Madeleine McCann detectives reveal German child sex offender now prime suspect over toddler's disappearance

Maddie's parents welcome new appeal by British and German police
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

A German child sex offender was tonight dramatically identified as the potential killer of Madeleine McCann as Scotland Yard revealed he has become the main suspect over the toddler’s disappearance.

Detectives leading the search for Madeleine said that the 43-year-old man – who has not been identified – was in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz on the night the then three-year-old vanished.

They added that he completed a 30-minute phone call only shortly before she went missing on May 3, 2007 and had re-registered his 1993 Jaguar XJR6 car the following day.

Photos of the vehicle and a distinctive early 1980s VW T3 Westfalia camper van that the man was also using at the time have been issued by police in an attempt to uncover more information about his movements before and after Madeleine vanished.

The early 1980s camper van police are appealing for information about 

Both vehicles have been seized by police in Germany, where he is in prison.

The 1993 Jaguar XJR6 that has been linked to the suspect
PA

German police have revealed the man was a child sex offender who may have spontaneously kidnapped Madeleine after breaking into her family’s holiday apartment.

Christian Hoppe, from Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), said: "Unfortunately our investigation leads us to believe she was killed."

He told the country’s ZDF television channel the suspect is currently serving a prison sentence for a sex crime and has two previous convictions for “sexual contact with girls”. He said officers have not ruled out a sexual motive in the Madeleine case.

Police in the UK – who tonight insisted that “someone must know more” about the German’s activities at the time – are also appealing for information about the number he was called on and the mobile number he was using.

Both numbers – (+351) 912 730 680 and (+351) 916 510 683 – were tonight made public in a rare step by police to prompt tip offs from anyone who might have known or called the man.

He is described as white with short blond hair, possibly fair, and about 6ft tall with a slim build.

Police in Germany said he lived from 1995 and 2007 between the Algarve region, including in a house between Lagos and Praia da Luz, and Germany.

Madeleine McCann - In pictures

1/27

He did occasional jobs in the area, including in the gastronomy sector, but is thought to have supplemented his income through crime, including by carrying out burglaries in hotel complexes and holiday homes and selling drugs.

The prosecutor's office in Braunschweig – a city in northwestern Germany – is carrying out the investigation because the man's last registered address in Germany was in the region.

The BKA statement said: “The suspect was sentenced on numerous occasions to prison terms for sexual abuse of children in the past."

It added that officers believe others could have “concrete knowledge” of the crime. “There is reason to assume that there are other persons, apart from the suspect, who have concrete knowledge of the course of the crime and maybe also of the place where the body was left. We explicitly ask these persons to contact us and provide information.”

The statement said there is evidence to suggest either the Jaguar XJR 6 or VW T3 Westfalia was used to commit the crime.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy, of the Met Police, said that the investigation into the man had been triggered by information received following a 2017 appeal in this country and that a joint investigation had later begun with German police.

Kate and Gerry McCann
PA

The new appeal was welcomed by Madeleine’s parents, Gerry and Kate, who said: “We would like to thank the police forces involved for their continued efforts in the search for Madeleine.

“All we have ever wanted is to find her, uncover the truth and bring those responsible to justice.

“We will never give up hope of finding Madeleine alive, but whatever the outcome may be, we need to know as we need to find peace.

“We would like to thank the general public for their ongoing support and encourage anyone who has information directly related to the appeal to contact police.”

PA

Announcing the appeal, Mr Cundy emphasised that Scotland Yard has no definitive information about whether Madeleine, who was days away from her fourth birthday when she went missing, is alive or dead and were continuing to treat the case as a missing person investigation.

The Met’s investigation has identified more than 600 people as being potentially significant and were tipped off about the German national, already known to detectives, following a 2017 appeal 10 years after she went missing.

Det Chief Insp Mark Cranwell told reporters on Wednesday he was taking the “really unusual” step of releasing two mobile phone numbers as part of the appeal.

The first, (+351) 912 730 680, is believed to have been used by the suspect who received a call from another Portuguese mobile, (+351) 916 510 683, while in the Praia da Luz area, starting at 7.32pm and ending at 8.02pm on the night of May 3 2007.

Madeleine is believed to have disappeared between 9.10pm and 10pm that evening.

British police conduct a finger-tip search of an area of scrubland close to where Madeleine McCann went missing in the resort of Praia da Luz
PA

The caller, who is not thought to have been in the Praia da Luz area, is not being treated as a suspect, but is said to be a “key witness” in the case.

“Any information in relation to these mobile numbers during the spring and summer of 2007 could be critical to this investigation,” said Mr Cranwell.

A police officer stands outside the apartment at the Ocean Club Hotel in Luz, Portugal
PA

“Some people will know the man we are describing today, the suspect in our investigation. I’m appealing to you directly.

“You may know, you may be aware of some of the things he has done. He may have confided in you about the disappearance of Madeleine.

“More than 13 years have passed and your loyalties may have changed.

“This individual is in prison and we are conscious that some people may have been concerned about contacting police in the past. Now is the time to come forward.

“I’m appealing to you to contact us, or the German authorities or the Portuguese authorities.

“I should be very, very clear on this – while this male is a suspect, we retain an open mind as to his involvement.”

The Operation Grange incident room can be contacted via 0207 321 9251 or operation.grange@met.police.uk.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in