Christian Brueckner: To be or not to be

Cop who guarded Madeleine McCann flat caught prime suspect 10 years later

In a remarkable coincidence, Vanessa Vieira picked up Christian Brueckner for flashing at a playground in 2017, before he was linked to missing Maddie

News
ByPatrick HillSenior News Reporter

22:22, 4 SEP 2021

A police officer who guarded the holiday flat from where Madeleine McCann went missing caught the prime suspect 10 years later.

In a remarkable coincidence, Vanessa Vieira picked up Christian Brueckner for flashing at a playground in 2017, before he was linked to missing Maddie.

Her story is revealed in a new book on the case, as authorities build a case against convicted paedophile Brueckner – last year named as the main suspect.

The officer said she still feels the McCanns’ grief after days on duty at the Ocean Club in Praia da Luz, Portugal, from where Maddie vanished in 2007 days before turning four, the Mirror reports.

And she criticised the probe by her Portuguese colleagues, which focused on parents Kate and Gerry.

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11th/12th May 2007 - Madeleine's Birthday

Vanessa said she encountered Brueckner while off duty at a food festival with her daughter in Messines, 40 miles from Praia.

She said: “Two kids came running over and said there was a man with his trousers down.

“The dads rushed straight over. He got up and started doing his flies up.

“They were really angry and grabbed him and started pushing him around. It took all my powers of persuasion and strength to hold them off him. They wanted to kill him. I told him I was a policewoman and asked his name.

“He told me ‘Christian’ and said he was visiting friends. He looked drunk.

“I asked him what he was doing with his trousers down. He said he ‘needed to go for a pee pee’.”

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(Image: The Olive Press)

The officer asked Brueckner for his driving licence then phoned the local police station, giving them his full name.

“They told me there was a warrant for his arrest and they bundled him in the car and took him off to be held in the cells overnight.”

Brueckner was deported to Germany to face questioning for other crimes, for which he is still jailed.

Speaking in My Search for Madeleine by British journalist Jon Clarke, Vanessa said: “I stood on duty outside the apartment at the Ocean Club and saw the McCanns on lots of occasions. I felt the tragedy.

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“I could really see their pain. I was as shocked as anyone when they were made suspects... it made no sense. I was pleased when the case against them was dropped.”

Brueckner, 44, is in a German jail for raping a 72-year-old woman in Praia da Luz in 2005.

He has never been questioned or charged in relation to Maddie.

This extract comes from the book My Search for Madeleine, by Jon Clarke, available here.

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Lest they forget..

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I'm struggling  a bit with 'soon after'. Does it mean shortly; in the near future; when we've cooked up another idiotic  'sighting' of CB?

It doesn't need a genius to realise it's never going to happen, the German judiciary haven't even got any evidence.

It has been suggested by some obscure 'armchair detective' group, they have got the evidence but can't reveal until the case goes to trial

Maybe they found something worthy of note in the reservoir, or down the back of a sofa, at Stone Henge or a forced confession under a waterfall.

FACING JUSTICE Court date for Madeleine McCann prime suspect Christian B REVEALED as he faces separate sex attack charges

Taryn Pedler

Published: 14:00, 17 Oct 2023Updated: 16:20, 17 Oct 2023

THE prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeline McCann could face trial for a spate of separate disturbing crimes as early as February next year, it has been revealed.

Christian B, 46, is set to appear at Braunschweig High Court, Germany, for his involvement in a series of grim sexual offences.

According to the Spanish newspaper, Olive Press, the convicted paedophile could spend a lifetime behind bars after being charged with five crimes, including three alleged rapes and two sex attacks on children.

The trial is expected to span over a month, due to the slew of crimes and their severity.

Christian B is also separately being probed by German cops over Madeleine McCann's 2007 disappearance.

There is a widespread belief that the criminal kidnapped the three-year-old from her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal.

German authorities have now also indicated that the long-awaited Madeleine McCann trial will follow "soon after" the February trial.

“It’s good news (finally) and we are working on the exact dates now,” a senior detective at the Federal Criminal Police Office, in Wiesbaden, revealed.

