Madeleine's mother 'named as suspect'

[PrincessArky]

(CNN) -- Police on Friday named Madeleine McCann's mother Kate a suspect in her disappearance, and said the girl's blood was found in a vehicle the family rented 25 days after reporting her disappearance, according to a family spokeswoman.

Madeleine McCann's blood was found in a car her parents rented 25 days after they reported her disappearance, Justine McGuiness told CNN.

Kate McCann was seen going into the police headquarters in Portimao, a town in Portugal's Algarve region, on Friday morning.

She was questioned for almost 11 hours the day before, and left looking visibly shaken and drained, according to CNN's Paula Hancocks.

Portuguese authorities made no public statement on the latest developments.

Philomena McCann, Madeleine's aunt, said police were suggesting Kate McCann might have accidentally killed her daughter.

"They are suggesting that Kate has in some way accidentally killed Madeleine, then kept her body, then got rid of it," Philomena McCann told Sky News.

"I have never heard anything so utterly ludicrous in my entire life."

Madeleine's father Gerry McCann is also expected to be questioned on Friday. Family friend Clarence Mitchell told The Associated Press that Gerry would also be named as an arguido or a formal suspect. The couple have maintained their innocence throughout.

The McCanns "continue to deny absolutely they had anything to do" with their daughter's disappearance, Mitchell said.

Portuguese Law
Formal suspect called "arguido" or "arguida" for a woman

An "arguido" has more legal rights than a witness, including right to remain silent and have a lawyer

Some people request to be declared "arguido" to get this protection

Police must declare a witness an "arguido" before asking certain questions or making an arrest

Courts may restrict movements of an "arguido"

An arrest or charge does not always follow someone being named an "arguido"

As a formal suspect under Portuguese law Kate McCann will gain more legal protection than when she was questioned as a witness. She will be able to remain silent during questioning and to have legal representation.

Those involved in criminal investigations in Portugal can ask to be declared formal suspects to receive this protection although it is unclear whether Mrs. McCann asked to do this.

Madeleine was reported missing on May 3, days before her 4th birthday. Her parents told police she was abducted from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal while they ate a meal at a nearby restaurant.

Madeleine's parents, who are both doctors from Leicestershire in central England, have campaigned internationally to secure the safe return of their daughter, including having a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI and securing support from Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling and soccer star David Beckham.

Until now police have insisted Madeleine's parents were not suspects and were being questioned as witnesses.

Only one person has previously been named as a formal suspect, British national Robert Murat, who has denied any involvement in the case. E-mail to a friend

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/09/07/madeleine.mccann/index.html

[PrincessArky]

they just said on cnn that the father is most likely to be named a suspect as well

[gmyers]

Weren't they supposed to have gone out to eat and left the kids alone and then they said she was kidnapped. I thought it was strange that they would leave two young kids alone like that. Theres no way I could go out and enjoy myself and leave my kids alone like that.

[DAVESBABYDOLL]

yeah, they left them alone "but checked on them alot"

I knew they would be named sometime, it was all too weird.

[PrincessArky]

Weren't they supposed to have gone out to eat and left the kids alone and then they said she was kidnapped. I thought it was strange that they would leave two young kids alone like that. Theres no way I could go out and enjoy myself and leave my kids alone like that.

actually they left 3 kids alone........she was the one that was supposed to be watching the 2 yr old twins which is INSANE I know that I heard today while I was cleaning the house something about that they were the kind of parents that would medicate the kids so they would sleep :( Did anyone else here that

[Mom2Shaun]

Different cultures have entirely different ways of dealing with child care, so we can't judge until we know more. Several years ago, a Scandanavian couple was arrested in New York for leaving their baby in the baby carriage outside a restaurant while they went in to eat. The baby was right out on the street, and people were horrified! But it was found that was done all the time in their country. I was in Scotland for part of my childhood (a long time ago) and babies were routinely put in baby carriages and rolled out of the house and left on the doorstep, even while it was snowing! It was to give them "fresh air," and the babies were completely bundled up and warm, and didn't seem to mind it. But I can't imagine people doing that here!

This is the story that shocked me! I recently read an article that talked about how it is perfectly normal for Dutch mothers to leave their small babies home alone on the parents' bed, with a safety pin through the back of the baby's clothing pinning the child to the bed quilt! The mothers might leave for up to 20 minutes at a time, just running down the street to do a little shopping, or visiting neighbors. Their house are very close together, joined by small pathways, and they don't feel that they are all that far away. I know you'd be arrested for that kind of thing in the U.S., but it's considered perfectly normal in the Netherlands.

