1.Everyone shall possess the right to freely express and publicise his thoughts in words, images or by any other means, as well as the right to inform others, inform himself and be informed without hindrance or discrimination
2.Exercise of the said rights shall not be hindered or limited by any type or form of censorship
Constitution of the Portuguese Republic, Article 37.º
The English decision to reopen the Maddie case is generating controversy and ill being within the Portuguese Judiciary Police (PJ), even with officers that recall that “the English are not better than the Portuguese”.
The English Prime Minister, David Cameron, decided to have the investigation into the Maddie case reopened, but PJ officers point out that “the English need authorization from the Portuguese authorities to investigate in our country, because they do not have competence to act in Portugal”.
Some high-ranking officers of the British police have equally criticized this decision, arguing that the money that is to be spent is more necessary for other cases. This situation has even been criticized by Lord Harris, a member of the Metropolitan Police, who peremptorily states: "It again embroils their officers in a high-profile investigation, where the chances of success are unclear, and which will divert limited investigative resources away from other matters."
In fact, some 30 English detectives and many million pounds will be involved in the reopening of the investigation into the case of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, in 2007, in Praia da Luz, in the Algarve. The English decision was made after the child’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, sent a letter to the English Prime Minister, David Cameron, in which they asked for a review of the case.
According to members of the PJ that were contacted by O Diabo, the reopening of this case questions “the professionalism of our officers, who did everything that was possible to solve the child’s disappearance”, recalling that the English policemen are not better than our own.
Our sources recall that, despite “us having good criminal investigation labs”, a political decision was made to have the tests carried out in English labs, launching the suspicion over whether or not they were manipulated. “We let the English do everything that they want”, they say, recalling that this case “suffered various political influences, due to the missing child’s parents’ social and political status”.
The officers that were contacted by O Diabo recognize that “some mistakes were made in the investigation, namely inside the apartment”, but they recall, in defence of their honour, that there are many identical cases that remain unsolved in England.
The Judiciary Police – they reveal – had already been warned that the Scotland Yard had the intention to analyse the case again. This does not mean, however, that the criminal process, which is under the Public Ministry’s tutelage, will be reopened. This process may be picked up again if new facts that contribute to the investigation’s development are discovered.
PJ Available
Contrary to the general feelings within the PJ, Pedro do Carmo, joint national director at the Judiciary Police, cited by “I” newspaper, states that the PJ is available to cooperate in this case, and committed to finding out the “credible, consistent and relevant factors that may contribute to clarify what happened to Madeleine McCann”.
Meanwhile, British newspaper “The Telegraph” reports that some of the officers that are involved in the investigation into the disappearance of Maddie McCann, four years ago in Praia da Luz, are close to retirement or about to present a voluntary leave, stressing that the English investigators will face major difficulties, because the documents are nearly all in Portuguese.
When the little girl disappeared, on the 3rd of May, 2007, Leicestershire police helped the Portuguese police in the investigation, but in July 2008, the case was archived. Until last week, precisely when Maddie’s mother, Kate McCann, published a book, the Scotland Yard decided to restart the investigation, after the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, intervened.
In her recently published book, Kate McCann, with the purpose to collect money for the “find Madeleine” fund, harshly criticises the Portuguese police system. Kate mentions the slowness that followed the first hours of Maddie’s disappearance, and the proposal that was made by the PJ, for the child’s mother to confess to concealing her daughter’s body, after her death, which was caused by an accident in the apartment in Praia da Luz. She says that this offer was an attempt by the Judiciary Police to make the sentence more benevolent.
In her book, Kate also tells about her suffering and the depression after her daughter’s disappearance, about her suicidal tendencies and the problems that she experienced in her marriage to Gerry.
The book was launched yesterday (May 23rd) in Lisbon, edited in Portugal by Edições Asa, from the Leya group, and by Transworld Publishers in the United Kingdom.
Metropolitan (Met) Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson will face questions following the decision to review the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.
London Assembly member Jenny Jones will raise the issue at the Metropolitan Police Association (MPA) meeting later.
She will ask about the allocation of resources for specific cases of children who have disappeared.
Campaigners and relatives of other lost and missing children will hold a vigil outside City Hall ahead of the meeting.
Madeleine, whose family live in Leicester, went missing at the age of three while on holiday in Portugal in May 2007.
Outside jurisdiction
Earlier this month the Home Office said Scotland Yard would bring their "bring their expertise" to the search for Madeleine.
But campaigners have raised concerns that this has happened at a time when police resources are stretched and the Forensic Science Service is due to close.
At the meeting Ms Jones will ask: "This review was requested by the prime minister and home secretary. Is your understanding that in future an elected police and crime commissioner would be able to request that the Met investigate specific cases in this way?"
She said: "A missing child is every parent's worst nightmare and I have real sympathy for the many families in this position.
"Because of the prime minister's request to review the Madeleine McCann case, the Met police will be using a lot of time and resources to focus on one particular case, outside of their jurisdiction.
"I don't know how they will justify to other families why their missing children will not be getting exactly the same level of attention."
A Met spokesman said the review was being carried out at the request of the Home Secretary.
He said: "The commissioner has considered the request and the review will be carried out subject to funding being made available by the Home Office as the case is beyond the Metropolitan Police Service's jurisdiction."
Vigil for missing children outside City Hall as Metropolitan Police Authority meets
The Metropolitan Police Authority meets tomorrow at City Hall for the first time since the Prime Minister instructed/encouraged/invited/asked the Commissioner to consider a review of the Madeleine McCann case. And outside there will be a vigil to remember all missing children attended by relatives and campaigners. Several MPA members (including Jenny Jones AM and Jennette Arnold AM) have already announced they will be joining them.
I am sure that those campaigners and relatives will be asking whether the cases in which they are concerned can be reviewed by the Metropolitan Police in the same way that the Madeleine McCann case is to be. And this is hardly surprising.
The Commissioner will no doubt tonight be polishing up his answers as to why he made the operational decision (without being pressurised by a politician, of course) that the McCann case should be reviewed and whether the same factors will apply to the other cases.
He will also no doubt remind the Authority that the Home Office has offered to pay for the costs of the investigation. This is, I am sure, a welcome contribution to the Met’s budget, but will this cover only the additional costs of the investigation or will it cover the costs of the salaries of the detectives engaged in the review and, if so, where will the replacement detectives be found to cover the work that those detectives would otherwise have done?
And was this offer of financial assistance a factor in the operationaldecision that the Commissioner made to have this review? And, if it was a factor, does the offer to pay guarantee anyone else a Metropolitan Police case review? Might be a nice little earner.
I am sure the Commissioner has also given thought to what will happen after the review has been concluded. Will the review be shared with the McCann’s? And, if not, what is the purpose of the review? I am confident that all will be made clear tomorrow.
«(...)The Commissioner has stressed that he made the decision and there was no political interference from David Cameron.
Yesterday, under questioning from Metropolitan Police Authority members, he detailed his reasoning for taking on the investigation.
Sir Paul said that one of the reasons is the number of murders in London – which has fallen to 124 in 2011 from 172 per year in 2006.
He explained that it meant there is now no need for 24 murder teams across the capital and the number will be reduced in the next nine months, leaving experienced detectives free to take on the McCann case. (...)