Christian B's bid to move the court to a different jurisdiction was denied recently, sealing his fate in Braunschweig.

He is currently serving a seven-year prison term in a high-security prison dubbed "Alcatraz of the North" in Oldenburg.

Christian B was thrown behind bars for the brutal rape of an elderly American woman in Portugal in 2005 but now faces charges for the rape of a young Irish woman in the Algarve in June 2004.

Hazel Behanm, aged just 20 at the time, was abducted, gagged, and raped at knifepoint by the sick assailant, who filmed the four-hour attack.

Two witnesses reported seeing a man resembling Christian B arrive and leave the first-floor apartment in Portimao at dawn, with one hotel worker claiming he saw the German without his mask.

Alongside Hazel's case, Christian B will also be tried for two other cases of rape he filmed at his former home close to where Madeleine vanished.

These disturbing cases involved the sexual assault of an unidentified teenager and an older woman in her sixties.

The grisly footage was unearthed by two of Christian B's criminal pals - Manfred Seyferth and Helge B.

The duo had discovered Christian B's camera in his home before coming face-to-face with the horrific tapes.

The convicted sex offender also faces two additional charges related to despicable child sex offences, including the assault of a ten-year-old German girl on a beach near Praia da Luz, just three weeks before Madeleine went missing.

Christian B was identified by the victim's brother, and her parents have since identified him as the attacker.

The 46-year-old is additionally accused of exposing himself to four children in a playground in the Algarve, in 2017.

He was quickly arrested by an off-duty cop who found his Interpol warrant for other crimes in Germany, and he was finally deported.

Last month the convicted sex offender wrote letters to to at least two former friends as he begged them to defend him in court.

He urged them to show him their support after moaning prosecutors were making him out to be a "monster".

The pals claimed they received the mysterious letters from the criminal after years of having no contact with him.

It has been reported the letters were asking the old acquaintances to "speak in his defence, about what a good guy he was".

In July, his ex-pal turned police informer Helge ­B began assisting officers investigating the prime Madeleine McCann suspect.

An insider told The Sun Online: "Helge spent many years at the side of Christian B travelling with him and being his partner in crime.

"This means he has a huge amount of knowledge about where Christian was, what he was doing and what his motivations were for him being in particular places at specific times.

"There are a number of leads and clues officers have on Christian that they think Helge could provide more information on.

"They genuinely do believe he can be a game-changer in their investigation into Christian B."

But last month, the case against Christian B and his involvement in the tot's disappearance came close to collapsing after Helge B threatened to stop helping.

A German source told The Sun: “Word is that Helge B is about to withdraw his evidence.

“He was paid a huge sum to repeat his statement in a German newspaper and now he’s pulling the plug.

“It just goes to show you what type of people you are dealing with — and their credibility as witnesses.”

Helge B’s move could be the final blow in the stalling bid to bring Christian B to court for the suspected abduction and murder of little Madeleine.

“It just goes to show you what type of people you are dealing with — and their credibility as witnesses.”

Helge B’s move could be the final blow in the stalling bid to bring Christian B to court for the suspected abduction and murder of little Madeleine.

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The alleged rape of the girl in Praia da Rocha, where he allegedly climbed up and got in through a window or the balcony, watched by witnesses who seem to have done nothing, and was then seen running away by another witness -ditto, was allegedly filmed on a video camera.

This was 2004.  Assuming he stole the video camera, (and the battery charger) and that it was a fairly modern model, this is what they looked like at the turn of the millennium

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NOTE;  this was the new MINI version
Neither of the witnesses mentions the camera, nor the HUGE knife,

And the batteries in those days lasted about 30 minutes, so he might have needed several, or a charger

Do any of the witnesses or the complainant / victim report seeing the camera ? [Rhetorical, obviously !]

From just one of the many 'journalists' attached to the saga..

She added: "I turned on to my back and standing there was a masked man dressed in tights and what resembled a leotard, a machete around 12in long in his hand."

The rapist set up a video camera in the room and told Hazel not to scream as he dragged her into the living room and tied her to a counter-top.

