The latest McCann suspect: Scotland Yard has revealed vital new information about a suspect wanted in connection with the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

Will need to listen again, had to cut it a bit short.  But an interesting listen.

It seems someone at the BBC realises they have been sold a pup. After featuring as the lead Story on the red button Text service Thursday 04 June:

  Police plea for help as Madeleine suspect revealed

  Police are appealing for the
  public's help in solving the
  Madeleine McCann case, after
  they announced a child sex
  offender was the new suspect.

  The 43-year-old German man,
  who has not been named, is
  currently in prison.

  He is believed to have been in
  the area where Madeleine was
  last seen, when she
  disappeared in Portugal 13
  years ago.

  Madeleine's parents, Kate and
  Gerry McCann, felt the latest
  development was "potentially
  very significant", the family's
  spokesman said.


Here is the order of news this Saturday 06 June:


  Main Headlines

  - Wear masks in public, WHO says in new advice
  - Is R number balanced on knife edge?
  - 'We were wrong': NFL to allow players' protest
  - Virus costs add to residents' care home bills
  - [Prince] William reveals he is secret helpline volunteer
  - Memorial 'brought to veterans' for D-Day
  - Biden formally wins Democratic nomination
  - [Sophie] Ellis-Bextor recovering at home from bike crash
  - Al-Qaeda chief in north Africa killed, France says
  - Want to sell a home? Make the garden look nice

If the anxious viewer does want to know the Maddie latest, as featured on the front page of every newspaper, it can be found in the UK news subsection, Story 10 (of 11): "McCann suspect 'probed over missing German girl'" right under "Countryside littering 'alarming and unfair'".

BBC News (And to an extent the wider BBC) has always struck me as being a tad skeptical of the whole case only really giving it the routine amount of coverage and a few documentaries they were unable to snub.

Eastree27 wrote:BBC News (And to an extent the wider BBC) has always struck me as being a tad skeptical of the whole case only really giving it the routine amount of coverage and a few documentaries they were unable to snub.

They have? Modern BBC "journalists" seem to regard skepticism of official narratives as a mental illness.

I can't help but feel that the McCann circus is being replayed to aid in distracting the sheep from questioning a totally unjustified lockdown (which had nothing to do with protecting people or saving lives in my opinion), now that this is being phased out.

Hi Eastree27,

The BBC produced Crimewatch.


They sent Gavin Lee to wander the empty streets of PdL stirring this empty pot.

Jonal wrote:Hi Eastree27,

The BBC produced Crimewatch.


They sent Gavin Lee to wander the empty streets of PdL stirring this empty pot.

Quite possibly under effective duress through - cant exactly refuse to air what the police want aired in their position.

Portugal's quarantine is stlll in place for travelers so how the journalists are all getting into there is a mystery.

Eastree27 wrote:

Jonal wrote:Hi Eastree27,

The BBC produced Crimewatch.


They sent Gavin Lee to wander the empty streets of PdL stirring this empty pot.

Under effective duress through - cant exactly refuse to air what the police want aired in their position.

What excuse do you give Richard Bilton? Have you forgotten his tenure and hounding of 'suspects' in 2017?

Mainline wrote:

Eastree27 wrote:

Jonal wrote:Hi Eastree27,

The BBC produced Crimewatch.


They sent Gavin Lee to wander the empty streets of PdL stirring this empty pot.

Under effective duress through - cant exactly refuse to air what the police want aired in their position.

What excuse do you give Richard Bilton? Have you forgotten his tenure and hounding of 'suspects' in 2017?

No excuse (I didnt watch the 2017 Panorama) but why does he feel he has to sort of justify thinking their innocent while also mentioning how they have threatened to sue him. Comes across as trying too hard - knowing if he didn't publicly he be out of a job if team McCann complained.

AlexBG wrote:

They have? Modern BBC "journalists" seem to regard skepticism of official narratives as a mental illness. 

They don't regard anything.

Regarding isn't on the job description.

Neither is independent thought, investigation or critical thinking.

You won't get past the interview if you show a spark of interest in actual truth.

Real mainstream journalism (what there was of it) died decades ago.

Actually I've been thinking about this... back in the 1960s there was a lot of liberalist media/journalism (and comedy) used to overthrow the established conservative crowd.