(...)Sir Paul reiterated that the McCann review will not cost the Metropolitan Police. The Government will reimburse the Met on a quarterly basis as the review goes on, he said.
"It is not an open cheque and it is not going to go on forever," he added.»
«(...)"It is not an open cheque and it is not going to go on forever," he added. Sir Paul said that as they are in the process of reducing costs, the review could "give us the opportunity of retaining some skilled people".(...)»
The defence for Afonso Dias (pictured left) puts forward today, before a Criminal Proceedings' Judge, the last arguments to avoid the trial of the trucker for the alleged kidnapping of Rui Pedro thirteen years ago.
Declaring himself as a victim of an accusation «without factual basis», Afonso Dias questions in his petition to the process for the opening of the criminal proceedings, the statements of the key accusation witnesses - of those who were minors at the date of the facts, and also of a prostitute.
The defence also makes reference to the alleged lack of existence of technical evidence that could prove the presence of Rui Pedro in his car, at the time of the facts, in March 4, 1998.
The lawyer for the family of Rui Pedro, Ricardo Sá Fernandes, excused himself from advancing the argumentation that he will use in the evidenciary debate relative to the circumstantial evidence gathered by the investigators.
Sá Fernandes regretted the «huge delay» in the accusation brought forward by the Public Ministry [February 2011], but he is glad that there was an accusation, and considered that this step means «hope» for the parents.
The accusation for Rui Pedro case, who was 11 years old at the time of his disappearance, was deduced on February 11 of this year, based on the «strong probability» of Afonso Dias having driven the minor, in the early afternoon [of that day], for a sexual meeting with prostitutes in the EN 106 [National Road number] on the way to Lousada- Vistosa, in the area of Lustosa.
After that, Rui Pedro, who suffered from epilepsy, a condition that required a daily intake of a medicine, was never seen again despite efforts that stretched abroad and had the help of Interpol.
The investigation believes that Afonso Dias knows what took place afterwards, but does not wish to tell and accuses him of the practice of the crime of qualified kidnapping.
In the accusation report, it is defended that the alleged kidnapper lacks a satisfactory alibi to justify what he did between 14.00 and 18.45 on the day the boy disappeared.
This Sunday, the McCann couple stated to Lusa agency that they are satisfied that the English police has decided to re-evaluate the case of the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine, in 2007 in the Algarve, and said that they hope that it will bring more information.
Gerry mentioned that the couple “is stronger than in 2007” and that “the pain and the assortment of emotions are not as close to the suffering” of those days.
“Our life has brought us joy. We have two other beautiful children and other things that make us happy. It is not a complete life, there is a feeling of sadness that is always present. It is not like living a nightmare, like in 2007, but we are working hard to find Madeleine”, he sustained.
Gerry McCann, who traveled to Lisbon this weekend in the company of his wife, Kate, expressed to Lusa agency that both were “very satisfied that the Metropolitan Police is going to re-evaluate all of the information and the case files”, after the intervention of British prime-minister David Cameron.
“It’s something that we had been asking for over three years and, for the process, it is very important that that information is analysed again, so more investigations can take place. We are very satisfied and we hope that new information will appear”, Gerry McCann said.
Madeleine’s father also stressed that he expects cooperation between the English and the Portuguese authorities and mentioned that the book ‘Madeleine’, written by Kate, may help “people to open their minds”.
A book which, Gerry McCann stressed, does not have the purpose of collecting funds for the investigation or to silence those who do not believe in the British couple, that always insisted on the thesis of Madeleine’s abduction.
“Concerning the many lies and ridiculous things that have been written about us, we are not impressed. What we say to those people who do not believe in us is that, please, read the book and compare what has been written. You must face the facts and what we have done, throughout time, to find our daughter”, Gerry stressed.
Confessing that it was “a major decision to publish the book”, Kate reinforced that Madeleine’s parents want to present the truth.
“There has been much speculation, much lost information and lies”, the anesthetist doctor stated, while her husband, a cardiologist, said he believed that “directly and indirectly, the book helps the search” for the child.
Four years after Madeleine’s disappearance, in a tourist resort in Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, Gerry and Kate McCann continue to believe that their daughter is alive and reiterate the need to continue the investigation, also defending that those responsible must be punished.
“In my heart, I feel that she is somewhere and in my head, based on pure facts, there is no evidence that says she is not alive”, Kate observed.
The book ‘Madeleine’, which is already on sale in Portugal, was launched in London on the 12th of May, and for each copy sold, one cent will go into the investigation and search for the child.
Kate and Gerry McCann press conference on February 19, 2010 in London after they won an injuction to stop the publication of the book 'Maddie: The Truth Of The Lie' in Portugal
Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Did Kate McCann read my Letter to her?
Kate McCann has a new book out, Madeleine, an incredible self-serving propaganda piece which leads me to believe she must have read my letter (below from October 4, 2007). But, as can happen to people who may have a narcissistic personality disorder, they just don't know when to SHUT UP. For, in the book, Kate's explanations further lead me to doubt the McCanns' claims of innocence in the disappearance of their daughter. One simple example is the most peculiar speculation of Kate that all her children may have been drugged by Madeleine's 'abductor' both the night she went missing and the previous night. First of all, Kate, this would serve no purpose to the 'abductor' except to waste time and it would be difficult to accomplish. You must know that. So the only rational reason you are claiming the children might have been drugged would be to explain away the fact that, indeed, if it ever is proven they were, you have covered that issue by explaining you were concerned about the children's lethargy and someone else is responsible. However, the only ones likely to have given the children drugs would be you and Gerry.
Any good lawyer will tell you to SHUT UP, but, no, you keep talking, Kate, and we thank you for it.
OPEN LETTER TO KATE MCCANN
Yes, Kate,
It isn’t your breast size or weight that is causing your problems. It is you and your narcissist evaluation of the situation and your PR team’s equally stupid assessment of the situation that is making you look so bad in the public eye.
I am a criminal profiler with years of experience dealing with parents of murder victims and missing relatives. Your behavior and the behavior of your husband fall far outside or the norm for grieving parents. Now, this may be because you are just terribly narcisstic folks who had nothing to do with your child going missing (outside of neglecting your children and putting your needs to party before their needs for comfort and safety, a narcissistic behavior if I have ever seen one). You and Gerry may simply be so narcissistic you have no understanding of how other people view your behaviors and your PR team may share your narcissism so that no one on your team has a clue to normal human behavior.
But, SHUT UP! Every time you open your mouths you do more damage to yourselves. You seem guiltier by the day. Your attempt at “damage control” is so obvious and so very much a day late and a dollar short, everything you do or say seems a cover up and a transparent attempt at proving your innocence.
Let me make clear what I think is weird about what you say and do:
You choose words about Madeleine’s disappearance which make it appear you know there is no abductor and that Madeleine is dead.
Both you and Gerry state your only guilt in the matter is not being their when Madeleine “was taken.” This statement makes no sense for abduction as Madeleine could not be taken if either of you were with Maddie when an abductor would have shown up. It makes more sense in the context that Maddie died while you were not in the apartment.
Your statements and attitude about Madeleine being alive do not square with parents who really believe their daughter is in the hands of a pedophile or pedophiles who are brutally raping and torturing her daily.