He then produced a bag of whips and chains and used scissors to remove the terrified Brit's clothing before gagging her with a cloth and raping her.

Hazel said she was repeatedly raped for up to five hours before the attacker threatened her with a machete when she refused to perform a sex act on him.

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Of course this all came out around the same time as 'he who can't be named' hit the headlines.

Over one year later along comes..

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Jon Clarke was the first journalist on the scene when Madeleine McCann went missing in 2007… and 14 years later he’s still searching for the truth.
This book charts his often-frightening journey from the Ocean Club holiday resort in Praia da Luz through many isolated parts of Portugal and Spain and finally into Germany. He meets numerous dark and unusual characters, some who live under the radar, and others who he believes hold the key to what happened to Maddie all those years ago.
He points his finger firmly at the new prime suspect Christian Brueckner and explains, in detail and with the help of the people who knew Brueckner best, why he thinks he did it. He traces his grim upbringing, his ease of movement around Europe and also questions the integrity of the Portuguese police and asks if someone, somewhere is covering something up.
With unrivalled access to official documents, exclusive interviews and confessions, no stone is left unturned as Jon searches for the truth, often putting himself in considerable danger in the process.
This book is a must read for anyone interested in the case, or just someone planning a family holiday in Europe this year.

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY SO FAR...

“Tirelessly researched. Told me a lot of things I didn’t know about the case”
MARTIN BRUNT, SKY NEWS CRIME CORRESPONDENT

“Jon is clearly about as steeped in the story as it’s possible to be, and it’s a fascinating account of the inner workings of what sounds like an extremely seedy place.”
SUSIE DOWDALL, DAILY MAIL

“Jon Clarke is a remarkably experienced journalist who has dug deeply into the movements and life of German new-age traveler and fixated preferential sex offender Christian Brueckner, who should have been a prime suspect in 2007.

“This book breaks a lot of new ground on the case and is a real investigative trawl and deep dive into the world of organized child traffickers… and he has interviews with all the key players from all over Europe.

“It is an investigative man-hunt and Jon’s book is compelling. He has a long heritage in the story and his crusade is journalistically sound and his journalistic instincts are sharp.”
DONAL MACINTYRE, TV PRODUCER AND INVESTIGATOR

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This latest EXCLUSIVE doesn't seem to be taking off as swiftly as the norm - are even they getting a bit bored with the same story lines churned out for over three years with little or no development?

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No disrespect but the Olive Press is hardly a beacon of light in the realms of reputable journalism.

Not forgetting the piercing blue eyes!

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Nightmare on Elm Street..

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Have to say, removing her clothing with a pair of scissors is somewhat intriguing, especially with a machete at hand - why not rip the clothing off, surely that would be more tantalizing for a would be rapist?  Must have taken at least one of those 5 hours cutting his way through the clothing - hope she wasn't wearing a wired brassiere and/or corset.

Did he give her pen and paper to record every detail of the ordeal - she seems to be quite adamant as to the nights events.

Mind you, I have to say you can't help but admire the blokes stamina - to keep it up, so to speak, for all those hours.

I wonder if he stopped for a fag break.

EXCLUSIVE: Former friend of Maddie suspect Christian B spent months with him in Spain’s Andalucia and believes he’s guilty

By Jon Clarke  
theolivepress.es
8 min
June 22, 2020

A DANGEROUS paedophile linked to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann spent long periods of time in southern Spain, the Olive Press can reveal.

Convicted rapist Christian Brueckner was a regular visitor to the Alpujarras area of Granada, where he bought and sold drugs.

The Olive Press has discovered that the German sex offender, 43, would frequently stop en route to Portugal or Germany, in his various buses or vans.

And chillingly, he was seen in the area with an expensive new winnebago just weeks after the toddler went missing from Portugal in May 2007.

“He was there in various vans and he came many times in his Jaguar,” said his close friend Michael ‘Micha’ Tatschl, 46, who lived in the town of Orgiva for many years.

Austrian Tatschl – who had previously shared a home with him on the Algarve – told the Olive Press: “I am sure he snatched Maddie. I know he did it. He was a pervert and a very strange man.”

