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Post by Admin on Jun 21, 2014 15:49:37 GMT
A conman who set up a firm to search for Madeleine McCann has denied he funded a lavish lifestyle using cash donated by the public. Supporters of Kate and Gerry McCann handed over around £300,000 to Kevin Halligen's Washington-based company, but his contract was terminated early and he was later convicted of fraud in America on a separate matter. The McCanns had used the Irish national's firm Oakley International for around six months to look for their missing daughter. In an interview for Channel 5 documentary The McCanns And The Conman, Halligen denied claims that he misused money raised to find Madeleine. It has been claimed that he spent the money on first class travel, luxury hotel suites and a chauffeur. But he said: "It is gross distortion of what was actually happening. "The print media in particular took this line that really nothing was being done, I was living the high life on the proceeds of the McCann case. Trust me, I didn't buy so much as a new suit." He added: "The money, all of it, is fully accountable." Major Tim Craig-Harvey, a former Army officer who worked on the investigation with Halligen, said: "The gist of the story was that Halligen was a conman, that he had stolen funds, that nothing had been delivered and that the contract had been cancelled." He added: "He went into, I think it was PNC bank in (Washington) DC and drew out a hundred thousand dollars at a time (and) stuffed it in his pocket. That was the last anyone saw of him." But Halligen denied that he left the country without telling anybody. "(I) didn't vanish. Everybody knew I was going to Rome," he insisted. "It has also been reported that I was going to Rome for a holiday with this hot young lady. Untrue. This myth that I vanished off to Rome and spent everybody's money is exactly that, a myth." Mr Halligen pleaded guilty at a US court last year to defrauding Dutch company Trafigura of €1.6m after claiming he needed funds to secure the release of two business executives who were arrested in the Ivory Coast. He is said to have spent the cash on a lavish lifestyle, including a mansion in the US state of Virginia. Mr Halligen was arrested at Old Bank Hotel in Oxford, England, in 2009 where he was staying for several months under an assumed name and had run up a £5,000 bill.
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Post by Admin on Jun 24, 2014 6:47:37 GMT
THE warm Mediterranean sun shines down on the blinding white sands of the popular Portuguese holiday resort of Praia da Luz as holiday makers laze under thatched umbrellas and children paddle in the shallow turquoise waters of the protected little bay with the spectacular but imposing Rocha Negra (Black Rock) looming in the background. It was in this picture-perfect family holiday setting that the now famous British toddler Madeleine McCann went missing from her family’s holiday villa just over seven years ago and became the focus of the most heavily reported missing person case in modern history. The details of the final hours before Madeleine’s disappearance on the evening of May 3, 2007 are well documented, but despite an intense seven-year investigation conducted by law enforcement authorities on both the Portuguese and British side of the Atlantic, as well as private investigators hired by the McCann family, the fate of the cherubic-looking three-year-old remains a mystery. The seemingly cold case of the missing youngster reared its head again a month ago when Scotland Yard sought permission from the local Portuguese authorities to probe a previously unsearched area of scrubland just a few minutes’ walk from the Ocean Club resort where the McCann family were staying on the night of their daughter’s disappearance. It is unclear what new clues or evidence the British police were basing their latest search on, but once again, the now-familiar foreign police, forensic officers, sniffer dogs, radar equipment, and of course the attendant media pack, have invaded the small holiday town. For Praia da Luz locals, this latest development is just another chapter in the never-ending story of Madeleine McCann, which for the past seven years has turned their previously quiet, unassuming hometown into an international circus and destroyed its reputation as a safe, peaceful family holiday destination. The friendly hospitality staff at the local hotels and restaurants are happy to chat about the weather, the catch of the day and the best local tourist attractions, but just don’t mention the M word. But like everyone else that has ever read, listened or watched any media coverage about the case, they too, have their theories about Maddie’s disappearance. One resident who ran another holiday resort in the town at the time of Maddie’s disappearance tells of one local theory that was doing the rounds when the case first came to light. Drainage work was taking place to pipes in the town around the time and deep holes were dotted around the town. Some of the drains were filled in and covered over a day after Madeleine went missing. Some locals believe the toddler either wandered out of her room in search of her parents and tumbled into one of the pits, others think whoever attempted to abduct her may have panicked and dumped her body into one of the holes in an attempt to cover their tracks and then absconded. The latest search seems to give weight to these theories, with ground-penetrating radar equipment being deployed to search a hole which was previously hidden by thick undergrowth. But as the search enters its next phase and no major clues materialise, life goes on for the locals and visitors down the road in Praia da Luz. Although it is only early June and the beginning of the Northern hemisphere summer holiday season, Europeans, mainly Brits, have already begun trickling into town. But just a few blocks back from the beach, the Ocean Club seems a little quieter. Out by the main pool, the courtyard that previously housed the infamous tapas restaurant where the McCanns and their travelling companions dined that fateful night while their children slept over the other side of the pool has now been converted into a bar and the restaurant moved to another location. When asking for a cocktail around the 7pm one balmy night, the barman tells us the bar is closed for the evening and to perhaps head to the resort’s other bars, The Mill Pond or the Mirage, for a drink instead. The pool is empty and all the deckchairs are deserted even though it is still 25C and the sun doesn’t go down til 9pm in these parts at this time of year.
