Christian Brueckner: To be or not to be

Madeleine McCann – latest: ‘Traditional’ evidence will be hard to find after 16 years, forensics expert warns

In major new development in Madeleine McCann investigation, police scoured remote reservoir in Portugal last week

Maryam Zakir-Hussain
4 hours ago

A forensics expert has warned that “traditional” evidence will be difficult to find after 16 years have passed since Madeleine McCann’s disappearance.

Dan Matthews said that investigators would have searched the remote reservoir in Portugal for “things that could’ve stood the test of time and not been destroyed by its passage”, such as clothing fragments or jewellry.

It comes after police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine say they have recovered a number of items from their recent search.

German authorities last week helped Portuguese crews comb a remote area inland from the Algarve coastal resort where Madeleine went missing from her bedroom during a family holiday in 2007.

Prosecutors said they would evaluate the undisclosed items in the coming days and weeks.

“Whether some of the items actually relate to the Madeleine McCann case cannot yet be confirmed,” the prosecutor’s statement read.

Meanwhile, investigators are set to widen the search for Madeleine after photos belonging to prime suspect Christian Brueckner revealed ‘clues’.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/madeleine-mccann-news-disappearance-latest-today-b2350786.html

Mmmm .... especially when said evidence doesn't even exist

I don't think a forensic expert is necessary to state the screamingly obvious, we all know this latest episode is a false lead that will eventually fizzle out, like all the other false leads gone before.

Still who knows - maybe 'the searchers' found an old soggy hairbrush or toothbrush or a good quality wrist band - or even the harlequin pantaloons

I wonder why the Independent has taken-up the reins of this nonsense

'Strange, she didn't scream': Prime Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner's sinister claim to the friend who reported him to police over young British girl's disappearance in Portugal

Brueckner has mounted concerted effort to clear name by writing several letters

By Nick Pisa On The Algarve

Published: 15:14, 3 June 2023 | Updated: 15:14, 3 June 2023

The prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case has revealed he was named by an informer as the man responsible after telling him 'strange she didn't scream'.

Convicted rapist and paedophile Christian Brueckner, 45, makes the admission in a letter seen by MailOnline in which he again attacks the police investigation against him as groundless.

Brueckner has mounted a concerted effort to clear his name by writing several letters all of which contain gripes about his treatment in prison, where he is seven years for rape.

In the letter he attacked informant Helge Busching - who initially contacted police in 2017 to say he had information on the case - while he was serving a jail term for people trafficking in Greece.

The two men had been pals in Portugal in the early 2000s but as Brueckner explained in his latest missive he says they fell out after a drugs deal went wrong the year Madeleine went missing and never spoke again.

He wrote:' The following sentences from the 'witness' Helge B in 2017 were responsible for all the public hunting and hatred against me by the German authorities.'

Then quoting Busching he writes:' I was at the hippy festival in 2008 in Spain. Manfred (Seyferth another witness) was also there as well and Michael (Tatschl another witness), Manfred, Christian and I then started talking about Portugal.

'It was then Christian made a comment about the missing girl. Christian asked me if I was still going to Portugal, I replied; 'I'm no longer going to Portugal because there are too many problems there, Portugal has too many police for me on account of the missing child.

'It is indeed strange that she disappeared without a trace. Christian replied:''Yes, she did not scream.''

Slamming the claims Brueckner added:' It's not even worthy of comment,' before going on to explain how they fell out over a drug deal.

He said:' In 2007 Helge B sole one kilo of hashish to me and when I arrived in Germany with it, I saw it was only 750g. After that he wasn't existing for me anymore (sic).

'There wasn't any conversation in 2008. Not even Manfred existed for me anymore after this. The point is that the main leader of all the investigations Helge B, who came free (sic) a long time before the regular end of his prison in Greece.'

It is known that Busching was convicted of people trafficking in Greece and in 2017 media there reported how he had been released so he could meet with officers from Scotland Yard after telling them he had valuable information.

At the time Greek media reported how he was questioned in a city centre hotel for several hours in a hotel room that was swept for bugs before officers for the Operation Grange team met with him.

