanns, but they
were influenced', he said.
'In a way, we were all influenced by the campaign that they organised, according to which
the girl was alive and had to be found.'
Amaral was thought to be the source behind many of the stories in Portugal suggesting the
McCanns were involved in their daughter's disappearance.
He was also photographed enjoying long boozy lunches while in charge of the country's biggest
ever missing persons case.
On his final day as an officer he enjoyed a two-hour lunch in the seaside town of Portimao,
newspaper 24 Horas reported.
He later marked his early retirement with a dinner with two police colleagues from Lisbon.
The disgraced former chief has finished writing a book, True Lies, which he plans to publish
as soon as a judge lifts a secrecy order surrounding the case.
Amaral told 24 Horas the book "is ready" and said he plans to "carry on working in the
area of criminal investigation, perhaps as a consultant."
He added: 'I am proud to have worked with the Judicial Police and to have worked with so
many good people and excellent professionals.'
Amaral's book is said to contain "explosive elements" about the police investigation into
Madeleine's disappearance.
The detective's lawyer Paulo Santos said previously: 'It's not going to be speculative,
but rather factual, with accounts from someone who lived the case one hundred per cent.'
Amaral told colleagues he quit the force in order to recover his "freedom of speech".
His book, the first inside account of the investigation, is certain to be an instant best-seller.
Amaral was kicked off the case last October 2 after accusing British police of being too
close to Gerry and Kate McCann.
He claimed British officers only chased up leads Madeleine's parents wanted following up.
He was also overheard in a cafe accusing Gerry and Kate McCann of accidentally killing
their daughter.
He was replaced by current chief investigator Paulo Rebelo.
Strict Portuguese judicial secrecy laws mean the Maddie case files have never been made
public.
But attorney general Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro has said the secrecy will be lifted this
month.
As well as being kicked off the Madeleine investigation, he was also removed from his post
as head of the Judicial Police in the Algarve town of Portimao and transferred to nearby Faro.
Amaral, who lives in Portimao, is facing trial for allegedly covering up the torture of
a woman who was later convicted of killing her daughter in 2004.
He will be tried for allegedly lying about the treatment of Leonor Cipriano following her
daughter's disappearance from the village of Figueira near to where Madeleine went missing.
Leonor claims officers beat her into a false confession by punching and kicking her repeatedly,
placing plastic plastic bags over her head and forcing her to kneel on glass ashtrays.
Leonor and her brother Joao were subsequently convicted of Joana's murder after a trial
and jailed for 16 years.
Amaral is charged with negligence and perjury.
His close friend and former Judicial Police inspector Paulo Cristovao has become a media
star in his native Portugal after taking early retirement from the force.
He writes regularly for Portuguese newspapers and magazines and has penned two novels including
a fictional account of the Madeleine McCann investigation called The Star of Madeleine.
Fictional officers bring the 180-page novel to a close by staring out at the Atlantic Ocean
after a massive land search for Madeleine.
Cristovao is also due to stand trial with Amaral and three other men in the Leonor Cipriano
case.
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EXCLUSIVE Fury at Maddie smear Sick claim in cop's book
By David Jeffs Assistant Editor
6 July 2008
Madeleine McCann's parents last night angrily denied shameful allegations from a
disgraced former Portuguese cop linking them to her death.
Ex-Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral, who was leading the Maddie inquiry until he was sacked, said she died
in the family's holiday FLAT.
And he claimed he was on the verge of bringing a potential key new WITNESS to Portugal on the day he was
fired.
Kate and Gerry McCann's spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "It's a great shame that Mr Amaral is saying
these things. He should have found Madeleine as the police officer in charge.
"They are angry. But it has got to the stage of weary resignation."
Amaral was kicked off the case after five months for criticising British police following the disappearance
of Maddie, then three, in Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007.
In an amazing outburst, he said on Portuguese TV: "It's not that she was killed in the apartment,
but she died there. The parents were suspects and there were indications which made them suspects." And Amaral, 48, also told
the Portuguese newspaper Expresso yesterday: "On the day I was sacked, I was taking steps to bring a key witness to Portugal.
"The PJ (Judicial Police) had to pay travel and accommodation and that was being sorted. But afterwards
the important witness never came to Portugal and was never interviewed."
Mr Mitchell hit back: "It's a great shame that people seem more interested in making money out of Madeleine's
disappearance instead of helping the search for her."
Amaral has written a book about the investigation called True Lies, which he plans to publish once a judicial
secrecy order is lifted.
It was also reported yesterday that doctors Kate and Gerry, both 40, from Rothley, Leics, could be charged
with neglecting Madeleine.
Last week the couple said they hope to be cleared as arguidos (official suspects) following the end of
the 14-month police investigation.
But prosecutors must legally consider bringing charges after receiving the final police report last week.
Cops found NO evidence that the McCanns were involved in their daughter's disappearance.
But the 50-page report leaves the couple open to charges of abandonment, the newspaper Correio da Manha
claimed. They could be jailed for five years if convicted.
The report points out that they left Maddie and twins Sean and Amelie, then two, alone while they went
out for dinner.
And it claims there are inconsistencies in accounts of the evening by the McCanns and their friends -
the so-called Tapas Nine.
Mr Mitchell commented: "We wait to hear from the prosecutor. It will be most vigorously defended if it
ever comes to that."
The report is also said to reveal "new and serious" doubts about the McCanns' claim Maddie was abducted.
They strenuously deny neglecting their children.
Kate and Gerry may learn tomorrow if they have won a legal bid for access to UK police case files to help
their search for Maddie.
Police: Maddie did die in flat Metro
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Missing Madeleine McCann could not have been abducted, Portuguese police are said
to have concluded.
The final police report suggests the youngster died in the family's holiday apartment in Praia Da Luz
on the Algarve, it was claimed.
Police have no evidence the youngster's parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, were involved in the disappearance
of their daughter on May 3 last year.
The couple, who strongly deny having a hand in her possible death, say they last
saw Madeleine when they left the three-year-old sleeping in the flat while they went out for dinner.
But an exhaustive 13-month investigation showed it was 'theoretically impossible' the youngster was abducted,
the newspaper Correio da Manha said.
Forensic tests on the apartment's window, through which an abductor might have carried
Madeleine, revealed no traces of the girl.
The McCanns, both 40-year-old doctors from Rothley, Leicestershire, were made suspects in the case in
September. They were unavailable for comment.
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By Tom Peck and Robert Verkaik
Monnday, 7 July 2008
Four months after Gerry and Kate McCann won apologies and a £550,000 libel pay out
from four newspapers for "grotesque and grossly defamatory" articles concerning the disappearance of their daughter, Madeleine,
seven friends of the couple have employed the same lawyers to act against at least one national newspaper.
The Carter Ruck libel firm is advising the so-called "Tapas Seven" group who were with the McCanns on
the evening of Madeleine's disappearance in May 2007 in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz. Matthew Oldfield, Rachel Oldfield,
Russell O'Brien, Jane Tanner, David Payne, Fiona Payne and Diane Webster are in talks with the Carter Ruck partner Adam Tudor,
with action expected within weeks.
Mr Tudor, who acted for the McCanns, yesterday commented: "I can confirm I and my firm are advising the
seven friends." He declined to elaborate or specify which newspaper they were considering suing.
At the centre of possible action would be suggestions that the friends kept a "pact of silence" in their
dealings with police, and that they refused to take part in a reconstruction of the night Madeleine disappeared.
Tears as Kate calls Maddie witness The Sun
EXCLUSIVE By ANTONELLA LAZZERI
Published: Today
THE mum of missing Madeleine McCann has made a tearful call to a holidaymaker who
reported a man acting suspiciously before her daughter disappeared.
Paul Gordon, 32, said a “creepy” man asked him for cash when he was staying in Praia da Luz,
Portugal, last year.
The man approached him when he was renting the flat from where Madeleine, then three, was snatched the
next week.
Kate McCann, 40, begged him to give his evidence to the Spanish private investigators probing the case
for her.
But the brewery manager, of Fareham, Hants, said no as he had already spoken to police.
Portuguese cops have refused to release Mr Gordon’s e-fit of the man, saying it may prejudice a
future court case.
Meanwhile lawyers for Kate and husband Gerry, 39, of Rothley, Leics, will try to force British cops to
release their information on Maddie at London’s High Court today.
Title later amended to: Portuguese police to rule out Madeleine McCann abduction
theory
HUNT
By Stephen White
7/07/2008
Portuguese police have decided that Madeleine McCann could not have been abducted,
it was claimed yesterday.
They believe the youngster died in her family's rented holiday flat in Praia da Luz.
The newspaper Correio da Manha said a 50-page report, handed to prosecutors last week, reveals "new and
strong doubts" about Gerry and Kate McCanns' claim that their daughter was snatched.
But police admit they have no evidence the couple were involved in Madeleine's disappearance.
The report describes the steps police took trying to find Madeleine, who was three when she vanished last
year.
That included studying hundreds of holiday photographs, investigating dozens of sex offenders and searching
more than 400 houses.
The final report makes no recommendations to the public prosecutor.
McCanns may face neglect charge while Spanish police
claim kidnap was 'impossible' Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 10:06 AM on 07th July 2008
Kate and Gerry McCann could be charged with neglecting their missing daughter Madeleine,
according to new claims.
A Portuguese tabloid newspaper says the final police report on the case leaves open the possibility of
the McCanns being charged with abandoning Madeleine and their two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie.
The Correio da Manha newpaper says the report also claims it was 'theoretically impossible' for the toddler
to have been snatched from the family's Algarve holiday apartment, as her parents insist.
The charge carries a maximum ten-year jail sentence, but only if it were proved the doctors from Rothley,
Leicestershire, both 40, intended to neglect the children which they strenuously deny.
Madeleine disappeared on May 3 last year, nine days before her fourth birthday.
The McCanns had left the children in the apartment while they dined with friends at a tapas restaurant
50 yards away.
Four months after she vanished, both Mr and Mrs McCann were named official suspects or 'arguidos' by Portuguese
police.
They have always denied having any involvement in her disappearance and have led an international campaign
to find her.
Last week, it was reported that Portuguese detectives were set to close their investigation, with no charges
brought against any of the three named suspects: the McCanns and Robert Murat, a British expat.
Meanwhile, the couple are going to the High Court in Britain today to try and force Leicestershire Police
to reveal documents on the case.
They want the files so that their own private investigators can use them in their search for Madeleine.
The McCanns are not expected to be at the hearing because it is understood they are on their first family
holiday with their other children, twins Sean and Amelie, since the fateful trip to Portugal last year.
Kate McCann's 'tearful call to witness, begging him
to give evidence' revealed as couple make legal bid for police files Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 10:07 AM on 07th July 2008
The mother of Madeleine McCann made a desperate plea to a holidaymaker to give evidence
about a man seen acting suspiciously before Madeleine appeared, it has emerged.
Details of the tearful phone call were revealed as Kate and Gerry McCann were taking their battle to force
British police to release information on the three-year-old's disappearance to the High Court.
Kate McCann is said to have rung Paul Gordon in tears two weeks ago to beg him to give a statement to
the private investigators she and husband Gerry hired to hunt for their daughter.
Mr Gordon, 34, who rented the same apartment in Praia da Luz as the McCanns a week earlier, confronted
a stranger outside the flat who claimed to be a charity collector.
He gave a statement to police at the time and a photofit image compiled from his description of the man
was created, but the picture was never released.
Mrs McCann allegedly wanted him to supply a fresh statement and photofit to private investigators searching
for Madeleine but her request was apparently turned down.
A police source said Mr Gordon, from Fareham, Hampshire, had turned down the plea because he had already
given a statement about the prowler to Leicestershire Police.
The source said Mrs McCann was 'apparently in tears during the whole conversation'.
His evidence is part of the details the McCanns hope Leicestershire Police will be forced to release by
the High Court.
The couple, who are both 40, are not expected to attend today's hearing in London before Mrs Justice Hogg.
It is thought they and their twins, Sean and Amelie, have gone on holiday for the first time since Madeleine
disappeared.
The hearing is scheduled to take place in the High Court's family division, although it will be held in
open court.
Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman, said: 'Kate and Gerry have made an application for the disclosure
of certain documents relating to the case.
'It's clearly a matter for Mrs Justice Hogg to assess and decide, but we hope a decision will become clear
during the hearing.'
Madeleine, then just three, vanished from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3 last
year.
This section added at 10:13 AM update:
Four months later, her parents were both made formal suspects in her disappearance.
They have always strenuously denied any involvement.
Last week, it was claims Portuguese detectives had ended their 14-month investigation and had found no
evidence against the McCanns or the only other formal suspect, British ex-pat Robert Murat.
The couple demanded their names be cleared following the claims and were said to be hoping to be formally
exonerated within days
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Documents handed over to the McCanns without informing
the Attorney General Diário de Notícias
FILIPA AMBRÓSIO DE SOUSA
8th July 2008
Thanks to Joana Morais for translation
Investigation. The British police released
81 documents from the investigation into the Maddie case to the McCann family due to a decision from the High Court in London.
A fact that was not made known to the Portuguese PJ or to the Republic's Attorney General, Pinto Monteiro
Pinto Monteiro and the PJ were not informed
The Republic's General Attorney, Pinto Monteiro, and the
Polícia Judiciária (PJ) were not warned that the McCann couple would be given access to documents that concern the investigation
into their daughter’s disappearance, on the 3rd of May 2007, in Praia da Luz.
"We have no official or officious
confirmation concerning which documents were allegedly handed over by the British police", an official source from Pinto Monteiro's
press cabinet explained. The same happened to the PJ. "We had no contact with the English police and we do not know which
documents will be made available to Kate and Gerry McCann", a source from the Polícia Judiciária's new directory confirmed.
81
documents that will be handed over by the British police to Gerry and Kate McCann are at issue, following a decision from
London's High Court. A sharing of information that neither the Attorney General, the most senior official in the investigation
in Portugal, nor the PJ, which coordinates the investigation on the ground, had any knowledge about.
This is one more
'diplomatic incident' between Portugal and England, which now lands on the investigation into the disappearance of the British
child, just over a month before the process' judicial secrecy is lifted.
News about this sharing of information started
to be spread by the British press by the end of the morning, yesterday, and tells about the delivery of 81 documents from
the process – which is still covered by judicial secrecy – from a total of 11 thousand elements that were collected
by the investigation. "Those are 81 potential new leads", Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman, clarified, "due to the
fact that they concern the days following the disappearance and that may help the investigation that is being carried out
by the detectives that were hired by Kate and Gerry", he underlined.
What is certain is that the access to these documents
was accepted by a British judicial entity and after the McCann couple threatened to file a judicial action to force the police
to give them access to the entire process. Yesterday, Clarence Mitchell admitted that the couple had desisted from using the
courts and that they are "satisfied".
"We want to access the process so our private detectives can use the information",
Clarence Mitchell defended last week, during a statement to Lusa agency. But the contents of said documents was not revealed.
Also
last week, the PJ presented a final report that was delivered to the Public Ministry, with a list of all the diligences that
were made during this investigation that has lasted for over one year.
The delivery of said report prompted news of
a probable archiving of this investigation to be circulated by the press.
But the Attorney General's Office denied
that the archiving of the case had been decided, and clarified that the PJ's final report had indeed been delivered and that
is was being "the object of careful evaluation and pondering".
"The Public Ministry will analyse and globally evaluate
the entire process (that contains tens of volumes) in order to determine whether other diligences are needed or not or if
the necessary and sufficient conditions have been gathered to close the inquiry and to elaborate the final dispatch", the
AG’s Office referred.
For the time being, Pinto Monteiro refuses to make any further comment about this decision
from the British court.
EU unable to agree child alert system AFP
July 8, 2008 12:30 PM
CANNES, France (AFP) — European nations
agreed Tuesday to cooperate more closely in the hunt for lost children but could not endorse a Europe-wide alert system sought
by the parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann.
EU justice ministers ministers, at informal talks in the French Riveria resort city of Cannes, decided
to set up national police centres to coordinate any international search when it becomes necessary.
Germany argues that alerting all 27 nations as soon as a child disappears and launching a massive media
campaign would be pointless as most are found in the area where they went missing quite quickly.
"We shouldn't send out a European alert when a child has been gone for just a few hours," said German
Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries. "The great majority of children return home after two or three days."
