The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Police in Madeleine probe to make new search of reservoir
Searches as part of the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann are set to take place in Portugal, police in the European country have confirmed.
The Policia Judiciaria said in a press statement that it is co-ordinating searches in the Algarve over the next few days, at the request of the German police and in the presence of British officers.
An area near the Barragem do Arade reservoir, around 50km from Praia da Luz where Madeleine went missing in 2007, is being sealed off with searches expected to start today, Portuguese news website SIC reported.
It said the prime suspect in her disappearance, convicted sex offender Christian Brueckner, spent time in the area between 2000 and 2017.
Investigators believe the 45-year-old killed Madeleine, then aged three, after abducting her from a holiday apartment.
Brueckner, who has reportedly denied any involvement in the youngster’s disappearance, was identified as a murder suspect in the McCann case by Portuguese officials in June 2020.
He is facing charges in Germany over a number of separate sex offences allegedly committed in Portugal during that time.
Images of Portuguese officers walking along tracks near the reservoir
and sealing off areas with tape emerged yesterday.
It is not the first time that the reservoir has been searched. In 2008 Portuguese lawyer Marcos Aragao Correia paid for specialist divers to check it after he claimed to have been tipped off by criminal contacts that Madeleine’s body was in the reservoir.
The most recent search in Portugal in relation to her disappearance was in 2014, when British police examined scrubland near where she vanished.
Earlier this month, Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry issued a short statement to mark the 16th anniversary of her disappearance.
It said: “Today marks the 16th anniversary of Madeleine’s abduction.
“Still missing... still very much missed. It is hard to find the words to convey how we feel.
“The police investigation continues, and we await a breakthrough.”