The carpenter and petty criminal, who spent eight months in prison with Brueckner, knew the German well and lived with him for years.

The pair even shared a run-down finca in Praia da Luz, which overlooked the seaside resort where Maddie was snatched.

He knew Christian was an excellent burglar, who stole hundreds of passports, and they even got convicted together for stealing fuel from lorries in 2006.

READ MORE:

After a two-day grilling by German police last year, he expected an arrest to be ‘imminent’ and he ‘cannot believe’ Portuguese detectives have still not yet searched the former home they shared.

The father-of-one, who now lives near Graz, revealed that the German had a huge stash of cash hidden in the attic, as well as dozens of expensive watches.

Speaking for the first time, he revealed: “I know he did it. I was living with him at the time. He was my best friend and he was definitely a pervert and more than capable of snatching a child, for sexual kicks or money.

“I was staying at his house and camping in a van in the garden. We spent a lot of time together and had good fun.

“He had a German girlfriend who was at least 20 years older than him. I can’t remember her name but she lived a few miles out of town.

“He was always very smart and snappy in the way he dressed. He always had good shoes and sometimes even wore a suit to go out.

“He liked to walk into town so he could drink and get home easily. He did not take drugs at the time and liked to have a drink.”

But while Micha had fun hanging out with the German, he became aware of his dark side.

“He was definitely quite a strange character… how to explain it? Well he was always quite criminal… He liked to brag about the crimes he had done and planned to do… And how he aimed to steal as much money as he could until he reached his dream of having €1 million. Then he would stop.”

Talking by phone at his ex-girlfriend’s home in the village of Tablones, near Orgiva, he added: “It was rich pickings there in Praia da Luz. He was always breaking into apartments in the area and bragging about it to me… He was a very good burglar and would easily climb up to 1st floor apartments when tourists were out.

“He particularly liked European Championships or big football games when everyone would be out watching the game in bars.

“He would climb up to the first floor and steal everything, lots of money, valuables and so many passports. In fact hundreds of passports and lots of Rolexes and other expensive watches.

“He had a hiding place in the house in the rafters. He had all the money and passports hidden up there.

“It was his stash and when we were taken to prison, he ordered a friend to go into the house and clear it up and get rid of any evidence of burglaries or robberies.”

But it was this decision that may ultimately lead to his conviction of Maddie, as the friend and another mate, both German, found a series of sick videos that Christian kept there.

In particular, they found a video camera with a video of him raping an old woman.

“That’s how I found out he was a sick bastard, as they told me it was of this elderly lady who was chained to a wooden post and she was being beaten and raped.

“They said ‘hey Mika what should we do with this?’ I said ‘I really don’t know, I don’t want to see it’ and I think they ended up burning it.

“I told the police all about that story and I hope they verified it somehow.

“On top of that, Christian was always on the dark web. He would talk about it and always had internet in the houses he rented. I don’t know exactly what he did but I suspect it involved drugs and pornography.

“He was always bragging about money and making money. He even talked about selling kids maybe to Morocco…and I think he probably sold Maddie to someone. Maybe a sex ring.

“I didn’t really think about it at the time. Just brushed it off as joking. But I admit I got sucked into some of his schemes.

“Taking fuel seemed pretty harmless and we did it for a few months.

“The cops caught us red handed, caught us stealing diesel and we got 8-and-a-half months in prison on remand waiting for a trial in Portimao.

“It’s just a small prison, so we got to spend a lot of time together. We were caught on April 7, 2006, but we didn’t have our actual trial until December 21. I don’t know why they kept us for so long and I ended up with a €1800 fine, while Christian got a little bit more as he was rude to the judge he said ‘fuck you’ and the judge naturally gave him a bigger fine.”

After spending a few weeks back in Austria for Christmas he came back in February to find Christian was now living in his distinctive white and yellow VW van, having lost his rental home.

“But he was still enjoying living in the Praia da Luz area. I think that confused the police a little as they were not sure where he was living exactly when Maddie vanished.

“He was living free, going to raves and I think selling drugs to the local party crowd. He also had his Jaguar parked up somewhere.”