It worked... it changed many things that needed changing.

It was great at the time... a breath of fresh air.

It was all bought and paid for though. Nothing happens without financial support. It suited whoever had the money.

It's still the same today... just a different agenda (or the same one).

sandancer wrote:Good old Clarence , he uses all the right clichés , spins the story like a true professional 

still using all the now debunked stories , dining in your garden , could see the French windows , their checking system was better , they were told not to show emotions , blah blah blah ! 

13 years of spin in one article , just to remind everyone that this was " stranger abduction " .

" Because I'd had assurance from the authorities that they were innocent parties in a case of stranger abduction " What !?!? 

Now which " authorities " would that be ? 

Not the PJ that's for sure !

You're being too polite.  What you mean is - he drops himself deep in the proverbial every time he opens his north 'n south.

He just can't help himself.  He goes way beyond the line of duty - so self opinionated is he.

Meanwhile back at city desk..




Sunday deadline draw nigh.  Just another day at the office for the Daily Tablet

For as long as I can remember, what has been the focal point of media reports apart from team McCanns deviations?  Why trolling of course!  So much so, it's been turned into a sort of them and us scenario.

Factoring in Clarence Mitchell's tabloid commentary, what better way to lure criticism than create fake news to set the internet on fire - in particular social media.  That is what has happened - again!

This is a well orchestrated strategy to promote unrest.  Just as Brexit, the election, climate change, coronavirus and now racial rioting.

Watch yourselves,you might be the target.  More to the point - watch CMOMM, this media blitz has attracted a lot of attention.  Let's be sure it's not for the wrong reasons!

Beware of the mole within.

kaz wrote:Peter Mac's hypothesis as stated above sounds the most feasible scenario to me.
Having said that, the big mystery is WHY the Establishment is falling over itself to place the blame elsewhere? Why is it complicit in the deceit? What is this power that the McCanns have  ? Are they just simply a well connected family ?

 It is only intended to show what happens if you go for the simplest possible version of the truth.
Apply Occam's razor and then apply your own knowledge of how humans actually behave.
They DO stay out a bit later than they will admit
They DO sneak into their bedroom for a cuddle without waking the children.

I am aware it does not cover all the points people bring up.
I doubt anything will, 
but to some of the points raised I would say – it gave them the the time to do it.

Well Connected family ?
That is more interesting.
I went to a grammar school in Grimsby, [where?] then Bradford, then to Switzerland then to University and then to two more.
(I am just a ex-cop who likes learning things.)

BUT I NOW count among my friends and acquaintances and in my address book for emergencies . . i.e not on my Christmas card list, but available...
Two retired Brigadiers, four colonels, – one of whom attends HMQ at Balmoral every year – three Chief constables ( one recently retired) plus a handful of supers and Chief Supers, two members of the Peerage, One Count of the Polish Aristocracy,  quite a number of Knights of the Realm, a recent Lord Mayor of London,  4 QCs, other sundry lawyers – Heads of Chambers, Managing partners in major firms and other such minor players –
Retired Diplomats, Publishers, Medics (various) and some reliable journalists.  senior bankers, and so on and on
Plus of course journalists and retired officers in other parts of the EU and the Antipodes . . . (unspecified, but you get the picture)
and many dozen retired police officers, of whom many are still in active employment in associated roles.
And of the above, many have CBE and OBE – which is irrelevant normally, but means their voice may be heard more than mine

This is fairly normal for someone who has led an active life in public service, and who has maintained contact with people.

But ti is not especially Well-Connected, in the Downton sense.

Verdi wrote:For as long as I can remember, what has been the focal point of media reports apart from team McCanns deviations?  Why trolling of course!  So much so, it's been turned into a sort of them and us scenario.

Factoring in Clarence Mitchell's tabloid commentary, what better way to lure criticism than create fake news to set the internet on fire - in particular social media.  That is what has happened - again!

This is a well orchestrated strategy to promote unrest.  Just as Brexit, the election, climate change, coronavirus and now racial rioting.

Watch yourselves,you might be the target.  More to the point - watch CMOMM, this media blitz has attracted a lot of attention.  Let's be sure it's not for the wrong reasons!

Beware of the mole within.

I feel another dossier of fatal consequence is already set to hit the tabloids.

