FRESH police searches are due to start tomorrow near the spot where missing toddler Madeleine McCann was last seen.
German police are said to have requested the searches as prosecutors race against time to pin prime suspect Christian Brueckner down.
PAMadeleine McCann went missing while on holiday with her family in 2007[/caption]
Dan CharityChristian Brueckner appears in court in Germany last month[/caption]
The beach resort of Praia Da Luz on the Algarve in Portugal
He is due for release from prison in September when he would likely flee the country.
The new searches are expected to take place between Praia da Luz where the three-year-old vanished on May 3, 2007, and a house near the holiday resort where Brueckner used to live.
They will be the first in Portugal for more than two years following a near-week-long operation involving local and German cops at a remote dam a 40-minute-drive from Praia da Luz in 2023.
Those searches were at Arade Dam – described at the time as Brueckner’s “little paradise” – but tragically came to nothing.
German police are convinced the convicted rapist abducted and killed Madeleine when she disappeared, but he has always denied any involvement.
It comes just weeks after a Sun investigation was broadcast on Channel 4 that revealed bombshell evidence found at the suspect’s lair.
The disturbing evidence demonstrated Brueckner’s obsession with young kids.
A well-placed Portuguese source confirmed this week’s operation was scheduled get underway tomorrow but said some preparation work may take place beforehand.
He said: “They will be land searches only.
“The main objective is to look for any signs of Madeleine’s body.”
Portuguese police are understood to have agreed to cooperate with the search after it was approved by the country’s judicial authorities following a formal request from German cops and prosecutors.
The search is expected to last around three days unless anything relevant emerges.
Brueckner remains in prison in Germany where he is serving a seven year term for rape.
The 48-year-old convicted paedophile faces having his hopes of being released from jail in September scuppered after reportedly being accused of new offences against prison guards behind bars.
NewsflashMadeleine has been missing for 18 years[/caption]
Dan CharityCops search around the Arade Dam in 2023[/caption]
ReutersSearchers came up short trying to find Madeleine[/caption]
The Sun’s investigation revealed that children’s clothes and toys were found at the paedophile rapist’s abandoned lair, plus masks, chemicals and guns.
There was also a hard-drive of pictures, which German investigators continue to keep secret, that is believed to indicate why they are sure Madeleine is dead.
Much of the newly uncovered evidence was found by chance at a disused factory Brueckner bought for £20,000 in 2008, a year after Madeleine vanished.
The 47-year-old was last in prison in May where he gave a chilling smirk when he was asked by waiting journalists if he killed Madeleine.
Bruecker was in the dock in Lehrte, Germany, after being convicted of verbal assaulting guards at the prison where he’s serving seven-year sentence for rape.
German officials are still privately hoping British cops would reopen their live investigation into Brueckner before he is released, in just 18 weeks.
ReutersThe apartment where the three-year-old went missing from in 2007[/caption]
Christian Brueckner, 43, is a German convicted paedophile,Rex
As Brueckner’s release date nears, a source told The Sun: “The clock is against the case here and investigators do not want to see Brueckner walk free.
“Their best option could be intervention from UK cops but they have to be prepared to take it on. There are 20,000 pages of Madeleine evidence and the Germans are ready to translate the lot.”
Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, recently penned a heartbreaking tribute to mark the 18th anniversary of her disappearance.
They thanked those who have supported them and kept Madeleine in their thoughts.
The parents wrote: “No matter how near or far she is, she continues to be right here with us, every day,” alongside a picture of Madeleine.
FAILED SEARCHES
The 2023 searches were the first major hunt in Portugal for Madeleine in nine years.
Search teams carried out a three day scour of the reservoir’s banks, which Brueckner allegedly referred to as “his little paradise”.
The reservoir is 31 miles from the Ocean Club holiday apartment in Praia da Luz where Maddie, from Rothley, Leicestershire, was snatched.
Cops also left behind two-foot deep holes following their search at a “hippy camp” close to the reservoir this week.
They followed an earlier June 2014 operation when British police were given permission to do digs in Praia da Luz that involved sniffer dogs trained in detecting bodies and ground-penetrating radar.
Those Scotland Yard digs were linked to the leading UK police theory at the time Madeleine died during a break-in and burglars dumped her body nearby.
They also failed to produce any evidence pointing to the missing youngster’s whereabouts.
In a smaller operation in July 2020 Portuguese police and firefighters searched three wells for Madeleine’s body but failed to find any trace of her.
TIMELINE OF EVENTS
Here’s a timeline of the case which has gripped the world.
May 3, 2007
Madeleine McCann disappears from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, sparking a massive police search and becoming one of the most famous missing persons cases in history.
January 15, 2016
Neighbour reports a possible ‘grave’ at Brueckner’s abandoned factory in East Germany.
Cops find disturbing images on USB sticks and launch a full-scale search.
February 16, 2016
Christian Brueckner is convicted for abusing a girl of five in a park after images found on his laptop.
He was sentenced to 15-months behind bars but was already on the run by then.
May 3, 2017
Around this time, Helge B calls an information hotline after watching a ten-year anniversary special on the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.
He reports an alleged confession by Christian Brueckner.
September 27, 2018
On-the-run Christian Brueckner is arrested over outstanding drugs claims in Italy.
He is extradited to Germany the following year.
December 16, 2019
Christian Brueckner was convicted, in Germany, for the 2005 rape of an American woman in Praia da Luz, Portugal, after his DNA was matched to a hair found on her bed.
He was sentenced to seven years behind bars.
June 4, 2020
German prosecutors reveal to the world they have a suspect in custody under investigation for the abduction of Madeleine McCann.
For the first time they claim Madeleine is dead.
German media later name him as Christian B (Christian Brueckner).
June 23, 2023
In his first interview, witness Helge B alleges to German newspaper Bild that Christian Brueckner all-but-confessed the Madeleine abduction to him, by allegedly saying “she didn’t scream” as they talked about the case, at a music festival, in Spain.
February 16, 2024
Brueckner goes on trial accused of none-McCann allegations of rape and sex assault, in Braunschweig, Germany.
Prosecutors hope for a conviction to keep him behind bars permanently and lead to McCann charges.
October 8, 2024
Brueckner was acquitted of all claims.
Prosecutors launch an appeal, however. Decision pending.
September 17, 2025
Date on which Christian Brueckner will be released from custody without action being taken.
Prosecutors require an arrest warrant for a retrial over claims from last year – or over the McCann case
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