"We'll put a million quid of our own dosh in to help find Madeleine - if Grange is wound up" - Dr Gerald and Dr Kate McCann

Sun on Sunday today:

EXCLUSIVE: Parents pump almost £1million into search fund


Exclusive by Mike Hamilton

The parents or Madeleine McCann plan to plough their own money into the search for their missing daughter if police halt their investigation.

Kate and Gerry McCann both 47, of Rothley Leics, fear public donations have dried up as the search approaches its eighth anniversary.

So they have pumped almost £1 million into a fund for Madeleine that would be running at a loss without their cash.

The money came from Kate's book about Madeleine's disappearance in Portugal in May 2007 and the search for her.

A top cop suggested this week the £10 million police probe into the case should be wound up.

Met Police Federation chairman John Tully said "We no longer have the resources to conduct specialist inquiries all over the world"

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Its about time that some of the money that went in the fund ,is now maybe going into it . after all a lot has been spent on the mystery of mbm.So who will get to be in charge of events from here on ? joyce1938

Is this official confirmation that the Fund is running out of cash?  Oh dear, what about all those legal fees they've yet to pay.

On the front cover of the book is a clear note that says "All royalties donated to Madeleine's fund"  so can we assume that there has been other income from this book that has been paid directly to the McCanns for their personal use? 

I wonder how much they made personally from the book.  Surely, if they wanted to find their daughter then all proceeds from anything to do with the book would have been used to find her.

I hope they don't squander their own money (that we were led to believe, would be used in the search) like they squandered the funds kindly donated by the public. I hope that they employ credible investigators and not the crooks that they have in the past.  [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] 


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"ello, 'ello, 'ello, i'd consider it an extraordinary priviledge to take the lead role in your private 'search' for Madeleine, Mr and Mrs McCann, given my superior, elite, 30 years experience, bought so successfully to bear, in my official capacity as the ex elite lead investigator, of Operation Grange, for 3 1/2 years, to find Madeleine" said ex DCI Mahogany.

"For £500,000 'up front' (cash) i will set up a faux 'hotline' and employ the 'big boy team' of ex OG elite police officers, to search for a 'live', or sadly 'dead', Madeleine" he added.

Every 'cloud', and all that, Mr Mahogany?

ps: Mr Mahog, Barry George never dunnit, innit?

It's surely time for everyone concerned to update this thread by sharonl on the cost of looking for Madeleine:

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...which said that the total cost of looking for Madeleine so far was about £20 million

I've made one change - in bold blue - by updating the cost of the Scotland Yard investigation.

I make the total cost at least £27 million so far - maybe more.

With the McCanns about to toss in another million or so... 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

The cost of looking for Madeleine so far. £20 million?

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How much has the search for Madeleine cost so far? It began at 10.00pm on Thursday 3 May when the McCanns said that Madeleine had been abducted.

Here is a rough calculation of the total costs so far, accompanied by a few notes:

£548,477 - The cost for Leicestershire Police's part in the search in 2007-8 was £548, 477, of which the Home Office refunded £525,069.

£4 million - A conservative estimate of the cost to the Portuguese Police of their investigation, just in 2007-8.

£3 million - A conservative estimate of the costs of the McCanns’ private investigations and public relations so far, made up as follows:

• At least £300,00o, maybe more, to Metodo 3
• £½ million plus expenses to Kevin Halligen
• Salaries and expenses to Dave Edgar, Arthur Cowley and assorted other detectives, plus trips to Germany (Hewlett), Barcelona (Victoria Beckham-lookalike) and various other trips
• Salaries of Justine McGuinness and Clarence Mitchell plus expenses: £300,000 so far

£2 million - the estimated cost to Interpol and an assortment of police forces around the globe, who have had to deal with hundreds, possibly thousands of ‘sightings’ of Madeleine, in countries such as the U.K., Germany, France, Portugal, Morocco, Spain, Canada, Venezuela, Australia and New Zealand.
The estimate is based on say 1,000 ‘sightings’ requiring an average of say £2,000 of police time to investigate each sighting

£3.5 million Now £10.5 million or more - and rising by £6,500 a day - for the current Scotland Yard ‘Review’. The review is said to be staffed by 37 officers. If their average salary is say £40,000, and they work on the review for say at least a year, that would cost around £2 million alone (including e.g. pension and employer’s N.I. contributions), and that doesn’t include the cost of e.g. hotels and travel for visits to Portugal and Spain

£1 million - for lawyer’s fees: Edward Smethurst (co-ordinating lawyer), Carter-Ruck (suing lots of people), Michael Caplan Q.C. (extradition), Portuguese lawyers including extradition lawyers and Isabel Duarte, International Family Law Group (wardship proceedings before ms Justice Hogg in the High Court)

An unknown amount - for the current Portuguese investigation begun in Oporto.