But the parents of Madeleine, Kate and Gerry McCann said in April that a swift EU-wide alert system could
have helped locate their daughter, who disappeared from a Portuguese resort in May 2007.
Since their daughter went missing, not far from the Spanish border just before her fourth birthday, there
have been reported sightings from Belgium to North Africa. No-one has been charged or arrested over her apparent abduction.
"Please don't wait until another child and family suffer as we have before agreeing to support the implementation
of an alert system in Europe," said Kate McCann, who along with her husband was a suspect in the case.
EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot urged the ministers to go further, saying that missing children
were being found more quickly in European countries where a solid alert system is in place, like France and Greece.
"The ministers have to be more energetic and impose this alert service," he told reporters. "When a child
has been abducted we have to move very, very quickly."
Luxembourg Justice Minister Luc Frieden supported the European-wide system, but said that, since agreement
was not possible, small groups of countries could decide to forge ahead by themselves.
"We should try something European. We don't need very complicated legal texts. This is an aspect where
police and legal authorities can work together," he said.
Brussels throws out McCann's appeal for European missing child alert system Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last Updated: 10:04 PM on 08th July 2008
Kate and Gerry McCann's campaign for an alert system for missing children
across Europe will not be adopted by the EU, ministers said yesterday.
Instead, member states will set up their own systems and work together to alert border
officials and foreign police forces more quickly following child abductions.
It follows criticism that Portuguese authorities took up to 12 hours
to warn police and border officials in Spain after three-year-old Madeleine McCann vanished in the Algarve last May.
The announcement was welcomed by her parents.
The McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell said the couple would back any measure which could
help to find missing children and reunite families.
He added: 'Whether it is a centralised system or individual national alerts, all Kate and
Gerry want to see is better and quicker cooperation between countries.
'When a child goes missing, every minute counts. Kate and Gerry will continue to push for
the best possible alert system for children. How that happens is something for ministers to agree on.
'This announcement is very encouraging as it underlines the fact that there is a Europe-wide
desire for things to improve.'
The McCanns, both 40, lobbied MEPs to act in April. Their declaration attracted 308 signatures,
but needs almost 90 more for the European Parliament to adopt it.
Madeleine McCann: Kate and Gerry's
fury at 'club' devoted to prosecuting them Telegraph
By Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter
Last Updated: 7:55PM BST 08/07/2008
Gerry and Kate McCann
have expressed their anger at the establishment of a fee-paying "club" dedicated to seeing them prosecuted over the disappearance
of their daughter Madeleine.
A retired British solicitor, Tony Bennett, has set up a fund called The Madeleine
Foundation, which aims to bring a private prosecution against the McCanns for alleged child neglect.
But Madeleine's parents fear members of the public will inadvertently donate money to it because they
may mistake it for the McCanns' own Madeleine Fund, which pays for private investigations into her whereabouts.
Mr Bennett, 60, who has in the past worked with the family of Stuart Lubbock, the man found dead in Michael
Barrymore's swimming pool in 2001, described his fund as a subscription-only members' club, charging a £10 annual fee.
Last year he tried unsuccessfully to launch a private prosecution against the McCanns, only to be told
by magistrates in Leicester that they had no jurisdiction over the case, because Madeleine disappeared in Portugal.
Mr Bennett said: "Some of the money immediately raised will be used to pay for a barrister to give his
or her opinion on how best to proceed with a legal action against the McCanns.
"We are a group of people, which is rapidly growing in number, who want to get to the truth of what happened
to Madeleine.
"We will also campaign for changes to the law about parents who leave children on their own.
"If you go on the internet and look at some of the forums and blogs about Madeleine, there is a large
and significant number of people who feel powerless and who want to do something about it."
Mr Bennett said the official website for the Madeleine Foundation, which will not have charitable status,
is about to go live.
He said all the money raised would be used "in an above board way" and would be openly accounted for.
Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman, said: "It is a great shame that Mr Bennett feels the need to
make money out of Madeleine McCann. "He did not seek permission from Gerry or Kate to use Madeleine's name. This so-called
foundation is in no way doing anything to help find Madeleine.
"It purports to be a foundation helping the search for Madeleine but it does nothing at all to help that
search and goes against Gerry and Kate.
"Mr Bennett has already tried to take a private prosecution against Gerry and Kate but a court said it
has no jurisdiction over something which allegedly happened in Portugal."
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Maddie case has to be decided by the 2nd of August
Publico (no online link, appears in paper version only)
09 July 2008
Thanks to 'astro' for translation
The Republic's Attorney General orders that by
that date, it is defined whether more diligences are necessary or the process is archived
Until the upcoming
2nd of August, the prosecutor who directs the investigation in the process of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has to
decide whether he finds it necessary to carry out any other diligence and to extend the judicial secrecy, or the process is
archived. The deadline was given by the Republic's Attorney General, Pinto Monteiro, who is analysing the report that was
presented by the Polícia Judiciária's team that has been investigating the case.
This report describes all the diligences
that were developed by the PJ's investigators since Madeleine disappeared from the apartment in Praia da Luz, Algarve, where
she was spending holidays with her parents and siblings. The details of the case may be known very soon, if finally the process
is made public on the 14th of August, as foreseen. The McCann family may then have access to the entire information that was
collected and worked upon by the police, collected in approximately 11 thousand documents.
For about the same time,
the release of a book by the former head of the Criminal Investigation Department in Portimão, Gonçalo Amaral, who coordinated
the investigation, is being prepared. Removed from the case, after having directed hard criticism towards the actions of the
British police and press during this process, this inspector ended up retiring from the police. He promises the revelation
of new data about the investigation which he was removed from.
The thesis that he defends, of the involvement of Madeleine's
parents in her disappearance, was questioned by the new team of investigators that moved into the Algarve to support his successor,
Paulo Rebelo. The possibility of an abduction, which had initially been explored, was under strong consideration again, occupying
tens of inspectors from various departments within the PJ. But their worked was fruitless. The analyses that were performed
upon the elements that were collected in the apartment and in the car that had been used by the family were inconclusive.
No indicium, no lead, no piece of evidence that pointed into one or another direction.
The opening of the process will
also allow for the reasons that led the PJ to decide to constitute Maddie's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, as arguidos in
the process, to be known.
By TOM PEGDEN
10:30 - 09 July 2008
The Madeleine McCann fighting fund is down to £500,000, the
family's spokesman said today.
At one time, the fund, partly launched to pay for the investigation into the disappearance,
stood at £1.1 million.
Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said that over the past year Madeleine's parents Kate and
Gerry McCann, from Rothley, had spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on private investigators searching for their missing
daughter.
He spoke as Leicestershire police agreed to pass on to the family 81 pieces of information
collected by them in the first days after the disappearance.
Mr Mitchell said: "The fund is approximately half spent,
at about £500,000. Most of it is going on investigators.
"Money is still coming in, and every time Kate and Gerry do
interviews a bit more comes in."
The fund - which is not a registered charity - was set up to pay for private detectives
to investigate Madeleine's disappearance, to fund a website and to provide support, including financial assistance, for her
family.
It was bolstered in March by a £550,000 libel settlement from the national Express group of newspapers, boosting
the fund to £1.1million. Small amounts are still trickling in from the public. Last year, the Leicester Mercury's Bands of
Hope wristband campaign, supported by thousands of readers, contributed a further £57,000.
Mr and Mrs McCann also have
the support of several benefactors, including Richard Branson and Cheshire businessman Brian Kennedy, who have helped by funding
libel actions and paying Mr Mitchell's salary. Mr Mitchell said: "The backers have not got open chequebooks, but they are
supportive of the family. It is right that the legal bills should come from the backers."
The family could know this
week if MEPs have backed their campaign for a European-wide child alert scheme.
The European Parliament sits in Strasbourg
until Thursday before the summer recess. It gives Euro MPs gathering in France their last real chance to support the campaign
before its July 24 cut-off date.
Mr Mitchell said the Amber alert campaign, which was already being considered before
the McCanns offered their support, had gained 308 MEP signatures and needed just 85 more to gain a majority.
The family
also hope Portuguese authorities will agree to lift their official suspect - or arguido - status next month.
Anyone
wishing to support the family can send cheques, payable to Madeleine's Fund: Leaving No Stone Unturned, to Madeleine's Fund:
Leaving No Stone Unturned Limited, PO Box 53133, London, E18 2YR.
Published: Today
MADELEINE McCann's parents have
urged people not to give money to a group called the Madeleine Foundation.
The Foundation, which has a £10 annual membership fee, is led by Anthony Bennett, 60, who failed
with a private prosecution against Kate and Gerry McCann for child neglect.
He is telling people he intends to bring another private prosecution.
But the McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "Kate and Gerry would warn people not to give
any money to this foundation. It is mis-using Madeleine’s name."
Maddie vanished in Portugal in May 2007.
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By Jerry Lawton
10th July 2008
MADELEINE McCann's parents are
planning a big bucks interview with US chatshow queen Oprah Winfrey to boost their search fund.
It is understood Oprah, 54, would be willing to break the bank for a cosy chat with Kate and Gerry.
Up to now the couple have resisted offers to appear on celebrity chatshows but they are considering
Oprah after the fund set up to find Madeleine plunged to £500,000 – less than half the original amount donated by the
public.
Along with private eyes' bills, the cash has been spent on poster and advertising campaigns appealing
for information about Madeleine and running an website.
The McCanns, who still haven't been officially cleared, sparked controversy when they dipped into
the fund twice last year to fund mortgage payments on their home in Rothley, Leics.
The couple's spokesman Clarence Mitchell has admitted the couple need to top it up to maintain the
hunt for their five-year-old daughter.
Earlier this week police agreed to let the McCanns, both 40, see 81 witness statements taken after
Madeleine vanished from their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007.
McCanns welcome EU alert backing Guardian
Press Association
Thursday July 10 2008
Kate and Gerry McCann have welcomed European Parliament backing for an EU-wide missing
child alert system to help prevent child abductions across borders.
The parents of Madeleine McCann described as "wonderful news" the fact that a declaration supporting the
couple's plea for action has now attracted sufficient MEPs' signatures to become a formal resolution.
It now has backing from at least 393 MEPs - achieving the minimum required support of half the 785 European
Parliament members before a resolution is considered for legislation. And although the resolution has no legal force it now
puts serious political and moral pressure on the European Commission and EU governments to adopt legally-binding measures
to increase the chances of finding missing children.
A joint statement issued by the McCanns said: "This is wonderful news and we would like to thank every
single MEP who has signed the declaration. By supporting such a European wide structure (a network of national child alert
systems), each and every one is helping to make Europe a safer place for children.
"Hopefully this will mean that far fewer families have to suffer the sort of pain we are continuing to
go through. We now urge the Commission to act swiftly in taking this forward in practical terms"
The McCanns visited MEPs in Brussels in April as part of their campaign to mobilise action following the
disappearance of Madeleine during a family holiday in Portugal more than a year ago.
By then they had already visited Washington to see how a US "Amber Alert" early warning raised the alarm
across state lines and lead to the safe return of hundreds of children. They asked for a similar network to be extended across
the 27 EU countries.
Conservative MEP and European Parliament Vice-President Edward McMillan-Scott, who helped organise the
McCanns' visit to Brussels and another to Strasbourg last month to keep up support, formally presented the resolution to EU
Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot.
He said: "I am very pleased that a majority of MEPs have backed this important initiative, started by
Kate and Gerry McCann out of their personal tragedy. Now it has real impetus across the EU. Four hundred children have been
saved in the USA in five years by this system."
Two years ago - before Madeleine disappeared - a similar initiative in the European Parliament failed
to attract sufficient support to be taken up by ministers. But the publicity surrounding the case means the current French
EU presidency is now likely to give the issue a big push in the next few months.
By STAFF REPORTER
Published: Today
THE parents of missing Maddie McCann today welcomed European Parliament backing
for a missing child alert system to help prevent child abductions across EU borders.
Kate and Gerry McCann were delighted a declaration supporting their plea for action has now got sufficient
MEPs' signatures to become a formal resolution.
It now has backing from at least 393 MEPs - achieving the minimum required support of half the 785 European
Parliament members before a resolution is considered for legislation.
And although the resolution has no legal force it now puts serious political and moral pressure on the
European Commission and EU governments to adopt legally-binding measures to increase the chances of finding missing children.
A joint statement issued by the McCanns said: "This is wonderful news and we would like to thank every
single MEP who has signed the declaration.
"By supporting such a European wide structure (a network of national child alert systems), each and every
one is helping to make Europe a safer place for children.
"Hopefully this will mean that far fewer families have to suffer the sort of pain we are continuing to
go through.
"We now urge the Commission to act swiftly in taking this forward in practical terms."
The McCanns visited MEPs in Brussels in April as part of their campaign to mobilise action following the
disappearance of daughter Madeleine during a family holiday in Portugal more than a year ago.
By then they had already visited Washington to see how a US "Amber Alert" early warning raised the alarm
across state lines and lead to the safe return of hundreds of children.
They asked for a similar network to be extended across the 27 EU countries.
Conservative MEP and European Parliament Vice-President Edward McMillan-Scott, who helped organise the
McCanns' visit to Brussels and another to Strasbourg last month to keep up support, today formally presented the resolution
to EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot.
He said: "I am very pleased that a majority of MEPs have backed this important initiative, started by
Kate and Gerry McCann out of their personal tragedy.
"Now it has real impetus across the EU. Four hundred children have been saved in the USA in five years
by this system."
Two years ago - before Madeleine disappeared - a similar initiative in the European Parliament failed
to attract sufficient support to be taken up by ministers.
But the publicity surrounding the case means the current French EU presidency is now likely to give the
issue a big push in the next few months.
Mr McMillan-Scott said all it needed was political will, because the cost would be minimal.
"The time has come to get on with it. Most countries have a severe weather alert system - all we need
is to use the same mechanism for missing children."
So far France is the only EU country which has an Amber Alert system, but its worth has been demonstrated
in America, where about 400 children have been recovered, 80 per cent within the crucial first 72 hours, since the system
started in 2003.
In Europe, an existing patchwork of partial national monitoring systems needs bolstering by closer cross-border
co-operation and data-sharing on child abduction, says the European Commission.
In France, a comprehensive system means authorities can flash up electronic missing child information
on French motorway signboards within 30 minutes of a confirmed case of abduction. Belgium operates a similar but less well-established
system.
The idea of a European system would be to identify the serious cases of potential abduction and use the
alert network.
"About 130,000 children go missing in Europe every year, and it is up to the police to sift through them
and sort out the abduction cases, and they need as much co-operation as possible," said Mr McMillan-Scott.
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McCanns already have signatures 24Horas
Couple criticised over campaign for the alert about missing children
11 July 2008
Thanks to 'astro' for translation
Maddie's parents managed to collect 417 signatures for their petition.
But it only comes to reinforce a project that was already in movement
The McCanns congratulated themselves yesterday,
in a communiqué, about the "wonderful news" that they received from Brussels. What made Maddie's parents so happy was to know
that 417 MEPs have already signed the petition that they promoted for the creation of a European alert system for missing
children.
The collected signatures – 417 out of a total of 785 – are those necessary for a resolution to
be appreciated within the European Commission. But, in Brussels, the McCanns' prominence within this project has already created
antibodies. "What use will this petition be? There is already a European law proposal for the creation of that alert system,
which will have to be approved by each member state", a source at the European Commission criticized to 24horas.
"The McCanns associated themselves with an initiative that belongs to the European Commission, in a media manoeuvre", the
source pointed out.
It doesn't change anything
Another
source that knows the dossier well has an opinion that "the McCanns' petition doesn’t change anything". And explains:
"The project, which already existed, has taken time to be approved because the 27 member states have different legislation".
The
pressure on the EU was started by Paris. "In late 2007, towards the end of the Portuguese presidency of the European Union,
France, which wanted to broaden its alert mechanism to the countries with a common border, raised the issues at the level
of the European Commission", the source clarified.
"The McCanns went directly to the European Parliament, in April
2007, giving the idea that they were starting a project that had, in reality, already been started within the European Commission".
But
the McCanns' spokesman considers that any criticism against an alleged appropriation of the European proposal by the couple
is mere "viewpoints". "If the project was going to advance anyway, without the petition that was promoted by the McCanns,
then how does one explain that 417 MEPs signed it?", Clarence Mitchell questions.
The McCanns' spokesman advanced that
the resolution will now move into the European Commission, which will request a report on how to create an alert within the
27 countries.