Busching gave the statement in 2017 after being arrested while trying to smuggle migrants from Greece to Italy, it is claimed. He had a previous conviction for a 2011 assault on a beggar in Italy.

While under investigation, Busching was put in touch with Operation Grange - the Met Police team investigating Madeleine's disappearance - where he gave them details about Brueckner.

According to a Greek police report, Busching's evidence was 'given voluntarily and without monetary or other consideration' it is not known what his final sentence for people trafficking was and whether her served it all.

Busching and Seyferth have also told police they broke into Brueckner's home in the Algarve in 2007 and stole a camcorder and gun from which they later threw into a lake.

Both men claimed the camcorder contained scenes of sexual violence and torture against two women and they recognised Brueckner in the footage and it was this testimony that led to him being convicted of raping a 73-year-old woman in the Algarve the year before Madeleine vanished.

However the camcorder and gun have never been recovered and Brueckner claims that it was this testimony that kick started the investigation against him and led to him being named as prime suspect in 2020 by German authorities investigating Madeleine's disappearance.

She vanished from a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on Portugal's Algarve coast in May 2007 - where Brueckner was living at the time - and has never been seen since.

Brueckner's lawyer Friedrich Fulscher said:'It remains to be seen whether this conversation took place at all as we have other witnesses who said it didn't.'

The revelation comes just days after German prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters confirmed items had been found following a high-profile search last month at the Arade dam just 35 miles from where then three-year-old Madeleine was last seen.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12155301/Strange-didnt-scream-Prime-Madeleine-McCann-suspect-Brueckners-sinister-claim-friend.html

nick pisa, always to trust him to change history. the clan of hb and ms never did get their access in 2007 of course, remember the ms telling , they found it a nice way to honor a friend, that was in jail when they did exactly that. in 2007 cb was not in jail.

but the lawyer would be fond of this story, by placing it in 2007 , the one and only nick pisa has given cb a nice alibi for things happening in may 2007. and that together with placing to other criminals in the area of all that happened in may 2007. 

i know, lies are difficult to remember, but getting it into rewritten history does not help either. 

and it was not that strange to remark the girl who would give the unknown them their twopence, was not something the media left out of their stories at the time. maybe that guy only had read it in a free to take newspaper somewhere in the badlands of spain. 

wasn't it not just part of the discussion, why that so outspoken girl just let herself taken away from her bed by that stranger, without a blanket into the cold night, wasn't that not the reason why the media brought in the sedation story? 
assisted by the media in 2007 and long after that time, the public got in the mindset, the brave doctors had of course sedated their kiddies, to go out and play. you know because it was their holiday too!

there is a difference between knowledge of a crime, or public knowledge (with a lot of help of the media).

Wolters has already hinted at plans to conduct further searches in Portugal. This must be hugely frustrating for the Portuguese authorities who obviously have to accommodate the German police in their investigations. It would be interesting to know the extent of the "collaboration" taking place between the British and German police behind the scenes.

An interesting point there ... the British police are "searching" for an alive 20 year old Madeleine, while the Germans are looking to prove she is dead. Does that mean if the remains of Madeleine are found, that Operation Grange will grind to a halt? Or, would that warrant them getting more money to carry on "searching" for those behind Madeleine's demise?

crusader wrote:I'm convinced the British authorities want the bogus search to continue because if it ends, they will have to answer some very difficult questions by freedom of information. 
They will no longer be able to hide under the guise of it being a live investigation.
Mark Rowley said he is satisfied the McCann's have been cleared of any involvement in the disappearance of Madeleine, not to my knowledge they have.
Infact the Portuguese police state the opposite, only closing the case because of insufficiant evidence against them.

I don't think anyone in the British establishment need be in fear of awkward questions being raised in the event of Operation Grange being abandoned, indeed they said back in 2015 the working team was to be scaled down to 4 (?) staff. Technically it could be said Madeleine McCann's disappearance is an active case until further evidence is unearthed to take it forward - whichever way you look at it, Madeleine McCann's disappearance has never been satisfactorily explained. Thus she is a missing person!