I read that it was common for parents at the resort (where Madeline was) to leave their children in the cottages while going to the restaurant, which was supposedly about 200 ft. down the path. I can't imagine doing that, but again, we just don't know until we find out more.

[PrincessArky]

Different cultures have entirely different ways of dealing with child care, so we can't judge until we know more. Several years ago, a Scandanavian couple was arrested in New York for leaving their baby in the baby carriage outside a restaurant while they went in to eat. The baby was right out on the street, and people were horrified! But it was found that was done all the time in their country. I was in Scotland for part of my childhood (a long time ago) and babies were routinely put in baby carriages and rolled out of the house and left on the doorstep, even while it was snowing! It was to give them "fresh air," and the babies were completely bundled up and warm, and didn't seem to mind it. But I can't imagine people doing that here!

This is the story that shocked me! I recently read an article that talked about how it is perfectly normal for Dutch mothers to leave their small babies home alone on the parents' bed, with a safety pin through the back of the baby's clothing pinning the child to the bed quilt! The mothers might leave for up to 20 minutes at a time, just running down the street to do a little shopping, or visiting neighbors. Their house are very close together, joined by small pathways, and they don't feel that they are all that far away. I know you'd be arrested for that kind of thing in the U.S., but it's considered perfectly normal in the Netherlands.

I read that it was common for parents at the resort (where Madeline was) to leave their children in the cottages while going to the restaurant, which was supposedly about 200 ft. down the path. I can't imagine doing that, but again, we just don't know until we find out more.

this might be how some ppl do it in their country but doesn't make it right. I am a mother of 4 kids who wouldnt dream of doing anything like this so yeah I will judge them at least on the leaving them alone part. I have no idea as to what happened to the little girl......whether it was the parents or a stranger. Sure would be nice if they found the little girl safe and alive

[Jolie Rouge]

Missing girl's parents leaving Portugal
12 minutes ago

PRAIA DA LUZ, Portugal - A British couple named as suspects in the disappearance of their 4-year-old daughter in Portugal are to return home on Sunday, a family spokeswoman said.

Kate and Gerry McCann, who have strenuously professed their innocence since police declared them formal suspects in their daughter Madeleine's disappearance, are leaving "with the full knowledge of the Portuguese authorities and police," family spokeswoman Justine McGuinness said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070909/ap_on_re_eu/portugal_missing_girl;_ylt=Auxe29VMlEi4o95dBgMchHa s0NUE


Madeleine McCann case chronology
By The Associated Press
Fri Sep 7, 10:27 AM ET

Chronology of key events in the disappearance of 4-year-old Madeleine McCann.

May 3: The child is reported missing from a holiday apartment in the town of Praia da Luz in the Algarve resort region. Her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, left her asleep with two smaller siblings while they had dinner at a nearby restaurant, and said they checked frequently on the children. They say Madeleine was kidnapped.

May 6: Police say there is evidence the girl was abducted, and appeal for her return.

May 11: David Beckham and other soccer stars appeal for Madeleine's safe return. Police in Portugal scale down local searches, saying the case has become an international investigation.

May 12: Madeleine McCann turns 4.

May 13: Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling pledges a contribution to a $3 million reward for the safe return of the child.

May 13: Robert Murat, a Briton who lives near the complex where the child vanished, is questioned after British journalists report him to police, saying he was poking around the crime scene and implying that he was part of the investigation.

May 18: A Web site set up to help find Madeleine receives some 65 million visitors in 48 hours.

May 30: The McCanns meet at the Vatican with Pope Benedict to discuss their ordeal. The pontiff pledges to pray for her safe return.

July 10: Murat is questioned by police in the company of his lawyer, and again the next day. He insists he has nothing to do with her disappearance.

Aug. 3: Authorities in Belgium say they are taking seriously a reported sighting of the child in the town of Tongeren. Police issue a drawing of a Dutch-speaking man reportedly seen with the girl and an English-speaking woman at a table outside a pub. Authorities eventually carry out DNA tests on a milkshake bottle from the pub, but no DNA from the child is found on it.

Aug. 7: Portuguese media report that sniffer dogs found traces of blood in the hotel room where Madeleine went missing. This forensic evidence is sent to Britain for testing.

Aug. 11: Police say new evidence prompts them to consider the possibility the girl is dead.