Micha however, decided to move back to Spain, partly because he hadn’t paid his fine and also to attend the Dragon Festival in Orgiva in March that year.

“The Dragon Festival was fun and the next time I saw him was in late May or early June 2007 when he arrived in Spain with his big American campervan, the Winnebago, the one with the (childrens) swimsuits.

“He parked it up in Orgiva and came looking for me. It was the only reason he had come to Orgiva to find me. He knew that I was living there and he knew I had connections to the marijuana world and could help him make money.

“He had a big dog, an old dog, a big brown and white dog called Charlie I think… But otherwise he was on his own.”

There were certainly suspicions however, about where he had got his money.

“We all wondered where he’d got this big expensive van which he parked it up by a French group who had a big sound system.

“I remember specifically having a conversation with an English guy who lived there called ‘Pops’ and we both said how on earth could have had that vehicle? where did he get the money from? We assumed a big drug deal or something like that. Now I suspect it was Maddie.

“He was only there that time for a couple of days and went on back to Germany selling marijuana.

“After that he was often coming backwards and forwards to Spain and to Portugal, mostly dealing drugs, and we often saw him here with this Jaguar.”

It was only when Micha watched the in-depth Netflix documentary in March last year on the case, that he finally realised Christian may have snatched Maddie.

“I knew immediately that he was guilty. The part where the female tourist talked about the man turning up at her door while her child played by the front door, the creepy guy with acne and blonde hair… I just knew it was Christian.”

It is a bit unclear what happened next but within weeks there was a knock at the door at his village near Graz and four policemen asked him to escort them to the police station.

“It was the first week of April last year and there were two Austrian police and two German Police. I told them my story over 14 hours from 10 am to 6 pm on the first day and then from 10 am until 4 pm the next day.

“They were very clear with me from the first minute. They said ‘we are investigating Maddie McCann and Christian Bruckner’ and I told them I was convinced it was him.

“I told them I know what you want. I hope I can help.

“I hope my information leads to a conviction and I now wish I had gone to the police earlier. It is just I don’t like the police because of my criminal past.

“I just dread to think of what other crimes he may have committed since.

“He was definitely a pervert and all his friends thought that about him. He had some sexual issues but we didn’t think that he liked young children.

“He was certainly in Orgiva quite a few times since then…many times with his Jaguar and other vehicles and normally transporting hashish.

“What sort of crimes might he have committed there? I know there have been some sex crimes around the area over the last decade and it wouldn’t be surprising if he was involved.

“I really hope they can finally close this case for the family and find Christian guilty for what he has done. He needs to admit it to the police and close it for good.

“At least I’m sure he’s having a terrible time in prison and everyone is out to kill him. He won’t be having a nice life now and he doesn’t deserve it.”

Did you see Christian Brueckner in southern Spain? Did he camp near you in the Alpujarras on the Costa del Sol?

The Olive Press

Talking by phone at his ex-girlfriend’s home in the village of Tablones, near Orgiva, he added: “It was rich pickings there in Praia da Luz. He was always breaking into apartments in the area and bragging about it to me… He was a very good burglar and would easily climb up to 1st floor apartments when tourists were out.

“He particularly liked European Championships or big football games when everyone would be out watching the game in bars.

“He would climb up to the first floor and steal everything, lots of money, valuables and so many passports. In fact hundreds of passports and lots of Rolexes and other expensive watches.

“He had a hiding place in the house in the rafters. He had all the money and passports hidden up there.

“It was his stash and when we were taken to prison, he ordered a friend to go into the house and clear it up and get rid of any evidence of burglaries or robberies.”

Enter Hazel Behan!

It has been said the bungling Portuguese cops [sic] failed to investigate the rape claim effectively, Portugal was hosting a major football event at the time - too many unidentifiable bodies invading the region.

Certainly lots of Rolex and what exactly did he do with all those hundreds of passports? Didn't anyone in authority notice?

Long before 2007, in all holiday accommodation I ever stayed had either a room safe available or a safe at reception where you could stash your valuables.

