The case of Madeleine McCann, the British toddler who disappeared from a Portuguese holiday resort 16 years ago, unexpectedly lurched back into life this month when investigators launched a major search operation at a reservoir in the Algarve.
The initiative was instigated by German prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters, who said officials were acting on “certain tips” from Christian Brueckner, an incarcerated sex offender who lived in the area between 2000 and 2017. Mr Wolters has said he is “very confident” the 45 year-old holds the key to Madeleine’s disappearance.
With help from Portuguese police and with Scotland Yard detectives watching on, German investigators carried out a thorough search of the Barragem do Arade beauty spot in Silves.
They combed the shoreline and surrounding grasslands with sniffer dogs, rakes, spades and pickaxes, and inspected the water in a rigid-hull inflatable boat. A no-fly zone in place in the skies overhead allowed police drones to survey the region undisturbed.
The site is located approximately 48km (30 miles) northeast of the Ocean Club holiday resort at Praia da Luz in Lagos from which Madeleine vanished on 3 May 2007, sparking a huge investigation that attracted media attention and public interest across the world but which has so far still not yielded any definite answers.
The girl’s parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, have refused to give up hope, recently posting a poem remembering their lost daughter on their Find Madeleine website, reminding readers that she is “still missing... still very much missed”.
This story is from the May 30, 2023 edition of The Independent.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 30, 2023 edition of The Independent.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
As Russians target Kharkiv, 'next few days are critical'
Colonel tells Askold Krushelnycky how the situation could develop ‘dangerously’ for Kyiv’s troops as Moscow seeks to press on from the border towards Ukraine’s second city
Putin's reshuffle could be a pledge to long-haul conflict
Russia is going full steam towards becoming a ‘war economy’
Trump feared 'disaster' for campaign, Cohen alleges
Former ‘fixer’ testifies how he paid off Stormy Daniels
Thousands flee from Rafah as Israel steps up its assault
Israeli forces have pushed deep into Jabalia in northern Gaza – to recapture an area where they said Hamas had been dismantled weeks ago – while tanks and troops continue to move into the southern border city of Rafah.
Why we should worry about rise of 40-year mortgages
More than 42 per cent of new mortgages will be being paid off in pension age, but with sky-high house prices is there any other option for first-time buyers
Villa come back from dead after fan Hanks' pep talk
Aston Villa do not quite have the Hollywood ending to their season but the watching Tom Hanks got an illustration that football can script stranger drama than his line of work.
'It is the time to do it' Guardiola eves historic haul
Pep Guardiola can spend much of his season deflecting talk of potential achievements.
SILENT TREATMENT
Chit-chat during a haircut can be torturous for introverts – but now an innovative business in Helsinki is cutting the conversation. Helen Coffey applauds the pioneering move
The long and rocky road to Fury and Usyk's super bout
For the first time in 24 years, there will be an undisputed heavyweight champion when the pair fight on Saturday
'It wasn't the US that didn't get us, it was just Nashville'
As Kings of Leon release ‘Can We Please Have Fun’, singer Caleb Followill talks to Laura Barton about the wisdom of their late mother, hunting for approval in his home city and how a producer helped them get the dirt back in their sound