The theories WHAT HAPPENED TO MADDIE?

1 Parents covered up her death

EverE sincei Mdlmadeleinei wentt missing,ii her parents have faced shocking accusations that they faked their daughter’s abduction after an overdose of medication to make her go to sleep. Recently, Kate and Gerry Mccann lost their appeal in Portugal’s Supreme Court over a controversial book by former detective Goncalo Amaral called The Truth of the Lie. In it, he claims Maddie had died and her abduction was a cover-up. Amaral led the initial investigation into Maddie’s disappearance. However, police have carried out excavations in Praia da Luz and surrounding land looking for Madeleine’s remains to no avail.

2 Kidnapped and ALIVE!

One optimistic theory is that Madeleine could still be alive after being sold to someone wanting to raise her as their own. In 2011, police in Portugal smashed a trafficking ring that was snatching young women and underage girls in the Algarve, as well as Aveiro in the north of the country. Anti-child trafficking charity ECPAT International said Portugal was “attractive to traffickers” because of the ease in which children can be driven through borders.

3 Snatched by a paedophile

One of the strongest theories is that Madeleine was taken by an opportunistic paedophile – perhaps even a staff member at the holiday resort, either acting alone or as part of a ring. With her parents and their friends eating in the tapas restaurant at the holiday resort, leaving Madeleine and her two siblings alone in their apartment, the kidnapper had the opportunity to snatch her and get away before the alarm was raised. One witness on the night said they saw a man walking through the resort carrying a child in his arms.

Police check the scene as theories abound a paedophile took Maddie.

The theory that the parents were involved is largely debunked.

And before she disappeared.

An image of what Maddie could look like now.