Your attempts at “finding” Madeleine do not represent the manner most parents would choose if they were actively searching for a live child but appear more to be the actions of parents trying to prove after the fact of a child’s death that they “cared” (not care) about her.
Your behaviors of “keeping a normal routine” and “keeping up one’s appearance” is admirable, but extremely bizarre. I don’t know any other parents of missing children who can appear so together and cheery. When my daughter cooked our kittens by accident in the dryer, I cancelled Christmas.
Gerry’s blog creeps people out. It is too upbeat. Terrified and distraught parents of missing children are rarely able to jog and play tennis and go to park with their other kids and have a fun time. Over a long period of time, maybe, but this is usually years after the nightmare begins. Some parents never recover from the trauma and it is common for marriages to fail and the brothers and sisters to feel their parents went absent after their sibling went missing.
Your ability to sleep at night after the first five days, Kate, is beyond belief. It is the behavior of one who already knows the answer and even then, is quite a narcissistic trait. If you believed your daughter was being raped as you lay in bed at night, sleep would be very hard to come by. I guess you finally realize this and your mother is saying that NOW you can’t sleep and Madeleine comes to visit you in the night. What changed, Kate?
Your PR team coming up with an answer to every accusation, answers that are ludicrous in themselves, makes you seem awfully defensive, and, if there is no way you or Gerry had anything to do with Maddie’s disappearance, you have nothing to defend. Furthermore, if all you care about is finding Maddie, you shouldn’t be wasting your time on such silliness. After all, as Gerry said, Maddie is the only important thing, right?
So, SHUT UP, Kate. SHUT UP, GERRY. Fire your PR team as they are totally worthless. If both of you really are innocent and your think Maddie is alive, return to Portugal. Start searching for real (and it took six months to set up a hotline?). Cooperate with the police. Take the polygraphs as you have zero to hide and, with competent polygraph examiners, the questions are so simple you can’t screw them up. I will even give you the four questions that should be asked:
“Did Madeleine die while you were present?”
“Did you return to the apartment and find Madeleine dying or dead?”
“Did you move Madeleine’s body at any time?”
“Did your spouse move Madeleine’s body at any time?"
These are simple questions. The answer to all of them should be “No.” There is no ambiguity in these questions (unlike a question such as “Do you feel responsible for the disappearance of Madeleine?” which you could if you acknowledge leaving her without an adult caretaker is irresponsible; an affirmative answer to such a question would be useless to the detectives as it could falsely indicate that you had something to do with Maddie going missing when you are only feeling guilty over leaving her unattended. Also, an affirmative answer could mean you simply do not feel responsible for what happened to Maddie no matter what happened to her as a total narcissist might).
The above four questions are simple and unambiguous and even a narcissist can’t misconstrue the meaning of the questions. The answers will be a simple “Yes” or “No.” Have the polygraph session videotaped so the police will be unable to do any underhanded scare tactics or interrogation that might distort the results of the tests.
Quite frankly, Kate, you and Gerry had everything going for you as parents of a missing child if you hadn’t left your children unattended night after night to go out partying. THIS is what made people dislike you. It was to your advantage that you are both relatively attractive people because IF you had big breasts and a porky physique and were not well-heeled professionals, you would have become suspects right off the bat and you would have not had the incredible monetary support you have been blessed with nor all those kindly letters. You would have been viewed as just a pair of slobs who probably abused their children as well as neglected them and you wouldn’t have gotten the phenomenal amount of publicity worldwide concerning Maddie’s disappearance. Other parents have gone public, run campaigns, and had web sites, but your fortune with publicity and support has been unprecedented. And, you complain, Kate, that people are treating you badly because you are fit! It was being fit and professional and well-off that got you so much attention. It was you and Gerry’s fitness as parents and your peculiar behaviors that got you the negative attention.
I have a final suggestion. Ask the PJ if I can come analyze the case. My organization will send me pro bono. As a criminal profiler I can analyze the actual evidence to advise the investigators as to the best investigate strategy. I have no problem determining this crime as an abduction and finding the creep that took Madeleine if the evidence points that way. I don’t have to like you and Gerry as people to view the evidence in an objective and professional manner. No one should be convicted of a crime simply because of personality and because people don’t like the individual’s personality. Solid physical and circumstantial evidence must exist to the point where there is no question as to who committed the crime. I would work very diligently to assist the PJ with the evidence and the facts and do a thorough crime scene analysis that would move the case forward.
Furthermore, if you and Gerry get charged in Madeleine’s disappearance and must truly defend yourselves, my services are available to you and your lawyers. I will be more than happy to analyze the evidence and, if you are innocent, do all I can to serve in your defense.
Good luck, Kate. May the truth be brought to light soon and you and Gerry get the justice you deserve in the case of your missing daughter.
All the best,
Criminal Profiler Pat Brown
Note: Some people have misinterpreted sarcasm as seriousness in some of my wording in the post. My reference to Kate having written the book "because she read my letter" is just a general nod to her reason for writing this book; to do damage control and "clear up" the questions people have asked about them and the things they have said about them. I am not actually saying that letter specifically was the reason for her book. Also, my offer to come profile the case, while something I would be happy to do, was more in jest than a serious request to be brought in. Obviously, Kate and Gerry are unlikely to be calling me anytime soon.
Pat has provided crime commentary and profiling and forensic analysis in over one thousand television and radio appearances in the United States and across the globe. She can be seen regularly on the cable television news programs, CNN, MSNBC and FOX, and is a frequent guest of the Today Show, the CBS Early Show, Larry King, Inside Edition, Nancy Grace, Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell, Joy Behar, and America's Most Wanted. For four seasons, Pat Brown profiled crimes on the weekly Court TV crime show, I, Detective. Criminal Profiler Pat Brown is the host of the 2004 Discovery Channel documentary, The Mysterious Death of Cleopatra. In the spring of 2006, Pat went inside one of Florida's maximum-security prisons to interview a child murderer for the Discovery Channel series, Evil Minds. In 2010 she profiled a new Jack the Ripper suspect for Investigation Discovery's Mystery Files. She is the author of The Profiler: My Life Hunting Serial Killers and Psychpaths (Hyperion Voice 2010) and Killing for Sport: Inside the Minds of Serial Killers (Phoenix Books 2003), and is a contract writer for Crime Library. Pat contributed special feature content included in the 2005 home DVD edition of Profiler: Season Two and the 15th Anniversary Edition, 2006 DVD release of Quentin Tarantino's crime classic, Reservoir Dogs.
Through The Sexual Homicide Exchange, Pat offers pro bono criminal profiling and training for law enforcement and she provides profiling consultation to attorneys, families, and producers through The Pat Brown Criminal Profiling Agency. Pat Brown holds a Master's Degree in Criminal Justice from Boston University and developed the first Criminal Profiling and Investigative Analysis certificate program in the country for Excelsior College. Pat is the founder and director of The Society for Investigative Criminal Profiling, an organization working to promote criminal profiling as a major tool in police investigations.
Pat Brown's latest book: 'The Profiler: My Life Hunting Serial Killers and Psychopaths' is available at Amazon and the Portuguese version 'Profiler - A Minha Vida a Perseguir Psicopatas e Serial Killers' published by Guerra & Paz, is available at Fnac
Voice Over - The story that arrives on Monday to the Portuguese bookshops starts before Madeleine's birth, and is detailed in private matters, such as the desire to have children, the pregnancy, Madeleine's first months. The decision to write this book was always made, the decision to publish it, says Kate McCann, was more difficult.