Sept. 7: Kate McCann is reportedly named as a suspect in her daughter's disappearance, and a family spokesman says Gerry McCann has been told he too will be named as a suspect.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070907/ap_on_re_eu/portugal_missing_girl_chronolongy_1



Could Kate McCann Be a Murderer?
By CATHERINE MAYER
Fri Sep 7, 3:55 PM ET

From a distance, Kate McCann looked like a well-heeled holidaymaker enjoying the dog days of summer on Portugal's Algarve coast. But a closer look revealed the faint shadows under the 39-year-old doctor's eyes, and the set expression on her face. Kate McCann was under stress, and with good reason, as she ignored crowds of onlookers at the entrance to Portimao's police station on Friday. Four months ago, on May 3, her daughter Madeleine went missing in the nearby Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz, apparently abducted from her bed after Kate and her husband Gerry left the three-year-old and her younger siblings unattended to dine with friends nearby. Since then, the McCanns have spearheaded a high-profile international campaign to find Madeleine. They have traveled across Europe and to the U.S., attended an audience with the Pope and roped in celebrities such as footballers David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo to keep the case in the public eye and encourage the police to redouble their efforts to find Madeleine. But as Kate McCann submitted to a second lengthy interrogation by police in the past two days, it became clear that she herself was now the focus of their investigation.

Her spokeswoman, Justine McGuinness, said that Kate McCann had been warned she was about to be named an arguida, an official suspect under Portuguese law. This means police have evidence they believe could point to McCann's involvement, but McCann has not been arrested or charged with any crime. Robert Murat, a resident of Praia da Luz, was named an arguido at the start of the investigation but has protested his innocence and has never faced any charges. Press reports in Portugal and the U.K. have suggested that new forensic evidence may finally provide stronger clues about what might have happened to Madeleine. Yet false leads and dashed hopes have characterized the investigation almost from the start. Philomena McCann, the sister of Gerry McCann, told Britain's Sky News that the Portuguese police were suggesting that her sister-in-law accidentally killed Madeleine, hid the body and then disposed of it. "I've never heard anything so ludicruous in my life," she told Sky News. Philomena McCann told ITV News that the Portuguese police also offered Kate McCann a plea deal through her lawyer. Justine McGuinness, who heads an organization that had been raising money to search for Madeleine, told the BBC that the Portuguese authorities had based their allegations on blood found in a car rented 25 days after the child's disappearance.

As Kate McCann answered questions in Portimao police station, her husband Gerry wrote a new entry on the blog he maintains on the couple's website, www.findmadeleine.com. "Anyone who knows anything about the 3rd May knows that Kate is completely innocent. We will fight this all the way and we will not stop looking for Madeleine," he wrote. Both McCanns have repeatedly asserted their innocence, but suspicions and resentment have flourished. Criticism by the British media of the way Portuguese police have handled the case has helped stoke hostility towards the McCanns in Portugal. Last month, the McCanns said they would sue the Portuguese newspaper Tal & Qual over its report alleging police believe they accidentally killed their daughter.

In interviews, the McCanns have expressed anger, despair and guilt over their decision to leave Madeleine alone. Yet, in the eye of the storm, Kate McCann cuts a dignified figure, calm and quiet, and rarely tearful.

That has done little to win her friends or allay suspicions. On the contrary. The Portuguese daily Correio da Manha alleged on Friday that that police had always been suspicious of Kate McCann's behavior. It may be that regardless of the outcome of the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance, her mother stands accused in part of a lack of visible emotion. It's a charge women may find themselves facing whether they are victim or suspect. "You aren't handed a manual when you become a victim of crime. 'Dress like this, act like this, cry now.' I didn't know there were all these ways you were supposed to behave." These are the words of Joanne Lees, a Briton whose boyfriend Peter Falconio was murdered in the Australian outback in 2001. During the trial of Falconio's murderer, Lees, a crisp and unemotional witness, found herself standing trial at the hands of a hostile media who interpreted her composure as a sign of complicity. In 1982 in another case before the Australian courts, Lindy Chamberlain was convicted of the murder of her baby Azaria, whom she said had been taken by a dingo, a wild dog, during a family camping holiday. Her dry-eyed testimony was not believed. She was exonerated after 6 years in prison.

With reporting by Martha de la Cal/Lisbon

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20070907/wl_time/couldkatemccannbeamurderer

[gmyers]

I'm surprised that they will be allowed to return to England if they're suspects. Thats a little strange to me. I heard something on the news about them medicating them too.