Facts
Judiciária. In Portugal, in mid-June, the PJ's joint national director, Pedro do Carmo, was given the task
by the Justice Minister to present a proposal for a swift alert system against child abduction. It was Portugal’s presidency
of the EU, in 2007, that introduced the issue into the Informal Council for Justice and Internal Affairs.
Obstacle. According to what Clarence Mitchell told 24horas, it will be difficult to create a European
alert system with a centre in Brussels because "Germany does not want the system to be centralised". The alternative may include
the creation of alert systems that are common to neighbouring countries, he explained. There is still a long way to go…
JOSÉ MANUEL OLIVEIRA
11 July 2008
Thanks to 'astro' for translation
Investigation. Archiving, accusation
or new diligencies are the options
At a time when the speculation about the foreseen dates for a decision about the
Maddie case increases, the office of Pinto Monteiro, the Republic's Attorney General, guaranteed to DN that the deadline that
was imposed on the Public Ministry's prosecutors terminates at the end of this month.
During this week, some newspapers
pointed at next week and at the 2nd of August for the Public Ministry to reach a decision about the process.
This decision
may be the archiving of the process, the deduction of an accusation or the scheduling of new diligences, after the PJ delivered
its final report about the investigation to the Public Ministry.
"There was no set deadline given" in that sense by
Pinto Monteiro, Pinto Monteiro's office told DN. What was requested from the magistrates is that within a reasonable time
frame, and before the end of the month, they concluded whether or not there is a need to carry out further diligences or if
the process is ready for the final dispatch".
On the other hand, while many reinforce the idea that Gerry and Kate
McCann, arguidos due to a suspicion of involvement in their daughter's disappearance, may be accused of the practice of the
crime of exposure and abandonment of a minor, which is punished with a prison sentence of up to five years, the lawyer João
Grade dos Santos, while having no knowledge of the process, is peremptory when he states to DN that "the crime of abandonment
demands intent".
And "as long as intent is not proved, crime cannot be considered", the lawyer stressed, reminding
that "it is only a crime when the person who abandons knows that under those circumstances the minor will be at risk".
And
he exemplifies: "A father leaves a son at home and he knows that anything may happen. But if that never occurs to him, then
it's not a crime anymore", he explains. "If someone grabs a child and takes her into the mountains and leaves her there overnight,
then it is a crime, because the person knows that the child is at risk".
Agony for McCanns as they reveal details of their first holiday since Madeleine vanished Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 12:26 PM on 11th July 2008
Kate and Gerry McCann have spoken of the agony
of holidaying for the first time without their missing daughter Madeleine.
The couple took their twins Sean and Amelie, two; away for a family break - the first since Madeleine
disappeared from their holiday apartment in Praia Da Luz, Portugal on May 3 last year.
Gerry wrote of the family's experiences of their holiday without Madeleine as speculation continues over
whether Portuguese police are preparing to close the case.
Writing on his online blog, Gerry said: 'We have recently managed to have a break visiting family.
'Sean and Amelie have had a brilliant time and it has been great for me to spend so much time with them.
'Although this has been a relaxing break, it has been incredibly difficult for Kate and me to have been
on holiday without Madeleine - it is all too apparent what is missing.'
Turning his attention to the Portuguese investigation surrounding Madeleine's disappearance and the couple's
status as 'arguidos' or suspects, Gerry said the family were waiting to hear confirmation of recent reports it had been closed.
He wrote: 'There has been a lot of speculation in the press over the last 10 days that the investigation
in to Madeleine's disappearance has closed.
'We have not heard anything officially other than we know the files are with the prosecutor and the period
of secrecy has been extended to 14th August.
Our independent investigation continues and we urge people going on holiday to remain vigilant and consider
taking one of our posters with them - downloadable from the how to help section of the website.'
Meanwhile, the couple welcomed a European Parliament backing for a EU-wide cross-border missing child
alert system.
The couple have been campaigning in Europe for a declaration for a US-style amber alert system to track
missing youngsters faster.
Gerry said: 'We were very pleased to learn today that the written declaration calling for the introduction
of an EU wide Amber alert system has been successful.
'More than half of the 786 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were required to sign the declaration
for it to be adopted as a full resolution of the European Parliament and as of today 417 had signed.
'This is a small step in the right direction and a lot of work will be needed to get National Amber alert
systems implemented. The idea already has the support of the European Commission and this additional political impetus should
speed up the implementation process.
'We would like to thank Edward McMillan-Scott and the other four sponsors of the declaration, all those
MEPs who signed the declaration and all the members of the public who lobbied their MEPs.'
Portugal's attorney-general demands decision on Madeleine McCann by end of July Herald Tribune
The Associated Press
11th July 2008
LISBON, Portugal: Portugal's attorney general
said Friday he has asked prosecutors to decide by the end of the month whether to close the investigation into the disappearance
of British child Madeleine McCann.
Prosecutors are examining the final police report on the case of the girl who went missing in Portugal's
Algarve region during a family vacation on May 3, 2007, a few days before her fourth birthday.
"I have asked magistrates at the Public Prosecutor's office — three of them — to carefully
analyze the (police) report, which is enormous, and to present their conclusions to me by the end of the month, which is a
reasonable period of time," Attorney-General Fernando Pinto Monteiro told reporters.
"Either there will be some more police work to do ... or there's nothing more to be done and the case
will be closed. That will be known by the end of the month," he said.
The case has drawn worldwide interest. A few weeks after Madeleine vanished, Pope Benedict XVI blessed
her parents and a photo of their daughter during his weekly general audience at the Vatican. Numerous reported sightings of
the blonde-haired girl proved to be false.
If authorities decide to close the case, it could still be reopened if new evidence emerges.
Detectives have named the girl's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, and local man Robert Murat as formal
suspects in the case. They all have denied involvement.
The official judicial secrecy period granting confidentiality to the police investigation ends in mid-August
when the suspects' lawyers will be allowed to see the police case file.
The McCanns, who have waged an international campaign to find their daughter, have said that if the investigation
were to be closed they expect the search for Madeleine to continue. They have also hired private investigators.
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Torment of Kate and Gerry McCann as they go on first holiday without missing Madeleine Daily Record
Jul 12 2008 By Stephen White
MADELEINE McCann's parents have told of the torment
of their first holiday without their daughter.
Kate and Gerry McCann flew back from Vancouver in Canada yesterday after visiting relatives.
Gerry said the trip had been extremely difficult both for him and Kate.
"We have managed to have a break visiting family," Gerry wrote on the website set up to try to trace Madeleine,
who went missing on a holiday in Portgual in May 2007.
He added: "Sean and Amelie have had a brilliant time and it has been great for me to spend so much time
with them.
"Although this has been a relaxing break, it has been incredibly difficult for Kate and me to have been
on holiday without Madeleine - it's all too apparent what is missing.
"There has been a lot of speculation in the Press over the last 10 days that the investigation into Madeleine's
disappearance has closed.
"We have not heard anything other than we know the files are with the pro secutor and the secrecy period
has been extended to August 14."
The McCanns are still being investigated for possibly neglecting their daughter on the night she disappeared
from their Portuguese holiday apartment.
The first published court ruling on the Madeleine case confirms the police inquiry covers homicide, abandonment,
concealment of a corpse and abduction.
The reference to "abandonment" suggests that Portuguese detectives are investigating if there is evidence
that Kate and Gerry McCann we re negligent in leaving their daughter alone on the night she went missing.
The charge carries a maximum 10-year jail sentence.
The couple, both doctors from Rothley, Leicestershire, have strenuously denied negligence and said they
were just 50 yards away at the time their daughter was taken.
Wish you were here, Madeleine The Sun
By ANTONELLA LAZZERI
Published: Today
MADELEINE McCann's parents have revealed their heartache after their first holiday since she vanished.
Doctors Kate and Gerry said they spent three weeks in Canada with twins Sean and
Amelie for the sake of the three-year-olds.
But it was "incredibly difficult". Gerry, 40, confessed after the family's return to Rothley, Leics: "To
have been on holiday without Madeleine – it is all too apparent what is missing."
Their daughter, then three, vanished 14 months ago in Praia da Luz, Portugal – where cops still
regard the couple as suspects.
Yesterday Portugal's attorney-general revealed he had ordered prosecutors to decide by the end of the
month whether to close the investigation.
Gerry, writing in his internet diary, said he and Kate, 40, were thrilled the EU is to adopt a system
when kids go missing similar to America's Amber Alert – which the couple have crusaded for.
He said: "This is a small step in the right direction."
The couple went to Canada to stay with Kate's aunt in Vancouver.
A pal said: "They couldn't even contemplate going anywhere in Europe."
Murat, an arguido just because Expresso (no online link, appears in paper edition only)
Investigation English dogs' scent is the only evidence against the parents. Murat was
made an arguido based on an English journalist
Saturday 12 July 2008
Thanks to 'astro' for translation
Expresso discloses PJ's final report
Not even the reasoning
of famous detective Sherlock Holmes – after eliminating the impossible, the hypothesis that remains, no matter how unlikely,
must be the truth – can be applied to the case of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, on the 3rd of May 2007. In
its final report, that Expresso had access to, the Polícia Judiciária (PJ) asserts that all possibilities were exhaustively
investigated: abduction, murder, accidental death and even the child having left the apartment on her own. To no avail. "Did
the girl go up in smoke?" Gonçalo Amaral, the former inspector who directed the investigation for five months, asked last
week.
The complete disorientation of the investigation is exposed by the constitution of Robert Murat as an arguido:
denounced by an English journalist, who found his curiosity towards the press strange, the judiciária considered that he reunited
all the conditions to be presumed a suspect. Reasons? A set of unspecified pieces of "information", one of them related to
Jane Turner [sic], one of the group's elements, who reportedly stated she saw a man carrying a child, walking into the direction
of Robert Murat's house.
The PJ placed Robert Murat and other "individuals with whom he directly or indirectly interacted"
under surveillance, they searched his house, excavated his garden. Result: "Despite the exhaustive and methodical investigation
of Murat and the persons that are close to him, no elements were collected that would connect them to the crime that is under
investigation".
The frailty of the collected indices does not only apply to Robert Murat. Also concerning Gerry and
Kate McCann, the sole evidence that was collected over 13 months, which directly connects the parents to an eventual death
of their daughter, is the scent of two English «Springer Spaniel» dogs that were in Portugal during the investigations. "One
of the dogs was trained to detect cadaver odour and the other one to detect traces of human blood".
And what did they
detect? One of them detected cadaver odour "in the couple's bedroom, in a corner, near the wardrobe, and in the living room,
behind the sofa, near the side window of the apartment" that was rented by the couple at the Ocean Club, in Aldeia da Luz.
The dog that specialises in detecting the odour of blood, marked a spot in the living room, precisely coinciding with the
location that had been identified with cadaver odour.
The marking of cadaver odour followed into clothing and personal
items: on two pieces of clothing that belong to Kate McCann, on another piece belonging to Madeleine, and on the soft toy
that was habitually used by the child (here, the dog marked cadaver odour both in the inside and the outside of the apartment).
The strange odours were further detected on the key and in the trunk of the car that was rented by the McCanns on the 27th
of May 2007, 24 days after the evening of the disappearance. It was based on the dogs' performance that Gerry and Kate were
made arguidos. The PJ says that, in Kate's case, her constitution as an arguida was due to "the mere possibility of her involvement
with the eventual cadaver".
At the same time that thousands of sightings that reached the PJ, concerning supposed sightings
of the minor, were being digested, the investigation elaborated a listing of the communications that were made by the mobile
phones that were used in the area of the Ocean Club. The hundreds of crossings of phone calls yielded no results either. It
should be pointed out, though, that the Public Ministry wanted to access the contents of 14 text messages that went through
Gerry McCann's mobile phone on the 3rd and 4th of May, but the instruction judge, Pedro Frias, impeded said diligence. The
biological residues that were collected from inside the car were analysed in Portugal and in England, but the results did
not allow for a conclusion to be reached.
On its way to the archive
In
their final report, the PJ stresses the "magnitude" of the operation that was initially built to search for the minor. Something
that "right from the outset, exceeded the dimension that is commonly applied to similar cases". But after 13 months, there
is only one conclusion: "From everything that was done, and despite the efforts that were made and all lines of investigation
having been explored, it results that it is not possible to obtain a solid and objective conclusion about what truly happened
on that evening, and about the present location of the missing minor".
"This way, as we do not envision, at the moment,
any diligence within the process that would be susceptible of producing a useful result for the present files", according
to the document, the judiciária places the final decision on the case in the hands of prosecutor Magalhães e Menezes. According
to what Expresso was able to establish, the Republic’s General Attorney, Pinto Monteiro, asked the Public Ministry's
prosecutors that have been accompanying the case (Bilro Verão, the district prosecutor of Évora, and Magalhães e Menezes,
who is directly responsible for the investigation) to produce a final decision before the end of this month.
----------------------------------
Excerpts from the PJ's report
Throughout these more than
13 months, the investigation followed all the credible indicia that concerned different hypotheses and tried to analyse, to
correlate and to synthesize them in an impartial form.
From the 4th onwards – the day that followed the facts
– the PJ was reached by thousands of sightings and locations that covered the entire national territory, the most diversified
foreign locations, from neighbouring Spain until Indonesia.
It should be stressed that the entire apartment had been
searched through and rummaged by an undetermined number of persons, with the contamination that it carries and the difficulty
in collecting residues.
The PJ, probably unlike in no other investigation in Portugal, did not spare any efforts in
the sense of providing exceptional technical, human and financial means to discover the minor.
The persons (the parents
and the couple's friends) were questioned in a detailed and lengthy manner, on diverse occasions, with the purpose of collecting
any relevant elements.
The degree of cooperation and understanding between the PJ and the Leicester Constabulary attained
very high levels.
The witness Rachel Mampilly admits to having established contacts with British television station
BBC at around 2 a.m. on the morning of the 4th [of May].
The forensic exams did not corroborate the canine markings,
more precisely, cell material was collected that could not be identified as belonging to a determined person, and it was not
even possible to establish the quality of that material.
It concludes that it is not possible to obtain a solid finding
about what happened on that evening.
--------------------------------
"The life of a man was destroyed"
Robert Murat's lawyer reveals
unknown episodes, advancing that he is preparing to sue the State
After one more day participating in the searches,
Robert Murat was invited by two inspectors from the Polícia Judiciária to have a drink. It was a Sunday evening, and Murat
accompanied them but, "for their misfortune, Robert is an Englishman who only drinks white coffee, because on Monday morning
he was taken to the PJ and if he hadn't been sober, I don't know what his deposition would have looked like". The episode,
one more in the last year of the Englishman's life, was told to Expresso by Francisco Pagarete, Murat's lawyer, who is preparing
a complaint against the Portuguese state, following the more than likely archiving of the case.
"A man's life was destroyed".
This was the Portimão lawyer's reaction when he was confronted by Expresso with the contents of the Polícia Judiciária's final
report about the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. "What was done to this man was a profound injustice. As recently as this
week, we were on a terrace and a group of people nearby got up whispering his name. The damages that were suffered by my client
are incalculable", declared Francisco Pagarete, for who the archiving "is only at fault for being late". And it cannot be
said that an archiving in the middle of an investigation is unheard of. The same happened to former Environment minister Luís
Nobre Guedes in the so-called Portucale process. The investigation was only halfway through and the Public Ministry decided
to archive the suspicions against the former head of CDS.
"It has to be taken into account that Robert was presented
to the world as a suspect, after having spent 19 hours at the Polícia Judiciária without eating or drinking. His life was
laid open, as well as the life of his family in England", Francisco Pagarete said. The lawyer said that he is only awaiting
authorisation to access the process files in order to start preparing the suit against the State and "against some persons
who witnessed things that are not true".
Archiving is "to be expected"
While
stressing that he was not notified of any dispatch from the Public Ministry (PM), Rogério Alves, the McCann couple's lawyer,
declared that taking into account the contents of the PJ’s document, an archiving dispatch from the PM is "absolutely
to be expected". "I believe in the couple's innocence and the investigation could not find indicia of guilt against someone
who is not guilty", Rogério Alves further commented.