Having said that, the McCann family passports were photographed for the investigation files - Brueckner must have missed that when he stole Madeleine McCann from her bed in the middle of the night of 3rd May 2007.

One might have expected the Local Consulates and Embassy to be concerned about the numbers of Emergency Passports they were having to make, and the Police to be worried but the numbers of high value Wrist watches that their owners brought on holiday BUT THEN DID NOT WEAR, BUT LEFT IN THEIR HOTEL ROOMS OR APARTMENTS, and suspect an Insurance fraud was going on.

The insurers too might have noticed when they did their initial enquiries into the loss of all this stuff.

Funny the two key witnesses in this comparatively recent exposé, Seyferth and Busching, only found a video camera and a gun when raiding Brueckner's former home.

What happened to the hundreds of passports, the watches and jewelry and other named paraffinalia?

Maybe someone else got there first.

The McCann' s said that nothing of importance had been taken, by the 'very good burglar'. Probably because he was never in their apartment. It gets sillier.

Would you believe - and it's very hard to believe, folk out there across social media take it all seriously. They really think Brueckner to be guilty of everything written in the press - worse still, they believe what's written in the Olive Press !?!

Like it's the gospel according to Saint Jon.

How on earth would an insignificant little twerp living in the lawless hills of Spain be the font of knowledge as regards the disappearance of a little British girl holidaying in Portugal?

Oh don't tell me, I know - he's been investigating the case since the beginning hasn't he, wearing his investigative journalist jesters hat.

Minor problem there, he appears to have overlooked all the evidence harvested during the official investigation conducted by the Portuguese judiciary.

None so blind as they say .

So the story is growing legs, it's now reached the Sunday World - whatever or whoever or whyever that might be, a remnant of the News of the World perhaps  ?

sick rapist | Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner set to face trial for series of sex attacks

The Madeleine trial will follow “soon afterwards”, reportedly.

Níall Feiritear and Neil Fetherstonhaugh
Yesterday at 19:04

The prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeline McCann is set to go on trial early in the new year for a series of sex attacks on women and children.

According to the Spanish based Olive Press newspaper, paedophile Christian Brueckner (46) is likely to appear next February at Braunschweig High Court for involvement in numerous offences.

The German national has been charged with five crimes, including three alleged rapes and two sex attacks on children.

The newspaper reports that sources have indicated a trial for the disappearance of Maddie will then begin “soon after.”

“It’s good news and we are working on the exact dates now,” a detective in Wiesbaden, is reported to have said.

Last month, Bruckner begged friends to support him in court if he has to stand trial, it was claimed.

The convicted rapist reportedly wrote letters appealing to pals to talk about him as a "good guy" in a bid to clear his name.

In one letter, Brueckner who is serving a sentence for the rape of a 72-year-old woman in Portugal, complained that prosecutors were making him out to be a “monster”.

One of Brueckner's former friends who is still in touch with those who knew him in the Algarve told the Mirror that it had freaked them out to receive the letters.

“I know of two people who got the messages from Chris,” this man said. “It really freaked them out. They hadn't heard from him in years and then these letters suddenly arrived in the post from Germany.

“He was asking them to speak in his defence, about what a good guy he is. He said the German police and prosecutors have it in for him.”

Police in Portugal have maintained that the man who kidnapped Madeleine broke in through the window of the apartment and either left through a door with her or climbed back out the window.

The German suspect had lived in a warehouse outside Praia da Luz for several years but moved into a campervan just before Madeleine vanished.

Last year, he was named as the key suspect in the disappearance and murder of Madeleine, who vanished from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve resort just a few days before her fourth birthday.

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According to the Spanish based Olive superman Press newspaper, paedophile Christian Brueckner (46) is likely to appear next February at Braunschweig High Court for involvement in numerous offences.

The newspaper reports that sources have indicated a trial for the disappearance of Maddie will then begin “soon after.”
“It’s good news and we are working on the exact dates now,” a detective in Wiesbaden, is reported to have said.

'Likely to appear before a court next February and a trial for the disappearance of Maddie will begin soon after' hardly constitutes ' exact dates to work on' - does it?