[Starlady01]

To my understanding parents are always considered suspects.
We have seen and heard enough to know that such things do happen.

[PrincessArky]

To my understanding parents are always considered suspects.
We have seen and heard enough to know that such things do happen.

Parents are usually the first suspects but this time they came out and said they are official suspects makes it a bit bigger thing. I just still hope and pray the little girl is still alive and well although I know the chances must be small :(

[Jolie Rouge]

Portuguese extend secrecy order on Madeleine probe
22 minutes ago

LISBON (AFP) - The Portuguese state attorney Tuesday announced a further three-month restriction on divulging information concerning investigations into the case of missing girl Madeleine McCann. The restriction was scheduled to end on Thursday but would now continue until August 15, the press agency Lusa quoted the state attorney's office as saying.

According to Portugal's strict penal code, secrecy can only be imposed on any investigation for eight months -- at which point details of interviews and evidence are made public if no charge has yet been preferred, or the case has been dropped. But this period can be extended in exceptionally complex cases.

Last January the state attorney applied for special judicial permission to continue the investigation into Madeleine McCann's disappearance without rendering their results public.

The parents Kate and Gerry McCann were named as formal suspects in the inquiry in September, but returned to their home in Britain shortly afterwards, from where their legal team tried to access key forensic and other files.

Madeleine McCann went missing in May last year, shortly before her fourth birthday, from the family's holiday apartment in the resort of Praia da Luz.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080513/wl_uk_afp/portugalbritainmissing;_ylt=Au.TqO9uAskNt_Y63xSouF r9xg8F

[flute]

Last January the state attorney applied for special judicial permission to continue the investigation into Madeleine McCann's disappearance without rendering their results public.

They had to ask special permission to keep the case open? WTF?

Is it just me or do things not add up here? :( *sigh* Poor lil girl!!

[PrincessArky]

They had to ask special permission to keep the case open? WTF?

Is it just me or do things not add up here? :( *sigh* Poor lil girl!!

yep there seems there are more questions than answers...I still pray they find her alive some day

[flute]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080701/ap_on_re_eu/portugal_missing_girl


Madeleine McCann probe is not over yet

LISBON, Portugal - Police have completed their final report into the disappearance of British child Madeleine McCann but officials have taken no decision yet on whether to proceed with the investigation or drop the case, Portugal's attorney-general said Tuesday.


Three papers — Correio da Manha, Jornal de Noticias and Expresso — published comments on Tuesday from unidentified police sources saying the 14-month investigation had reached a dead end and is to be dropped.

However, Attorney-General Fernando Pinto Monteiro said in a statement that prosecutors will examine the police report before deciding whether to end the investigation or undertake further inquiries.

Officials will "determine whether further inquiries are needed or whether the conditions are in place for the investigation to be closed," the statement e-mailed to The Associated Press said.

It said the case file amounted to "dozens of volumes" and noted that the judicial secrecy law covering ongoing investigations, which ensures evidence remains confidential, expires only in mid-August.

Madeleine McCann went missing in Portugal's southern Algarve region during a family vacation in May 2007, a few days before her fourth birthday. Detectives named her parents, Kate and Gerry, and local man Robert Murat as formal suspects in the case. All denied involvement in Madeleine's disappearance.

The McCanns, who have waged an international campaign to find their daughter, returned home to central England with Madeleine's younger sister and brother last September, a few days after they were named as suspects.

Clarence Mitchell, the parents' spokesman, said that if the investigation were to be closed he expected the search for Madeleine to continue.

"The information in their files surely cannot sit on the shelf gathering dust. Kate and Gerry will never give up searching for their daughter," Mitchell said.

He said that if Portuguese police end their inquiry they should hand their files over to the McCanns' private investigators.

"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," Mitchell said.

The case has drawn global interest. A few weeks after Madeleine vanished, Pope Benedict XVI blessed the McCanns 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.

British and Portuguese police have cooperated in the investigation. Sophisticated forensic tests on evidence gathered at the resort where the girl disappeared were carried out in Britain.

In April, British police in England, accompanied by Portuguese detectives, re-interviewed the McCanns' friends, who were having dinner with them when Madeleine vanished.

I just hope for peace for the family :(

[ma4angels]

I hope that they get punished if they are responsible for this precious little girls dissapearance. How anyone could harm an innocent child is something I will never understand? I just hope she is ok. I have heard of parents giving medicine to children to make them sleep just so they can leave them alone. It is really sick.