Kate McCann - I always wanted to, to write down the truth, really, for my three children, and I guess the reason, or the trigger reason why I actually, why it became a book and why it was published, is because we have to fund the search for Madeleine. And the fund was running low, so we needed to raise the money.
VO - Kate McCann also writes about what she considers to be the hypocrisy of the cooperation between the British police and the Portuguese police. It's infuriating, writes Madeleine's mother, that even though we know the British police are very aware of the selective leaks to the media, they continue to insist that they have a cooperating relationship with the Judiciary Police.
KM - If I'm honest, I suppose I was hoping we had more public support, really. But because we were at such a low ebb, and things couldn't have gotten any worst than they were in September 2007, I suppose I'd hoped someone to come forward and publicly showed support or basically, you know, said what they felt about certain bits of information that were appearing in the media.
Gerry McCann - Most of it implying that Madeleine was dead, and we felt that was a complete injustice, because if people believed that Madeleine was dead or that there was evidence that Madeleine was dead, the search couldn't go on and obviously that, as parents, was incredibly painful.
VO - Gonçalo Amaral is about to publish a second book about the Maddie case. In March the Supreme Court of Justice authorized the sale of the first book written by the former coordinator of the investigation, who was removed by the Judiciary Police directorate. The book that was taken from the bookshops due to the injunction made by the McCann couple.
GM - We have proceedings underway against Gonçalo Amaral and that's all we really want to say about it.
KM - I guess we just want people to keep looking really for Madeleine and as Gerry said the age progression images is a very useful tool, and I guess people just to open their minds, remember she's still missing really, and she can still be found.
VO - The British government announced recently that the Scotland Yard is going to investigate the Maddie case, and analyse all the existent information of the archived process. In the United Kingdom, Kate McCann's book sold 74000 copies in the first three days.
Maddie: Archived process is going to be translated to be read by 30 British officers at the orders of David Cameron
by Luís Pontes
A team of 30 investigators from the Scotland Yard will begin to analyse the whole process of the Portuguese Judiciary Police investigation in relation to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, on May 3, 2007 in Praia da Luz, Algarve.
“The investigation team consists of senior officers. They are very experienced and will review all the steps taken by the Portuguese and English authorities”, explained to the DN a source from Scotland Yard's press office.
In the first phase, the work intends to dissect all the investigation done on the field, the statements collected by the Judiciary Police officers and the forensic evidence that was analysed in Portugal and in the United Kingdom. According to a police source, they will also request the full translation of all the Portuguese documentation.
In a second phase, the Scotland Yard might send their officers to Portugal. “For that to happen an authorization from the Portuguese authorities will be requested”, said the British police source.
The deputy director of the PJ, Pedro do Carmo, confirmed to DN that he had direct knowledge, of the two times, of the interest of British authorities to re-evaluate the investigation that was done in Portugal.
“We were contacted by the liaison officer from the British Embassy in Lisbon and then we had a contact made by the Scotland Yard”, said Pedro do Carmo to the DN.
According to the deputy director, the British authorities did not make any additional requests.
“The process is public and can be accessed by anyone”, explains Pedro do Carmo. “The process is formally archived, nevertheless the Judiciary Police still pays attention to consistent and credible information that may arise. We are open to all collaborations. We maintain an excellent relationship with the Scotland Yard. They will have our full support”, stresses the Judiciary Police deputy director.
The reopening of the criminal process belongs to the Public Ministry tutelage and depends on any new fact considered as relevant. The British authorities have not added anything to the process and, as such, as the DN found, there is no request to reopen the case in the Prosecutor General's Office [PGR].
The request to re-evaluate the investigation was prompted by the British Prime Minister, David Cameron. “I confirm that information and therefore we have the best investigators in the case who will work exclusively”, stated a source from the Scotland Yard.
The review will involve thirty investigators and does not gather consensus even amongst the British police.“The investigation will take years and millions of pound will be spent”, said Jenny Jones, from the Metropolitan Police Authority to the Metro newspaper.
“There are hundreds of unsolved cases that don't have this kind of support and the resources that are going to be diverted are necessary”, she stated.
The new investigation ordered by David Cameron emerges a week later, after the McCann couple, who are committed in the launch of the book 'Madeleine', sent a letter to the Prime Minister asking for a review of the case. “We want an independent, transparent and full review”, asked then Kate and Gerry McCann.
Before making public his decision, David Cameron informed the McCanns, through a letter, of his request made to the Home Office (body which oversees the Scotland Yard)
The investigation will be lead by the Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood. This homicide investigator [Homicide and Serious Crime Command] has chosen for his team experienced investigators who are close to the end of their careers.
The new team will also meticulously analyse, besides the work of the Portuguese, the performance of its own agents who were in Portugal between May 2007 and July 2008.
According to a report published last year, in April, by the newspaper 'The Mirror', the British Home Office spent more than half a million euros in the Maddie case. Just in air travels, during the 709 days that Scotland Yard were in Portugal, 25.325 euros were spent. Each of the 126 low-cost trips costed an average of 129.20 euros to the British taxpayers.
in Diário de Notícias, May 20, 2011, paper edition
Gonçalo Amaral, the former Judiciary Police coordinator who led the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, is denouncing the child’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, as well as their lawyer, Isabel Duarte, over a possible crime "against public authority", due to their lack of compliance in returning the seized copies of “Maddie: The Truth of the Lie”.
In a formal letter to the DIAP, the Public Ministry’s department for penal investigation and action, in Lisbon, Gonçalo Amaral recalls that the McCanns, through their lawyer Isabel Duarte, were named as legal keepers of 7500 copies of the book, with “the legal obligation to preserve them and to return them intact” in case the injunction that was filed by them was not confirmed by a higher judiciary instance.
After said injunction was overturned by the Appeals Court, Kate and Gerry McCann and Isabel Duarte still refused to return the seized copies of “Maddie: The Truth of the Lie”. In his denunciation, Gonçalo Amaral states his suspicion that “the copies of his book ‘Maddie: The Truth of the Lie’ have been destroyed”, based on the fact that said destruction was initially requested by the couple in their application for an injunction against the book – a request that was denied by the judge who granted the injunction in the first place.
The former PJ coordinator states that Isabel Duarte, the lawyer who represents the McCanns in their civil actions against Gonçalo Amaral, "knows that she should have returned" the copies that were placed under her guardianship, but has failed to do so, he suspects, "because they do not exist anymore".
Gonçalo Amaral further mentions that on the 23rd of May, Kate McCann prepares to launch the Portuguese version of her own account of the “tragic events that took place on the 3rd of May of 2007, in Praia da Luz”, within “the use of her freedom of expression”.
Nevertheless, according to the former PJ coordinator, Kate McCann’s freedom of expression “is based on lies and on offending the Portuguese justice, the Polícia Judiciária, those who have searched for her daughter, the Portuguese people in general and the people of the Algarve in particular”, by “launching lies about the safety, the tourism in the Algarve, and the action of the Police institution, suggesting that the Police in the Algarve covers up sexual abuse of English children, which is completely false”.
