New search in Portugal in Madeleine McCann case

Portuguese and German police are starting a new search in Portugal as part of ongoing investigations into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

The search will cover the municipality of Lagos, which sits next to Praia da Luz, the town in the Algarve where she went missing nearly two decades ago.

Madeleine was three years old when she vanished from an apartment complex on 3 May 2007 while on holiday with her family.

Her disappearance sparked a Europe-wide police investigation, and has become one of the highest-profile unsolved missing person cases in the world.

Portuguese police confirmed on Monday that they were carrying out the search between 2-6 June on warrants issued by German prosecutors.

German search specialists arrived in the town ahead of the renewed search, as Portuguese police started to close roads in preparation.

German investigators have taken the lead in the case since identifying 48-year-old Christian Brückner - who is currently in prison in Germany for a separate crime - as their prime suspect in 2020.

He is currently serving a sentence in Germany for raping a 72-year-old American tourist in Portugal in 2005. He is due to be released later this year.

German authorities suspect him of murder but have not found enough evidence to bring charges. Brückner has repeatedly denied any involvement.

German authorities told the BBC on Monday that "criminal proceedings are currently underway in Portugal", and that this was being done with the support of Portuguese police.

Portuguese authorities have also named Brückner as a formal suspect, or "arguido". They said they would hand over any evidence seized in the latest search to German authorities.

Meanwhile, the Met Police said: "We are aware of the searches being carried by the BKA (German federal police) in Portugal as part of their investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann."

The search will be the first to take place in two years. The previous search in 2023 focused on a remote dam, a 40-minute-drive from where Madeleine was last seen.

Brückner, who spent time in the area between 2000 and 2017, was found to have photographs and videos of himself near the reservoir.

Portuguese media reported on Monday that the new search would focus on the area between the Ocean Club holiday resort where the McCann family were staying and the house where Brückner used to live.

The team has been given permission to search 21 plots of land in the area.

The night Madeleine disappeared, her parents had been at dinner with friends at a restaurant a short walk away while Madeleine and her younger twin siblings were asleep in the ground-floor apartment.

Her parents checked in on the children throughout the evening until her mother, Kate, discovered Madeleine was missing at around 22:00.

German authorities continue to treat Brückner as their main suspect. However, prosecutors in Germany said earlier this year that there was "no prospect" of a charge against him relating to Madeleine's disappearance.

A German documentary in 2022 found evidence that Brückner occasionally worked at the Ocean Club as a handyman, while German prosecutors have also linked his mobile phone data and a car sale to their case against him.

Madeleine's parents last month marked the 18th year anniversary of her disappearance, saying their "determination to leave no stone unturned is unwavering".

The Metropolitan Police continues its investigation into Madeleine's disappearance, known as Operation Grange, which has been going since 2011.

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