A PAEDOPHILE
suspected of being involved in the disappearance of Madeleine
McCann has been ruled out of the inquiry.
He was the
last of 52 British sex offenders who have links with the Algarve
to be tracked down by detectives but has now been ruled out of
any involvement.
In a further
blow for Madeleine's parents, police files against them will not
be made public next week after the authorities applied to extend
their investigation. Kate and Gerry McCann, who remain official
suspects (arguidos) in their daughter's disappearance, had hoped
to discover what evidence detectives had against them on January
3 when a crucial secrecy deadline passed.
Under
Portuguese law the police must make their findings public eight
months after an investigation is launched.
But the
McCanns and Robert Murat - the only other official suspect -
will have to wait for at least three months to gain access to
the files following the postponement of the deadline. This is
allowed because prosecutors have awarded the investigation
"special complexity" status meaning normal rules can be ignored.
A source
within the Policia Judiciaria confirmed: "All the paedophiles
who were in Portugal at the time of the disappearance have now
been acquitted."
Few official
details about the police investigation are known because the
country's strict secrecy laws, which cover all criminal
inquiries, mean it is illegal to talk publicly about a case.
Breaching the
laws can be punishable by up to two years in prison.
Carlos
Casimiro, a magistrate and expert in Portuguese penal procedure
said the deadlines could be extended indefinitely because the
case remains so high profile. He told Portuguese newspaper
Diario de Noticias he thought the most likely outcome - even
after two extensions - would be "the delay of the investigation
in a desperate attempt to seek enough evidence to make an
accusation".
"This is an
exceptionally high profile case on an international level and it
is the country's image which is at stake, " he said.
The McCanns'
spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "There are also people who
aren't on any lists who need to be traced. In the meantime our
lawyers will continue to press for access to the police files,
and to push for the arguido status to be lifted." |