Gonçalo Amaral further recognizes that it is not up to him to denounce these actions, but rather a job for those who are in charge of those areas, who “shall respond according to what their consciences dictate”.
Rather, his denunciation focuses on “crimes against freedom of expression and of qualified disobedience” if the destruction or loss of the 7500 seized copies of “Maddie: The Truth of the Lie” by its legal guardians is confirmed.
The crime of loss or destruction of assets under public power, as described under article 355 of the Portuguese Penal Code, if confirmed, is punishable with a prison sentence of up to 5 years.
«On these fundaments, they conclude by requesting the determination of the following measures:
a) The prohibition of sale and the order to seize, for destruction, the books and the videos that are still left at shops or any other deposits or warehouses» in The Temporary Injunction: Granted on September 9, 2009
Video Transcript
Portimão - Recorded yesterday
Lower Third: Gonçalo Amaral sends denunciation to DIAP against the McCann couple and lawyer
Lower Third: The apprehended 7.500 copies of the book written by Gonçalo Amaral have not yet been returned
VO: The Supreme Court of Justice authorized the sale of the book he has written, ‘Maddie, The Truth of the Lie’, several months ago but the book copies that were seized and kept at the guardianship of the McCann couple’s lawyer have not yet been returned.
Lower Third: Supreme Court of Justice authorized the sale of Gonçalo Amaral’s book
Gonçalo Amaral: This is a denunciation made to DIAP, the Department of Investigation and Penal Action of Lisbon, relative to the eventual practise of a crime of destruction of objects placed in public domain. Namely, the 7500 book copies of ‘Maddie, The Truth of the Lie’ of which I am the author, books that were in the possession of Kate McCann, Gerald McCann and their lawyer, Isabel Duarte. They were nominated as trustees when the books were seized, and they had them since September 2009. Decisions by the Superior Portuguese Courts annulled the injunction from which the seizure consequently emerged. Therefore, the books should have been returned.
VO: Without recording an interview, the McCanns’ lawyer confirmed that she is the trustee of the book copies, and as such, she would never destroy something that was entrusted to her by the court.
Lower Third: McCann lawyer says Gonçalo Amaral’s books were not destroyed
VO: Gonçalo Amaral stresses that the legal action taken by Maddie’s parents brought other damages.
Lower Third: Gonçalo Amaral says that legal action taken by couple brought personal and professional losses
GA: What causes a great loss to my family, mainly to my family and to me, are the other arrests in the scope of a main legal action that is ongoing. The seizure of the authorship rights, of the documentary, for example; the destruction of a company as a guarantee [ref. 1.2 million claim made by the McCanns], I had a firm of legal consulting that was ruined by this couple and by their lawyer… There are various things that have, even, prevented me from exercising a professional activity.
VO: With the denunciation on its way to DIAP, Gonçalo Amaral waits now for the return of the 7500 book copies of ‘Maddie, The Truth of the Lie’
"The incentive to accept this "offer" seemed to be that if we didn't agree to it, the authorities could or would go after us for murder, and if we were found guilty, we might both receive life sentences." - Kate McCann, in 'Madeleine'
There is no such thing as a life sentence under Portuguese law.
The British police will assist in the search for Madeleine McCann, who disappeared in 2007, but, so far they have not requested the collaboration nor the reopening of the process to the Portuguese authorities.
In a reply that was sent to Lusa news agency today, the Prosecutor General's Office states that up to now, "neither the Prosecutor General's Office nor the prosecutors that are responsible for the case have received any request or application, neither for cooperation, nor for the reopening of the process".
Last week, the British Home Office informed that the police will help in the search for Madeleine McCann, following a request from the parents for the investigation process to be reviewed.
The British government stressed that "Madeleine's safe return" remains a primary concern, so that the British security forces continued to follow leads and pass information to Portuguese police.
The announcement came the same day that Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, renewed their request for an "independent, transparent and full review" of the investigation process.
The couple wants all the information that was gathered by the Portuguese and British police to be analysed, in order to find important data for the search.
Meanwhile, and once again, the Public Ministry reminded that the case can be reopened if and when "there are credible and relevant facts, as determined by law". However, advances the reply, "until now, no facts have emerged to allow the reopening of the case."
Madeleine McCann disappeared a few days before making four years, in May 3, 2007, from the room where she slept with two her twin younger siblings in an apartment in a tourist resort in Praia da Luz, Algarve.
The parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, were having dinner at that time with a group of English friends in a restaurant about 50 meters from the apartment.
The child's mother, Kate, and father, Gerry McCann, were constituted as arguidos by the Portuguese authorities in July 2007.
On July 21, 2008, the Prosecutor General's Office announced the archival of the suspicions against the couple and a third suspect, Robert Murat, which dictated the end of the investigation.
«British officers from Scotland Yard will escort as early as next week, Kate and Gerry McCann - the parents of Madeleine, who disappeared from Praia da Luz in April(sic) 2007 - to seek new avenues that lead to determine what happened. The couple will be in Portugal to launch the book 'Madeleine' on Monday.»
London, May 16 (Lusa) - The British police will assist in the search for Madeleine McCann, who went missing in the Algarve in 2007, but, until now, has neither requested cooperation or the reopening of the process from the Portuguese authorities.
In a reply that was sent to Lusa agency today, the Attorney General's Office states that up to now, "neither the Attorney General's Office nor the prosecutors that are responsible for the case have received any request or application, neither for cooperation, nor for the reopening of the process".
Last week, the British Home Office informed that the police will help in the search for Madeleine McCann, following a request from the parents for the investigation process to be reviewed.
KEY witnesses in and around the Ocean Club resort complex when Madeleine McCann disappeared should be asked to take part in a re‑enactment to help the Scotland Yard hunt for the child.
Former Yard Commander Dai Davies believes a controversial reconstruction with Kate and Gerry McCann, their holiday friends and others could be vital in encouraging new witnesses to come forward.
When top Portuguese detective Paulo Rebelo took over the case he was frustrated at not being able to stage a reconstruction as he believed it could provide a breakthrough.
However, at that time there were strains in the relationship with the McCanns, the so-called Tapas Seven and Portuguese police and there was suspicion about the motives of such an exercise.
Mr Davies, head of royal protection at the Yard and now a respected security consultant, said: “I believe a reconstruction should be one of the ideas on the table and it should be seriously considered, although it would obviously have to be handled very gently and diplomatically.
“Reconstructions screened on Crimewatch many, many years after serious crimes have been crucial in solving complex and difficult inquiries. If the reconstruction was screened across Europe it may inspire someone to come forward with crucial information.”
Jane Tanner, the friend of the McCanns who claimed she saw a man carrying a child near apartment 5a of the complex at Praia da Luz on Portugal’s Algarve on May 3, 2007, days before Madeleine’s fourth birthday, has already taken part in a partial reconstruction for a TV documentary.
Another crucial witness is Irishman Martin Smith, who also saw a man carrying a child in his arms later in the evening.
Mr Davies said: “As well as these important witnesses it would be useful to seek the cooperation of others who were working at the tapas bar.
“With the close involvement of the Yard and cooperation with all the important witnesses and an agreement for a filmed version to be screened on Crimewatch and its Portuguese equivalent, I believe a reconstruction would be very useful. I also think the Yard should conduct a thorough overhaul of all the forensic evidence as something may have been missed and they should trawl over the crucial witnesses to see if a line of inquiry was not pursued.
