McCanns 'were suspected by police'

Portuguese police believed Madeleine McCann died in her family's holiday flat and that her parents faked her abduction, a court has heard.

Kate and Gerry McCann faced former detective Goncalo Amaral across a courtroom as he tried to overturn a ban on his book that claims their daughter is dead.

One senior detective told the hearing in Lisbon that police made the McCanns "arguidos", or suspects, in the case after concluding Madeleine died accidentally and her parents covered up the death by inventing a kidnapping.

Chief Inspector Tavares de Almeida said he believed Madeleine died in her family's apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on the day she went missing in May 2007.

He told the court the main evidence for this was the findings of British police sniffer dogs sent to Portugal to examine the flat.

The McCanns' lawyer, Isabel Duarte, challenged this claim, arguing that the sniffer dog results did not constitute proof and were not allowed as evidence in the case.

Mr Amaral is calling a series of senior Portuguese officials involved in the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance as witnesses to support his allegations.

His lawyers argue that the material in his book is contained in the official Portuguese police files for the case, many of which were made public in August 2008.

Jose Cunha de Magalhaes e Meneses, the local public prosecutor in the Madeleine investigation, gave evidence via video link. Asked whether he believed that the little girl was dead, he said it was "50-50".

Mr Amaral's lawyers are also seeking evidence from a British policeman, Metropolitan Police Detective Sergeant Jose De Freitas, who was seconded to Leicestershire Police to help with the British end of the investigation.