Just when you think the world couldn’t get any crueller, sick trolls have set up a Tinder profile for Madeleine McCann.
The vile account makes light of Maddie’s disappearance, referencing the place she went missing and using a picture of her for the profile.
The profile, which is believed to have been created either in or near Glasgow, also makes several ‘jokes’ about her disappearance.
Maddie was just three years old when she went missing from an apartment in May 2007 while on holiday with her family in in Praia da Luz, Portugal.
It has been more than 11 years since Madeleine disappeared and she would now be 15, although the fake Tinder profile puts her age as 19.
It is not known who created the account but it appears to have been set up two kilometres away from one user in Glasgow, The Sun reports.
Underneath a picture of the missing girl, the description section refers to her as the ‘hide n seek world champion 2007’.
It then reads:
had the worst holiday in Portugal, would not recommend to a friend. Just down at the pub drinking sangria x
Since the account has been shared on social media, those behind the cruel joke have been referred to as ‘vile’ and a ‘c***’.
Since Madeleine’s disappearance in 2007, almost £12 million has been spent on the investigation, known as Operation Grange, which was launched by Scotland Yard in 2011 after a Portuguese enquiry failed.
As of yet nobody has been charged with her disappearance, although the operation is reportedly following several lines of inquiry.
The Home Office confirmed towards the end of last year that another £150,000 would be granted for the investigation into her disappearance, sparking outrage from the Police Federation, some former Met officers and numerous members of the public.
The argument has been made that the money should instead be directed towards more pressing matters, including addressing the high level of homicides, knife crime and terrorism in London.
In fact, it was causing so much controversy that Metropolitan Police commissioner Cressida Dick spoke out on the matter in December, making it clear that detectives will continue searching for Madeleine until the investigation reaches its conclusion.
Ms Dick revealed she was part of the team that set up the Operation Grange eight years ago, following a personal plea by Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry to then prime minister David Cameron.
Addressing the criticism, the Daily Star reports that Ms Dick made the following comments:
I was there when it was set up originally. I remember when this piece of work was started and why. I was an AC [Assistant Commissioner] at the time.
I can understand why some people may feel differently but I think it is quite right that we should continue until it has reached its conclusion.
She then added:
I am quite happy it should continue until we find out what happened or we have exhausted all possible lines of inquiry.
It’s not a huge amount of money and it’s not large number of officers.
May 3 will mark the 12th anniversary of Madeleine’s disappearance from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal.
Our thoughts are with the family of Madeleine McCann.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).