[flute]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080721/ap_on_re_eu/portugal_missing_girl
Portugal closes case of missing British girl By BARRY HATTON,




LISBON, Portugal - Portugal's attorney general ordered police Monday to halt their investigation into the disappearance of British girl Madeleine McCann because detectives uncovered no evidence of a crime during their 14-month probe.

The case will remain closed unless new evidence emerges, Attorney-General Fernando Pinto Monteiro's office said in a statement. Detectives found no reason to charge any of the three people named as suspects: Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry and local man Robert Murat, the statement said. All three denied involvement.

After the announcement, the McCanns said being named suspects in the case had damaged the search for Madeleine.

"In an order issued today, ... the investigation into the disappearance of the minor Madeleine McCann has been halted because no evidence was discovered of any crime committed by the suspects," the attorney general's statement said. It added the investigation could be reopened "if new evidence emerges from any serious, pertinent and authoritative" source.

The disappearance of the blond-haired girl in May 2007 immediately attracted intense global media attention which continued unabated as her parents were named as suspects and few clues turned up to explain how she mysteriously vanished from a hotel room during a family vacation in Portugal's southern Algarve region.

She went missing a few days before her fourth birthday and there has been no reliable indication of what might have happened to her despite numerous reported sightings from around the world.

The McCanns have waged a far-reaching international campaign to find their daughter. Through regular statements to the media and via a Web page, they kept the search for Madeleine in the public eye.

Pope Benedict XVI blessed the McCanns, who are Catholics, and a photo of their daughter during his weekly general audience at the Vatican a few weeks after her disappearance. Celebrities, including "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling and soccer star David Beckham, made public appeals that helped raise money for a Find Madeleine fund.

The McCanns also traveled to Brussels, Morocco and Spain in their effort to raise public awareness of their daughter's disappearance. And they campaigned for the introduction of a Europe-wide child abduction alert similar to the Amber Alert system in the United States.

The ruling ends months of anguish for the three suspects who denied their involvement from the start and eases pressure on Portuguese police whose failure to make progress under intense public scrutiny at home and abroad.

The McCanns' reacted to the Portuguese decision by expressing their anguish over being named suspects.

"It is hard to describe how utterly despairing it was to be named arguidos (suspects) and subsequently portrayed in the media as suspects in our own daughter's abduction," Kate McCann told reporters in England. "Equally, it has been devastating to witness the detrimental effect this status has had on the search for Madeleine."

Rogerio Alves, one of the McCanns' Portuguese lawyers, told state broadcaster Radiotelevisao Portuguesa the decision was "an undoubted victory." He said the couple's legal team intended to examine the police file to see whether there were any leads which private investigators they have hired could follow up.

Lawyers for the McCanns may now ask a judge to grant them access to the police file, which officials have said runs to 10 volumes. Access to the case file is permitted, at a judge's discretion, to "interested parties."

"We look forward to scrutinizing the police files to see what has actually been done, and more importantly what can still be done as we leave no stone unturned in our search for our little girl," Kate McCann said.

Madeleine's parents said she vanished from their hotel room while they were eating dinner with friends at a resort's poolside restaurant in the sleepy vacation town of Praia da Luz, about 120 miles south of Lisbon. They had left her and her twin siblings, a year younger, alone in the room while they ate at the restaurant about 50 yards away.

Police previously said DNA evidence, though inconclusive, led them to doubt the McCann's version of events.

The Portuguese police faced criticism from the family and others at home and abroad for their failure to find out what happened to Madeline. The McCanns' family and friends complained that the police were slow to react to the disappearance and apparently struggled to build a case. The lack of sophisticated equipment led Portuguese authorities to ask British police for help with forensic tests.

Defending their investigation, Portuguese officials said thousands of children go missing worldwide each year and are never found.


Well those are some words.

Some. Words.

[ElleGee]

Portuguese police are utterly worthless.. They have absolutely no clue wtf they were/are doing

[PrincessArky]

oh dear lord thats just disgusting..........no justice for this little girl

[Jolie Rouge]

No evidence of a crime ? I guess that four years olds usually go on extended "walk abouts" in Portugual ?

[ilovecats]

That is just sickening.I guess her life is worthless.

[PrincessArky]

(CNN) -- Parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann have learned for the first time of a possible sighting of the child just after her disappearance, and don't know whether Portuguese police pursued it, a family spokesman told CNN Wednesday.