Liz Eagles wrote:

Verdi wrote:For as long as I can remember, what has been the focal point of media reports apart from team McCanns deviations?  Why trolling of course!  So much so, it's been turned into a sort of them and us scenario.

Factoring in Clarence Mitchell's tabloid commentary, what better way to lure criticism than create fake news to set the internet on fire - in particular social media.  That is what has happened - again!

This is a well orchestrated strategy to promote unrest.  Just as Brexit, the election, climate change, coronavirus and now racial rioting.

Watch yourselves,you might be the target.  More to the point - watch CMOMM, this media blitz has attracted a lot of attention.  Let's be sure it's not for the wrong reasons!

Beware of the mole within.

I feel another dossier of fatal consequence is already set to hit the tabloids.

Exactly!

Beware who you share a bed with .

How many times have we been this way before?  Moles planted to lure thoughtless commentary which will later be used against you and the forum.  Don't let them win.

Let's stick to what we do best.  The rest is an unnecessary diversion.

Justice for Madeleine McCann!

Why is this German man being offered up in a media kangaroo court and has yet to be charged of anything?

Liz Eagles wrote:Why is this German man being offered up in a media kangaroo court and has yet to be charged of anything?

Neither is there one shred of evidence to suggest that he had anything whatsoever to do with Madeleines' disappearance.

MaddieMay13YEARS wrote:Tthe reality of the situation is that their checking system – with adults going to see the sleeping children every 20 or 30 minutes – was better than anything that COULD have been offered by the holiday centre.'


No, the reality of the situation is that their so called child care system FAILED and a little girl paid the price with her life. And her parents refuse to own it!

Thank you for your comments BUT the majority on this forum do not agree that they had a checking system in place, as you suggest, nor that Madeleine was abducted.

There is significant evidence that there was NEVER a checking system in place. The Portuguese Chief Inspector (Rebelo) said that he had evidence that from Sunday onwards all the children were cared for in ONE apartment.

That is backed up by admissions by the McCanns and the Tapas 7 that one of their number was always absent from the table each evening, while they were eating at the Tapas restaurant. Each one claimed some form of sudden illness, like 'feeling sick'.

Many on here think that something serious happened to Madeleine on the Sunday (possibly Monday), maybe even that she died then - and that this is why the children were all in one room each night.  

And when you think about it, the idea that petty much all of the group were up and down like yo-yos every 15/20/30 minutes, or whatever, taking a 4-5 minute walk there-and-back to their respective children to see if they were all right, is pretty ridiculous.

Isn't it?

sharonl wrote:

Liz Eagles wrote:Why is this German man being offered up in a media kangaroo court and has yet to be charged of anything?

Neither is there one shred of evidence to suggest that he had anything whatsoever to do with Madeleines' disappearance.

I can't help but think either way I don't see how a fair trial can ensue.

What if——— what if the germans send this guy to Portugal for trial,the Portuguese know the Macs and all of cohorts are guilty they must send
“Who ate all the pies”philo and every one involved.They then give the defendant the best barristers in Portugal and subpoena all involved they would be ripped to shreds and all the world see what really
happened.Wishful thinking I know but what a delicious idea.

Flossy wrote:

sharonl wrote:

Liz Eagles wrote:Why is this German man being offered up in a media kangaroo court and has yet to be charged of anything?

Neither is there one shred of evidence to suggest that he had anything whatsoever to do with Madeleines' disappearance.

I can't help but think either way I don't see how a fair trial can ensue.

It's more than that.

Blackpied wrote:What if——— what if the germans send this guy to Portugal for trial,the Portuguese know the Macs and all of cohorts are guilty they must send
“Who ate all the pies”philo and every one involved.They then give the defendant the best barristers in Portugal and subpoena all involved they would be ripped to shreds and all the world see what really
happened.Wishful thinking I know but what a delicious idea.

If media reports are to be believed, the German police are now investigating - investigating murder on the strength of an alleged telephone call, a veteran Jag and a tatty old camper van said to have been owned by the imprisoned one.

Hard evidence indeed.

Someone needs to tell the German authorities that's not how it works.  Only the Portuguese police can officially investigate the disappearance of Madeleine McCann - Germans can't any more than the British can!

How many times do we need to repeat this simple fact before it finally sinks in.

No abduction = no stranger suspect.