An unknown amount - for answering various Freedom of Information Act queries from press and public about the case.

What a combination - McSpin and the Sun.  Something's bothering them...

I see Kiko's been tweeting Gary O'Shea of the Scum re. Creche record signatures.

In my opinion, what is left of Team McCann would now love for the SY investigation to end.

Operation Grange will end soon, but not in a way that Team McCann wishes.

Per the audited accounts for from Commencement in 2007 to 31 March 2014 a total of £3,511,375 has been spent on the search for Madeleine though we cannot analyse this expenditure as only in year 1 and in year 7 was any analysis of expenditure provided in the audited account.

Per the notes in the audited accounts Dr Kate McCann has given a total of £1,138,487 to the Fund. In the year ending 31.3.2012 she donated £738,487 (£550,000 to restricted Funds and £ 188,487 to unrestricted funds) and in the year to 31.3.2014 she donated £400,000 to restricted funds.

For further information see my detailed analysis of the audited accounts for the various years on [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

The current accounting year for the Fund ends this week on 31.3.2015 and the expenditure on 'searching' in this year  is anybody's guess! 

Presumably the audited accounts for this year will not be available at Companies House until close to the legal deadline after which fines apply. Filing the accounts close to the legal deadline has been a consistent  pattern.

The audited accounts have never been put on the official website.

Where is the 'openness and transparency' relating to the Fund that Dr Kate McCann promised in her book madeleine 'whatever it cost'?

It is beyond any rational comprehension to me that anyone, from whatever background, rich or poor, decided to give any money to the parents of a 'missing' child before they were officially cleared of any involvement.

Members of the public were easily suckered into a public relations exercise on the back of a few old photos and videos of a child.

Only now,perhaps, are those same members of the public stopping to donate and also considering the fact  that they have contributed not only to a well orchestrated scam, but also to enhancing the lifestyle of the very people who contributed to the misfortune of this child.

It is only because this family have used these donations to prevent anyone from voicing what the official PJ investigation concluded, that this nonsense has lasted this long.

Never understand why the word 'hunt' is used.  Hunting means to trap or kill.

I wouldn't mind seeing a breakdown of what 'searching' has been done by Team McCann in the last 3 years.  ie:

1) Flights

2) Accommodation

3) Meetings

4) Ground work 

When I say 'searching' I'm not talking about internet minions on Twitter ... I mean proper searching as listed above - similar to the way Kerry Needham has recently detailed.

Some interesting points about the fund here, from Gerry & Kate on 22nd May 2007, Including their own admission that significant legal funds would be paid from the fund. 

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It is indeed likely that a significant part of the expenditure of the Fund has related to legal fees.

Below a schedule of the lawyers who have and/or still do act for the McCanns:

 
 
Lawyers - UK
 
 

Name of firm	Location	Staff involved	Areas of expertise	Work done
Bates Wells & Braithwaite	London EC4	Rosamund McCarthy, Tom Pratt, Company Secretarial Department staff	Department for Charities and NGOs	Set up company, Obtain trademark, ongoing company secretarial work
International Family Law Group	London WC2	Ann Thomas, David Hodson, unnamed paralegal – probably Richard Jones	Family law especially re international abductions	Convinced McCanns of need to set up limited company, assisted in its formation. Initially cheques sent c/o their office.
Michael Nicholls QC	London EC4	n/a	Family law	Advised on ‘reasonable parenting’, limited company
Geoffrey Robinson QC	London WC1	n/a	Human rights lawyer	Declaration re EU child rescue alert
Kingsley Napley	EC1	Michael Caplan, Angus McBride	Criminal lawyers	Advice on arguido status
Howes Percival	Milton Keynes	Unclear	Commercial law firm – 6 offices	Unclear
Stephenson Harwood	London EC4	Unclear	International firm	Unclear
Carter Ruck	London EC4	Isobel Hudson Adam Tudor	Media law	A number of libel actions re UK media, Sr. Amoral, Tony Bennett and others
Edward Smethurst			Commercial lawyer acting for businessman Brian Kennedy	Made director of Madeleine’s Fund. Co-ordinator of McCann legal teams

 
 
 
 
 
 
Lawyers - Portugal
 
 
 

Lawyer	Background	Services
Carlos Pinto de Arbreu	Human rights lawyer recommended to them and described as ‘our criminal lawyer’ p.271 of madeleine	Acted for Gerry
Rogerio Alves	President of the Portuguese bar and suggested by Brian Kennedy to provide additional legal support in Portugal	Acted for Kate
Isabel Duarte	Libel lawyer	Sued Sr Amaral

 
 
Note: This list may not be comprehensive.

Still would be nice to see a direct breakdown of the actual searching in last few years.

DaSteelMan wrote:Still would be nice to see a direct breakdown of the actual searching in last few years.