The possible sighting of Madeleine in May 2007 stemmed from a report by a Dutch shopkeeper, who told authorities she encountered a little girl in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

She said the child identified herself as Maddie and said she was taken from her mother while on holiday.

"I start to ask where her mommy was," Anna Stam said. "She couldn't tell me that. I wanted to give her a balloon, but she didn't want that. She only wants her mommy, she said. And she said that these people took her from her mommy."

Madeleine was 3 when she disappeared June 3, 2007, while she was on holiday with her family at the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz. Her disappearance prompted headlines worldwide.

Portuguese police last month closed their investigation into the girl's disappearance.

At one point, authorities had named the girl's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, as "arguidos," or suspects, along with a British man living in Portugal, Robert Murat. But a spokesman for the Portuguese public prosecutor's office said authorities found no evidence of involvement by any of the three and were no longer considering them "arguidos."

After closing the case, police turned their case file -- containing up to 30,000 pages -- over to attorneys and private investigators working for the McCanns.

The couple only found out about the Amsterdam sighting in the past few days, their spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, told CNN, calling it "one of the scandals of this whole case."

"Kate and Gerry did not know what exactly, was being done in the search for their daughter by the very police force that had that responsibility, and more importantly they had no idea what wasn't being done," Mitchell said.

Dutch police investigated Stam's report of a possible sighting, and turned it over to Portuguese police, who did not return calls from CNN on Wednesday.


There are some problems with the reported sighting. Stam claims the girl she saw had dark hair, while Madeleine's hair is light. Also, her parents insist she would not have referred to herself as Maddie.

Still, Mitchell said they would appreciate knowing how much attention Portuguese authorities paid to it, whether it was ruled out and if so, why.

"What we hope now is that the police will still at least have a spirit of cooperation with the private investigators who are now working internationally to find Madeleine," Mitchell said.

However, he noted "one of the greatest frustrations" for the McCanns has been the lack of communication with Portuguese authorities.

"It might shock you to hear that the officer in charge of the case has never actually spoken (to) or been in any formal contact with either Kate or Gerry -- the man who was responsible for looking for their daughter," Mitchell said.

Kate McCann wrote to the officer last year pleading for information, he said. Authorities did not reply, but the letter was added to the case file.

Also contained in the case file: the McCanns were declared arguidos based on DNA evidence that police knew was actually inconclusive; And sketches of men seen acting suspiciously in the area around the time of Madeleine's disappearance were made, but never released publicly or shown to the McCanns.

The McCanns have said Madeleine was abducted from her bed while they dined in a resort restaurant nearby. They initially faced criticism for leaving her alone, and police released sketches of a scruffy, mustachioed man whom witnesses claimed to have seen carrying a girl matching her description.

Mitchell said he and the McCanns do not believe the Portuguese police will reopen the case. Last month, authorities said it would only be reopened if new evidence surfaces.

Attorneys and private investigators are continuing to sift through the police case file, Mitchell said, and hold out hope that it contains "the key ... that unlocks the search for Madeleine."

The McCanns have said they believe the girl could still be alive.

"The chances of Madeleine being found are at least as good, if not better, than in those first few days," Kate McCann told CNN in May. "We know she's been abducted by a man. Other than that, we just don't know anything. There's a whole range of scenarios in which she could still be alive."
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The couple has said they are trying to lead an ordinary life amid the campaign to find their daughter. Their now-3-year-old twins' routine of swimming lessons and nursery classes has provided a welcome distraction, they say, but a completely normal life is impossible while Madeleine remains missing.

"We need to know everything and we will never give up," Gerry McCann has said.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08/06/mccann.maddie/index.html

[Jolie Rouge]

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/ndDdxIlYY.55IhGEZUE2ug--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9aW5zZXQ7aD0zMzc7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/e02a9abead4bd30b0d0f6a70670098b5.jpg

This undated image released by the Metropolitan Police shows composite photos of four year old missing child Madeleine McCann and an age progression computer generated image of her at 9 years old. London's Metropolitan Police said Wednesday April 25, 2012, they will release a new image of the girl, who went missing on a family vacation in the Algarve coast in Portugal in May 2007. Police say they still have regular contact with her parents and continue to investigate.