Keep it simple.  Woof!  Woof!

    

  It's   you know who

Christian Brueckner 'lost it' when staff at his German corner shop started discussing the Madeleine McCann case, ex-colleague says

• Lenta Johlitz, 34, worked at a kiosk shop in northern German town Braunschweig
  
• She said  Christian Brueckner wanted the group to stop talking about the case
  
• He 'totally lost it' and 'shouted: “The child is dead now and that’s it”,’ at the group
  
  

By Abul Taher for The Mail on Sunday
Published: 23:31, 6 June 2020 | Updated: 23:46, 6 June 2020



Convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner ‘lost it’ when staff at a kiosk he ran in northern Germany began discussing the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

Brueckner ran the small store selling drinks and snacks in the northern German town of Braunschweig between 2012 and 2014.
Lenta Johlitz, 34, worked for him at the corner shop and, recalling the exchange, she told German newspaper Bild: ‘Once he totally lost it when we sat together with friends and had a conversation about the Maddie case. He wanted us to stop talking about it. He shouted, “The child is dead now and that’s it”.’

Her story emerged as a former caretaker described how Brueckner would shower youngsters with toys and teddy bears as they walked to a school barely 100 yards from the kiosk.

Peter Erdmann, 64, who worked at the Grundschule Hohsteig, a primary school for around 300 children, said: ‘The kids would come to school holding ponies and teddy bears. I used to ask them where they got them from, and they used to tell me, “Christian at the kiosk gave it to us”.

‘He used to give the kids the presents when they walked past the kiosk in the morning.’

Mr Erdmann, who worked at the school between 1999 and 2016, added: ‘At the time, I did not think anything of it. I used to go and see Christian in the kiosk, and he always came across as friendly.

‘I even asked him if he gave gifts to the kids, and he told me he had a little box full in the kiosk.

‘It turns my stomach now to think of his intentions and I wish I had raised what was going on with my bosses at the time.’

Mr Erdmann said he now wants to talk to the police, adding: ‘I regret not being more suspicious at the time.’

A former girlfriend of Brueckner has claimed that he would regularly abuse and strangle her.

The claim was recalled by Norbert M – a man who met Brueckner in 2012 and moved into his flat adjoining the kiosk. ‘She was around 17, and blonde. She was a very small woman, puny.

‘She told me Brueckner hit her and strangled her. She told me that herself. I saw strangle marks on her neck.’

Norbert, who asked not to be named in full, said Brueckner would allow children as young as nine to work for him on the shop till. He also claimed that Brueckner allowed his two dogs to die by leaving them inside the kiosk for six weeks while he went on holiday to Portugal.


https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8395465/Christian-Brueckner-lost-group-discussed-Madeleine-McCann-case.html

Witness 'saw Madeleine McCann and a man travelling in a German-owned Volkswagen van just like Christian Brueckner's vehicle weeks after she vanished'

• A witness claims to have seen Madeline McCann in a van with an unknown man
  
• The reported sighting was on May 28 2007, just weeks after the child vanished
  
• It comes days after Christian Brueckner became the main suspect in the case
  
• Detectives believe Brueckner was living out of a German campervan in 2007
  
  

By Jonathan Bucks and Jake Ryan For The Mail On Sunday

Published:  22:00, 6 June 2020   |  Updated:  22:44, 6 June 2020





A witness claimed to have spotted Madeleine McCann getting into a German-owned VW van with a man just weeks after her disappearance, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

A police file unearthed by this paper details how the witness saw Madeleine emerging from a restaurant in the Spanish seaside town of Alcossebre before climbing into the van with an unidentified man.

The sighting, one of dozens in the early weeks of the investigation, has taken on new significance since German paedophile Christian Brueckner was identified last week as a key suspect in the case.

According to the witness, Madeleine was seen at 11am on May 28, 2007 – three weeks after she vanished – coming out of popular local restaurant Tunnels in Alcossebre, some 600 miles from Praia da Luz.

At the time, Leicestershire Police Detective Constable John Hughes issued an international Interpol alert with a ‘risk to life missing person’ warning demanding that Spanish and German police investigate.

He urged Spanish police to check the location for CCTV and witnesses and asked for the German vehicle keeper details. It is unclear what checks were made.

The police report, issued as part of Operation Task, says: ‘A caller has reported a possible sighting of Madeleine McCann, 11am, 28th May 2007.

‘Location given as a restaurant called Tunnels, in an old castle at an area called Cap Y Corp, Alcossebre, Spain. She was seen to leave with a man in a Volkswagen van.

‘We request the Spanish police check the location for any CCTV or witnesses. We request German vehicle details. Can the vehicle be circulated for a stop and check to be carried out if seen.’

It emerged last week that Brueckner was living just two miles from the holiday apartment where Madeleine vanished in May 2007. Former neighbours said he often slept in his van, which had a distinctive white upper body and yellow skirting.

German police said there were indications that he could have used either the van or a Jaguar model XJR 6 with a German number plate to commit the crime and appealed for help tracking where they were parked.

Detectives say that the day after Madeleine’s disappearance, Brueckner re-registered the Jaguar in the name of Alexander Bischof, who lives in Augsburg, Germany, despite the vehicle never having left Portugal.

It also emerged that Brueckner sold the VW van for £5,000 in 2015 to a German compatriot running an unofficial scrapyard in the Silves area of the Algarve. Portuguese police officers seized the vehicle in 2019.

The owner of the yard said: ‘The police said they needed the van as part of the investigation. It was all very sudden – there had been nothing on the TV or in the papers about the case at that time.

‘I’m not sure I’d ever get it back, but if it turns out Christian had something to do with Madeleine’s disappearance, then I don’t want it back. It wouldn’t be right.’

Scotland Yard said Brueckner’s Volkswagen van had a Portuguese registration plate. It is not known whether he changed the registration plate at any time.

As part of the appeal for information, the Met Police said in a statement that the suspect had ‘access to this van from at least April 2007 until sometime after May 2007’.

It added: ‘We believe he was living in this van for days, possibly weeks, and may have been using it on 3 May 2007.
‘We are appealing for anyone who may have seen it in or around Praia da Luz on 3 May, the night Madeleine went missing, the days before, or weeks following the disappearance.’

Last night, The Mail on Sunday asked Scotland Yard whether the van’s registration was the same as the one identified in the 2007 sighting, but the force said it was not revealing those details.

Suspect's secret lair that could lead police to Maddie: Christian Brueckner regularly visited run-down house in Portuguese countryside in the months after she disappeared

Paedophile Christian Brueckner regularly visited a rundown house hidden away in the Portuguese countryside in the months after the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

The property – pictured exclusively and never before linked to Brueckner – could now become a focal point in the investigation into whether the German kidnapped and murdered Madeleine.

An investigation by this newspaper has established that Brueckner often stayed at the villa in the village of Foral in 2007 and 2008. He reportedly parked his distinctive Volkswagen Westfalia campervan, which was subsequently seized by German police, in the car park of a nearby restaurant.

The villa is about 40 miles from the Ocean Club in Praia da Luz, the holiday resort where three-year-old Madeleine disappeared in May 2007.

The villa, which is understood to have never been searched by police, was rented between 2002 and 2009 by a German woman called Nicole who is said to have used it for a rehabilitation programme for troubled teenagers.

A German couple who have lived in the village for more than 20 years said they immediately recognised Brueckner when he was named last week as the prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine and his image appeared in the media.

‘I said, “That’s Christian” before I even read what his name was,’ said the husband, who asked not to be named.

‘The first time I met him he was hosting a party at the restaurant.

‘He had two dogs, one medium-sized, one small. The name of the small one I even remember, it was called Frau Muller and was always rummaging around the bins.

‘The female tenant was German and had a young daughter. She also had a young teenage girl living with her who was not her daughter. The woman would fly kids over from Germany and was supposedly running a rehabilitation programme for troubled youths.’
Brueckner’s visits to the property could form a key part of police attempts to piece together his movements after Madeleine vanished. He is thought to have left Portugal shortly after and returned to Germany, reportedly telling friends that he had stolen a lot of cash during a burglary on the Algarve.

He first moved to the German of city of Dresden for a few weeks and then to Augsburg in Bavaria, staying in the attic of a home owned by landlord Alexander Bischoff, 64, for two or three weeks at a time. But according to Mr Bischoff, Brueckner was often away, including on trips back to Portugal.

In 2015 he sold the VW T3 Westfalia to the German owner of a scrapyard in the town of Silves, 14 miles from Foral. Meanwhile, Brueckner’s German police file lists one of his ‘abodes’ as ‘Portugal. Messines’. The village of Sao Bartolomeu de Messines is just six miles from Foral.

Lia Silva, the owner of the property in Foral, said an intimidating German man would visit the villa and visit Nicole. At one point it is claimed he helped track down one of the German teenagers who had run away.

‘Suddenly a German guy turned up, and the rumours were that he was a private detective of some nature,’ said Ms Silva. ‘Some people were afraid of him when he used to go to the restaurant.

‘Eventually, the guy found the runaway girl … and it turns out she was pregnant. It was a major problem. It was then that Nicole was no longer allowed to receive kids from Germany, so she lost all her income.’

When Ms Silva was shown a photograph of Brueckner, she said: ‘Yeah that looks like him, it could be him.’

She added that Nicole abandoned the villa in 2009, allegedly owing 10,000 euros in rent.

‘I found syringes and used needles and a spoon and bricks of hashish in a shoebox,’ Ms Silva added. ‘I was devastated to find that in my house.’

German police placed Christian Brueckner on round-the-clock surveillance

 
 German police considered Christian Brueckner so dangerous that they put him under round- the-clock surveillance.

The convicted paedophile was released from jail in 2018 as a result of a bureaucratic bungle against the wishes of German police and prosecutors. In panic, officers were sent to follow him, but he gave them the slip.

Brueckner had been arrested in Portugal in 2017 and extradited to Germany to serve 15 months in prison for child sexual abuse and possession of child pornography.

He was eligible for release in August 2018, but the German authorities were desperate for him to remain behind bars for drug trafficking. Under extradition law, Portugal had to give its consent and it is claimed the Portuguese authorities did not do so in time – meaning Brueckner was released.

Detectives first tried to covertly track his movements but he soon realised that he was under surveillance. The officers then began openly following him.

‘We stood in front of his house at night, walked beside him when he was out, and talked to him,’ said an investigator.

Brueckner went to the Netherlands, where the Dutch police who took over surveillance lost him. From there he fled to Italy, where he was arrested a month later and extradited back to Germany where he was convicted of the 2005 rape of a pensioner.

Name of new Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner was passed to police SEVEN years ago by an acquaintance who remembered him from Praia da Luiz

The new Madeleine McCann suspect was identified as her possible abductor seven years ago – after Scotland Yard e-fits of a man seen around the time she vanished were shown on a German television appeal.

The Mail on Sunday can reveal that paedophile Christian Brueckner’s name was passed to police by an acquaintance who saw the programme and remembered him from the Portuguese resort where Madeleine was snatched from.

But even though Kate and Gerry McCann were flanked by a British detective during the October 2013 appeal, which was watched by millions, it is unclear whether the crucial tip-off ever reached the Metropolitan Police.

The programme featured two computer generated images of a suspect – a clean shaven, possible German speaker, aged 20 to 40 – whom Scotland Yard detectives described as of ‘vital importance’ to the investigation.


Paedophile Christian Brueckner, the new Madeleine McCann suspect, was identified as her possible abductor seven years ago after Scotland Yard e-fits of a man seen around the time she vanished were shown on a German television appeal. Kate and Gerry McCann were flanked by a British detective during the October 2013 appeal (above)



‘Of vital importance’: The e-fits produced for the German Euro News TV appeal for Madeleine McCann on October 17, 2013



They hoped the images would lead to a breakthrough and Gerry told the programme: ‘It’s great the police are working so hard but we need the support of the public.’

At the time, Brueckner, now 43, already had a history of sex crimes.

Sources in Germany have told this newspaper that the acquaintance detailed his suspicions in an online police form which was sent to the country’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), that collated the 500 witness reports and tip-offs resulting from the programme.

But it is claimed detectives failed to act on the information even after being told by officers in Brueckner’s home town of Braunschweig that he was a sex offender.

Seven years on, Brueckner is now the prime suspect and is also being linked to three other child abductions.

BKA investigators made further inquiries about Brueckner in 2013 and contacted Braunschweig police for a second time, only to be reminded that they had already passed on what they knew of the suspect’s criminal history.

Scotland Yard last night declined to answer questions about the claims, saying only that Brueckner became a suspect in 2017 when an appeal ‘provided the details of this man’.

But a source in Germany familiar with the case said: ‘The guy that came forward after the 2013 TV appeal provided really valuable information.

He said the e-fits reminded him of a strange guy he knew who he hung out with or worked with in Portugal some years earlier and named Brueckner, currently behind bars in northern Germany on drugs offences.

‘The BKA is responsible for liaising with foreign police forces and, it must be said, I cannot understand why they wouldn’t pass the information on, especially since the programme featured the McCanns and the Met officer so prominently.’

Jim Dickie, a former Met detective chief inspector who led kidnap investigations, told The Mail on Sunday: ‘I have dealt with the German authorities on several occasions in the past and they are very strict about the sharing of information.

'It may be that they held on to it and didn’t follow it up properly or that they simply weren’t expected to pass it on to the Met.

‘Intelligence like this can lead to evidence and be vitally important. Did the Met just forget to chase up with the German police and ask what they had? That’s possible too.’

The two images featured on the show differ but each shows a man with an intense stare and a hint of a smile. The programme also showed a reconstruction of the events leading up to Madeleine’s abduction on Thursday, May 3, 2007.

The e-fits were the first to be issued in relation to the Home Office-funded inquiry into the case.

By the time Madeleine was snatched, Brueckner had long been on the radars of police in his own country and Portugal, having been convicted of sex offences and theft.

But the Portuguese police investigation into her disappearance, described as ‘chaotic’ by a senior officer, disintegrated into farce.

The family’s apartment was not sealed off for almost 24 hours, leading to contamination by up to 50 people and cleaners washing bed sheets, while ash from officers’ cigarettes was found in samples.

Within five days, police are said to have shown a nanny who looked after Madeleine in Praia a picture of Brueckner, naming him as a possible suspect, but that notion was soon ‘discarded’ and Brueckner returned to Germany in the summer of 2007 and continued his life of crime, in drug trafficking.

By 2012, he had settled in Braunschweig where he ran a kiosk bar in an apartment block but his life spiralled ‘out of control’.

One report stated that he ‘constantly collected criminal charges. For theft, bodily injury, drunkenness in traffic, forged papers.

The number of procedures is difficult to calculate.’ He is also said to have abused his young Albanian girlfriend who was often seen with bruises and marks on her neck.

At this time Scotland Yard was completing its review into the disappearance of Madeleine, sparked by pressure from the then Prime Minister David Cameron.

The 2011 Met Police review, which lasted two years, followed a 2009 Home Office-commissioned report which criticised the Portuguese investigation over a number of failures, including the naming of Gerry and Kate McCann as suspects and a lack of analysis of mobile phone data.

As part of Scotland Yard’s review, they are understood to have received from Portuguese police a list of 600 names who were persons of interest.

Brueckner’s was among them but the Met Police’s review, led by Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood, settled on a list of 38 other potential suspects.

In 2013, Scotland Yard officially launched Operation Grange and officers took part in a TV appeal alongside the McCanns for information which was broadcast across Europe, including Germany.

That led to Brueckner’s acquaintance coming forward with his name. Last night German police were unavailable for comment.

A Met Police spokesman said: ‘Following a request from the then Home Secretary, in 2011 the MPS started its review of the previous investigations into Madeleine’s disappearance.

'In 2013, the Met made a decision that the review would progress to a full investigation.

‘(Former) Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, for the ten- year anniversary in 2017, put out a statement and as a direct result of that appeal we received information which provided details of this man.

'Our subsequent enquiries led to us to decide that he was a suspect for our investigation.

‘We will not go into the details of what those enquiries are or what the evidence is against him, and that’s to ensure that we are doing the best we can to protect the integrity of our investigation.

'We can confirm that the name of this man that we were provided with, we were aware of within the investigation, but he was not a suspect.’

Last night, Braunschweig state prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters told German newspaper BILD: ‘At the moment the criminal suspicion is based on clues. We haven’t interrogated the suspect yet regarding this case.’


https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8395321/Witness-saw-Madeline-McCann-German-owned-VW-van-unidentified-man-weeks-vanished.html
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Madeleine McCann was not abducted - end of!






http://www.mccannpjfiles.co.uk/