At last ! - Dr Martin Roberts - The Lie of the Land

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EXCLUSIVE to mccannfiles.com

By Dr Martin Roberts
18 July 2012

THE LIE OF THE LAND

Kate McCann tells us (in 'Madeleine,' chapter 17):

"Saturday 8 September. We were on tenterhooks all day, waiting to hear whether we would be allowed to go home. Rachael had found a couple of criminal lawyers in London she was sure could help us. Michael Caplan and Angus McBride of Kingsley Napley had worked on several high-profile cases, including the Pinochet extradition proceedings and the Stevens inquiry. Gerry gave them a call. They discussed Madeleine's case in detail, what had happened so far and how Kingsley Napley might be able to assist us.

"Late that afternoon, we were notified by Liz Dow, the British consul in Lisbon, that Luís Neves and Guilhermino Encarnação had declared us 'free' to leave the country whenever we wished. Thank you, God.

"On the advice of the lawyers, we decided to get out as soon as possible. We would go the next day rather than leaving it until Monday."

Rachael Oldfield had found a couple of criminal lawyers, obviously while she herself was back home in England, and before Kate and Gerry McCann were re-interviewed prior to being declared 'arguidos.' "Rachael, a lawyer by profession, was working in recruitment." (Kate McCann)

One might reasonably wonder why Rachael had earlier thought a couple of UK criminal lawyers might be useful in connection with a child abduction inside Portugal. But that's the least of it. Just how and where did she find this 'nap hand?' (Messrs. Caplan and McBride both worked for Solicitors Kingsley Napley). Her own legal experience, several years distant, had been in Corporate Taxation.

Following Euclid, 'the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.' Might there perhaps be a more direct 'straight line' connection between the McCanns and Michael Caplan QC than one involving the speculative research of Rachael Oldfield?

"Michael Caplan and Angus McBride of Kingsley Napley had worked on several high-profile cases, including the Pinochet extradition proceedings." (Kate McCann).

Indeed they had. So too had the barrister instructed to argue Senator Pinochet's case before the House of Lords: Clare Montgomery QC. Miss Montgomery is an associate with Matrix Chambers of Gray's Inn, London, a founding member of which is Cherie Booth QC, otherwise known as Cherie Blair QC, who we are told was in telephone contact with Kate McCann personally. ("As we were walking up from the beach at about 5pm, I had a call from Cherie Blair, in her final days as wife of the prime minister." - 'Madeleine,' chapter 8).

Once again, "Saturday 8 September...Gerry gave them a call" and "On the advice of the lawyers, we decided to get out as soon as possible. We would go the next day rather than leaving it until Monday."

The following information comes courtesy of 'Yahoo! Answers:'
Q: Do solicitors open on Saturday?

'Does anyone know of a solicitors either in the Portsmouth or Chichester (England) area that would be open on a Saturday?

'I need to sign some documentation relating to a divorce in their presence but can't seem to find anyone open on a Saturday.'

[5 years ago (i.e. 2007)]

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

'Solicitors do NOT open on Saturday. They are ONLY open Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.'

Source(s):

'I used to work for a solicitor, one friend is a secretary in a solicitor's office and another IS a solicitor.'

[5 years ago (2007)]
So, five years ago (8 September, 2007), Gerry McCann took advantage of a contact previously established by ex-Corporate Tax Lawyer Rachael Oldfield, supposedly, and made a spur-of-the-moment telephone call to the offices of UK Solicitors Kingsley Napley, managing to speak at some length to criminal lawyers Michael Caplan QC and Angus McBride, both of whom (unlike their colleagues) just happened to be at work all day that Saturday. The lawyers first discussed how they could be of assistance. Then, later that same afternoon, they advised the now 'free-to-travel' McCanns to leave Portugal at the earliest opportunity.

I too believe in Santa Claus.

Thanks to jd, Woofer, and Ashwarya for your help. I have tidied up the postings and deleted the small print posts.