|
|
Post by Admin on Apr 20, 2014 6:56:06 GMT
 Madeleine McCann police are trying to trace five mystery Britons who owned flats in the block where she vanished. British detectives want to quiz them over who was in their apartments when the tot was abducted seven years ago. But we can reveal all five – whose identities have been withheld from police under Portuguese data protection laws – have allegedly refused to allow managers at the Algarve complex to pass their details to the Scotland Yard’s Operation Grange team.  Snatch flats: Five owners refuse to help investigation A source said: “They could hold vital clues to what happened. But it is down to the individuals if they want to get involved. “They were all asked by email if they were happy for their names to be put forward to the investigation – and they said they were not. It may be that they did not want to get caught up in such a high profile case, but they could know something critical about Madeleine’s disappearance and may not even be aware of it.” Police are working on the theory that three-year-old Madeleine’s abductor spied on her from inside the 59-block Ocean Club complex of holiday flats in Praia da Luz. Nearly all of the owners at the time were believed to be British and it has been claimed some properties may have been sub-let during May 2007 without the owners’ knowledge. Anybody with access to certain apartments could easily have kept an eye on the McCanns’ movements without looking suspicious. Madeleine’s dad Gerry has said he thinks they were being watched throughout their family break in apartment 5A. |
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Apr 23, 2014 15:28:05 GMT
British police investigating Madeleine McCann's disappearance are now looking at 18 potentially linked break-ins by a lone intruder into Algarve villas. Six have come to light since an appeal by UK detectives last month, with five involving alleged sexual assaults against young British girls. They include an assault on a girl aged 10 in 2005 in Praia de Luz - the resort from which Madeleine vanished in 2007. Scotland Yard says it hopes UK officers will begin operations in Portugal soon. Last month, the Metropolitan Police revealed they were looking at a series of break-ins, including two burglaries in Praia da Luz. More than 500 calls have been made with information since then.  Det Ch Insp Andy Redwood said: "As a result of those 500 calls, we have now identified a further five sexual assaults and one near miss. None of those six matters we were aware of prior to our appeal. "In this new tranche of information we have got one crime which is very clearly in the heart of Praia da Luz in 2005, on a young, white, 10-year-old girl. "Clearly the fact that we've now got an assault that is in the heart of Praia da Luz, very close to where a previous matter had been reported, means that we are even more interested in this as part of the inquiry."  Investigators from Scotland Yard are waiting for an official agreement later this week which would allow them to begin "operational activity" on Portuguese soil. Dep Asst Commissioner Martin Hewitt said: "I am cautiously optimistic that in the not-too-distant future we are going to start to see activity." Mr Hewitt would not reveal what the operations would involve. Detectives said last month that the lone intruder was described as tanned with dark hair. They said the man was bare-chested in some of the attacks, and some witnesses said he had a pot belly. Three victims said he had a "noticeable odour".  Two of the families said the intruder had worn a distinctive burgundy long-sleeved top, and one family said the top had a white circle on the back. |
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Apr 24, 2014 14:01:16 GMT
 British detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann fear that local Portuguese police could unwittingly be sitting on vital forensic evidence key to the case. It comes after police confirmed yesterday that they were probing a sex attack on a 10-year-old British girl in the same resort where Madeleine vanished. The serious assault took place in Praia da Luz in 2005, two years before Madeleine was snatched.  Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood, who is spearheading the UK search , said: “The fact we’ve now got an assault that is in the heart of Praia da Luz means we are even more interested in this as part of the inquiry. This offence takes us into the resort so it is very significant.” The new victim came forward following a fresh appeal last month when detectives revealed a string of break-ins across the Algarve, which included sex attacks on British girls aged between six and 12 from 2004 to 2006.  Mr Redwood expressed “major concerns” that local Portuguese police could hold the key to the mystery of Maddie’s disappearance but have failed to inform their national counterparts, the Policia Judiciaria. He said: “If there is a breakdown in communication between local cops and the Policia Judiciaria there could be forensic material sitting in exhibit stores somewhere that we and the PJ are unaware of.” Investigators from Scotland Yard are waiting for an official agreement later this week, and hope to begin "operational activity" in Portugal linked to the case. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Martin Hewitt said: "I am cautiously optimistic that in the not-too-distant future we are going to start to see activity."  Mr Hewitt would not reveal what the operations will involve. British detectives launched a fresh investigation into Madeleine's disappearance in July last year - two years into a review of the case. After shelving their inquiry into Madeleine's disappearance in 2008, Portuguese authorities said last October that a review had uncovered enough new information to justify reopening it. Portugal has declined to set up an official joint investigation with the Met. |
