Credibility of abduction

The Mccanns claimed Madeleine was abducted by a complete stranger.  I feel there are holes in this theory.  The Mcanns had only been in Portugal a few days.  An abductor and his accomplices would have known the following information to carry out an abduction :-
 
* A family with three young children was staying in the holiday complex.
 
* Which apartment the family were staying in.
 
* That the children were left alone in the apartment to provide a window of opportunity to take a child.
 
* What times the children were left alone.  
 
How did the abductor get this information about a family that had only been staying in the complex a few days? The only way an abductor would know this if someone at the hotel passed on this information to him.  The Mccanns maintain that Madeleine was abducted. Did the Mccanns ever express the view that a member of staff at the complex passed on information to the abductors?   If the Mccanns have never stated they believe someone at the complex passed on information, why have they not done so if they were convinced Madeleine was abducted? Have the Mccanns explained how the abductors obtained the information necessary to carry out the abduction?
 
Abducting Madeleine was risky.  An abductor faced the possibility of being seen.  What if the parents came back when the abduction was being carried out .  If Madeleine was being taken by a stranger, she would obviously be very distressed and she would start crying which would bring attention.  There was also the possibility the twins would be disturbed and they would start crying which means the abductor would face the risk of three children crying. 

Interestingly CEOP's Scoping Report on Missing and Abducted Children mentions nothing about the abduction of children by strangers from private residences.

Scoping Report on Missing and Abducted Children 2011

Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre

Categories of missing children

Stranger abduction

Child abduction is an offence under Section 2 of the Child Abduction Act 1984. Although such cases are relatively rare, children face the risk of abduction by strangers who approach them in public. Such strangers may be motivated to commit sexual offences. Alternatively, children may be abducted as a result of family feuds.

Children and young people may also be targeted and groomed by adults for sexual abuse, exploitation, criminality and other under illicit activities. In the present information and communication technology age, children are increasingly targeted and groomed online and through other media devices. The term ‘stranger abduction’ may not be relevant in these situations as the child or young person may feel that the abductor is known to them and will often refer to them as a ‘friend’.

ceop.police.uk/Documents/ceopdocs/Missing_scopingreport_2011.pdf

This recent case of a stranger abducted three-year-old child in the UK seems to confirm CEOP's Scoping Report on Missing and Abducted Children in the fact that, "although such cases are relatively rare, children face the risk of abduction by strangers who approach them in public."

Woman kidnapped child at shopping centre in 'Jamie Bulger-style abduction' to get  COUNCIL HOUSE


A mother has spoken of her horror at the moment her three-year-old daughter was abducted during a family shopping trip.

The girl was snatched from under her parents' noses as they shopped at a mobile phone store in a city centre last year.

Luckily they realised their daughter had been taken and managed to grab her as she was led away down the street by her abductor.

Claire Thomas - who pleaded guilty to child abduction at Hull Crown Court, East Yorks - claimed she kidnapped the child to help her get a council house.
he child's mother said: 'This is the last thing we ever expected. It just took seconds. You never expect it to happen to you. It has been an absolute nightmare.

'When I saw Thomas walking up the street with my little girl, I just saw the image of James Bulger and I thought the worst.

'You see kids playing outside and away from their parents but this woman took her away by the hand when she was just four feet from me.

'When Thomas took hold of her hand, she just froze with fear.'

Thomas had targeted the family and followed them through Hull city centre before she grabbed the child on October 24 last year.

The unsuspecting girl was sitting on a sofa just 4ft away from her parents as they spoke to an assistant in the T-mobile store.

Just 15 seconds after they entered the shop, Thomas, 21, sat down next to the girl, took her hand and led her away.

The youngster's parents realised 30 seconds later she had disappeared and ran from the store to try and find her, but they spotted Thomas with their daughter further up the street and grabbed her.

Thomas struggled free but was later caught by the police due to the city's CCTV cameras.

The family, from East Yorks., had been shopping in the city to buy a new phone.

Her mother said her daughter still has nightmares about the incident, she said: 'There are not words to describe Thomas. 'She is pure evil. She claimed she was drunk but I wouldn't walk off with someone else's dog whilst drunk let alone a child.

'Her actions have impacted hugely on our family and have caused us great heartache.

'It just shows how easy it is for something like this to happen. Luckily, when I ran out of the shop, I ran the right way after her.

'If it had been busier, I may not have caught her. This is every parent's worst nightmare.

'The worst thing was how quickly it happened. One second she was there and the next she was gone.

'She still has nightmares about it. She is only three and she still talks about it. She will be left with this memory forever.'

Detective Constable Brian Christie of Humberside Police' Public Protection Unit said: 'It is a very rare occurrence but the child appeared to have been targeted.

'It only took 15 seconds for her to be taken and shows how quickly it can happen.

'Thomas told the police she was not put up to it but thought it would help her get a house as she was homeless.

'It was a busy shopping day and all happened so quickly.'

Thomas was seen on the council's CCTV footage walking through the city centre with two men following the family - she had been watching the little girl scaring the pigeons before the family entered the shop.

The girl's mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is warning parents to be vigilant.

She said: 'I want people to know what happened and what can happen.

'I'd urge other parents to make sure they keep an eye on their children, it just takes seconds for them to disappear.

'If it wasn't for the CCTV and the police acting so quickly she may not have been caught.

'We are really vigilant now and reluctant to let our daughter go with anyone. You just never expect it to happen to you.'

Thomas has been given an interim hospital order whilst further psychiatric assessments are carried out and will return to Hull Crown Court to be sentenced later this year.

dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2002711/I-saw-image-James-Bulger-thought-worst-Mothers-horror-daughter-3-abducted-shopping-trip.html