McCanns blow over suspect’s four alibis
Setback in bid to find Maddie
The main suspect over the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has an alibi backed by four people.
Doubts over the case against Christian Brueckner have surfaced just 10 days before the 15th anniversary of Madeleine going missing.
It is a fresh blow to parents Kate and Gerry, who made a rare public statement on Friday welcoming “progress” after pol ice in Portugal madede paedophile Brueckner, 44, an official suspect.
Authorities have been told witnesses have come f o rwa rd to suppo r t Brueckner’s alibi for thee night Madeleine vanishedd while on holiday in Praia da Luz in the Algarve.
And in an interview, the chiefhief prosecutor in Brueckner’ser’s native country admitted:d: “Here in Germany there is no end in sight to the investigations into the Maddie case.”
The four witnesses spoke out in a new Channel 5 documentary presented by former police detective Mark WilliamsThomas, who has been in “lengthy” contact with Brueckner via letter.
It is believed authorities in Germany have been alerted to the testimonies.
The show is set to be aired on May 3 – the 15th anniversary of Madeleine’s disappearance.
A Channel 5 insider revealed: “Christian Brueckner has provided a very detailed alibi for the days leading up to and after Madeleine’s disappearance. That has been checked out by our team and fully
examined exam and we’ve spoken to four fou people who’ve gone on the record rec to independent ly support sup his alibi.
“They have got nothing to bebenefit from supporting himhi and, in fact, a couple of those people really don’t like him – but ththey hhave stillt backed his account.”
Brueckner is serving seven years in Germany for the 2005 rape of a pensioner.
He was named as a suspect by German prosecutors after a mobile they believe he was using was traced to a phone mast 200 yards from the Ocean Club complex where the McCanns were staying. But it is now claimed the phone could have been more than 20 miles away as the mast covered a large signal cell.
A source said: “His account is that he wasn’t there and stands up to scrutiny.”
Brueckner’s lawyer Friedrich Fulscher said: “This move by the Portuguese authorities should not be overstated. Does this step amount to an accusation? No, not at all.”