--------------------------------------
Numbers
2000 diligences in the process into Maddie's disappearance
700 persons were inquired by the investigation
443
houses were rummaged by the inspectors on the days that followed the disappearance
300
persons participated in the mega-search operation
22 dossiers with "speculative
or unlikely news, like psychic visions"
-------------------------------
Note
from the Direction
An incredible despise
It
is completely legal, and undisputable. But it is an unbelievable despise for individual rights. The PJ's report about the
Maddie case leaves no doubts – Robert Murat was made an arguido, and has been kept that way for 13 months, over…
nothing. Over absolutely nothing!
An English journalist found Murat to be suspicious and the Polícia Judiciária investigated
him. They turned his house, his garden upside down, rummaged through his computer, his life, his friends. They found nothing.
But they didn't say anything either, in the name of the holy 'judicial secrecy'.
What kind of Justice is this, which
allows for a man to be under public scrutiny, a suspect, earning side glances, losing opportunities and business, when against
him there is not the slightest indicium, as the PJ itself reveals? Without him being related, not even minimally, with the
missing child?
And what kind of Justice is this, that lets the rumor run – in the newspapers, on tv, everywhere
– that the parents could be guilty of the child's death without there being the smallest solid indicium against them?
The
Maddie case is a shame for the Portuguese justice. It is necessary that all the possible lessons, in their entire extension,
are taken out of this case. About the manner in which the police acted; about the ease with which arguidos were made; about
the judicial secrecy. So the iniquity of a secret does never again overlay the necessary Justice.
Portuguese police could drop McCann investigation
By Chris Pragnell
12 July 2008
MADELEINE McCann's parents were today awaiting official
confirmation that Portuguese police are dropping the investigation into her disappearance.
According to reports in the Portuguese media, detectives have taken the decision due to lack of evidence.
A spokeswoman for Kate and Gerry McCann said today: "We are aware of it because we have heard about it
on the grapevine.
"The team haven't heard officially so we are not in a position to make any comment.
"We know it's in the air but until we have had official confirmation we cannot make a comment."
Madeleine disappeared on May 3 last year.
The three-year-old had been on holiday in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz with her parents, from Rothley,
Leicestershire, when she vanished from the family's apartment on May 3 last year.
During the investigation into her disappearance, detectives named Mr McCann, 39, and 40-year-old Mrs McCann,
as formal suspects in the case.
Two Portuguese newspapers reported today that police were dropping the inquiry but could re-open it if
new evidence emerges. The papers cited unidentified police sources.
Mr Mitchell said: "If the reports are true, it is to be welcomed that no charges are to be brought and
it is entirely right because Kate and Gerry are innocent of any involvement in their daughter's disappearance and always have
been.
"They have suffered for far too long in this process and the Portuguese authorities must now lift their
arguido status."
He continued: "The police themselves must continue looking for Madeleine.
"We are concerned that if they are to simply shelve the case then what will happen to all of the information
in their files?
"They must be made available to our investigators, who are working extremely hard to find Madeleine.
"If the police feel that they can no longer investigate the case that is a decision for them."
He added that the McCanns would give their view on the investigation after they had been told officially
that it had been dropped.
The Expresso newspaper reported on its website that, according to a source in the Policia Judiciaria (PJ),
the report on the investigation is only descriptive of the facts which have been verified and those that have not been ascertained
in the case.
This means it has not reached any conclusions and does not say whether it is a case of abduction, homicide,
or concealing of a body, the newspaper reported.
Another source told the newspaper: "In normal circumstances, with this sort of a report, the decision
would have to be to shelve it in the hope of getting better evidence in the future."
The final report is to go the Ministerio Publico in Portimao, where a decision will be taken in the coming
days, according to the newspaper.
Even if the case is shelved, the public prosecutor, Jose Cunha de Magalhaes de Menezes, could rule at
any point to reopen it if new evidence were to emerge, it was reported.
Anglo-Portuguese property consultant Robert Murat, the first person to be made an arguido or formal suspect
in Madeleine's disappearance, has heard nothing from the Portuguese authorities about the case being closed.
He did not want to comment on today's reports before being officially told he is no longer under suspicion.
Mr Murat, who lives with his mother in a villa near the McCanns' holiday apartment, strenuously protests
his innocence.
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FILIPA AMBRÓSIO DE SOUSA
NATACHA CARDOSO-ARQUIVO DN
July 13, 2008, Thanks to Joana Morais for translation
Maddie.
Final report of the PJ says that Murat is arguido because of journalist suspicion.
In a total of ten vehicles, the
cadaver dogs only signalled cadaver odour and blood scent in Kate and Gerry McCanns' car, rented 24 days after the disappearance
of Madeleine McCann, on the 3rd of May 2007, in Praia da Luz, Algarve.
This is one of the conclusions of the final
report of the PJ on the investigation that has lasted for more than one year, handed to the Public Ministry and that waits
now for a decision. The Republic's Attorney General requested the end of this month as the deadline, so that the archiving
or requests for new diligences are decided.
In the first approach done by the British laboratory, the Forensic Science
Service and by the Portuguese Institute of Forensic medicine, it was registered a match of Madeleine's DNA profile with some
of the collected evidences in the Renault car, rented by the couple.
In a second approach, done by both Institute of
Forensic medicine and the English laboratory, the final results did not corroborate the canine markings in the places and
Kate and Gerry McCann clothes.
As explained yesterday in an article published by Expresso, it was due to the mere
possibility of the involvement of the McCann couple with the eventual cadaver that the PJ, in September of 2007, appointed
Kate and Gerry as arguidos.
But, what exactly did the cadaver dogs
detect? Cadaver odour in the room of the couple, in a corner, next to the closet, in the living room, behind
the sofa, next to the side window of the apartment, in one of the flowerbeds outside the apartment, on two pieces of clothing
belonging to Kate, on a piece of Madeleine's clothing, on the child's soft toy and on the key of the rented
car.
Odour of blood was still detected on the same key of the rented car and inside the boot of the same.
For
all of these reasons, the conclusion of this case will have to be one alone: archiving. The PJ considers that, in spite of
all diligences that were done and that all investigation lines were followed, it was not possible to understand what effectively happened
that night.
The same report assumes that any diligence done now will not help the discovery of the truth, regretting
the fact that the reconstruction of the night of the disappearance, was not carried out as requested by the PJ at the end
of May. One year after Madeleine disappeared from Praia da Luz.
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Madeleine: Republic’s Attorney General
Office will release "a solution" for the case on Monday Lusa
16 July 2008, 16:10
Thanks to 'astro' for translation
Lisboa, 16 Jul (Lusa) –
The Republic's Attorney General Office will present "a solution" for the "Maddie case" on Monday, the Attorney General, Pinto
Monteiro, announced today.
During statements to journalists upon exiting the inauguration ceremony of the president
of the Appeals Court of Lisbon, Vaz das Neves, the Republic’s Attorney General announced that his Office will release
a press note about the "Maddie case" on Monday.
"This means that the 'Maddie case' will have a solution on Monday which
will be communicated to you", Pinto Monteiro said.
When questioned by the journalists about what solution will be announced
concerning the "Maddie case", the Attorney General refused to anticipate an answer, merely saying that it will be "the one
that will be read out to you".
D-Day for Madeleine McCann case looms msn.uk
pa.press.net - 16.07.2008 18:34
Portugal's attorney general is to announce on Monday what he intends to do about
the police investigation into Madeleine McCann's disappearance.
Prosecutors have been reviewing the final police report into what happened to Madeleine,
who went missing in the Algarve in May last year, a few days before her fourth birthday.
After receiving their recommendations, Attorney General Fernando Pinto Monteiro
will decide whether to bring charges, ask police to undertake further inquiries or close the case.
Mr Pinto Monteiro said he intended to issue a statement giving his decision.
Portuguese promise 'solution' in Madeleine McCann investigation Guardian
Press Association
7.30pm BST Wednesday July 16, 2008
Portugal's attorney general today
said he would announce a "solution" to the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann on Monday.
Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro's comments raised the prospect of Kate and Gerry McCann finding
out whether they will be formally cleared of involvement in their daughter's disappearance.
Monteiro's words also fuelled speculation that the case could finally be drawing to a close.
He told reporters in Lisbon today: "The Maddie case will have a solution on Monday and you
will hear of it."
Reports suggested he would announce whether the case would be closed, charges would be brought
or more inquiries made.
The McCanns' spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said the family, whose daughter went missing from
their holiday apartment on May 3 last year, had not been contacted by the Portuguese authorities.
"We've heard nothing official and our lawyers have heard nothing official," he said. "It
may well be true, but we can't comment because we haven't heard. We're not going to prejudice anything."
Kate and Gerry McCann could be cleared on Monday Telegraph
By Daily Telegraph Reporter
Last Updated: 8:21PM BST 16/07/2008
Kate and Gerry McCann could find
out on Monday if they are to be formally cleared of involvement in their daughter's disappearance.
Portugal's attorney-general has said he will announce a "solution"
to the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.
Fernando Pinto Monteiro's comments also fuelled speculation that the case could finally be
drawing to a close.
Mr Pinto Monteiro said in Lisbon yesterday: "The 'Maddie Case' will have a solution on Monday
and you will hear of it."
Reports in Portugal suggested he would announce whether the case would be closed, charges
would be brought or the police would be asked to undertake further inquiries.
The McCanns' spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said the family, whose daughter went missing from
their holiday apartment on May 3 last year, had not been contacted by the Portuguese authorities.
"We've heard nothing official and our lawyers have heard nothing official," he said.
"It may well be true, but we can't comment because we haven't heard. We're not going to prejudice
anything."
Portugal's law chief says he will announce 'solution' to Madeleine McCann
case next week Daily Mail
By DANIEL BATES
Last updated at 10:13 PM on 16th July 2008
Portugal's law chief says he will announce a 'solution'
next week to the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.
Attorney-general Fernando Pinto Monteiro's words raised the prospect of Kate and Gerry McCann
finding out if they will be formally cleared of involvement in their daughter's disappearance.
Although Mr Pinto Monteiro failed to elaborate on what he meant, his comments reinforce speculation
the 14-month investigation is finally drawing to a close.
Speaking to Portuguese reporters in Lisbon, Mr Pinto Monteiro said: 'The "Maddie Case" will
have a solution on Monday and you will hear of it.'
Prosecutors have been reviewing the final investigation report on Madeleine's disappearance
and it would appear Mr Pinto Monteiro will be making his decision early next week, based on their recommendations.
Reports suggested he would announce whether the case would be closed, charges would be brought
or the police would be asked to undertake further inquiries.
Madeleine disappeared on May 3 last year, nine days before her fourth birthday.
The McCanns left her, and her twin siblings Sean and Amelie, alone in the flat while they
dined with holiday companions at a tapas restaurant 50 yards across their holiday complex in Praia Da Luz.
Madeleine's parents, both doctors from Rothley in Leicestershire, were subsequently designated
by Portuguese police as official suspects.
When the case is wrapped up the couple, who have denied any wrongdoing, could be cleared.
However according to reports in a Portuguese tabloid, the Correio da Manha, they could face
neglect charges.
The paper said although the 50-page final police report on the case concludes there is no
evidence the couple were involved in the disappearance of their daughter, it leaves open the possibility that the McCanns
could be charged with abandoning Madeleine and the twins, then aged two.
The charge of abandonment carries a maximum ten-year jail sentence in Portugal, but only
if prosecutors can prove the McCanns, both 40, intended to neglect Madeleine.
Ex-pat Robert Murat was the only other individual made an official suspect by Portuguese
police. He also has denied any wrongdoing and, if the case concludes, will find out if he will be cleared or face further
investigation.
The McCanns' spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said the family had not been contacted by the
Portuguese authorities.
"We've heard nothing official and our lawyers have heard nothing official," he said.
"It may well be true, but we can't comment because we haven't heard. We're not going to prejudice
anything."
He earlier made it clear the family would 'vigorously' defend any neglect charges.
Last week a High Court Judge made an astonishing appeal for Madeleine's abductor to 'show
mercy and come forward'.
Speaking as she ordered Lancashire Police to hand over details of 81 potential witnesses
to the disappearance, Mrs Justice Hogg called for an end to Kate and Gerry McCann's suffering and said she prayed Madeleine
would be found alive soon.
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Former co-ordinator of the PJ launches 'Maddie' before the secrecy of justice is lifted 24 Horas
Book
launches CONTROVERSY
17 July 2008
Thanks to Joana Morais for translation
Gonçalo Amaral says that his book can help
to discover the truth
Gonçalo Amaral, removed of the inquiry, guarantees that the book does not compromise the current investigation.
The
much anticipated book "Maddie, the Truth of the Lie" ["Maddie, a Verdade da Mentira"], of the former co-ordinator of the PJ
Gonçalo Amaral, is going to be presented in a week, in Lisbon, but the launch, before the secrecy of justice is lifted -predicted
alone for middle of August- is creating controversy. Amaral, retired since the beginning of the month, guarantees that, "in
no circumstance the book compromises the current investigation or the work of the colleagues of the Judiciary Police". And
"the decision of launching 'Maddie' at this time is not mine, but of the publisher", he said, in declarations to 24horas.
In
his turn, Mário Sena Lopes, editor of Guerra e Paz, the publishing company of the former SIC director Manuel Fonseca, that
now publishes "Maddie, the Truth of the Lie", said to 24horas that he "does not make any declarations till the day 24", when
the book of the former co-ordinator of the PJ is presented by former PJ General Director Marques Vidal. This one when contacted
by 24horas, did not want to comment: "Put there that I, to the customs, said nothing" [translators note: don't get the meaning
of this expression even in Portuguese, maybe the journalist did a mistake and what Marques Vidal said was something like:
: "Put there that I, as per usual, said nothing"]. He only revealed that he was reading the proofs and going in the page 109.
Professional secrecy
But, besides the secrecy of justice,
which includes for the time being the Maddie case, Gonçalo Amaral risks, with this book, another secret: the professional.
"I am not bothered", he assured. For this secrecy there are different opinions. According to Francisco Moita Flores, former
PJ inspector, well known criminalist and current Mayor of Santarém, "Gonçalo Amaral is obliged only to the secrecy of justice".
Also the former PJ inspector Paulo Pereira Cristóvão, author of the books "Star of Joana" ["Estrela de Joana"] and "Maddie's
Star" ["Estrela de Maddie",] states that "the professional secrecy is only violated when the official reveals specific techniques
of the investigation, which deserve the whole reserve". Besides, "in the case of a retired investigator, if proved and substantiated,
the violation of the secrecy is punished by a financial fine".
Gonçalo Amaral, 48 years, was removed of the investigation
of the case Maddie, for a crime of opinion. "I understood, then, that it was time to do my public defence and asked immediately
the retirement in order to reacquire the plenitude of my freedom of expression", affirmed the former co-ordinator, according
to whom "this book has the greater purpose to contribute to the discovery of the material truth and the achievement of justice".
17 July 2008
Thanks to Joana Morais for translation
The process relative to Madeleine McCann disappearance
will be available for consultation to the lawyers from next week. The secrecy of justice was not extended and the Public Ministry
is getting ready to conclude the final report.
Pinto Monteiro, the Attorney General, announced yesterday that on Monday new phases of the process will
be known which goes through a limited consultation of the legal proceedings[autos]. This week some selective scannings were
done, for specific consultations for the legal representatives.
Everything indicates that the case will end with archiving
waiting for better evidence [to substantiate the crime] and will never be really open to the 'public poll'. A situation that
the law predicts, since there are in question fundamental rights, like the reserve of the private life. It is probable that
some files attached, like the one that contains Kate's diaries, will be ordered to be destroyed because of not being considered
relevant.
Kate, Gerry and Robert Murat will stop being arguido after the archiving of legal process.
Madeleine parents want files if Portuguese case closed:
lawyer AFP
17 July 2008
LISBON (AFP) — Madeleine McCann's parents believe any decision by Portuguese
investigators to close their case would free-up details for use in their private search, their lawyer said Thursday.
Portuguese court officials said this week that a "solution" will be announced on
Monday in the case of the missing British girl -- who disappeared in May 2007 in Portugal -- when they will reveal if further
action will be taken.
A lawyer for Kate and Gerry McCann said that while an end to the official probe
would not offer closure to the parents, it could make information available for use in a private investigation they have been
funding.
"The only (meaningful) solution would be an explanation for what happened to the
girl. That's what her parents want," lawyer Carlos Pinto de Abreu told Lusa news agency.
Any decision to close the case on Monday would "only be useful in that it would
allow the parents, their lawyers and other investigators to access elements from the case file to continue looking for the
girl," he stated.