UK police: Missing girl Madeleine may be alive
By CASSANDRA VINOGRAD | Associated Press – 5 hrs ago

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/VZA1pcTDrQ_0RnWOpJ.JPg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Y2g9MTg2NDtjcj0xO2N3PTI3ODE7ZHg9MD tkeT0wO2ZpPXVsY3JvcDtoPTQyMztxPTg1O3c9NjMw/http://l.yimg.com/os/152/2012/04/25/AP070606058439-jpg_141643.jpg

LONDON (AP) — British police on Wednesday asked Portugal to reopen the case of missing girl Madeleine McCann, saying that as the fifth anniversary of her disappearance approaches there is a possibility she is still alive.

Police also released a new image of what McCann would likely look like today, expressing hope that she would be found even years after the then-3-year-old vanished on May 3 while on a trip to Portugal with her family.

The case sparked global interest because of heartbreaking images of the girl beamed around the world and, in part, because her parents were briefly considered suspects before they were cleared.

In a rare press conference on the case, Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood said he is leading a team of 37 police officers reviewing some 40,000 pieces of evidence gathered so far. The team has identified some 195 possible leads to be followed up on, he said.

Redwood said forensic evidence of the sequence of events around her disappearance shows there are moments when she could have been snatched by criminals. He said he had an "open mind" on who could have abducted her, but asked for the help of Portuguese authorities, who closed the case in 2008.

"We would like the case to be reopened; our case is clear," Redwood told reporters Wednesday. "I should stress quite clearly that the decision is in Portugal."

He acknowledged that police have to consider that McCann may be dead despite hopes that she is alive.

"Our drive on both scenarios is of equal measure," he said, choosing his words carefully.

There has been no reliable indication of what might have happened to the girl despite numerous reported sightings from around the world.

Redwood said he has made seven visits to Portugal and is working closely with Portuguese police officers. He has had regular contact with the missing girl's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, who have pressed to keep the case in the public eye, publishing a book and appearing on the "Oprah Winfrey Show."

Police said the investigation has cost about 2 million pounds ($3.2 million) so far.

http://news.yahoo.com/uk-police-missing-girl-madeleine-may-alive-092431346.html

as i recall this little girl had distinctive irises. If she is alive and stumbles across a picture of herself on the internet she will know without a doubt who she is. Keep praying for her and her family.

...

The point was to keep the story alive - here it is.

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"Her parents were briefly considered suspects..."? As I recall, they were practically put on trial by the courts, and were tried in the press as the guilty perpetrators of the little girl's disappearance. But then, one can't expect the press to remember minor details like that. They're too busy looking for someone else to destroy over mere allegations and suspicions.

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"She may be alive but then she may be dead". How insightful.

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It's close to the anniversary of this. To appease, this story appears now. If the police had any real idea that this child was still alive it wouldn't a reported story. I was in the UK when this happened and it was messed up from the beginning. It's a sad story but even more sad because probably nothing of consequence will happen.

[Jolie Rouge]

Portugal Reopens Madeleine McCann Case
LISBON, Portugal October 24, 2013 (AP)
By BARRY HATTON Associated Press

More than six years after British girl Madeleine McCann vanished from her bedroom during a family vacation in Portugal and five years after Portuguese police gave up trying to find her, authorities reopened the case Thursday, citing new evidence.

Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, had long campaigned from their home in central England for the Portuguese investigation to resume. In a statement Thursday, they said they were "very pleased" at the development.

"We hope that this will finally lead to (Madeleine) being found and to the discovery of whoever is responsible for this crime," Kate and Gerry McCann said. The couple, both doctors, continue to care for Madeleine's younger siblings, twins Sean and Amelie.

Madeleine went missing shortly before her fourth birthday. Her disappearance sparked global interest as pictures of her and her grieving parents beamed around the world. Her parents briefly met with Pope Benedict XVI in St. Peter's Square in June 2007, a month after Madeleine disappeared, and the pontiff held a picture of their daughter.

Then, in a stunning twist, Portuguese police briefly considered the parents suspects before they were cleared and returned home.

Portuguese police closed the case in 2008 because authorities had detected no crime. However, a team of detectives from Porto, in northern Portugal, began reviewing the evidence in March 2011. They had not been involved in the original investigation.

The public prosecutor's office in Lisbon said it decided to reopen the investigation after new leads emerged during the case review. It did not elaborate. The case is subject to Portugal's judicial secrecy law, which forbids the release of information about investigations.

