Parents hold on to hope daughter is still alive

Kate and Gerry McCann have insisted there is “no evidence” their daughter is dead, despite a German prosecutor’s claims to the contrary.

The couple “still continue to hope” Madeleine is alive, as they have done for 13 years, their spokesman revealed.

As new information about the prime suspect emerged yesterday, they were being comforted at home in Rothley, Leicestershire, by close relatives and kept updated by Scotland Yard detectives.

A friend of Mr McCann, 51, a cardiologist who has taken time off work, and his wife, 52, a former GP, said they had “mixed emotions” as they waited for news.

Clarence Mitchell, the family’s spokesman, said: “German police say they are assuming that Madeleine is dead but they have no proof. British police are keeping an open mind and Portuguese police are reacting with caution, too.

“So Kate and Gerry still fervently hope that Madeleine will be found alive despite everything that appears to be happening. They continue to hope she is alive until they can be shown incontrovertible evidence which proves that she is not.

“But they are being realistic and simply want to know what has happened to their daughter and establish the truth, and for those responsible to be brought to justice. They will wait to hear what the police tell them. They want a resolution and after all these years, they want peace,” he said.

“Of all the thousands of leads in the past, nothing is as clear cut as this latest one. Three police forces are saying he is the key suspect.”

He said the family believe only “two or three people maximum on the planet” know what happened.