OK, I will start that off

We are told that £50,000 per month was paid to Metodo 3 but they turned out to be bogus and achieved nothing more than a run of media stories which turned out to be false. 

The we have the £500,000 allegedly paid to Richard Halligen, but then we hear that none of the calls to the hotline set up by his company were ever listened too.

Then there might have been a few hundred pounds paid to that great team of well established crack detectives, Alphaig Limited.  They know that Madeleine is being held in a hellish lair in PDL but with no assets and no cash, perhaps they just couldn't follow that up with an investigation. 

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Oh, and of the course the trips to the Vatican and Whitehouse etc., no stone unturned remember.

Err £1 million of their own money?  Their own money?   Don't understand what that means really.   How is it their own money?   Their own money would imo be from money they have earned doing the jobs they were trained to do.

Writing books about the true account of what happened on the holiday?  How is that their own money?   Wasn't it written to raise funds for the search for Maddie?

I am interested to discover that they have cash reserves so large that they can contemplate liquidating a small portion of them, - say £ 1 million -
to assist the "fund" in whatever it is doing at the moment, and in whatever it has been doing for the last 7 years.

How much do the McCanns have at their instant disposal ?

plebgate wrote:Err £1 million of their own money?  Their own money?   Don't understand what that means really.   How is it their own money?   Their own money would imo be from money they have earned doing the jobs they were trained to do.

Writing books about the true account of what happened on the holiday?  How is that their own money?   Wasn't it written to raise funds for the search for Maddie?

I would guess that this money is from the likes of The Sun (Rebekah Brooks, again) who wanted to serialise the book (not that I remember them ever doing that) and various interviews etc. 

I am sure that prior to the book going on sale, we were told that all proceeds would go to the Madeleine Fund.

On the cover of the book, it clearly states "All royalties donated to the Madeleine Fund"

in the accounts to March 2013 was a "donation" from Kate McCann, of £550,000

PeterMac wrote:I am interested to discover that they have cash reserves so large that they can contemplate liquidating a small portion of them, - say £ 1 million -
to assist the "fund" in whatever it is doing at the moment, and in whatever it has been doing for the last 7 years.

How much do the McCanns have at their instant disposal ?

The trial against Goncalo Amaral should be due to reach a conclusion.  Am I right in assuming that in the event that he wins, the McCanns will personally be facing huge legal fees, both their own and his?

If I am correct, then Amarals' lawyer will be also be asking that question.  The money is safer in the fund, isn't it?

Enid O'Dowd wrote:It is indeed likely that a significant part of the expenditure of the Fund has related to legal fees.

Below a schedule of the lawyers who have and/or still do act for the McCanns:

THE LAWYERS ENGAGED IN SEARCH FOR MADELEINE

 
 
Lawyers - UK
 
 

Name of firm	Location	Staff involved	Areas of expertise	Work done
Bates Wells & Braithwaite	London EC4	Rosamund McCarthy, Tom Pratt, Company Secretarial Department staff	Department for Charities and NGOs	Set up company, Obtain trademark, ongoing company secretarial work
International Family Law Group	London WC2	Ann Thomas, David Hodson, unnamed paralegal – probably Richard Jones	Family law especially re international abductions	Convinced McCanns of need to set up limited company, assisted in its formation. Initially cheques sent c/o their office.
Michael Nicholls QC	London EC4	n/a	Family law	Advised on ‘reasonable parenting’, limited company
Geoffrey Robinson QC	London WC1	n/a	Human rights lawyer	Declaration re EU child rescue alert
Kingsley Napley	EC1	Michael Caplan, Angus McBride	Criminal lawyers	Advice on arguido status
Howes Percival	Milton Keynes	Unclear	Commercial law firm – 6 offices	Unclear
Stephenson Harwood	London EC4	Unclear	International firm	Unclear
Carter Ruck	London EC4	Isobel Hudson Adam Tudor	Media law	A number of libel actions re UK media, Sr. Amoral, Tony Bennett and others
Edward Smethurst			Commercial lawyer acting for businessman Brian Kennedy	Made director of Madeleine’s Fund. Co-ordinator of McCann legal teams

 
  
Lawyers - Portugal

Lawyer	Background	Services
Carlos Pinto de Arbreu	Human rights lawyer recommended to them and described as ‘our criminal lawyer’ p.271 of madeleine	Acted for Gerry
Rogerio Alves	President of the Portuguese bar and suggested by Brian Kennedy to provide additional legal support in Portugal	Acted for Kate
Isabel Duarte	Libel lawyer	Sued Sr Amaral

 
Note: This list may not be comprehensive.

Nicely set out - with SEVENTEEN different lawyers named.

