We’ll never lose hope over Madeleine, say McCanns
THE parents of Madeleine McCann said yesterday they will never give up hope of finding their daughter.
Kate and Gerry McCann vowed to “continue to do everything we can” to continue the search for the youngster who vanished during a family holiday in Portugal on May 3, 2007.
The couple wrote in an anniversary message: “It has been a very long time but the investigation continues and information is still forthcoming. Our hope and resolve continues.”
In a posting on their Find Madeleine website, they thanked supporters for the “continued help and commitment in the search for Madeleine, and the hope for her safe return”.
They added: “Until we have answers, until there is news (real news!), there will always be hope and we will continue to do everything we can to help find Madeleine.”
Praying
Last night Kate and Gerry joined wellwishers praying for their daughter’s safe return. The couple joined an outdoor prayer service in their home village of Rothley, Leics, to mark the sad anniversary.
Former GP Kate, 48, and heart doctor Gerry, 47, are bracing themselves for the end of Scotland Yard’s £12million police hunt into Madeleine’s disappearance.
Last week Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Bernard HoganHowe signalled the end of its five-year Operation Grange investigation.
He revealed his officers have only a single line of inquiry left to follow, adding: “That remains to be concluded and it’s expected that, in the coming months, that will happen.”
Just days before the announcement the couple faced fresh heartache after the former police chief who claimed they faked her abduction won a major legal victory.
Judges in Portugal overturned a libel ruling in which Kate and Gerry were awarded £395,000 in damages against Goncalo Amaral, 56.
Madeleine was days from her fourth birthday when she vanished from the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz.
Investigations by Portuguese and British police, as well as teams of private detectives, have drawn a blank. Operation Grange was set up in May 2011 after the McCanns, who have 11-year-old twins, appealed directly to Prime Minister David Cameron and Home Secretary Theresa May.
Officers have investigated 60 “persons of interest”, taken more than 1,300 statements and carried out an eight-day search of scrubland.
With funding guaranteed by the Home Office, a special squad of 30 top detectives was formed to investigate every possible lead. But in October the number of officers was cut.