Kate McCann tells court that alleged stalker called her 'Mum'

Kate McCann has described how it was hard to hear an alleged stalker refer to her as “Mum”, as she gave evidence to the trial of the woman who claimed to be her missing daughter.

- Robyn Vinter

Speaking from behind a screen, McCann told Leicester crown court she was left frightened and distressed by the actions of Julia Wandelt, 24, who is accused of a two-and-a-half year harassment campaign that ended with her arrest in February.

The Polish national is accused of calling McCann “Mum” on a number of occasions while claiming to be Madeleine, who disappeared at the age of three on a family holiday in the Portuguese holiday resort of Praia da Luz in 2007. This included in a letter signed “Madeleine x”.

"That was an example of a thing that was getting to me,” McCann said. “It’s obvious the thing I want the most ... is for Madeleine to be back and for Madeleine to be calling me ‘Mum’. And that was really stressful for me.”

The court was told that Wandelt and her co-defendant, Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, had bombarded McCann with messages and calls, and had been waiting for the family outside their home on the evening of 7 December 2024.

When Kate McCann got out of her car alone, she described hearing a voice in the darkness saying “Kate”.