On Monday, the public prosecutor's office could decide to close the case, draw
up charges or ask police to investigate further.
Portuguese media speculation has suggested that officials are preparing to close
the case due to insufficient evidence.
Madeleine McCann went missing before her fourth birthday, from a holiday apartment
in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz as her parents -- made formal suspects in the case last year -- dined at a nearby
restaurant.
Robert Murat -- a British resident of Praia da Luz -- on Thursday accepted six-figure
libel damages from a number of newspapers over allegations that he was involved in her abduction.
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McCanns are no longer
suspects The Sun
By VERONICA LORRAINE
Published: 18 July 2008
KATE and Gerry McCann's
torment as suspects in their daughter's disappearance will end on Monday – but with the fresh hell of Portuguese cops
scrapping the search for little Madeleine.
The couple will be officially told there is NOTHING to implicate them, The Sun can reveal.
Their status as "arguidos" – or suspects – will formally be lifted. But 14 months after Maddie
vanished on holiday their greater nightmare will go on.
Blundering cops will reveal they have NO clue whatsoever to what happened
to the youngster. And after a fruitless probe costing millions the case will effectively be CLOSED.
Incredible
The shock move emerged a day after Portugal's attorney general Fernando Pinto Monteiro vowed: "The Maddie
case will have a solution on Monday."
Sources close to the police inquiry revealed to The Sun the "solution" is to give up on the investigation.
Lawyers for the McCanns – named suspects ten months ago and dogged by wild official leaks alleging
DNA evidence linked them – will be given access to the case files.
A source at the attorney general's office told The Sun: "It is incredible. There have been absolutely
no breakthroughs."
Madeleine was three when she is feared to have been snatched from her family's holiday apartment in Praia
da Luz.
But an agonising 441 days on, doctors Kate and Gerry, both 40 from Rothley, Leics, face the horror of
learning the investigation is back to square one.
Expat Robert Murat, 34, last night remained a suspect, but wants his arguido status lifted shortly.
The McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "All Kate and Gerry want is to be allowed to keep looking
for their daughter and this weight of guilt by association removed from their shoulders."
Madeleine McCann: police case set to be dropped Telegraph
By Caroline Gammell
Last Updated: 11:18PM BST 18/07/2008
The police investigation
into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is expected to be shelved on Monday and the three formal suspects linked to the
case - including her parents - cleared of any suspicion.
Sources claim that Kate and Gerry McCann, as well as British expat Robert Murat,
will have their arguido status lifted after the Portuguese attourney-general promised a "solution" to the case.
It is now more than 15 months since the three-year-old girl vanished from her family's holiday apartment
in Praia da Luz in the Algarve.
Mr Murat was made a formal suspect two weeks after her disappearance while her parents, both 40, from
Rothley in Leicestershire, were added to the list in September.
It is understood that the Policia Judiciaria (PJ) do not have enough evidence to charge anyone and do
not have any more leads in the case.
Detectives in Portugal delivered their final report at the start of this month for prosecutors to consider
whether to bring charges, request further inquiries or close the case.
Last week, attourney general Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro said in Lisbon: "The 'Maddie Case' will have
a solution on Monday and you will hear of it."
The McCanns' spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said the couple had heard nothing official from their lawyers
in Portugal.
"Kate and Gerry are waiting to see what the Attourney General has to say on Monday like everyone else,"
he said. "They are well aware of the reports suggesting that the case may about to be closed.
"If that is the case they would hope that it is made very clear that their arguido status is lifted and
their own investigators will be given access to the police files.
"That is what is most important - to find Madeleine."
The couple will continue the search for their eldest child through a number of private investigators -
including the Spanish agency Metodo 3 - paid for by the Find Madeleine Fund.
There is an estimated £500,000 left to help them find their daughter.
Madeleine McCann: Police discuss what evidence will be made public Timesonline
David Brown
July 18, 2008
British police involved in the hunt for Madeleine
McCann have met a Portuguese prosecutor to discuss what evidence should be made public at the end of the investigation.
A request from Leicestershire Constabulary to withhold results of DNA tests on samples taken from a car
used by Madeleine's parents is reported to have been rejected.
There is increasing speculation that Kate and Gerry McCann, from Rothley, Leicestershire, will be officially
cleared next week of involvement in their daughter's death. Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro, Portugal's attorney-general, has
indicated that a decision on the future of the investigation will be announced on Monday.
Leicestershire Constabulary confirmed today that officers had held discussions about how evidence in the
investigation will be disclosed at the end of the case.
A Portuguese newspaper reported that the British officers had tried to stop the release of certain information,
including results of a DNA test on a sample from the McCanns' Renault Mégane hire car.
The samples are reported to have led to the Portuguese police believing that Madeleine's corpse could
have been carried in the car more than three weeks after she died. This has been strenuously denied by Mr and Mrs McCann.
The request to withhold the DNA evidence was refused by the public prosecutor, Jose Cunha de Magalhaes
e Meneses, at a meeting in the Algarve town of Portimaõ on Thursday, according to Correiõ da Manha. Detective Superintendent
Stuart Prior, the officer in charge of the British end of the inquiry, was among those at the conference, the paper said.
A Leicestershire police spokeswoman refused to comment on the report and would not confirm which officers
were in Portugal.
"Representatives from Leicestershire Constabulary are currently in Portugal to better understand how the
disclosure process works following a criminal investigation in Portugal," she said. "This has included a meeting with the
public prosecutor."
The British officers will return to the UK within the next few days.
Mr and Mrs McCann, both 40, from Rothley, Leicestershire, remain arguidos, or formal suspects,
in their daughter's disappearance.
The Portuguese authorities' investigation into Madeleine's disappearance from the Algarve holiday resort
of Praia da Luz on May 3 last year appears to be coming to an end. Detectives handed over their lengthy final report at the
start of this month for prosecutors to consider whether to bring charges, request further inquiries or close the case.
In recent weeks Portuguese newspapers, citing anonymous sources, have repeatedly reported that the investigation
would be shelved shortly, but could be reopened if new evidence emerged.
If the Portuguese authorities do shelve the case, the McCanns want their own private investigators to
be given access to detectives' files so they can continue the search for Madeleine.
The McCanns' spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said today: "Obviously they are aware of numerous reports suggesting
that the case is about to be shelved.
"If that is the case they hope that it is made very clear that their arguido status is revoked
and they hope to gain access to the police files so that their private investigators can continue the search for Madeleine."
Despite a huge police investigation and massive coverage in the Portuguese and British media, the young
girl has not been found.
The third arguido in the case, the Algarve property consultant Robert Murat, 34, received £600,000
in libel damages from four newspaper groups yesterday over "seriously defamatory" articles. Two other people wrong accused
of being involved in Madeleine's disappearance received what have been described as "substantial six figure sums".
Mr Murat and the McCanns all strenuously deny any involvement in Madeleine's disappearance.
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British police failed to stop DNA evidence in McCann case from being made public Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 12:51 AM on 19th July 2008
British police officers were yesterday accused
of trying to stop DNA information allegedly linked to Kate and Gerry McCann's hire car from being made public.
The
claim was made in a Portuguese newspaper after Midlands detectives travelled to Portugal to meet the public prosecutor involved
in the investigation into the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine.
Under the headline 'English in Portimao to Protect Secrecy', the newspaper Correio da Manha claimed two
Leicestershire officers tried to stop information - including results of a DNA test on a sample from the McCanns' Renault
Scenic hire car - from being made public.
Last year, the McCanns were the subject of allegations in the Portuguese
press over DNA allegedly found in the boot of the car.
The couple hired the car almost a month after Madeleine, then
aged three, vanished while on a family holiday in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz.
The McCanns, both 40, from Rothley
Leicestershire, have always insisted that if such traces were found, there were wholly innocent explanations for it. They
deny any involvement in Madeleine's disappearance.
Some of the forensic testing was done at the Forensic Science Service laboratory in Birmingham for Leicestershire
police.
Last night, Leicestershire police refused to discuss the details of a meeting between public prosecutor Jose
Cunha de Magalhaes e Meneses and the officers.
The force confirmed that officers held discussions about how some evidence
would be disclosed at the end of the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance, but refused to comment on the newspaper
report.
Speculation is mounting that the McCanns will be officially cleared of having anything to do with their daughter's
disappearance. They remain 'arguidos'- or formal suspects - but it is expected this status will be lifted next week.
Portuguese police have already filed a report for prosecutors. It will advise lawyers
to bring charges, request further inquiries or close the case.
On Wednesday, Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro, Portugal's
attorney-general, said: 'The Maddie Case will have a solution on Monday and you will hear of it.'
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20 July 2008
Thanks to Joana Morais for translation
Tests. On the day before the likely announcement by the Attorney General
of the archiving of the Maddie case, DN knows from sources that are close to the process that the analyses from hair that
was found in the McCanns' car revealed that 16 out of 18 markers match the child's genetic information
Judge mistrusts evidence used in an isolated manner
Tests that were performed on hair
that was collected from the boot of the car that was rented by the McCanns in the Algarve have determined that 16 out of 18
markers match Madeleine's genetic information. The information, which was released to DN by a source from the PJ, joins the
results in the preliminary report from the Birmingham lab, in England, where it is verified that "15 out of the 19 genetic
markers that were found in a residue that was collected from the couple's car boot are a match" with the child.
"The evidence is unequivocal for the investigators", the PJ source guarantees. "We are talking about a tuft of hair that
was found in the spare tyre well, in the car boot, which could not have fallen from the siblings' clothes or have ended up
on that spot by other means. The issue is that in order to make a solid proof in court, one has to reach 18 markers. But with
16, the investigators have no doubts left", the policeman recognises.
But for a judge that was contacted by DN, there
is no reason for such certainties. "It depends on which markers are missing and if I had to decide only with a basis on that
element of proof, I would not take a case to court, because the chances for success would be very small. This type of evidence
always has to be articulated with other elements."
Another source that is well positioned near the process, and with
forensics knowledge, sustains the PJ agent's version by defending that "these tests are like the collection of fingerprints,
where a piece of evidence in court needs to detect 13 points, but from 11 onwards the police is already certain".
For
DN's source, the conclusions from the tests that were performed on the hair that was found inside the Renault Scénic that
was used by the McCanns were not included in the PJ's final report merely because "if the evidence was not going to be used
in court, the police did not want the Public Ministry to say that there is a persecution of the child's parents".
Although
he mistrusts this isolated type of evidence, the judge that was heard by DN argues that there is matter to take the parents
of Maddie McCann to court. "They could be judged over the crime of endangering a minor, because leaving their daughter alone
inside a hotel room while they go to dinner is not acceptable within the social patterns, and over obstruction of justice.
It is better to remember that the childs parents called the televisions before they called the police."
We'll savage bungling cops on Oprah show
By Nick Dorman
20 July 2008
Madeleine McCann's parents will savage bungling Portuguese cops in a tell-all interview with chat queen Oprah Winfrey
when they are cleared as suspects tomorrow.
For 317 days fuming Kate and Gerry have been gagged by their status as arguidos.
But at noon tomorrow a judge will formally lift the cloud of suspicion - as exclusively revealed in The People in April.
And the McCanns will finally be free to speak about the investigation into three-year-old Maddie's disappearance.
They are set to launch a stinging attack on US star Oprah's TV show - although her rival Barbara Walters is also vying
to secure the first interview with the couple. The doctors, both 40, will either go to the States or speak from their home
in Rothley, Leics.
Pals expect them to highlight more than a dozen basic errors by police in the four weeks after their daughter's disappearance
on May 3 last year.
These include: FAILING to immediately seal off the crime scene in Praia da Luz, allowing vital forensic evidence to be
lost in and around the McCann holiday apartment.
Failing to inform Spanish border cops until the next morning.
Waiting more than 48 hours before house-to-house inquiries began. DELAYING the decision to bring in child abduction specialists
and ISSUING a baffling series of different descriptions of suspects - including one primitive e-fit picture which resembled
a "boiled egg with hair".
The McCanns will also round on cops for leaking details of the case to the Portuguese press in a bid to incriminate them.
Their spokesman Clarence Mitchell said last night: "Kate and Gerry will talk about the police inquiry once their arguido
status has been lifted.
"They want to get their side of the story across. They want the weight of guilt by association lifted from their shoulders.
And they will make it clear that they will continue to search for Madeleine, come what may."
The couple are likely to focus their fury on top cop Goncalo Amaral, who was kicked off the Madeleine case last October
following allegations of incompetence and attacks on his British police counterparts.
Moustachioed Amaral, 48, sometimes worked little more than four hours a day and enjoyed long, boozy lunches.
He was also overheard telling of his suspicions that the McCanns killed their daughter.
Police still have NO idea what happened to Madeleine, who disappeared from her bed while her parents were eating out.
A friend said yesterday: "Kate and Gerry are furious. They've kept their thoughts private - because the Portuguese legal
system left them no choice. It's been incredibly frustrating.
"They know the police have given up looking for Maddie, so they've nothing to lose. A string of mistakes were made. And
police leaked things that were totally untrue. When it was reported that Maddie's DNA was found in their car, Kate and Gerry
could only conclude someone was trying to frame them.
"Being suspects has put an appalling strain on them. Kate hasn't been able to go out without thinking people may be pointing
a finger of blame.
"As soon as they're free to talk about the appalling way they have been treated, they will."
By Joshua Layton
20 July 2008
Maddie suspect Robert Murat has told how he fears he will never be able to rebuild his life - even though he hopes to
be cleared tomorrow.
The former property developer said: "I don't know if I will ever be able to shake off the stigma of being 'that Maddie
man'.
"People say there is no smoke without fire and there may always be some who still doubt me. I have to live with that
for the rest of my life."
Speaking through a relative, Murat, 34, said: "I want my old life back as it was 14 months ago but that's just not possible."
Murat hopes Portuguese cops will drop his "arguido" status at the same time as Maddie's parents are cleared. He said:
"I'm determined to move on and feel I have a future. But at the moment I have no idea which direction it will take me."
Murat was awarded £600,000 libel damages last Thursday for stories claiming he was involved in Maddie's abduction.
But he said: "I don't feel elated and this is not something to be celebrated. I'd have preferred not to have gone through
this nightmare in the first place."
Murat's girlfriend, Michaela Walczuch, 33, and IT consultant friend Sergey Malinka, 23, also won High Court damages.
Divorced Murat, who is half Portuguese, offered to translate for police after Maddie was snatched in Praia da Luz.
He was made a suspect after claims that he was seen near the McCanns' flat the night the tot vanished. His mother said
he was home all night.
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The Portuguese Attorney-General's office announced that the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance was to be archived,
pending further evidence.
The arguido status of the three suspects; Gerry McCann, Kate McCann and Robert Murat was lifted.
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The dodgy DNA evidence that lead to the McCanns
being made suspects Daily Mail
By VANESSA ALLEN
Last updated at 6:51 AM on 22nd July 2008
The forensic evidence which led to Kate and Gerry McCann being named as suspects
was misunderstood by Portuguese police, it was claimed yesterday.
Detectives wrongly believed the work of British experts supported their theory that Madeleine had died
in her parents' rented holiday apartment, when in fact the DNA analysis was inconclusive, it was suggested.
The claims come from leaks from inside the Portuguese investigation, based on an initial British forensic
report into the case.
Detectives apparently believed that scientists found Madeleine's DNA and blood in
the apartment and in the McCanns' hire car, which they did not rent until 25 days after her disappearance.
Armed with that 'evidence' and the knowledge that dogs supposedly found the 'scent of death' on Mrs McCann's
clothes, they decided to name the couple as suspects.
But the final report from the Forensic Science Service in Birmingham several weeks later said that the
DNA evidence in the case was inconclusive, and did not support the police's theory.
The report, handed over a month after the McCanns were made suspects, said scientists could not be sure
if the samples had come from Madeleine, her younger sister Amelie, or even from her mother.
The samples were said to be tiny, badly degraded and heavily contaminated.
The dogs' reaction was also questioned following claims that they were unreliable and had been criticised
in a U.S. trial.
Police also failed to realise that Mrs McCann, who is a GP, had come into contact with six patients who
died before she went on holiday.
The collapse of the key elements of the investigation led to the police inquiry stalling, and eventually
to yesterday's decision to clear the McCanns as suspects.
It was said to have led to an angry clash between Portuguese detectives and British forensic officials
during a visit to Leicester in December. Officers arrived expecting to hear details of the DNA evidence, and had pinned their
hopes on it solving their investigation.