“A lot of photofits have been produced over the years and the team will be anxious to try to identify those people.” John O’Connor, former head of the Yard’s Flying Squad, said: “They are lucky in that there is already a mountain of evidence to go through and analyse and they are very good at that. They are very good at concentrating on the really important leads and how they were pursued.”
Although the Portuguese police publicly released scores of files on the case, they withheld documents with details of British people living in the area with criminal records for sex offences.
That information will now come under the microscope of the Yard’s elite Homicide and Serious Crime Command unit.
Det Chief Insp Andy Redwood will lead the team and he will be reporting to Det Chief Supt Hamish Campbell, Operational Command Unit commander. The senior officer in overall charge is Commander Simon Foy.
Mr Campbell is used to handling difficult, high profile cases as he was responsible for investigating the murder of BBC news presenter Jill Dando and is known for his attention to detail and his tenacity.
It is expected DCI Redwood will at times have 10 officers working for him and he will split them up into groups concentrating on different aspects of the case.
He is expected to travel to Portugal later in the month with a small team to liaise with detectives in Lisbon and Portimao, some 20 miles from Luz. Portuguese police are still the lead force in the investigation.
In her book, Madeleine, published last week, Kate McCann, 43, revealed the existence of a note in the Ocean Club staff message book saying that the families were leaving their children behind each night.
She said: “I was dismayed. This was a glaring light to a child taker and yet no mention is made of it in the files until December 2007. December 2007! Seven months after Madeleine’s abduction! I could only conclude that its relevance had not been appreciated by the police.”
One avenue the officers will explore is whether sightings of Madeleine were taken seriously and properly examined. Last week an elderly woman contacted the Sunday Express to say she saw Madeleine at the Spanish coastal town of Torrevieja, near Murcia, the day after the kidnapping.
The woman, aged 81, said she and her husband saw a girl with a suspicious looking man near some shops. She said: “It was definitely Madeleine because I recognised the mark in her eye. I went to the police there and I have been to British police but I don’t believe the sighting was properly investigated.”
We have passed on details of this incident to private investigators working for the McCanns.
Last week we revealed that German youth worker Martin N, who is being questioned about a spate of child murders across Europe, will be asked if he was in Praia da Luz when Madeleine vanished.
German police say he has confessed to one child murder and will be questioned about some 40 sex attacks.
HOME Secretary Theresa May is under pressure to explain exactly when Portuguese detectives made their offer to work with Scotland Yard.
Writing to Metropolitan Police chief Sir Paul Stephenson, Mrs May told him: “Following discussions between our Ambassador in Lisbon and the Portuguese Judicial Police, the Government received an offer of co-operation with the police here.” The meeting is crucial because it paved the way for Mrs May to request the assistance of the Yard.
However, the Sunday Express can disclose that Britain does not have an ambassador working in Portugal after Alexander Ellis was transferred at the end of last year.
In January, the Foreign Office announced that Joanna Kuenssberg O’Sullivan had taken over as Charge d’Affaires until a new ambassador was appointed. The following month it was announced that Jill Gallard had been appointed Ambassador to Portugal, but she will not take up her post until July.
Home Office officials were unable to explain whether it was Mr Ellis who had met with the Portuguese police, and if so when this took place.
“We are unable to check this sort of detail on a weekend,” said a Home Office official. “We don’t want to get drawn into who met who and when.”
Kate and Gerry McCann will not return to Portugal for Madeleine reconstruction
Kate and Gerry McCann have decided not to return to Portugal to take part in a reconstruction of events on the night Madeleine went missing.
The couple believe a re-enactment will do "absolutely nothing" to help find their daughter, who was three when she vanished from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in May 2007.
Mr and Mrs McCann, who are arguidos or suspects in their daughter's disappearance, had been asked by Portuguese police to return to the Algarve along with the seven friends on holiday with them at the time.
Detectives wanted to stage a reconstruction at the Ocean Club complex where the McCanns were dining, leaving Madeleine and her younger siblings in the unlocked apartment nearby. But the couple, from Rothley in Leicestershire, have decided not to go back.
A source close to the McCanns said: "There are no plans for Kate and Gerry and their friends to return to Portugal. They have all indicated their intentions to the police.
"The reconstruction will only take place if Kate and Gerry and their friends agree to take part. If they don’t agree it will not happen.
"Kate and Gerry have had grave reservations about the value of it. If the reconstruction was going to help Madeleine, nothing in the world would stop them taking part.
"But Kate and Gerry and their friends cannot see the point of all the disruption it would cause to their busy work schedules and families if, as they believe, it will do absolutely nothing to help find Madeleine."
The couple's spokesman Clarence Mitchell said yesterday: "Kate and Gerry and their friends remain committed to doing anything to help find Madeleine.
"I don’t want to comment on what they have told police but, if they do not return to Portugal, it is because they feel it offers no value and no assistance in finding Madeleine."
Mr Mitchell said that if the reconstruction was televised with the chance of bringing in new leads the McCanns and their friends would agree to do it.
He went on: "They would welcome a Crimewatch-style reconstruction which is properly broadcast for millions of people to see and could generate important new leads and fresh information."
But Portuguese police said they did not want the reconstruction to be filmed.
«(...) E – About the Interest of the Reconstitution
Taking into account that there were certain points in the arguidos’ and witnesses’ statements that revealed, apparently at least, contradiction or that lacked physical confirmation, it was decided to carry out the “reconstitution of the fact”, a diligence that is consecrated in article 150 of the Penal Process Code in the sense of duly clarifying, on the very location of the facts, the following very important details, among others:
1 – The physical, real and effective proximity between Jane Tanner, Gerald McCann and Jeremy Wilkins, at the moment when the first person walked by them, and which coincided with the sighting of the supposed suspect, carrying a child. It results, in our perspective, strange that neither Gerald McCann nor Jeremy Wilkins saw her, or the alleged abductor, despite the exiguity of the space and the peacefulness of the area;
2 – The situation concerning the window to the bedroom where Madeleine slept, together with the twins, which was open, according to Kate. It seemed then necessary to clarify if there was a draught, since movement of the curtains and pressure under the bedroom door are mentioned, which, eventually, could be verified through the reconstitution;
3 – The establishment of a timeline and of a line of effective checking on the minors that were left alone in the apartments, given that, if it is believed that such checking was as tight as the witnesses and the arguidos describe it, it would be, at least, very difficult to reunite conditions for the introduction of an abductor in the residence and the posterior exit of said abductor, with the child, namely through a window with scarce space. It is added that the supposed abductor could only pass, through that window, holding the minor in a different position (vertical) from the one that witness JANE TANNER saw (horizontal);
4 – What happened during the time lapse between approximately 6.45/7 p.m. – the time at which MADELEINE was seen for the last time, in her apartment, by a different person (David Payne) from her parents or siblings – and the time at which the disappearance is reported by Kate Healy – at around 10 p.m.;
5 – The obvious and well-known advantages of immediate appreciation of evidence, or in other words, the fulfilment of the principle of contiguity of evidence in order to form a conviction, as firm as possible, about what was seen by Jane Tanner and the other interposers, and, eventually, to dismiss once and for all any doubts that may subsist concerning the innocence of the missing [child’s] parents.