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Apr 26, 2014 2:05:36 GMT
Madeleine McCann’s parents have chosen not to apply for a death certificate – despite being entitled to one on the seventh anniversary of her disappearance next weekend. Kate and Gerry McCann are so encouraged by Scotland Yard’s fresh leads into her disappearance that they will not seek for a Certificate of Presumed Death which applies after that period.  And they are so convinced Madeleine is still alive they are instead stepping up their efforts to find their daughter. Her gran Susan Healy told the Mirror yesterday: “She could be found.” And Kate herself has previously said: “Madeleine is still alive until someone proves otherwise.” A person can legally be declared dead after seven years under British law despite the absence of direct proof of the victim’s death. But friends of the couple, from Rothley, Leics, said that was the “last thing on their minds” as they prepare for next Saturday’s grim milestone. Their hopes of finding Madeleine, who would now be 10, have been boosted in recent months by the progress of a British police probe. Scotland Yard detectives are believed to be poised for a breakthrough after their own three-year review that sparked a fresh investigation. New evidence has come to light of a sex attack on a British girl of 10 in Praia da Luz two years before Madeleine disappeared there. It is one of five new Algarve assaults uncovered by senior British detectives. |
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Apr 28, 2014 0:14:42 GMT
 Peter Bleksley believes the shirt worn by the prime suspect was a rare design produced by beer company Super Bock. It was not sold but given away to loyal customers and should be possible to trace. The suspect is a child sex attacker who has been operating for years in the area of Portugal where Madeleine vanished in 2007.  Mr Bleksley, 54, a founder member of the Yard’s undercover squad, said: “Some people have suggested it bore a resemblance to a strip once worn by the Arsenal football team. However, I think a more likely explanation could be that the man was wearing one of these Super Bock promotional T-shirts. From speaking to bar owners I know the design for these T-shirts changes every year and only a certain number are handed out to regular customers. Therefore, it would be possible to check back on all the designs and the years they were produced and see which one bears most similarity to that witnessed by families of victims. Then it would be possible to check the distribution of the T-shirts to see where they were given out. Not all pubs bother with the promotion so through a process of elimination it may be possible to narrow down where such shirts may have been handed out and then bar owners could be asked about their customers. We know that some victims said the man smelt of stale alcohol and tobacco and that he had a pot belly, so that would suggest he was a regular drinker or may have worked in a pub or restaurant."  The distinctive Super Bock logo of a white circle on a maroon background is used on signs outside pubs across Portugal. In the Algarve resort of Carvoeiro we found a tradesman wearing one of the shirts with the words Super Man on it. He said he had owned the shirt for a number of years. Last week the Sunday Express flew Mr Bleksley to the Algarve to assess the progress of the Yard’s investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007, seven years ago this Saturday, when she was approaching her fourth birthday.  Police would not reveal what the operations will involve. Pictured, a street in Praia Da Luz where an Irish holiday maker and his wife claim they saw a mystery person with a child about the same time as Madeleine McCann disappeared in May 2007 A source close to Kate told The Daily Star on Sunday: 'She wants to speak from the heart to thank the public for their continued support over these seven difficult years and to viewers she still hopes Madeleine will be found. The couple's spokesman Clarence Mitchell said yesterday: 'There is lots of information that still needs to be checked and Kate and Gerry.' Madeleine disappeared from her family’s holiday apartment on May 3, 2007, as her parents Kate and Gerry dined at a nearby restaurant. Scotland Yard declined to comment on the new allegations, but said anyone with information should call police on 020 7321 9251 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. |
|