Sources said there was a ' standup row' when they were told that the evidence was inconclusive.
FSS officials have angrily denied any suggestion that a blunder by their scientists could have been to
blame.
Lawyers representing the lab flew to Portugal last week to try to block plans to make their findings public.
Mark Williams-Thomas, a former police officer who claims to have had access to the Portuguese case, said
the police had pinned their case on the DNA evidence.
'It was a key element of the decision to make the McCanns suspects, along with the cadaver dogs and supposed
discrepancies between the statements of the Tapas Seven (the group of friends who dined with the McCanns on the night Madeleine
vanished).
'There were two reports from the FSS lab, one in September and one in December.
'The first was thought to be conclusive but the second one wasn't.'
Mr Williams-Thomas questioned whether the Portuguese police had fully understood the first, preliminary
report from the FSS.
'We don't know the level of expertise within the Portuguese police to interpret the results,' he said.
A source close to the Birmingham based forensic lab added: 'There is absolutely no question of the reports
being contradictory.
'The way the scientists work is utterly focused on facts and accuracy. Everything they find is checked,
sent off to other scientists and checked again.
'There were no mistakes made. When the case files are made public, this will become obvious.'
Martin Brunt, Sky News crime correspondent
12:56pm UK, Tuesday July 22, 2008
Kate and Gerry McCann have to wait a week to see the police files on the Madeleine
case, but a summary has already been leaked to a Portuguese website.
It explains why the couple were made arguidos... because of the "scent of death"
detected by the cadaver dog and their own reluctance to answer police questions.
According to the leak, the dog found the smell of a corpse in the couple's bedroom at apartment 5a and
behind a sofa in the living room.
The dog detected the same on Madeleine's soft toy Cuddle Cat and on the key fob in the family's hire car.
The police report says the couple were made arguidos "due to the slight possibility of connection to a
corpse".
The second animal - a blood dog - found traces of Madeleine's blood behind the couch, on two items of
Kate McCann's clothes and on the key fob and in the car boot, according to the leak.
It also says there was a DNA match to Madeleine's on samples taken from the car but later forensic results
did not confirm that initial finding.
Robert Murat was made a suspect after a British Sunday newspaper reporter gave his name to police because
of his "inquisitive" behaviour.
Suspicions were fuelled by friends of the McCanns who claimed he helped in the search for Madeleine on
the night she vanished, contradicting his alibi that he was at his nearby home with his mother all night.
The report says detectives found no one else who saw him on the night and telephone wires and searches
provided no evidence of his involvement.
In a fascinating glimpse of the kind of information fed to police, one witness said he had overhead Gerry
McCann talking into his mobile phone in nearby Lagos and saying "please don't hurt Madeleine".
Detectives did cell site analysis on Gerry's phone and established he was elsewhere at the time. The witness
was wrong.
Police report into Madeleine's
disappearance is leaked online as McCanns threaten to sue police over bungled probe Daily Mail
By VANESSA ALLEN, DAVID WILKES and NIALL FIRTH
Last updated at 2:36 PM on 22nd July 2008
The police file of the investigation into disappearance of Madeleine McCann was
leaked online today.
A 57-page report dated June 20, 2008 and written by an Algarve-based inspector
with the Policia Judiciaria was placed on the website of the well-regarded Portuguese newspaper Expresso today.
The apparent leak comes just a day after the McCanns were cleared of any involvement
in their daughter's disappearance.
The couple's spokesman Clarence Mitchell criticised the leaking of the document.
He said: 'As always we simply will not comment on anything that appears to be from
the usual anonymous sources.
'If any elements of the police report are being placed online, that would not only
be wrong, you have to ask yourself who is behind it and why.
'Gerry and Kate's lawyers in Portugal will be applying formally for access to the
complete file and they will be analysing everything in it in their own time without making elements public at this stage."
Earlier it was revealed that the McCanns may sue the Portuguese police over the
bungled investigation into the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine.
As their relief at having their 'arguido' status revoked turned to anger, the McCanns
have said that have not ruled out initiating legal proceedings.
The couple's spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said: 'By the end of this week, lawyers
will have complete access to everything.
'They will have 20 days to assess the work of the police and what has been done
and what hasn't been done. If they feel legal action is necessary, we could press charges.'
He added: 'It's going to be a long, slow process, both for the lawyers in examining
the volumes and for Kate and Gerry to be informed of their contents and whether there's any need for legal redress.
'The priority has always been finding Madeleine so the investigative work is first
and foremost.
'If there are any leads from the files, for instance new sightings, that's what
the private investigators will focus on in the first instance.
'The question of legal action remains an option but that is not the priority right
now. It is something Kate and Gerry will take advice on from the British and Portuguese lawyers.'
Mr McCann, speaking last night after he and his wife were cleared, also did not
rule out taking legal action, although he said it would come second to finding Madeleine.
'We don't have any immediate plans to return to Portugal at the moment. Obviously
we want to digest the statement and also to get access to the files to see what can still be done,' he said.
The couple's lawyers have already started the legal process to get their hands
on the full police files into the fruitless investigation.
They are said to be using international investigators including Spanish-based agency
Metodo 3 and British-based private detectives.
Their Portuguese lawyer Carlos Pinto de Abreu was lodging an application for access
to the files today and they are expected to be released by the end of the week.
The McCanns will then have 20 days to appeal against the Portuguese attorney general's
decision to drop the case, although this is unlikely.
Hours after they were officially cleared by Portugal's Attorney General yesterday,
the couple appeared side by side last night in their home town of Rothley, Leicestershire, Mrs McCann, struggling to keep
her emotions in check, spoke of the terrible effect the police decision to make them 'arguidos' has had on them and the search
for Madeleine.
Trembling and clutching a child's pink rucksack with her daughter's favourite toy
Cuddle Cat inside, she said: 'It is hard to describe how utterly despairing it was for us to be named as arguidos and subsequently
portrayed in the media as suspects in our own daughter's abduction and worse.
'It has been equally devastating to witness the detrimental effect this status
has had in the search for Madeleine.'
The couple fear that potential witnesses who might have come forward with vital
information were deterred when they were named arguidos in September.
They held a brief news conference at a hotel near their home after Portuguese officials
admitted they had found no evidence against them, lifted the suspect status and announced they were shelving the investigation.
Since being made arguidos - official suspects - ten agonising months ago, the McCanns
have not commented on the state of the investigation or aired their views about the police because they were gagged by Portugal's
strict judicial secrecy laws.
As her husband clutched her hand tightly for support, Mrs McCann, looking pale
and close to tears, added: 'We can assure you we will never give up our search for Madeleine.'
Their official spokesman Clarence Mitchell said the couple had been 'wrongly accused'
and 'now the world will see that they (the Portuguese police) were wrong.'
They said that while they welcomed the lifting of the arguido status and the Portuguese
attorney general's admission that police had failed to find any evidence that they had committed any crime, it was 'not a
cause for celebration'.
Glasgow-born Mr McCann and his wife, both 40, had not ruled taking legal action
against the Portuguese authorities for the way they have been treated.
They said they hope that now their lawyers are allowed access to the police file,
it will give them new leads in their private investigators' search for Madeleine, who went missing just before her fourth
birthday in May last year.
Mrs McCann said: 'We are looking forward to scrutinising the police files to see
what has actually been done and more importantly to see what can still be done as we leave no stone unturned in our search
for our little girl.'
The files are believed to include thousands of leads, hundreds of witness statements
and alleged DNA links between missing Madeleine and her parents. They also contain the supposed evidence for making them suspects.
The couple have fought long and hard to gain access to the masses of information.
Earlier this month they won a legal battle against Leicestershire Police for access to 81 pieces of information.
The news that they will now be able to look at the complete set of police files
came as an unexpected bonus to the couple, friends say.
Attorney general Jose Cunha Pinto Monteiro's announcement yesterday raised immediate
questions about why the McCanns were forced to endure months under the cloud of suspicion, and to live with the constant threat
that they could face charges over the disappearance.
Yesterday it was claimed that forensic evidence which led to the McCanns being
named as suspects could have been misunderstood by Portuguese police.
Detectives wrongly believed the evidence supported their theory that Madeleine
had died in her parents' rented holiday apartment when in fact the DNA analysis was inconclusive, it was suggested.
Mr Monteiro was careful to highlight the fact that the McCanns and fellow arguido
Robert Murat were no longer under suspicion of any crime.
There had been widespread speculation that the couple might have faced child neglect
charges over their decision to leave their three youngsters alone in their rented holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, while
they had dinner with friends at a tapas bar nearby.
The attorney general said: 'The investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine
McCann has been archived as no evidence was discovered of any crime committed by the arguidos.
'Hereby the condition of arguido of Robert James Queriol Eveleigh Murat, Gerald
Patrick McCann and Kate Marie Healy ceases, and the bail measures imposed upon them have expired.'
He said the case could be reopened if fresh evidence is uncovered, and said the
McCanns' legal team and Mr Murat's lawyers would be allowed to see the case files once a few legal formalities had been completed.
Mr Monteiro's long-awaited decision to shelve the 15-month police investigation
came as a huge relief to the McCanns, but their spokesman said there could be no sense of jubilation while their daughter
was still missing.
'They welcome this news but the whole thing has been an unnecessary distraction
since September,' said Mr Mitchell.
'The main thing now is to get everything back to finding Madeleine. The only thing
they care about is finding Madeleine.
'We hope that the Portuguese authorities will continue to co-operate with their
private investigation.'
Murat: I'm free to rebuild my life
Robert Murat told of his relief yesterday as he was formally cleared as a suspect.
The Briton, who lived near the flat where Madeleine disappeared, spent almost 15
months as an arguido after he was questioned on May 14 last year.
Mr Murat, 34, said he wanted to rebuild his life as a property consultant in the
Algarve.
Asked if he was still in shock, he said: 'I think if you spend 15 months under
a cloud of suspicion none of this feels entirely real.'
He told Sky News: 'There's a little girl still missing out there, so it's a time
for relief but not for celebration.
'I hope in the future something comes out that proves that I had nothing to do
with this. I do hope they keep on investigating and they find out what happened.'
Former police chief: I still believe she's dead
The former head of the Madeleine police investigation yesterday told why he still
believes she is dead.
Goncalo Amaral said all the evidence suggested she had died inside her parents'
rented holiday apartment on May 3 last year - the night of her disappearance.
Mr Amaral, who is publishing a book about the case on Thursday, denied he had led
a 'persecution' against Kate and Gerry McCann.
He told the BBC: 'The evidence that we had gathered by the time that I left the
case pointed to the girl being dead - and having died inside the apartment.
'I don't know what happened next. I can't say. We'll have to wait for the case
files to be made public.'
Mr Amaral led the police investigation but was removed from the case in October
after he accused British police of checking only leads which helped the McCanns.
He was widely criticised for focusing solely on the theory that Madeleine died
in her parents' care and that they disposed of her body to cover up her accidental death.
But he insisted he was not acting alone when he decided to name them as suspects.
'In this case, it wasn't purely and simply a decision taken by police officers
- Portuguese and British police. There were others involved.
'There was no persecution. The police don't want to persecute anyone, just to investigate
what happened in a given case.'
Mr Amaral said that he retired recently because he wanted to be able to speak freely.
He denied he was seeking to profit from Madeleine's disappearance by publishing his 224-page book, The Truth of the Lie.
'People can say what they like,' he said. 'I'm trying to contribute to the discovery
of the truth.
'I worked 27 years as a police officer - and my conscience can't accept that this
is the first case that slipped through my fingers.'
Friends of the McCanns have warned that their legal team will study the book and
have not ruled out bringing libel proceedings against Mr Amaral.
He is also facing a perjury trial over claims that he helped to cover up the alleged
torture of the mother of another missing girl in the Algarve by some of his officers.
Madeleine inquiry report
leaked Metro
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Portuguese detectives made
Madeleine McCann's parents suspects on the "slightest chance" they could have been involved in her disappearance, a leaked
report revealed.
An official 57-page summary of the massive final dossier assembled by the Policia
Judiciaria (PJ) - Portugal's CID - was apparently posted online.
The leak came as Gerry and Kate McCann considered taking legal action against
the Portuguese authorities after the couple had their suspect status formally lifted.
The police report, dated June 20 2008 and written by an Algarve-based PJ inspector,
was placed on the website of the Portuguese newspaper Expresso.
Detectives named the McCanns as "arguidos", or formal suspects, last September
in the light of sniffer dog searches and initial DNA test results, according to the document. This was because inquiries had
flagged up the "slightest chance of their involvement with a possible corpse" in their holiday flat and hire car, it said.
The leaked report said a "cadaver dog", trained to sniff out dead bodies, picked
up a scent in the McCanns' apartment and on clothes belonging to Mrs McCann and Madeleine. The animal also apparently scented
death on the key of the Renault Scenic hire car rented by the McCanns 24 days after the little girl went missing.
Preliminary forensic analysis on samples recovered from the McCanns' hire car
raised the possibility of a match with Madeleine's DNA profile, the report said. But final DNA test results could not match
the material to any particular person - or even establish whether it was blood or another type of body fluid.
When Mr and Mrs McCann, both 40, were interviewed on September 6 and 7 they
denied having anything to do with their daughter's disappearance, the document noted.
Madeleine was nearly four when she vanished from her family's holiday apartment
in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3 last year as her parents dined with friends nearby.
The leaked PJ report details the numerous leads Portuguese detectives pursued
fruitlessly - including psychic visions and thousands of reported sightings of Madeleine from as far away as Indonesia and
Singapore.
PA
Tuesday, 22 July 2008
Portuguese police's final report on their investigation
into Madeleine McCann's disappearance was apparently leaked online today.
The lengthy document was posted on a newspaper website the day after prosecutors shelved the case and
formally lifted the suspect status of the little girl's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann.
The couple's lawyers in Portugal are still awaiting official notification that they can now examine the
police files in detail.
It is hoped they will gain access to the dossier, thought to stretch to 13 volumes, by the end of this
week.
A 57-page report dated June 20, 2008 and written by an Algarve-based inspector with the Policia Judiciaria
- Portugal's CID - was placed on the website of the Portuguese newspaper Expresso today.
McCann family spokesman Clarence Mitchell criticised the apparent leaking of the document.
He said: "As always we simply will not comment on anything that appears to be from the usual anonymous
sources.
"If any elements of the police report are being placed online, that would not only be wrong, you have
to ask yourself who is behind it and why.
"Gerry and Kate's lawyers in Portugal will be applying formally for access to the complete file and they
will be analysing everything in it in their own time without making elements public at this stage."
The leaked document appears to be a summary of the huge police dossier which was handed to prosecutors
at the start of this month.
It details the many leads that Portuguese detectives followed up - including interviews with resort staff,
witness sightings and house-to-house inquiries at 443 properties in the village where Madeleine went missing.
The McCanns, from Rothley, Leicestershire, hope the opening of the files will provide fresh leads in their
own private investigation into their daughter's whereabouts.
Mr and Mrs McCann will "bide their time" before speaking out on the police inquiry into Madeleine's disappearance,
Mr Mitchell said today.
Legal action against the Portuguese authorities is an option, but that is not the couple's priority, he
added.
Mr Mitchell said: "It's going to be a long, slow process, both for the lawyers in examining the volumes
and for Kate and Gerry to be informed of their contents and whether there's any need for legal redress.
"The priority has always been finding Madeleine so the investigative work is first and foremost.
"If there are any leads from the files, for instance new sightings, that's what the private investigators
will focus on in the first instance.
"The question of legal action remains an option but that is not the priority right now. It is something
Kate and Gerry will take advice on from the British and Portuguese lawyers."
Madeleine was nearly four when she vanished from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve resort
of Praia da Luz on May 3 last year as her parents dined with friends nearby.
The leaked police report reveals that detectives made the McCanns "arguidos", or formal suspects, in September
in the light of sniffer dog searches and initial DNA test results.
This was because their inquiries had flagged up the "slightest chance of their involvement with a possible
corpse" in their holiday flat and hire car, it says.
The couple denied the allegations in their interviews, the report notes.
A "cadaver dog", trained to sniff out dead bodies, picked up a scent in the McCanns' apartment and on
clothes belonging to Mrs McCann and Madeleine, according to the document.
It also scented death on the key of the Renault Scenic hire car rented by the McCanns 24 days after the
little girl went missing, it says.
