Police are said to be ‘closing in on number one suspect’ in the search for missing British girl Madeleine McCann.
Portuguese police are said to be closer to solving the disappearance of Madeleine, who vanished shortly before her fourth birthday while on a family holiday in Praia da Luz, Portugal in 2007.
This latest development follows discussions with British officers regarding the new prime suspect, after police received a tip-off that a ‘foreign’ man was in the Algarve at the time of Madeleine’s disappearance.
As reported by the newspaper Correio da Manha, officers are now looking at a ‘new clue and suspect’ and have claimed to be ‘nearer to knowing what happened to Madeleine‘.
Scotland Yard detectives have reportedly met with Policia Judiciaria officers in Porto to discuss the case.
This was reportedly the first face-to-face meeting between the two teams since Scotland Yard reportedly gave the new suspect’s name to Policia Judiciaria. As of yet, it remains unclear whether or not the suspect’s whereabouts is known.
A source reportedly gave the following comments to Correio da Manha:
The British were here recently, there were talks at the PJ office in the city.
It’s all very secret but then it always is with the Madeleine case. Only the police know who the suspect is.
The local investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance was cut in 2008, with the Metropolitan Police launching their own investigation, Operation Grange, in 2011.
Scotland Yard have already spent £11.75 million on the investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance, and have been given an extra £300,000 pledged by the Home Office to continue their lines of inquiry.
Last month, on May 12, Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry McCann marked their missing daughter’s 16th birthday with a heartrending Facebook post:
Happy 16th Birthday, Madeleine!
We love you and we’re waiting for you and we’re never going to give up.
#ForAsLongAsItTakes
Over 12 years on from when she disappeared, Kate and Gerry have never given up hope of their daughter being found alive.
If you have a story you want to tell send it to UNILAD via story@unilad.com
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.