"Hi, I'm Eddie. My dad trained me and our Keela to search for cadavers and blood. Our sensitive noses help dad find out where the evidence is hidden so he can help the forensic scientists take samples for further analysis.By Caroline Gammell in Praia da Luz
Last Updated: 12:01am BST 30/09/2007
The steps where Madeleine fell
Portuguese police believe Madeleine McCann died after falling down a flight of steps and that her parents panicked, hiding her body because they feared being blamed, it was claimed yesterday.
It was alleged that the four-year-old smashed the back of her head on a ceramic flagstone at her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz.
Fearing they would be charged with manslaughter, Kate and Gerry McCann then got rid of the body, possibly with the help of their friends, it was alleged.
The latest theory against the couple, who are official suspects in their daughter’s disappearance, was dismissed as “ludicrous and unsubstantiated” by their spokesman.
It emerged as a source close to the McCanns said police were investigating claims that a disgruntled ex-employee from the Ocean Club, where the family was staying, may have been involved in Madeleine’s abduction.
Mrs McCann has said she would be willing to risk going to prison by speaking out about the events of May 3 in breach of Portugal’s secrecy laws. As suspects, or arguidos, the couple are prevented from speaking about the investigation, and have expressed frustration that they are not able to defend themselves against increasingly lurid allegations regarding their daughter’s fate.
Despite the ban, they are in talks with chat-show hosts in the US in an attempt to remind people Madeleine is missing.
Yesterday, the McCanns spent a quiet day in their home town of Rothley in Leicestershire, marking 150 days since their daughter disappeared.
They are adamant that she was abducted but police in Portugal were described as “100 per cent” certain that the little girl died in the family’s apartment in the Algarve.
A senior detective told Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas: “The only thing to investigate is how the body disappeared.” The newspaper claims Madeleine fell down steps at the back of the apartment. Photographs taken at the time show a children’s safety barrier above the steps.
The new theory emerged after a report from Britain said specialist sniffer dogs had detected the “smell of death” on the steps, it was claimed. In the past, Mr and Mrs McCann, both 39, have been accused of hiding their daughter’s body because she had been sedated.
But yesterday, a source close to the couple hit back at the allegations.
Kate carrying Cuddle-Cat. The toy with cadaver scent detected by the dog Eddie.
“Where is the proof that this happened? Madeleine was put to bed at 7pm and there was a witness. When is Madeleine supposed to have fallen?
“If the police are 100 per cent certain that Madeleine fell down some steps, that means they must be able to prove she died in that way. It’s just not possible without a body.”
The couple’s spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, added: “It is just ludicrous. All of these reports are unsourced and unsubstantiated.”
A tip-off claiming that a former Ocean Club employee was involved in Madeleine’s disappearance was sent to the Prince of Wales’s official website, and passed to police.
It alleged that a maid who used to work at the Mark Warner resort kidnapped Madeleine in revenge for being fired. Police have discovered the woman identified does exist and that the tip-off came from an email address registered in the Iberian peninsula.
Mar 11, 2009 at 20:23:02
i think that sick how could u kill ur own daughter i hope u live the rest of ur life in pain and dream of her trying to get u and ur husband thats sick get a life go to hell thats awful story how could u do it
May 3, 2009 at 20:21:22
That catbag is the key I believe!
I have thought that from the first time Kate clutched it to her chest. I even rang a paper but they just said it would be inspected by Portugal.
May 17, 2009 at 18:59:50
i have thought long and hard about this case . and when ever that poor little girls name is mentioned its money, money,money,they are now sueing goncalo amaral he his a police officer with 30 years experence he knows a lier when he hears one ?
Jul 28, 2009 at 22:11:55
I feel very strongly that Madeleine had woke up that night, and was frightened, wanting her mummy and daddy to come, I feel that she had such a terrible fall , down the steps hitting her head. Madeleine’s parents are GPs they know that it’s wrong , they know all the consequences of what can happen when little children are left on their own ….. it’s terrible !!! I think they should be prosecuted for child neglect .