As for having to answer FOI requests, they will always find a way around not answering very specific questions that might compromise their positions.

The police are not obliged to update the public on any criminal investigation unless it is a matter of public concern/interest. It's the fact that the German authorities are so glib with their public commentary about Brueckner that rouses suspicion about their ultimate motives - in short, they talk too much! The British did take the cameras and journalists on board their jolly to Portugal back in the day - The Great 2014 Dig!

Personally I don't think the British are collaborating with German authorities, I think their dismissive approach to be an indicative of what they feel about Brueckner and his alleged involvement in the case of Madeleine McCann. Same applies to Portugal, if a rogatory request is submitted for international cooperation, they have little or no alternative but to respond positively - just imagine the outcome if there was some evidence forthcoming and the leading authorities didn't cooperate.

All that aside, the press and media are playing a huge part in this circus - take that out of the equation and there is little left.

Christian Brueckner is not/was not/will never be involved with the disappearance of Madeleine McCann - that's all we need to know.

Talking of the press, I was black listed by the Snaily Wail years ago for daring to point out known facts of the Madeleine McCann case.

Yesterday I tried again and perchance I was back in, so I posted a simple comment, short and sweet like a donkey's gallop, in response to this article copied-over up-page ^^^ to the effect that reportage was factually incorrect, which can be verified by very detailed official documentation of the Portuguese investigation, freely available on the internet.

'Strange, she didn't scream': Prime Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner's sinister claim to the friend who reported him to police over young British girl's disappearance in Portugal

EXCLUSIVE: Brueckner has mounted concerted effort to clear name by writing several letters

By Nick Pisa On The Algarve

Published: 15:14, 3 June 2023 | Updated: 19:23, 3 June 2023

My comment hasn't been published, instead the Slimy Snail opted to publish these comments..

~ There are stories and situations in life where you have no connection with the family but feel so sorry for them it's beyond words so sad

~ What about all the other kid that have gone missing in 17 years or so, no search for them !!

~ The peoples of Scotland wish Gerry and Kate lot's of love, you are so sweet kind and you will get justice for Maddy x

~ A great case for capital punishment

~ Poor parents, sad story

~ I wish the McCann family all the best, what they have really been through you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. I hope they get answers some day.

~ Do her parents really need to hear or read this

~ Oh thats just awful to hear for the parents.

~ It doesn't bear thinking about what that poor little girl went through

~ Aww so sad hopefully one day Madeline will turn up ..Never give up looking for her, and hold on to that hope,Madeline will be found one day.(Debbie)

Madeleine McCann: UK police travel to Portugal resort to oversee excavations

Ben Quinn

Mon 5 May 2014 01.45 BST

Report says forensics team plan to use radar equipment to look underground for clues to child's disappearance seven years ago

The search for missing child Madeleine McCann is set to enter a new phase as British police prepare to travel to Portugal to oversee excavations in the Portuguese resort where she went missing seven years ago, according to a report.

A team of forensic officers will use radar equipment to look underground for clues to her disappearance, according to a report in the Daily Mirror, which cited police sources.

The child's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, were said to have been told of the plans to search three sites near the Praia da Lux resort but are not expected to go to Portugal.

Madeleine went missing from her family's rented holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on 3 May 2007, as her parents dined with friends at a nearby tapas bar.

A spokesman for the Metropolitan police said that the force would neither confirm nor deny the report. "We are not going to give a running commentary," he said. "From the beginning of Operation Grange [the UK-led hunt for Madeleine], we have made it clear that speculation has been unhelpful to the investigation and that continues to be the case.

"As we have said from the beginning, we will not be commenting on any speculation surrounding this investigation."

Police said last month that they knew of nine sexual assaults and three "near misses" on British girls between the ages of six and 12 who were on holiday in the Algarve between 2004 and 2006.

Scotland Yard began a review of the case in May 2011 – codenamed Operation Grange – and opened a formal investigation last July.

Five new cases in which young girls were assaulted and one near miss came to light as a result of an appeal in March for information about a lone predator entering rooms of British families on holiday.

The Met said more than 500 people came forward and its officers were cautiously optimistic that they would be soon be working on the ground with Portuguese authorities, who will remain in charge of the investigation despite hopes of a joint operation. Portuguese police last year reopened their investigation after discovering new lines of inquiry.

There is a £20,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of those responsible for Madeleine's disappearance. Anyone with information can call police on 0207 321 9251 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/05/madeleine-mccann-portugal-forensics-excavations

Could this have been the precursor to the German angle? I can imagine talk of £20k to be good incentive for the likes of felons - or anyone else for that matter, to come forward with 'their version of the truth'.

~ Police said last month that they knew of nine sexual assaults and three "near misses" on British girls between the ages of six and 12 who were on holiday in the Algarve between 2004 and 2006.

~ Five new cases in which young girls were assaulted and one near miss came to light as a result of an appeal in March for information about a lone predator entering rooms of British families on holiday.

~ The Met said more than 500 people came forward and its officers were cautiously optimistic that they would be soon be working on the ground with Portuguese authorities, who will remain in charge of the investigation despite hopes of a joint operation. Portuguese police last year reopened their investigation after discovering new lines of inquiry.

... trolls and McCann haters

 Almost juvenile in it's connotation ain't it, who ever kicked off such a stupid reference in the first place?

 

Like a petulant child .... not the only time he had a little    before the cameras.

I don't give my energy to " hate " it's a waste of my time and energy ! 

This " troll " has read the PJ Files , you know the ones the " investigative journalists " choose to ignore , I was told a few years ago on YouTube they were " fake " , hmm tell that to the wonderful people who gave of their time to translate them !

The dastardly duo of McCann lovers (touché) Fricker & Couzens Inc have joined forces for a real humdinger this summery Sunday evening..

Exclusive: Madeleine McCann reservoir cops testing key evidence for link to suspect's camper van

Detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann think they have a good chance of proving Christian Bruckner's VW camper van was at the reservoir


Police hope to link the reservoir to Bruckner's camper van (Image: PA)

ByMartin FrickerSenior Reporter
Gerard CouzensNews Correspondent

15:35, 4 Jun 2023Updated16:42, 4 Jun 2023

Police probing Madeleine McCann’s disappearance are testing soil samples to see if they match dirt found in their prime suspect’s camper van.

Detectives believe they have a good chance of proving Christian Brueckner’s VW Westfalia was at Barragem do Arade reservoir in Portugal, around the time the youngster went missing.

They are waiting for comparisons of samples already on file with earth taken from 2ft-deep bore holes made during a three-day hunt last month.

German prosecutors first connected Brueckner, 45, to the remote reservoir near Silves through mysterious photo evidence that has not been made public.

And sources say proving the German visited Barragem do Arade in May 2007 could be pivotal to their case.

One well-placed source said: “Photos led German police investigating Maddie’s disappearance to the reservoir.

“One of their focuses now is to close the net around Brueckner by showing through soil sample analysis that his van was there.

“A positive match of the soil they already have from the vehicle with the earth they removed during the search last week will be another important piece of evidence against him.

“It will be a slight setback if the forensics people don’t get a match but at this stage investigators remain hopeful.

“The search that took place last week would never have been requested and authorised if the motive for it hadn’t been well supported.”

The reservoir is a 40-minute drive from Praia da Luz, where Madeleine vanished from her parents’ holiday apartment in May 2007.

Kate and Gerry McCann, from Rothley, Leics, are being kept updated on the German investigation by Scotland Yard.

German and Portuguese search teams spent three days at Barragem do Arade last month.

It was the first overseas-led search since British police dug for clues on waste ground in Praia da Luz in June 2014.

Brueckner’s friend Michael Tatschl claimed in 2020 that the German often visited a reservoir half an hour from Praia da Luz.

Barragem do Arade was searched twice in February and March 2008 by divers hired by a Portuguese lawyer.

Brueckner was dramatically named as the prime suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance in June 2020.

The pervert, who is serving a jail term in his home country for raping a pensioner in Praia da Luz, denies any involvement.

He was awaiting trial for a string of rapes and child sexual assaults allegedly committed in Portugal.