British police, meanwhile, launched Operation Grange in 2011 to try to find out what happened to Madeleine. British detectives have been sifting through the case files in Portugal and say they also have identified new avenues of investigation. They say both the timeline and the version of events surrounding the girl's disappearance have changed significantly as new information has emerged.

Madeleine disappeared from her family's resort apartment in Praia da Luz, a coastal town 200 kilometers (120 miles) south of Lisbon, while her parents and their friends were eating dinner nearby.

British detectives say it's possible that Madeleine is still alive.

Ten days ago, British police released a computer-generated image of a person they were interested in questioning about the girl's disappearance. Police asked the public for help and worked with the BBC on a "Crimewatch" TV show, which drew more than 2,000 calls offering possible new leads.

Police said the images were based on information from witnesses who spotted a man in the Portuguese resort the day Madeleine was last seen.

In London, Scotland Yard said the reopened Portuguese investigation will run parallel to the British police's efforts, and British police will be traveling regularly to Portugal.

"Both sides of the investigation are at relatively early stages, with much work remaining to be done," Scotland Yard said in a statement. "This new momentum is encouraging, but we still have a way to go."

Experts say all those efforts are worthwhile.

Even after so many years, officials should "do whatever it takes" to ensure that grieving parents get closure, said Delphine Moralis of Missing Children Europe, an umbrella group of 28 non-governmental organizations in 19 European Union countries and Switzerland.

"It's essential to keep the ball rolling" on efforts to find missing children, Moralis said by telephone from Brussels.

She cited as examples the cathartic resolution provided in the cases involving Natascha Kampusch, who was found eight years after being kidnapped in 1998 in Austria, and three women rescued in May after being held captive in a Cleveland house for about a decade.


http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/report-portugal-reopens-madeleine-mccann-case-20667120

[Jolie Rouge]

Madeleine McCann Case: Suspects to be Questioned in Portugal

At least four suspects were to be questioned in Portugal on Tuesday by police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, sources close to the case said. British detectives arrived at a police station in Faro where they are expected to sit in on interviews conducted by Portuguese offices, ITV News reported. Detectives from London’s Metropolitan Police will be allowed to intervene during questioning if they wish.

The suspects are all Portuguese nationals but some are Russian-born, the source told NBC News. All will appear voluntarily and the questioning could last for days. Key witnesses will also be questioned. The three-year-old British girl vanished while holidaying with her parents in Praia da Luz in 2007. In early June, police searched three sites in the resort but found no evidence relating to the case. The developments come after a new investigation into the case was launched last year.

video at link http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/madeleine-mccann-case-suspects-be-questioned-portugal-n145091

[Jolie Rouge]

Madeleine McCann report finds authorities hindered investigation

Various British police agencies trying to help the inquiry into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann permanently hindered the search, a secret report found.

By Gabrielle Levy | Sept. 2, 2014 at 9:53 AM

WASHINGTON, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- Competing police efforts in the early days of the search for missing British girl Madeleine McCann permanently hindered the inquiry, a secret 2009 report found.

The Home Office-commissioned investigation, conducted by former head of Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre Jim Gamble, found the overwhelming number of U.K. agencies involved in the search for Madeleine damaged Portuguese police.

Then-3-year-old Madeleine disappeared in May 2007 while vacationing with her family in Praia da Luz in Portugal. The first investigation into her disappearance was closed in July 2008 with little trace of the missing child, and the inquiry was reopened in 2013.

Gamble's report found the CEOP, the Metropolitan Police, the Serious Organised Crime Agency and the National Police Improvement Agency had all intervened within weeks, creating "frustration" and "resentment" among the Portuguese authorities working the case.

The unpublished report, whose details were shared with Sky News, found the decision to put police from the McCanns' home of Leicestershire in charge of the investigation was a mistake, as the force was not equipped to handle the demands of such a significant investigation.

"All of us... your first gut reaction is you want to help...so everyone came with best intention, that created a sense of chaos and a sense of competition...and in many instances in my opinion wanting to be seen to help," Gamble told Sky.

"It was unhelpful...I've no doubt relationships from the outset with the Portuguese were impacted by it and I think that had a long-term negative effect on the investigation."

Neither were the Portuguese authorities spared from Gamble's criticism. He said the initial inquiry was "haphazard" and potentially crucial leads went without follow-up.

If Madeleine is still alive, she would be 11 years old.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2014/09/02/Madeleine-McCann-report-finds-authorities-hindered-investigation/2911409663420/#ixzz3CCcNY1TH