Portuguese police have started to photograph a site near the shores of a remote reservoir as the search for Madeleine McCann enters its third day. Officers remain focused on an area of woodland on a peninsula at the Barragem do Arade on the Algarve, and the search has included heavy machinery and sniffer dogs. The operation is being carried out at the request of German investigators who believe that their prime suspect, convicted sex offender Christian Brueckner, kidnapped and murdered the youngster. She went missing aged three in 2007 while on holiday with her parents.
Brueckner is in prison in Germany for the rape of a woman in Praia da Luz in 2005. He is suspected of more crimes of child sexual abuse and rape committed in the same area between 2000 and 2017. German authorities have not revealed what triggered the search, but prosecutor for the city of Braunschweig Christian Wolters said they were acting on the basis of “certain tips”.
The Sun has reported that investigators previously found photos and video of Brueckner at the reservoir. He has reportedly denied any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance. The police have not yet found any evidence.
Madeleine’s disappearance has attracted enormous media attention since she vanished. Reporters have been kept a mile away from search activity, and a no-fly zone has been imposed over the reservoir. Funding of just under £13.1m has been granted to Operation Grange since 2011.