A second dog apparently detected blood on the key and in the boot of the car, as well as in the apartment.
Preliminary forensic analysis on samples recovered from the McCanns' hire car raised the possibility of
a match with Madeleine's DNA profile, according to the leaked report.
But the final results could not match the material to any particular person - or even establish whether
it was blood or another type of body fluid.
The document also suggests that Madeleine was left crying in her family's holiday flat for more than an
hour while her parents were out, two days before she went missing.
Pamela Fenn, a retired British ex-pat who lives upstairs from the McCanns' apartment in Praia da Luz,
said she heard the child wailing from about 10.30pm to about 11.45pm on May 1 last year.
Mrs Fenn said Madeleine only stopped crying after she heard the sound of the door when her parents came
back.
This "calls into question" the McCanns' insistence that they checked on their children every half an hour,
the report says.
Dogs prompted McCanns police move BBC News
By Alison Roberts, BBC News, Portugal
Page last updated at 21:12 GMT, Tuesday, 22 July
2008 22:12 UK
Kate and Gerry McCann were declared suspects in their daughter
Madeleine's disappearance because of the reaction of sniffer dogs, a police report says.
The BBC has seen the final Portuguese police report into her disappearance, the day after the case was
shelved.
The report says police were "obliged" to make Mrs McCann, of Rothley, Leics, a suspect on the "merest
possibility" she had been in contact with a corpse.
The couple and Briton Robert Murat are no longer formal suspects in the case.
Madeleine disappeared on a holiday with her parents in Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, on 3 May 2007, aged
three.
The report for prosecutors says it was the reactions of the British-based sniffer dogs, one trained to
find human blood, the other the presence of a corpse, which led to police declaring the McCanns as formal suspects last September.
Samples analysed
According to the police report, the dogs reacted at various points in the McCanns' holiday apartment,
in the car they hired several weeks after Madeleine's disappearance, on two items of Mrs McCann's clothing and on at least
one item of Madeleine's.
The British-based laboratory that analysed samples from these sites initially "found the possibility that
Madeleine's DNA profile matched some of the samples collected", the police report says, but the same lab later found that
they could not be identified as belonging to anyone in particular.
But, when Mrs McCann was questioned in September, the report continues, police were obliged to declare
her an "arguido", with the extra legal rights this gave her, "in view of the mere possibility of her having been in contact
with the possible corpse".
It was only after this questioning that the British lab rowed back from its initial findings, according
to the police report.
Regarding Mr Murat, the first person to be declared arguido in the case, suspicions "initially" arose
when a British journalist reported him acting strangely, the report says.
This contradicts what police told media, including the BBC, at the time, which was that detectives had
already had their eye on him.
The document confirms earlier media reports that a woman staying upstairs from the McCanns recalled hearing
a child crying for over an hour in the family's apartment, on the eve of Madeleine's disappearance.
The report also says a reconstruction of the night Madeleine disappeared - when her parents were eating
at a nearby restaurant with friends - could have established whether the timeline was consistent with abduction by a stranger,
as police had difficulty doing this on the basis of the group's testimony.
The reconstruction did not take place after some of the McCanns' seven holiday companions declined to
take part.
'Defensive tone'
The 57-page final report, complemented by appendices detailing police actions and findings, at times takes
a defensive tone.
And it is only a portion of the mass of documentation relating to the case.
It stresses the thousands of man-hours put in by over 100 detectives from early on in the investigation,
working round the clock.
It reveals the hundreds of house searches carried out and the thousands of leads phoned in by the public
that they had to sift through, most of which, it says, were found not to be credible.
Meanwhile, the Portuguese authorities have dismissed suggestions that they have been incompetent or that
they were washing their hands of the case.
In written answers to questions put by the BBC, the attorney general's office said police had taken all
steps that "any good police force in the world would and will continue to take them until it can obtain a satisfactory result."
The investigation, it said, "will always remain open and all action taken that proves necessary to find
out what really happened".
It cited as examples of new facts that could prompt the files to be reopened "a confession, a telephone
conversation [or] a new credible witness".
The Portuguese police's national director, José Maria Almeida Rodrigues, speaking on Portuguese radio,
said his detectives would "follow all leads" that might come up in the case but "with restraint and discretion".
The McCann family spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said: "Gerry and Kate's lawyers in Portugal will be applying
formally for access to the complete file and they will be analysing everything in it in their own time."
On Monday, Portugal's attorney-general, Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro, said the 14-month investigation
into Madeleine's disappearance had uncovered no evidence of a crime by any of the arguidos.
As a result, the case has been shelved and the McCanns' and Mr Murat's status as suspects ended.
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Madeleine hunt will be taken 'to the ends of the earth' even though case has been shelved, says Portugal's top policeman Daily Mail
By VANESSA ALLEN and DAVID WILKES
Last updated at 8:36 AM on 23rd July 2008
Portugal's top police officer has vowed to search
"to the ends of the Earth" for Madeleine McCann - even though the case has been officially shelved by prosecutors..
National director of the Judicial Police, Almeida Rodrigues, insisted his detectives would chase up every
lead until the mystery is solved.
He insisted the case would remain open and that officers would never give up on the hunt.
He told newspaper 24 Horas: "The Judicial Police will continue to chase up every credible lead we receive
and we will travel to the ends of the Earth if needs be.
"As with other unexplained disappearances, there are some cases that are always open.
"The fact that the criminal process has been archived does not mean the case is closed.
"A case only stops being investigated if there is a successful criminal trial."
Mr Rodrigues spoke after attorney general Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro announced the archiving of the
case on Monday.
A leaked police report stated yesterday that Kate and Gerry McCann were made police suspects because of
the 'mere possibility' they were involved in their daughter's disappearance.
The couple endured ten months of agony as the prime suspects in the Madeleine McCann investigation despite
police having no real evidence against them.
In a leaked copy of Portuguese police's final report on their 14-month £2.5million investigation, detectives
admitted they found nothing to support their suspicions against the McCanns.
The Madeleine investigation was formally shelved on Monday and the couple, both 40, were told they were
no longer arguidos - formal suspects.
Later this week, their lawyer will be given access to the estimated 11,000 documents in the police files.
It is hoped the files will contain clues that could help find Madeleine, who was three when she went missing
from her family's rented holiday apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3 last year.
The Portuguese newspaper Expresso claimed to have a leaked copy of the police's final report, which was
handed to prosecutors last month.
The newspaper said the 57-page report provides details of the chain of events which led to the police
decision to name the McCanns, of Rothley, Leicestershire, as arguidos.
The report said detectives had acted on the belief that forensic tests in the couple's apartment and hire
car supported 'the possibility of a corpse'. It added: 'They (the McCanns) were made arguidos due to the mere possibility
of their involvement.'
The report admitted police had not found any evidence against the other named suspect, British expat Robert
Murat, 34. He was also cleared on Monday.
It concluded: 'It was not possible to obtain a concrete and objective conclusion about what truly happened
that night, or the current whereabouts of the missing child.'
Goncalo Amaral, the former head of the investigation who is due to publish a book on the case tomorrow,
insisted the accusations against the McCanns could be resurrected 'at any moment'.
Mr Amaral said: 'The [Portuguese] attorney general does not say they are innocent... It is not a statement
of innocence of Madeleine's parents.'
Kate and Gerry McCann
threaten legal action over Madeleine book Telegraph
Kate and Gerry McCann have threatened legal action over the publication of an explosive account of the
investigation into their daughter's disappearance by the former detective in charge of the case.
By Fiona Govan in Lisbon
Last Updated: 9:03PM BST 23 Jul 2008
Goncalo Amaral, who led the investigation into
Madeleine's disappearance until he was sacked last October, has chosen to speak out about the case within days of it being
shelved and the parents cleared of any involvement.
In the book, which will appear in bookshops across Portugal on Thursday, the detective reveals details
of first five months of the investigation and presents his theories on what happened to the girl who disappeared shortly before
her fourth birthday from a holiday apartment in the Algarve.
The McCanns, both 40, were said to be appalled at the contents of the book after excerpts were leaked
to Portuguese newspapers and preparing to sue.
Mr Amaral, 48, also criticises elements of the probe, including contamination of the crime scene at a
very early stage by his own officers.
"Gerry and Kate are going to sue over this book," said a source close to the family.
The book reveals intimate details about the life of the couple in the days after their daughter's disappearance.
Clarence Mitchell, the family's spokesman, said: "People should bear in mind that Amaral is a discredited
former police officer who was removed from the case for criticising Leicestershire police.
"His own Attorney General ... on Monday, made it very clear there is absolutely no proof that any criminal
offence was committed by Kate or Gerry."
He accused the detective of shamelessly attempting to cash in on Madeleine's plight.
"Amaral is seeking to make money out of Madeleine's situation and is seeking publicity – it's quite
disgusting," he said admitting that legal advice had been taken.
"The libel lawyers who are representing Kate and Gerry and their friends are assessing every word of this
book very closely, and they will not hesitate from taking legal action against Amaral if any passage requires it."
The former chief inspector, who retired from the force earlier this month following criticism over the
way he handled the case, explained his motivation to write the book.
"I feel the time has come to restore my reputation after it was publicly sullied and I had no recourse
within the institution that is the Policia Judiciaria," he wrote in an author's statement released with the book.
"I also want to contribute to finding out the truth and seek justice for Madeleine," he added.
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Gonçalo Amaral launches his book 'A Verdade da Mentira' ('The Truth of the Lie') in Lisbon. It is greeted
with a furious reaction from the McCanns and the UK press.
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Madeleine Team Hope To See Files Sky News
8:11am UK, Friday July 25, 2008
Lawyers acting for the parents of Madeleine McCann expect to be granted access
to police files later today.
On Monday, police in Portugal decided to close the case into the disappearance of four-year-old
Madeleine, who went missing in Praia da Luz in May 2007.
Kate and Gerry McCann were formally cleared of involvement in Madeleine's disappearance when
prosecutors lifted their status as "arguidos", or formal suspects.
Madeleine vanished from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve
resort as her parents dined with friends nearby.
Despite a huge police investigation and massive coverage in the Portuguese and British media
she has not been found.
The McCanns' spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said the couple's lawyers in Portugal had applied
formally for access to the complete police file and they would "be analysing everything in it in their own time without making
elements public at this stage".
The McCanns, from Rothley, Leicestershire, are hoping that the files will provide fresh leads
in their own private investigation.
The dossier is thought to stretch to 13 volumes.
Mr Mitchell said: "It's going to be a long, slow process, both for the lawyers in examining the
volumes and for Kate and Gerry to be informed of their contents and whether there's any need for legal redress.
"The priority has always been finding Madeleine so the investigative work is first and foremost.
"If there are any leads from the files, for instance new sightings, that's what the private investigators
will focus on in the first instance."
Press Association National Newswire
By Sam Marsden, PA Chief Reporter
25 July 2008
Kate and Gerry McCann's lawyers are still awaiting access
to the Portuguese police files in the disappearance of the couple's daughter Madeleine, their spokesman said today.
Their
legal team in Portugal had expected to be granted official permission to look at the massive dossier of documents by the end
of this week.
But despite the leaking of a detailed 57-page summary of the file on Tuesday, the McCanns' lawyers have
so far not heard from the authorities.
Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "We are waiting for notification from
the court. We are very hopeful it will be early next week."
Meanwhile, it is understood the couple will definitely
take legal action against the former detective in charge of the Madeleine case over his new book.
Goncalo Amaral maintains
the young girl died in her family's holiday flat in A Verdade da Mentira - The Truth Of The Lie - which was published in Portugal
yesterday.
The McCanns, both 40, from Rothley, Leicestershire, were formally cleared of involvement in Madeleine's
disappearance on Monday, when prosecutors lifted their status as "arguidos", or formal suspects.
They say they will
continue to believe their daughter is alive until given firm evidence to the contrary, and their lawyers are now scrutinising
Mr Amaral's book.
Mr Mitchell said the McCanns' legal team would "take their time" to go through the text.
He
refused to comment on Portuguese newspaper reports that the book is to be published in English and that its film rights have
already been sold.
"We are not talking about Mr Amaral and his book. We are not giving him any oxygen of publicity,"
he said.
"All I will say is I hope he and his publishers, and the newspapers reporting his libellous allegations, are
very brave because action will be taken if required at a time of our choosing."
Mr Amaral, who was removed from the
case in October after reportedly criticising British police, argues in his book that investigators made the "mistake" of treating
the McCanns "with tweezers".
He also criticises British officers, claiming they held back a potentially important lead
for six months and questioning their relationship with the McCanns.
Leicestershire Police, which worked with Portuguese
detectives on the inquiry, declined to comment on Mr Amaral's allegations.
Madeleine was nearly four when she vanished
from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3 last year as her parents dined with friends
nearby.
Despite a huge police investigation and massive coverage in the Portuguese and British media, she has not been
found.
On Monday Portuguese prosecutors announced they were shelving the case and lifting the arguido status of the
McCanns and Algarve resident Robert Murat.
Mr and Mrs McCann may give further interviews in the coming weeks, but they
are said to be "worn down" by this week's emotionally draining developments.
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Robert Murat Sues McCann Friends SOL
By Felícia Cabrita and Margarida Davim
26 July 2008
Thanks to Joana Morais for translation
Robert Murat is going to prosecute two friends
of the McCann couple for perjury in a confrontation ordered by the judge. Also the Portuguese State will be prosecuted,
for allegedly "ruining his life". A curiosity: in the thorough searches to his house, Roman ruins were discovered.
Francisco
Pagarete, Murat's Lawyer, does not know the evidence that the English gave during the investigation. However, he was present
at the confrontation that - months after Murat had been constituted as arguido - was done between his client, Rachel Oldfield
and Fiona Payne. The lawyer guarantees to SOL: "They lied in front of us, with the clear intention of incriminating my
client".
Pagarete explains that, as soon as the case ends being under the secrecy of justice, he is going to consult
12 thousand pages of the process to find other evidences: "According to what I read in SOL, it was a British journalist who
did the first accusation to the English Police. I will check if that is in the process".
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Kate and Gerry McCann: Portuguese cops' hunt for Maddie
"pathetic" Sunday Mirror
Headline to article in paper edition:
Number of doors knocked on by British cops hunting missing Shannon Matthews:
5000
Number of doors knocked on by the Portuguese cops hunting Madeleine McCann:
443
By Lori Campbell
27 July 2008
Portuguese police knocked on just 443 doors in the failed hunt for missing
Madeleine McCann.
Their investigation was last night branded "pathetic" by her parents Kate
and Gerry, who are furious police did not do more to find their daughter.
There are 7,000 homes in Praia da Luz, the resort where four-year-old Madeleine
was snatched - but police went to fewer than one in 10 doors, says a report into the investigation.
In stark contrast, British police probing the disappearance of Shannon Matthews
earlier this year knocked on 5,000 doors and searched 2,000 houses.
Nine-year-old Shannon was found in 24 days, whereas Portuguese police have
stopped looking for Madeleine after 14 months.
A friend of the McCanns said: "The 443 doors would barely cover 500 yards
from the apartment where Madeleine was taken. That is shocking and unacceptable."
Police didn't even bother to go out of the resort to question residents in
neighbouring towns.
The McCanns expect to see the full police report this week and their team
of private investigators will go through every shred of evidence.
The source added: "They will analyse exactly what has and hasn't been done.
If it means going back to the very basics of knocking on doors in Praia da Luz, then they will do it.
"The report shows Portuguese police clearly didn't do a thorough job from
day one. It is immensely frustrating for Kate and Gerry." Former chief superintendent Dai Davies, who was head of the Royal
Protection Squad, slammed the Portuguese detectives' efforts as shameful.
He said: "It is simply ridiculous they only knocked on 443 doors. That would
take just a few hours.
"In the UK, officers go to thousands of doors and don't give up until they
have a lead.
That is basic policing, especially in an abduction case when the child could
still be nearby."
*
Note about relative population figures:
'In Praia da Luz, whose population is still little more than 1,000 even after decades of
foreigners settling in what once was a fishing village, some locals say they will never be able to feel the same way about
it again.' BBC News
'According to the 2001 census, the Dewsbury urban sub-area had a population of 54,341.' Wikipedia
And a reminder of the press coverage of the British police hunt for Shannon Matthews:
Police 'ignored' crucial clues in Shannon hunt Guardian
Detectives were alerted very quickly to suspicions about Mick Donovan, the uncle of the
missing girl's stepfather. Yet locals say they failed to act on the tip for weeks. David Smith and Andrew Russell examine
a case that could have far-reaching effects on future investigations
David Smith and Andrew Russell
The Observer, Sunday March 16 2008
Police faced growing questions last night over why it took 24 days to find missing schoolgirl Shannon Matthews
when her alleged kidnapper, Mick Donovan, was a relative who had been reported by neighbours as suspicious.