In this sense, the legal procedures were followed, according to the norms and conventions that are in force, and the appearance of the witnesses was requested, inviting them to be present inclusively appealing to solidarity with the McCann couple, as it is certain that since the beginning they adhered to that process diligence.
Nevertheless, despite national authorities assuming all measures to render their trip to Portugal viable, for unknown motives, after the many doubts that they raised about the necessity and opportunity of their trip were clarified several times, they chose not to attend, which rendered the diligence inviable.
We believe that the main damage was caused to the McCann arguidos, who lost the possibility to prove what they have protested since they were constituted arguidos: their innocence towards the fateful event; the investigation was also disturbed, because said facts remain unclarified." (...)»
«(...) All of the group’s members including the McCann couple were questioned several times, at length and in detail, in order to collect the greatest possible number of relevant details that could assist the investigation in discovering the truth of the facts.
From the analysis of the total of depositions that were made, the existence of important details that were not fully understood and integrated became evident; details that would need to be tested and tried on location, in order to establish the apparent failures to meet and lacks of synchrony, even divergences, in a suitable diligence, which was not possible to perform despite the commitment that was displayed by the Public Ministry and by the PJ to fulfil that purpose, as we will see in closer detail, further ahead.(...)»
«(...) Addressing now, and specifically, the question relative to the diligence known as the “reconstitution of the facts” (Article 150º of the Penal Process Code), which was not performed due to the refusal of some of the integral members of the holiday group to return to our country (as documented in the Inquiry), the same would have clarified, duly and in the location of the disappearance, the following extremely important details, amongst others:
The physical, real and effective, proximity between JANE TANNER, GERALD McCANN and JEREMY WILKINS, at the moment when the former passed them, and which coincided with the sighting of the supposed suspect, carrying a child. It results, from our understanding, as unusual that neither GERALD McCANN nor JEREMY WILKINS did not see her, nor the alleged abductor, despite the small dimensions of the space;
The situation that concerns the window of the bedroom where MADELEINE slept, together with the twins, which was open, according to KATE. It would be necessary to clarify whether there was a draft, due to the fact that movement of the curtains and pressure under the bedroom door are mentioned, which would eventually be clarified through the reconstitution.
The establishing of a timeline and of the effective checking of the minors that were left alone inside the apartments, given the fact that, believing that said checking was as tight as the witnesses and the arguidos describe it, it would be, to say the least, very difficult that the conditions were reunited for the introduction of an abductor in the residence and the posterior exit of said individual, with the child, namely through a window with little space. It is added that the supposed abductor could only pass that window holding the minor in a different position (vertical) from the one that was visualized by witness JANE TANNER (horizontal).
. What happened during the time lapse between 5.30 p.m. (the time at which MADELEINE was seen for the last time by a person that differs from her parents or siblings) and the time at which the disappearance is reported by KATE HEALY (at around 10 p.m.)(...)»
Gonçalo Amaral says that Scotland Yard is “going to find several things that wont please the McCanns”
by Marisa Rodrigues
The former Judiciary Police coordinator who investigated Maddie's disappearance said the British police inquest, ordered by the British Prime Minister, will be a “shot in the foot” for the McCanns, given their experience in “unmasking false abductions”.
“If the Scotland Yard has the necessary autonomy and independence to investigate, they will find much that will not please to the McCanns”, said the former inspector who has always maintained that Madeleine's parents, who has been missing for four years from the apartment in Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, were responsible for the death and disappearance of Madeleine's body.
The Scotland Yard is a specialized police force, to whom David Cameron requested the investigation of the disappearance, after Kate and Gerry McCann wrote a letter with an appeal for that purpose. Andrew Bell, the Home Office spokesman, confirmed yesterday to JN the decision. The prime minister considered this to be an exceptional case, because Madeleine has been missing for a long time and “due to the high media profile of this matter”.
“While Madeleine disappeared in Portugal, and the Portuguese remain responsible for the case, the agencies that enforce the law here followed leads and sent information to the Portuguese authorities”, said the spokesman.
Questioned on how the investigation will be done, Bell only said that “the Portuguese process will be analysed”. He also said that he had been “assured the Portuguese authorities will provide all the assistance”, but he did not explain why was never opened an investigation in England at the time. “I can only speak about this decision now”, he said.
Influential Couple
“Once again it was proved that this couple has political influences at the highest level”, said Gonçalo Amaral, according to whom “one can not say re-opening since there was never an official investigation in England, despite the victim being British, just like her parents are.”
in Jornal de Notícias, May 14, 2011, paper edition
Gonçalo Amaral defends reopening of the Maddie Case
Former coordinator of the investigation says revision of the process by Scotland Yard is good news - Sic Notícias, broadcast May, 14 2011
Voiceover: “Information that Scotland Yard will be reviewing all the information the Maddie case caught Gonçalo Amaral halfway between Spain and Portugal. Upon his return to the Algarve, the former investigation coordinator, who was removed from the case in October 2007 by the heads of the PJ, says that the involvement of the Metropolitan Police is good news because although the process was shelved, there is still a lot to be investigated.”
GA: “They (SY) should read the report, all the reports, by the private detectives working for the McCanns, for many reasons – to discover what clues they contain, and what type of information, and to find out what they have been doing because they have been using up a fund of millions of pounds for four years [ didn't quite understand, not sure if he says the word “defrauded” ] from taxpayers and many of the people who believed in this fund”
Voiceover: “Gonçalo Amaral hopes that the British authorities won’t be restricted to just analysing the sightings which are in the file, but that they will also concentrate on, for example, what happened to Maddie’s blanket, and that they formally and finally open a case in the UK, since up until now all they have done is to collaborate with the Portuguese investigation”
GA: “This case is registered in England, namely by the British authorities, as a mere disappearance, not as a child abduction, and the issue here is that we are looking at either a false allegation of abduction or an actual abduction, that’s the big question and that’s what needs to be clarified, via an in-depth review of what has been done and by doing what hasn’t yet been done, namely … and using all the information, whether it’s from the private detectives or all the sightings which later occurred, but based on the process.”
Voiceover: “Amaral says that if the help of Scotland Yard serves to reopen the case in Portugal, the first thing which should be done is the reconstruction of the night of the disappearance, to which Kate and Gerry never agreed. The British authorities’ desire to once again focus on the case came from the British PM himself, and happened the day after Kate launched a book in which she doesn’t hold back from criticising the Portuguese investigation. The book will shortly have another one vying for attention. Gonçalo Amaral has already finished writing his second book about the case.”
A SPECIAL £3.5million grant is being given to Scotland Yard to fund the Madeleine McCann inquiry.
The Home Office cash will fund a team – led by an experienced detective – which is being set up in the next few days to carry out a review of the entire investigation.
It will cover the cost of man hours, flights to Portugal, hotels, consultation fees from forensic firms and any other expenses.
There will also be a hefty cost for translation work on the thousands of documents requested from Portuguese authorities.
Files from Leicestershire Police – said by police sources to be “substantial” – will also be examined by the London team.
Leicestershire has been the UK liaison force for the McCann family and posted officers to Portugal during the hunt.
The funding comes after Kate and Gerry McCann made an impassioned appeal to David Cameron for help to find their daughter, who was three when she vanished in Portugal in 2007. The Prime Minister, who met the couple 18 months ago while in opposition, has already written to them saying he had personally authorised the review.
A police source said: “The money is ring-fenced and is an emergency grant put to one side by the Home Office.
“It will be made available to the Metropolitan Police specifically for the review of the Madeleine McCann case.”
The insider said the task was “enormous” and could take years.
The McCanns, who believe Portuguese police botched the investigation, said: “This is a step in the right direction.
“The expertise of the Metropolitan Police is renowned and we are reassured by our Government’s commitment to the search for Madeleine.”
The couple have written a book, entitled simply Madeleine, which they hope will boost funds for the police investigation further.
Madeleine McCann: Scotland Yard a reçu une somme de 3,5 millions pour l'enquête.(with thanks to FrenchEuropean)
par David Collins
Une enveloppe spéciale de 3,5 millions de livres a été octroyée à Scotland Yard pour financer l'enquête sur Madeleine McCann.
L'argent du Home Office servira à financer une équipe, menée par un détective expérimenté, équipe qui sera constituée dans les prochains jours pour mener à bien une revue de toute l'enquête.
Cela couvrira le coût salarial du personnel employé, les vols au Portugal, les notes d'hôtel, les notes des firmes d'analyse d'expertise médico-légale, et toutes les autres dépenses.
Il y aura aussi une énorme somme consacrée au travail de traduction des centaines de documents qui seront demandés aux autorités portugaises.
Les dossiers de la police du Leicestershire, dits «substantiels» selon des sources policières,seront aussi examinés par l'équipe londonienne.
La police britannique du Leicestershire a servi d'intermédiaire pour la famille McCann et les officiers en poste au Portugal durant les recherches.
Cet octroi de fonds arrive à la suite d'un appel passionné fait par Kate et Gerry Mccann à David Cameron, pour qu'il les aide à retrouver leur fille, âgée de trois ans lors de sa disparition au Portugal en 2007. Le premier ministre, qui a rencontré le couple il y a 18 mois quand il était encore dans l'opposition, vient de leur écrire qu'il a donné personnellement son autorisation pour la revue de l'enquête.
Une source policière a affirmé ceci : «L'argent provient d'un fonds, gelé pour les cas d'urgence et économisé par le Home Office.
“Il sera alloué au MET spécialement pour la revue du cas de Madeleine Mccann..”
La source a nous a dit que la tâche était «énorme» et pourrait prendre des années.
Les Mccann qui pensent que la police portugaise a saboté l'enquête, ont dit : «C'est un pas dans la bonne direction.»
«Les compétences de la police métropolitaine sont renommées et nous sommes rassurés par l'engagement pris par notre gouvernement dans la recherche de Madeleine.»
Le couple a écrit un livre, intitulé simplement Madeleine, qui, espèrent-ils va fournir encore plus de fonds à l'enquête policièire.
Clarence Mitchell on the 3,5 million pounds review Broadcast by BBC, May 13 2011 | transcript with thanks to R.
Clarence Mitchell: It’s a glimmer of hope, it’s movement for the first time in many years, now, and erm, Kate and Gerry are very pleased with this. It’s exactly the sort of thing they were asking for. We still don’t know the exact terms of what the Met will be doing. The Home Office has made it quite clear that they won’t go into the operational detail and that’s entirely appropriate, but, what needs to be done is re-examination, if you like, of all the original work, of all the original forensics, everything that was done, all the witness statements, erm, and everything come in since it was shelved in 2008 Information going in from anywhere in the world to Portugal. Kate and Gerry, the private investigators have no idea whether there are any potential leads in there and it could be the smallest piece of information that you need to link to something that’s held on databases here. There is no single database looking at all this information, which is commonplace in many other cases that are unsolved in other countries. So it’s high time that this happened and Kate and Gerry are very grateful to Mr Cameron and the Home Secretary for, erm, beginning, what appears to be, the first stage of a review process.
Male Interviewer: Clarence, you mentioned private investigators. Then. they have been working consistently throughout, throughout this period of time, have they?
CM: Small teams of different investigators at different times on short contracts have worked. At the moment there is a very small team, headed up by retired British policemen.
Male Interviewer: But, they presumably, they don’t have access They have no official means of access to information or the other, or the different police departments.
CM: Exactly right, they have no formal access to any police at work on this. There, of course, is contact and they hope that, that contact improves, but, one of the great frustrations is, they wouldn’t necessarily know what was being done in Portugal and, and frankly even in Britain, at times, and so this will help coordinate and potentially unlock any key piece of information.
Female Interviewer: This review presumably requires the Portuguese police to cooperate and, and what guarantee is there of that?
CM: Well, absolutely right. This happened on Portuguese soil. It’s absolutely appropriate that they have primacy, as the lead investigative agency. Erm, they’ve always, we’ve known, had to agree to such a process starting. It was made clear yesterday that the Metropolitan officers who will be working with them will, they will co-operate, the Portuguese will work with them and we’re very grateful for that. How that will actually breakdown in practice, we, obviously need, need to see how it progresses, but, essentially without that element of co-operation, erm, this can’t go any further forward, but, so far, all the signs are that an agreement has been reached at the police level.
Female Interviewer: I mean, this is going to be a mammoth operation isn’t it, because there must be so much information, there, being held by Portuguese police, which is going to be reviewed and, you know, on a purely practical level, it’s, going to need to be translated, apart from anything else.
CM: Well, this was always one of the problems, in the, right at the start. There were lots of translations from English to Portuguese and back to English at times and sometimes mistranslations and things like that would occur and that’s what led to some of the nonsense stories, that you will recall, around that summer of 2007 to 2008. Erm, yes, lots of logistical issues around this. How, who, where, when. How’s it all gonna happen, but, the main point, as far as Kate and Gerry is concerned is that at last there is some sense of movement in the case. They were incredibly frustrated at not being told anything about timelines or what was happening, frankly, in both countries and their frustration was growing, which is why they wrote to the Prime Minister. It, sadly, it shouldn’t have got that far, but, but, it has and, erm, as I say they’re grateful to Mr Cameron for his intervention and for his very kind, and, letter expressing empathy with their position, last night.
Male Interviewer: Is there any kind of timeframe on, on…. I mean, how much time are they gonna to give to this? How many people are gonna be involved, because there is a, this is a review of what evidence there is and that will take a certain amount of time. I mean that will happen and there’ll be a fullstop at the end of that process and then, if you like, you’ll be back where you started because, well, the police may well say, at that point, we have reviewed it and we’re not doing anything else.
CM: Two quick points. First of all, yes, erm, it will take a certain amount of time. The operational side of it is entirely for the police to resolve and to, and to work through. I won’t necessarily know what will happen, but that will come good. We hope there will be good liaison with the private investigators, which is critical. Erm, will it lead to nothing? We don’t know. You say we’re back where we started. Not necessarily, we could find that one key piece of information that leads to Madeleine being found. This could, could, I stress, begin to unlock everything as Kate and Gerry have been hoping desperately for the last four years.
You’re right though, it, it’s open ended. We need to see. Everything that has been done, has to be looked at and everything, the lessons that should be learnt, need to be learnt and if there’s anything key in there that can be found, even now, so far down the line, it must be found because it could still lead to Madeleine being brought home.
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