But missing are:


1. Jacob Dean, barrister - Used in the libel/contempt of court action against Tony Bennett

2. Adrienne Page Q.C., barrister - used in the libel/contempt of court action against Tony Bennett

3. Timothy Scott Q.C., 'Family lawyer', WCI, used by the McCanns in 2008

4. Marcos Aragao Correia, the mad lawyer from Madeira who prosecuted Goncalo Amaral and four other detectives on behalf of the McCanns - now in Brazil

5. Another Carter-Ruck lawyer besides Adam Tudor and Isabel Martorell was used in the contempt of court action against Tony Bennett 

Which makes TWENTY-TWO.


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...which estimated the total legal bill for the McCanns to date at over £4 million, it might be well over that by now

sharonl wrote:

PeterMac wrote:I am interested to discover that they have cash reserves so large that they can contemplate liquidating a small portion of them, - say £ 1 million -
to assist the "fund" in whatever it is doing at the moment, and in whatever it has been doing for the last 7 years.

How much do the McCanns have at their instant disposal ?

The trial against Goncalo Amaral should be due to reach a conclusion.  Am I right in assuming that in the event that he wins, the McCanns will personally be facing huge legal fees, both their own and his?

If I am correct, then Amarals' lawyer will be also be asking that question.  The money is safer in the fund, isn't it?

Their own, Dr Amaral, and the other 2 parties. 
I have no doubt that the last year there has been a lot of "hide the penny" (not always in the fund) going on.

sharonl

"If I am correct, then Amarals' lawyer will be also be asking that question.  The money is safer in the fund, isn't it?"

I think you may be right about it being safer in The Fund.

It must be a precautionary measure - perhaps Enid O'Dowd can advise?

I wrote on Tuesday in the Yes it's time... thread on page 2 about...

I suppose 11 million quid is small change to cover up certain people especially when it doesn't come out of your pocket.

and now we get this article about McCann's own money.

Since the GA trial, I thought it unfair to have GA put up his monies and not have the McCanns  do similar, at least I surmise that they haven't had to put up monies should they lose their case.

So if the McCanns lose and much of their wealth has been squirreled away , what monies can be accessed by a court and what can't be?

Money and items bought from criminal activities can be seized so if it is shown that the McCann Fund was fraudulent, then let's not forget that 2 mortgage payments were made on their house.

People gave money to the Fund on the understanding that it would be used for searching and we have be told by TM that most of the monies would be used for legal purposes...not what the donors expected.

Does anyone have the complete article to post up?

According to the Madeleine 'fund' accounts, (2014)  there is only £753,056 (restricted and unrestricted) 'available'.

So the McCann's are going to have to 'find' at least £246,944 from 'somewhere' to keep their public 'pledge' to 'spend' £1,000,000 (of their 'OWN' money) on 'finding' Madeleine if OG is 'closed' aren't they?.

So Madeleine is 'only' WORTH £1million to the McCann's?

NOT £1.5, £3, or £100 miliion?

memo to McCann's:

MY children, ALL of them, individually, are absolutely 'PRICELESS'!!
--------------------------------------

Perhaps time for ANOTHER 'placed/faux' er, 'accusation' or 'article' in one of Murdoch's 'papers', about poor McCanns, with an 'out of court' settlement, between McCanns and our 'Rupe', for say, £246,944, in 'damages'?

I remember a report in the newspapers that the family would be prepared to sell their houses in order to fund any searches.    If there is only £750,000 in the fund and they have pledged to spend a million, that option must still be open to them?

What a nonsenses. The money from the book was already pledged to the fund. There might very well have been people who bought the book for that reason, or bought extras for that reason. They cannot pledge that twice. They also cannot count on the money from the trial in Portugal. First of all, it very uncertain that they win. Second, if they win they might not get what they asked for. Third, 75% of that money is not theirs, it's for the children (if Madeleine is still a "legal" party).

If this really coming from the McCanns, it is one of those promises on the line of: we'll cooperate, we'll never leave, we'll take a lie detector test, we'll sell our house etc.

The wording seems fairly clear.
The £ 1m is NOT from the "Fund", it is the McCanns' own money, which would then be placed into the "Fund" to allow it to continue doing whatever it has been doing for the past 8 years
(persecuting Pensioners, harassing Police officers, causing the death by suicide of other pensioners, paying family members to prepare "Dossiers of death" and the rest)

So one asks - from where did the £ 1m emanate.
Proceeds from the book went direct to the "Fund". It said so on the cover.
What other scams investment opportunities have they been exploiting.

Is one to assume that McCann's own money is money that is not connected in any way with the demise of Madeleine, i.e.money saved up from Gerry's salary? 

I think for a large amount to be accrued in 8 years would need some other inrush of money.

As lj said, just another hollow promise and out again with the begging bowl.

Book money was supposed to be for the fund anyway! I thought it had all gone in already?

Why do we need a story about this? 

Just trying to make themselves look 'legit' as usual!