As Shannon's
relieved mother returned home and said she 'just couldn't stop crying' when she saw her nine-year-old daughter again, there
were calls for a review of the police investigation and an overhaul of procedures for dealing with missing children
Shannon
was found on Friday concealed in the base of a divan bed in Donovan's first-floor flat in Batley Carr, just a mile from her
home on an estate in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire. Donovan, the uncle of Shannon's stepfather Craig Meehan, was being questioned
by detectives last night. Residents in the tightly knit community claimed they tipped off police about him but he was not
confronted until last Friday, more than three weeks after Shannon went missing, despite the force mounting its biggest investigation
since the hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper 30 years ago.
Edward McMillan-Scott, Conservative MEP for Yorkshire and the
Humber, said with statistics showing that 'in more than three out of four cases like this a family member is involved', police
should have conducted a 'thorough search [of all family members that] would have included the suspect in this case'.
McMillan-Scott
said, although he did not want to criticise police without knowing the full facts about the case, he had requested a meeting
with officers in West Yorkshire.
He called for a system such as the 'amber alert' used in America, France and Belgium.
The system sees information put out on television, radio stations and motorway signs as soon as children go missing. McMillan-Scott
added: 'I have no doubt at all that with a similar system, Shannon would have been recovered within hours.'
(article continues...)
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Kate's Maddie diaries leaked The Sun
Published: Today (28 July 2008)
EXCERPTS from Kate McCann's diary covering the first agonising weeks after
daughter Maddie vanished have emerged.
They show that the desperate mum left messages asking PM Gordon Brown to
"increase political pressure" to aid the search. After he phoned 40-year-old Kate and husband Gerry, she noted that Mr Brown
was "nice and supportive" — but that she "felt a bit emotional after".
The pages were obtained from police files by a Portuguese paper.
Maddie, now five, went missing in the Algarve in May 2007. Disgraced police
chief Goncalo Amaral, 48, has made fanciful claims in his new book that it was impossible to conduct the inquiry due to political
pressure brought by the McCanns.
Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said last night the claims were "distorted
and ridiculous".
Meanwhile, shameless Amaral said yesterday he may write another book about
the case.
Official FindMadeleine.com website hacked
28 July 2008
The official FindMadeleine.com website has been breached by the hacker
known as: 'C1c4Tr1Z', who took the opportunity to use the 'News and Press Releases' section to post various messages,
some to a fellow hacker known as 'K1u'. The first message that appeared, replaced before a screenshot could be taken was:
I hope you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date
Released: 21/07/2008 23:03:00
I hope you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date Released: 10/07/2008 22:29:00
I hope
you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date Released: 12/04/2008 23:06:00
I hope
you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date Released: 19/03/2008 20:52:00
I hope you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date
Released: 19/03/2008 11:00:00
I hope you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date Released: 13/06/2008 23:00:00
I hope you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date Released: 02/02/2008
14:44:00
I hope you find madeleine! C1c4Tr1Z. Date Released: 01/02/2008 13:00:00
'C1c4Tr1Z' is an
Argentinian hacker who describes himself, on his brag site, as a 'WebAppSec & Hacking Enthusiast!'. 'K1u' also has his
own website.
'C1c4Tr1Z' reads CICATRIZ, which means scar. So this hacker calls himself 'SCAR'.
The first entry appeared 28 July 2008 00:27am
Screenshots (click images to enlarge):
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Update 29 July 2008
Site now completely gone and replaced with a maroon band across a blank page. A hackers code of 'Cc4Tr1Z' appears in
the top left corner of the page.
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| 29 July 2008 09:16am |
Further update, 29 July 2008: Site now appears to be operational again.
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By Geraldine Gittens
Tuesday July 29 2008
KATE and Gerry McCann are set to return to Ireland
later this year.
The couple and their young twins are expected to make the journey this autumn and plan to make a television
appearance while they're in the country. The couple's visit will be their first time to arrive in Ireland since their four-year-old
daughter Madeleine went missing last year.
Thanks
Kate and Gerry are expected to take up on an open invitation to appear on The Late Late Show to address
the nation and thank the Irish for their "incredible support".
One source for the Friday night chat show revealed to the Herald yesterday that "they are coming".
"It'll be at the end of September or early October," the source added.
The couple and their children were regular visitors to Ireland prior to Madeleine's disappearance in Praia
de Luz in May 2007 while on holiday. And it is believed they want to return to meet and thank the Irish people for their support.
RTE bosses are hoping that the McCanns will come on the show and reveal first-hand the terrible trauma
they've experienced. However, programme bosses are remaining tight lipped until closer to the scheduled visit.
Larry Masterson, executive producer of The Late Late Show confirmed that the interview remained "a possibility".
Mr Masterson is hopeful that the couple will appear on the Irish chat show after their spokesperson hinted
that they would do so.
"We had their solicitor/spokesperson on The Late Late Show last season and he stated on the show that
if they were coming to Ireland they'd come on the show."
The couple are said to be hugely grateful for the love and care the Irish public has given them since
their oldest daughter's disappearance.
"Ever since Madeleine disappeared, the number of letters and Mass cards sent to them has been phenomenal,"
said family spokesman Clarence Mitchell.
"In fact there have been more messages from Ireland than any other country in the world."
The trip to Ireland will be the family's first visit with their three-year-old twins, Sean and Amelie,
since Maddie was abducted in Portugal last summer.
The family are expected to stay in St Johnston, Co Donegal while they're in Ireland.
Painful
The autumn trip will be a painful reminder for the McCanns of their last visit to Donegal with their three
children in March, 2007 -- just weeks before Maddie was taken from Praia da Luz on May 3.
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31 July 2008
THE National Director of the Judicial Police (PJ)
has vowed to search "to the ends of the Earth" for Madeleine McCann even though the Attorney General's Office has announced
that the process has been archived.
Almeida Rodrigues said PJ detectives will continue to follow all new leads that
come up until the case is solved.
"The fact that the criminal process has been archived does not mean the case is
closed. A case only stops being investigated if there is a successful criminal trial," he told Portuguese television RTP.
These remarks were made as a reaction to a newspaper opinion article written for Diario Economico by Alipio Ribeiro,
his predecessor at the command of the PJ, in which he considered the archiving of the case to be hasty, stressing that a case
of a missing child should not be closed after such a short period of time just because investigators did not find evidence
enough to file charges against any of the suspects.
He also wrote that he believes that perhaps it would be more reasonable
to lift the 'arguido' (formal suspect) status from the three suspects and keep the case open and continue with the investigations.
Almeida Rodrigues answered by saying: "Dr Alipio [Ribeiro] was never recognised for being a particularly gifted investigator."
On another development connected to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, last week, Goncalo Amaral, the former head of the
investigation, published a book on the case. The book was sold out in just a few hours. The McCann family spokesman said libel
lawyers were assessing every word of the "Maddie The Truth of the Lie" book and will not hesitate in taking legal action if
any passage requires it. The Sun newspaper quoted a source close to the McCann family as having said that they plan to take
legal action against Amaral, Portuguese newspapers which reprinted parts of the book and bloggers who discussed it.
With
the process archived and the controversy in the bookshops, the Maddie case keeps on causing several reactions. The most recent
came from former President Jorge Sampaio, who told TV station TVI he believes that if the suspicions presented in Amaral's
book are true, they should have been used to reopen the process and not to write a book.
The former president also
criticised Alipio Ribeiro, saying that it is "truly unheard of, from the point of view of institutions and of the prestige
that we must defend before foreign countries, that the former director of the PJ, a joint prosecutor [Alipio Ribeiro], came
out to criticise the archiving [of the process of the disappearance of Madeleine] when it was him who managed that process,
and I also presume that the constitution of 'arguidos' [of Kate and Gerry McCann] was not entirely unknown to him. I think
this is an amazing thing in terms of pulling the rug from under the feet of the colleague that succeeded him in his post.
There is no democracy that justifies this," Sampaio said.
McCanns viewing police case files BBC News
Page last updated at 12:18 GMT, Thursday, 31 July
2008 13:18 UK
Lawyers acting for the parents of Madeleine McCann have started
examining Portuguese police files on the investigation, their spokesman says.
Kate and Gerry McCann were told they could begin to study some 20,000 pages filed
by police in Portimao.
The couple hope information within them could help their own private investigators continue the search.
Madeleine disappeared aged three on a holiday with her parents in Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, on 3 May
2007.
McCann family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "This is an important step forward in the search for Madeleine."
The police inquiry into her disappearance was wound up because of a lack of evidence on 21 July.
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1st Update (2 paragraphs added to end)
Page last updated at 12:29 GMT, Thursday, 31 July
2008 13:29 UK
Police also announced that the McCanns and a third British national, Robert Murat,
were no longer formal suspects when they closed the case.
The McCanns, both 39, and Mr Murat, 34, all strongly denied having had any involvement in what happened
to Madeleine.
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2nd Update with extended quote from Clarence Mitchell
Page last updated at 14:21 GMT, Thursday, 31 July
2008 15:21 UK
Lawyers acting for the parents of Madeleine McCann have started examining Portuguese
police files on the investigation, their spokesman says.
Kate and Gerry McCann were told they could begin to study some 20,000 pages filed by police in Portimao.
The couple, both 39, of Rothley, Leics, hope information within them could help their own private investigators.
Madeleine disappeared, aged three, on a holiday with her parents in Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, on 3
May 2007.
'Important step'
McCann family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said the examination of the files was "an important step forward"
in the search for Madeleine.
He said: "Kate and Gerry have long wanted to know what was in the police files and what was and wasn't
done in terms of the search for their daughter.
"They will be taking their time, along with lawyers, to assess the thousands of pages of information in
detail before they make any comment."
Any critical information will go to detectives to act on, he added.
The lawyers are also assessing whether files would support legal action against police over the way they
conducted the inquiry.
The police inquiry into Madeleine's disappearance was wound up because of a lack of evidence earlier this
month.
Police also announced that the McCanns and a third British national, Robert Murat, were no longer formal
suspects when they closed the case.
The McCanns and Mr Murat, 34, all strongly denied having had any involvement in what happened to Madeleine.
McCann lawyers gain access to Portuguese police files Independent
PA
Thursday, 31 July 2008
Lawyers acting for the parents of Madeleine McCann today began trawling through
the Portuguese police files on the investigation into how their daughter disappeared, the couple's spokesman said.
Gerry and Kate McCann's legal team received notification from the authorities
in Portugal that they could begin to study some 20,000 pages filed by police in Portimao, Clarence Mitchell said.
He said: "This is an important step forward in the search for Madeleine."
Rogerio Alves, the McCanns' top lawyer in Portugal, contacted the family
today to say he had received official notification that the volumes can now be examined.
He will travel from Lisbon to the Algarve next week to supervise colleagues.
In effect, the team will have August to leaf through the thousands of pages of information collected by detectives since May
last year.
Much of the information will already be familiar to the lawyers, including
statements made by the Leicestershire couple.
But the McCanns were largely kept in the dark about the official inquiry
because of Portuguese laws governing police investigations.
It is hoped the couple, from Rothley, and the private detective agency working
on their behalf, will unearth fresh leads to help their own search for Madeleine.
Mr Mitchell said: "Kate and Gerry have long wanted to know what was in the
police files and what was and wasn't done in terms of the search for their daughter.
"They will be taking their time along with lawyers to assess the thousands
of pages of information in detail before they make any comment.
"They and I will not be giving a running commentary. Any critical information
will go to their investigators to act on."
As well as potential leads, the McCanns' lawyers will be assessing whether
the files would support legal action against Portuguese police for the way they conducted the inquiry.
The opening of the files was permitted after the couple and expat Robert
Murat were told earlier this month that they were no longer arguidos, or formal suspects, in the case.
Public Ministry makes
process available from Monday onwards Lusa
31 July 2008
Faro, 31 Jul (Lusa) –
The Public Ministry makes the Madeleine McCann process, whose inquiry was archived on the 21st of this month and which prompted
the lifting of arguido status from the child's parents and from Robert Murat, available to the media on Monday.
The
document starts being made available to the journalists that requested access to the process, starting on Monday at the Public
Ministry's Office that operates with the Portimão Court, an official source informed today.
The prosecutor closed the investigation into the disappearance of British
girl Madeleine McCann on the 21st of this month and lifted the arguido status of the parents of the child,
Kate and Gerry McCann, and the Portuguese-British citizen Robert Murat, stressing that they can reopen the process in
the event that "new evidence" is reported.
The decision of the Attorney General's Office (PGR) was followed by
silence from the authorities who acted on the ground during the last 15 months.
While the Department of Criminal
Investigation of Portimão of the Judicial Police (PJ), coordinated by Paulo Rebelo, declined to comment on the decision,
the director of the PJ of Faro also declined to speak to journalists because, allegedly, he was in a meeting.
Inhabitants
and tourists who were in Praia da Luz, Lagos, when the announcement of the PGR was made, criticised the judicial authorities
decision to close the case into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, while the girl is still missing, considering that
the case "is badly compiled."
The parents of Madeleine McCann welcomed, in turn, the fact that they were no longer
arguidos in the investigation into the disappearance of their daughter and felt that the fact they were made arguidos
was "harmful" to the search operations.
The British girl Madeleine McCann, three years old, disappeared on May 03,
2007 from the tourist resort of Ocean Club in Praia da Luz, Lagos, Algarve, whilst she was in the apartment with twin
siblings, also children, and their parents were dining at the nearby restaurant in the company of a group of English
friends.
The mystery of the disappearance of the child and the apparent lack of motivation and solid clues to explain
what happened have helped to transform this case into one of the most media covered ever.
Dated: 2/8/2008, Appeared online: 31/7/2008
Portugal's Home Affairs Minster (sic), Rui Pereira, told the country this week he believed the GNR police
had acted in an "exemplary" fashion during the Madeleine McCann investigation, and in "close collaboration" with the PJ police.
Refuting criticism that the GNR police had contaminated the scene of crime before the PJ started their investigation,
the government representative guaranteed that there was communication between the two.
In his book ‘Maddie,
The Truth of the Lie', PJ ex-inspector Gonçalo Amaral criticises that GNR's behaviour during the investigation in Praia da
Luz, where the then three-year-old Madeleine McCann went missing from her bed in a holiday apartment belonging to the Ocean
Club Resort.
He accuses the officers
of disturbing the investigators' work, and maintains the child died in the apartment where she was on holiday with her family,
who he suspects hid her body following a "tragic accident".
Edition: 970
Dated: 2/8/2008, Appeared online: 31/7/2008
According to reports in the Portuguese
press this week, the Ocean Club Resort in Praia da Luz, from where toddler Madeleine McCann went missing last year on May
3rd, has laid off at least half a dozen employees following poor occupational rates, said to be half the number registered
12 months ago.
At least six long-term employees have been contacted to negotiate
the annulment of their contracts and respective compensation.
Most of the holidaymakers there at present booked their holiday packages last year. Furthermore, newspaper
Diário de Notícias claims travel company Mark Warner have stopped sending tourists to that resort, and in fact intend severing
all ties with the Ocean Club by the end of the year.
While the international economic crisis is being given as the main explanation for the drop in visitors,
tour guide António Santos believes the 'Maddie Case' has also had an effect.
"As much as people may argue to the contrary, it has contributed", to the current state of affairs, he
said.
"Until the child is found, dead or alive, there will always be a feeling of doubt and unease amongst
the English, who think there have been lots of errors in the way the Portuguese police lead the investigation into Madeleine's
disappearance."
He added, "Even many of the retired British residents in Praia da Luz are leaving".
Lagos GNR officers guarantee they patrol the area every day, but, António Santos says, "It is still not
enough to transmit an image of real safety".
On the other hand, he stressed, "Portugal has become a destination that is too expensive for the English,
due to the weakening of the pound, who have started to look to other destinations like Spain, Cuba and the Dominican Republic,
which are more attractive and cheaper".
Edition: 970
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With thanks
to Nigel at
McCann Files
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