Maddie police handed an extra £154k to follow up ‘critical’ lead
DETECTIVES have been given an extra £154,000 to continue the decade- long search for Madeleine McCann.
The Home Office confirmed it will fund work to chase up a ‘critical’ lead in Scotland Yard’s inquiry.
The figure brings the total spent in 201718 on Operation Grange to £309,000 and the overall cost to around £11.5million.
Senior detectives expect the investigation into her disappearance will now continue until at least March.
They said the final element of their probe, which remains shrouded in secrecy, has proved much more ‘ complex’ than first expected.
The size of the award will raise hopes that the force is closing in on identifying whoever abducted the three-year-old in May 2007 – but it also raises questions about what the money will be spent on, as only four officers remain on the case.
According to the latest records, they have only travelled to Portugal twice this year – in March and May – at a cost of £1,250.
The figures are small compared to the £16,000 spent by Operation Grange officers on 67 flights during 2014 at the peak of the investigation.
Only a small team of officers are left battling to pinpoint the fate of Madeleine.
Her parents Kate and Gerry insist they must continue as there is ‘absolutely nothing’ to suggest their daughter has been harmed.
Not one piece of forensic evidence linked to the little girl has been found since she vanished from her family’s Praia da Luz holiday apartment.
And despite trawling through thousands of tip-offs and potential sightings, police have not confirmed that a single one was her. Last year, then- commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe said the squad was expecting to mothball their work within months.
But on the tenth anniversary of her disappearance police described the remaining lead as ‘critical’ and of ‘great interest’.
It is understood police chiefs have a working theory on what happened to Madeleine but may be unable to reveal it publicly because it implicates an individual or individuals. One senior source said: ‘We can’t go out there and say, “we think this person or these people did it, but we can’t prove it.”
‘And we can’t just say we have made a heroic effort, spent all this money ... but we have got nothing.
‘One way or another we want to draw a line under the inquiry, but we will not do that until every avenue has been explored.’
Speaking a few weeks ago, a spokesman for the family said the McCanns remain ‘ extremely thankful’ to police for requesting extra funding.
Their representative, Clarence Mitchell, said: ‘ They are very encouraged there remains work to be done that requires them seeking an extra budget.
‘They are grateful to all those officers who are still working on the case and are actively looking for Madeleine.
‘ They appreciate everything the police have done and are doing to get a resolution after all this time.’
Scotland Yard has insisted it will not reduce the small team left on the case any further as the ‘inquiry has not reached a conclusion’.
Last night, a Home Office spokesman said: ‘Following an application from the Metropolitan Police, the Home Office has confirmed funding for Operation Grange until the end of March 2018.
‘As with all applications, the resources required are reviewed regularly and careful consideration is given before any funding is allocated.’
The Metropolitan Police declined to comment.