Sep 19, 2009 at 23:46:39
The McCanns are Doctors and that is why they are above suspicion . Harold Shipman was also a doctor .
Oct 17, 2009 at 15:30:38
My thoughts exactly, Jacquie.
Nov 3, 2009 at 05:58:41
oh come on people lay off the parents, just go back inside your head and remember the times your parents left you alone, it happens, they were on holiday in THEIR holiday home they felt safe….they went too the restaurant whats the worst that could happen.
I don’t know what happened too the girl and maybe no one will but putting blame on the parents is silly, sure they sue the police every chance they get but imagine that your child has been kidnapped and the police just want too quit saying “yep she is dead no one can find her” wouldn’t you try too get as much money as possible so that you could hire private detectives…heck i would rob a bank if i could get someone too find my son/daughter….
Nov 11, 2009 at 13:35:17
Did they test the Cuddle-Cat toy that the mum carries with her might have something on it or in it.
Jan 13, 2010 at 22:13:34
Of course the parents are guilty – they left those children alone while they were out enjoying themselves. How could Madeleine disappear and no one see anything? Whether their drinking friends knew anything about it or not is another matter. Truth will out eventually.
Jan 20, 2010 at 09:18:21
I would love to know why Kate washed cuddlecat. Her daughter has vanished and Kate washes the item Madeleine has with her a lot so her scent is all over it – last thing I would have done.
That group all left their children alone night after night, they knew they could have been prosecuted in Portugal for child neglect hence the cover up and all the lies.
I believe the dogs, Eddie and Keela you are just brilliant!
Mar 26, 2010 at 18:28:07
We’ll see how “delighted” the Ms are when the W Yorks police come to the same conclusion we all know about by now i.e. that there was no abduction. That Madeleine is dead, That Madeleine died in 5A.
Mar 26, 2010 at 19:25:48
This is how stupid they are and why they don’t stand a chance.
In front of a group of journalists, announcing the creation of ‘the fund’ a couple of days after “the incident’.
Journalist: So what will the fund be used for?
Gerry: To continue to looking for Madeleine after the official search ends.
So there you are, folks. Even though the Portuguese Polícia de Segurança Pública, the Guarda Nacional Republicana, the Policía Marítima and Army Units were searching high and low for Madeleine, our Gerry knew that they didn’t stand a chance.
During an early interview.
Q – How did you feel when you found that Madeleine had been taken?
Gerry: The only analogy I can think of is when we, as students, had gone over the top with our overdraft.
With Jenny – Women’s Hour
Jenny: ‘Was she sleeping when you left her?’
Kate: (L o n g p a u s e. . .) Errm, yes, she was, yeah.
Mar 26, 2010 at 21:12:29
I certainly think they know what happened and were involved. Watch the videos/interviews with the mccans, they are such good actors..lies lies and moore lies.I cant believe they have got away with it for so long. What sort of a parent goes on holiday and leaves their children on thier own???Hope they get what they deserve and justice will be done
Mar 28, 2010 at 20:54:19
Let us show the McCanns & Co that we do not believe a word they say. They have not uttered a single true word since May 2/3 2007.
All we’ve had from them is falsehood, subterfuge, inventions, contradictions, arrogance, heartlessness and greed.
We believe this case will remain in the annals of crime as an clear example of the point to which the some reckless perpetrators can try to confuse and bamboozle investigators. In this case because the PJ was treading on eggs for various reasons. Some of us speak fluent Portuguese and have conversed with officers at Portimão. They were obsessed with finding the body in spite of the fact that the heap of circumstantial evidence was overwhelming. If this situation had arisen in the UK, Canada, the US, France or Germany, the McCanns would have been charged, indicted, tried, convicted and sentenced ages ago.
This is how arrogant and stupid they are and some of the reasons why they don’t stand a chance.
In front of a group of journalists, announcing the creation of ