RETURNS TO PRAIA DA LUZ On day Madeleine turns 18, the town still haunted by her disappearance
Nobody really talks about the case unless it comes on TV news
SUSPECT
SILENT PRAYER Mirror man Martin at the Nossa Senhora in Praia da Luz yesterday remember that night vividly. I drove into town around 9pm.
“Everyone was out searching, so my kids and I did the same for at least the next two days. It brings back extremely sad memories and it’s hard to believe she would be turning 18.
“Regardless of what is said about whether she was left alone that night, she was a child and is still missing.”
David, originally from Ealing, West London, said: “Praia da Luz is a wonderful place but has undoubtedly suffered.
“The tourists stayed away for the first couple of years, people were too scared to bring their kids here.
“My friend is ex-SAS and used to holiday here all the time, but I remember in 2008 even he said he wasn’t coming. A few businesses never recovered from that tourism slump and went under, but gradually things have got better.”
Maria Silva, owner of the Hugo Beauty bar, said: “Nobody really talks about Madeleine now unless it comes on the TV news.
“It brings back bad memories for everyone and although it is very sad, people would rather not think about it.
“Covid has been tough for all of us business owners, we’ve been shut for a long time, hopefully we can open soon.” Local resident Leonor Coval, 23, added: “A lot of people here can be very negative about Madeleine’s parents. But it’s unimaginable not knowing where your child has been for 14 years and having to mark her 18th without her.”
The McCanns’ holiday apartment on Rua Dr Agostinho da Silva has changed ownership since Madeleine vanished.
It is currently owned by a British woman who declined to comment when approached by the Mirror yesterday. The waist-high side fence, where Madeleine’s abductor got into the apartment, has been replaced with a 6ft gate.
Kate and Gerry were dining with friends in the Ocean Club tapas restaurant when she vanished. Like much of the resort, that too was shut yesterday.
German investigators are convinced convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner is responsible for her disappearance. Prosecutors claim to know Madeleine is dead, yet have not gone public with evidence they have.
Scotland Yard’s hunt for her abductor continues, with four detectives still working on Operation Grange. A summit between German, British and Portuguese detectives is due to take place in Lisbon this
HEARTBREAK Kate and Gerry McCann in 2017 summer. Brueckner, 44, was named as the prime suspect for Madeleine’s disappearance by German prosecutors last June.
They believe he abducted and killed her. He is currently serving a seven-year term in a prison in Hanover for raping a pensioner in Praia da Luz in 2005.
His lawyer Friedrich Fulscher insists the German has nothing to do with the youngster’s disappearance.
The McCanns are being kept up to date with the investigation through a Scotland Yard family liaison officer.
And as they mark her 18th birthday today, they continue to pray they will one day be reunited with Madeleine.
MARIA SILVA OWNER OF THE BEAUTY BAR