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Post by Admin on Jul 1, 2014 14:00:03 GMT
Suspects in the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann will be questioned by police in Portugal this week, it emerged last night. Three Portuguese nationals and one Russian man will be interviewed in the Algarve region from today. The questioning follows a formal request by British police, who will sit in on the interview, but only Portuguese officers will ask questions. The Russian suspect lived in Praia da Luz when Madeleine disappeared. He was previously questioned by police during the first phase of the investigation by Portuguese police after Madeleine went missing in 2007 although he was never made a suspect. The suspects are attending ‘of their own free will’ and will be made ‘arguidos’ - people of interest - after they meet police. Eight witnesses are also due to be questioned at a police station in Faro. The interviews will take place over two or more days. Last month British police were involved in fingertip searches of sites around Praia da Luz as part of the British re-investigation into her disappearance. British officers, accompanied by their Portuguese counterparts, carried out searches earlier this month of three areas of land near to where Madeleine went missing. The McCann’s recently said in a statement: ‘We have always wanted all reasonable lines of inquiry to be followed. It is gratifying to know that a substantial amount of work is taking place with the close co-operation of the British and Portuguese authorities.’ Their spokesman Clarence Mitchell said last night: ‘Kate and Gerry will simply not comment on any aspect of Operation Grange. 'It is entirely a matter for the Met Police as to what they do and when they will do it.’ A spokesperson for the Yard’s multi-million-pound inquiry, headed by Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood, said they were moving to a new phase after negotiations with the Portuguese authorities. They have vowed to carry out ‘a substantial amount of work’ over the coming weeks and months in their bid to find out what happened to Madeleine. The three-old-old vanished from a holiday apartment in May 2007 while her parents were dining with pals nearby.
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Post by Admin on Jul 2, 2014 13:44:47 GMT
Portuguese police are questioning four people in relation to the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.The men, pictured arriving at a police station in Faro on Tuesday, have been identified by Scotland Yard detectives as being able to assist them in their search. Two of the men, believed to be suspects, are part of a group of 'arguidos', or persons of interest, who will be interviewed by police. One of the men is believed to be Sergey Malinka, a 29-year-old Russian-born IT engineer who was first questioned by police as a witness in 2007, though never declared a suspect. A law office representing Malinka confirmed to The Guardian that he was being questioned and the "complicated" process "was likely to continue into Wednesday." Malinka, who has Portuguese nationality, has always denied any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance from Praia da Luz. It is believed he was questioned in 2007 because of his business links with British expat Robert Murat. Murat was declared a suspect but later cleared and received more than £600,000 in libel damages from 11 British newspapers. Malinka also received undisclosed damages. It is thought that UK officers are sitting in on the interviews, which are believed to be taking place in Faro, but will not ask questions themselves. Last month British officers, accompanied by their Portuguese counterparts, carried out searches of three areas of land near to where the young girl went missing. She had been in a holiday apartment as her parents Gerry and Kate, from Rothley in Leicestershire, dined with friends nearby. On finishing the latest search police said it had been the ''first phase of this major investigation which has been agreed with the Portuguese''. A statement from Scotland Yard during the searches said there was "still a substantial amount of work yet to be completed in the coming weeks and months''. ''This recent work is part of ensuring that all lines of inquiry are progressed in a systematic manner and covers just the one hypothesis that she was killed and buried locally,'' the statement said. ''This is the same as would be done in the UK for a murder or high-risk missing person inquiry.''
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Post by Admin on Jul 6, 2014 6:41:06 GMT
After eight days of scrubland searches in Praia da Luz, British detectives admitted upon their return to the UK that “no evidence relating to Madeleine McCann had been identified.” With questioning in the Faro’s Polícia Judiciária police headquarters having drawn to a close, sources close to the case told The Portugal News: “Unfortunately we are nowhere nearer to solving the case than we were seven years ago” though it appears the investigation is far from over. Sources explained this week that no new operations have been scheduled in the search for Madeleine McCann. This comes after the largest ever overseas deployment undertaken by British police last month in Praia da Luz, followed by a series of interviews conducted in Faro this week. But British police did indicate that new lines of inquiry could be pursued in the coming months. Metropolitan Police said in June that in addition to the activities which have now taken place “further requests are being compiled and will be submitted in due course.” British police further explained that there was still “a substantial amount of work yet to be completed in the coming months.” To date, Portuguese authorities have received four International Letters of Request. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Portuguese detectives posed a series of questions to four suspects and 11 witnesses at the request of Scotland Yard, with British detectives sitting in during these interviews. The stepfather of one of the suspects told reporters outside the police station his stepson had been faced with a total of 253 questions. All 15 persons of interest left the Faro PJ headquarters without any charges or restrictions being placed upon them. British police also brought two tracker dogs to Portugal, which sources close to the case had told The Portugal News could possibly be used in the search of a specific car, but this line of inquiry did not materialise. Following the questioning which took place in Faro this week, the Attorney-General’s office in Lisbon sent a statement to The Portugal News reiterating the country’s strict secrecy laws which govern ongoing investigations. “In the context of judicial cooperation requested by the English authorities, the investigation has been pursued as planned according to the respective responsible parties. We reaffirm that the content of the requests made by the British authorities is confidential and the Attorney General’s Office will not make any comments on the matter” the statement read. Faro PJ police director Mota Carmo was not present at any stage during this latest phase of the investigation, police sources confirmed.
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