EXCLUSIVE : Witnesses are called for multi-sex offences trial against Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner : German paedophile, 46, is expected in the dock within months

By Jon Clarke

October 27, 2023

THE witnesses for the prosecution of Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner have been summoned for his upcoming multi-sex offences trial.

The Olive Press can reveal a significant number of police, both from Germany and Portugal, will appear on the stand against the German sex offender.

They will be joined by over a dozen victims and witnesses to the five charges he is facing at Braunschweig court at ‘the end of February’.

The list includes former acquaintances of Brueckner’s, Helge Busching and Manfred Seyferth, as well as ‘many police’.

“Quite a number are actually coming from Portugal, as well as from here in Germany,” a German police source told the Olive Press.

“It includes the police officer who arrested Brueckner in Portugal, as well as others involved in investigating him there.”

He added: “The officers will only be identified by their numbers, not by name.

“Some of them have been working in witness protection and have to be carefully protected.”

The German paedophile is facing three rape charges and two child molestation offences, including one that took place just a month before Maddie, three, vanished from her holiday apartment in May 2007.

The sexual assault of the nine-year-old German girl took place on a beach, just outside Praia da Luz, where Brueckner lived on-and-off for a decade.

Both the girl, her sister and her parents will give evidence at Braunschweig High Court having had a very good look at the attacker during the broad daylight attack.

Prosecutors revealed that the attacker first asked her name in English, ‘then grabbed her by the arm, pulling her to the sand, starting to masturbate’.

Luckily, she was saved by her brother, who called their parents for help and the naked man ran off towards a car park, where his van was likely parked.

The pair, plus their parents, were both later able to identify Brueckner from photos.

Meanwhile, the parents of four other young victims, who were exposed to by Brueckner in a play park, also on the Algarve, are summoned to attend the trial.

They will be flown in alongside the brave WPC who instigated a citizen’s arrest on the German, while off duty that night.

Finally, Irish rape victim Hazel Behan, 40, will be giving evidence, as well as two witnesses connected to her savage four-hour assault on the Algarve in 2004.

One of them saw Brueckner climb into her flat in Portimao to film the sick attack on the mother-of-three.

The other, a hotel worker, claims he saw blonde-haired Brueckner fleeing at dawn and was able to identify him as he had taken off his mask.

“His testimony is very credible,” the police source added.

Behan told the Olive Press, earlier this month: “I’m sure it was Brueckner who spoke to men in English with a German accent.

“It was a terrifying four hour ordeal in which he beat and raped me, all on camera. He held a huge knife and knew my name.

“He must have followed me across a footbridge where I lived and then climbed up to my window.”

She added: “I’m looking forward to finally facing him in court.”

It can also be revealed that Brueckner’s defence team has so far not submitted any witnesses on behalf of their client.

So far, the team, led by Friedrich Fulscher has only added one new lawyer.

Attorney Philipp Marquort, a criminal lawyer from Kiel, will be joining Friedrich Fulscher, also based in the northern German city.

Another well known senior lawyer Johann Schwenn has allegedly withdrawn his accreditation for the trial.

The Hamburg lawyer, who had his office vandalised after announcing he was working for Brueckner, has previously spoken on his behalf to the German media.

“His accreditation for Brueckner has been withdrawn,” said the police source. “Meanwhile the new, less experienced, Marquort has been added.”

The trial, which is expected to last for between ‘four and six weeks’, will begin at the end of February and run into March.

Fulscher confirmed to Bild newspaper last week that he had been told to consult his diary for specific start dates but ‘doesn’t expect’ the trial to begin before March.

He blamed this on ‘other priority cases’.

Meanwhile two documentaries on the sex offender are set to show on British and Australian TV over the next few weeks.

The first, a special investigation by the BBC’s Panorama team will screen on Monday (October 30), while an hour’s documentary by the experienced 60 Minutes team at Channel Nine in Sydney will air in December, it can be revealed.

My Search for Madeleine, by Jon Clarke, is available on Amazon

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A couple of questions about the size of the Video-camera he was allegedly carrying should sort out one or two of the "witnesses".

This was the MINI version in 1995.
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