But those charges were dramatically dropped last month after a court ruling over who had jurisdiction in the case.

They were originally filed by prosecutors in Braunschweig because he previously lived in the city in 2016.

But Brueckner’s lawyer Friedrich Fuelscher argued he was actually living in a warehouse in Neuwegersleben, Lower-Saxony.

A court in Braunschweig ruled in his favour, saying it had no jurisdiction over the case.

But prosecutors are confident the ruling will be overturned when they appeal it in Braunschweig’s Higher Regional Court.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/madeleine-mccann-reservoir-cops-testing-30151744

Was that the camper van big enough to hide a little girl, or a stash of hash - or was that another one, I admit to losing track of this story at times.



You couldn't make it up could you - oh but wait a minute, they did didn't they?

So, let's think for a moment that Brueckner did spend time at the reservoir - everyone's got to be somewhere at every point in time, how does that implicate involvement in the case of missing Madeleine McCann without any evidence to back it, evidence which they clearly ain't got or they wouldn't be banging on about everything and nothing week after week.

It gets more farcical as time goes on.



I really thought, or hoped, the name Brueckner was to finally become a thing of the past (at least by the well informed) but here we go again!

The last German 'who dunnit', Raymond Hewlett, ran on seemingly endlessly but at least at the time there were other distractions to dilute the focus - now there's nothing but a full blown Brueckner to contend with day after day after day.

I pass ....

There was the big one where they found girly swimsuits - allegedly.

This is a fun read for weekend..

Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner tells his lawyer he 'DIDN'T kill her' as pictures of little girls' swimming costumes found in his motorhome in Germany are revealed

Christian Brueckner's lawyer said his client 'denied any involvement' in Madeleine McCann's disappearance
Revelation comes as reports say Brueckner's mobile home had girls' swimwear in when it was seized by police
German convicted paedophile Brueckner reportedly drove the motor home between Portugal and Germany
Unclear when he bought 30ft-long Tiffin Allegro. He drove similar vehicle at the time that Madeleine vanished

By Claire Duffin In Braunschweig For The Daily Mail and Jemma Carr For Mailonline

Published: 22:02, 16 June 2020 | Updated: 19:19, 24 August 2020

Christian Brueckner claims he had nothing to do with Madeleine McCann's disappearance as it emerged police found a stash of girls' swimming costumes in the convicted paedophile's motorhome.

Brueckner reportedly drove the 30ft-long American-style vehicle, which he also lived in for a time, back and forth between Portugal and Germany.

It is not clear when Brueckner bought the 30-year-old Tiffin Allegro but he was known to be driving a vehicle matching its description in 2007, when Madeleine, three, vanished.

Brueckner's lawyer Friedrich Fulscher said his client - who is languishing in solitary confinement in a German prison - 'denied any involvement' in Madeleine's case, The Mirror reports.

People who knew him described a 'large cream-coloured Winnebago campervan,' which he allegedly bragged could hide 'drugs and children'.

Police investigating the disappearance of five-year-old Inga Gehricke – known as the 'German Maddie' – found the vehicle during a search of a disused box factory in Neuwegersleben, near Braunschweig [Brunswick] in northern Germany, in May 2016.

It was parked on land Brueckner bought six years earlier at auction. Brueckner, a convicted drug dealer and rapist, was under suspicion after Inga vanished from woods during a family outing.

Germany's Spiegel TV reported that during a six-day search of the site detectives found numerous items of children's clothing, most of them 'small swimsuits' in the motorhome. Brueckner does not have any children.

Police also found six memory sticks with more than 8,000 files, mostly containing pictures and videos of child abuse. They were in a bag in a hole in the ground, underneath the body of his dead dog. Brueckner, now 43, was convicted of possessing the child porn but not charged in relation to Inga. He was identified as a suspect in the McCann case in recent weeks and police near Hanover have reopened the file into Inga's disappearance, looking again at Brueckner.

It is alleged the motorhome was seen on Portugal's Algarve on several occasions around 2007.

A former ambulance driver called Dieter, whose daughter knew Brueckner, said he was given a tour of the vehicle. He added: 'As I looked inside, I asked him: 'Herr Brueckner, what do you do in Portugal? What is your job?' He told me: 'I work, I get money, because I have a special business. I transport grass [cannabis] in my van.'

Dieter revealed to the Mail on Sunday: 'Brueckner told me again, 'I have 50kg of grass, and I transport it around Europe'. I thought he was joking at the time. He said, 'In my van, I can take 50kg of grass – nobody can see it ... I can transport children, kids, in this space. Drugs and children, you can transport them in this van – it's a safe space in the van. Nobody can find them. Nobody can catch you'.'

It is not known where the motorhome is now. Asked if it was a potential lead, the German prosecutor running the Madeleine case, Hans Christian Wolters, said: 'Maybe, but I can't comment on it.' Brueckner has denied any involvement in her disappearance.

Meanwhile, it emerged yesterday that he could be released from jail as early as next month.

Brueckner is serving time for drugs charges but has applied to be released early after completing two-thirds of his sentence.

Separately, he was found guilty of raping a 72-year-old American woman in Praia da Luz – where Madeleine disappeared – in 2005 and jailed for seven years but has appealed against that sentence.

The case is now being considered by the European Court of Justice, which will make a decision by July 17. Other new pictures emerged showing Brueckner larking around including putting a bag on his head.

A friend also alleged he boasted about breaking into holiday apartments in Portugal wearing swimming goggles to disguise his identity.

Brueckner ran a small store selling drinks and snacks in Braunschweig between 2012 and 2014. He would shower youngsters with toys and teddy bears as they walked to a school barely 100 yards from the kiosk.

In 2013, police allegedly tipped Brueckner off about the investigation, giving him ample time to destroy evidence.

Germany's federal criminal police contacted police in Braunschweig for more information about the suspect after receiving a confidential tip-off, Spiegal reported.

But while calling the suspect in, police specified in their letter that it had to do with the 'Madeleine McCann missing persons case' and 'personal examination of Christian B'.

Brueckner told a friend - who gave his name only as Bjorn R - that he played no part in Madeleine's disappearance after being handed a subpoena by police, The Sun reports.

The friend spoke out as part of the Spiegel TV documentary. He said: 'One day I came into the kiosk and he was a little bit distraught and said, "Hey, look what I've got here" — and he showed me a subpoena for the Madeleine McCann case.

'You could see it churned him up a bit but he wasn't panicking and he wasn't saying "they are on my heels".

'I think he said he had been there but that he had nothing to do with it and that was that.'

13 YEARS OF HEARTACHE

May 3, 2007 - Madeleine McCann disappears from her apartment in Praia da Luz.

May 4 - Police do not set up effective searches or alert the Spanish border for 12 hours. A basic check of other guests is not done for 48 hours.

May 30 - The McCanns meet the Pope in Rome during a series of trips around Europe and beyond to highlight the search.

August - Sniffer dogs reportedly find blood traces in the McCanns' apartment.

September 7 - The McCanns are made arguidos – official suspects. They were totally exonerated the following year.

2008 - Detective Goncalo Amaral falsely claims the McCanns hid Madeleine's body.

2011 - The Met Police launches Operation Grange and identify almost 200 new lines of inquiry.

2013 - The Met identifies 38 people 'of interest'. Portuguese detectives reopen the case.

2017 - A witness comes forward with the name of the German suspect, Christian Brueckner. The McCanns reveal they still buy gifts for Madeleine.

June 3, 2020 - Police sensationally reveal that they are investigating a German sex offender. Brueckner's name emerges the following day.

June 8 - German prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters says he has evidence Madeleine is dead – but won't say what it is.

June 15 - Mr Wolters says he has written to the McCanns telling them he has evidence their daughter is dead. Once again, he gives no details.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8428843/Madeleine-McCann-suspects-motorhome-contained-stash-girls-swimming-costumes.html

Sod it - now I'm really confused .

crusader wrote:If they go to the house with the pole in the middle of the living room, you know the one where he raped a young girl on video, they will find irrefutable proof CB had been there too.
Does that make me a credible informant.

No, it makes you a barmpot - like the rest of 'em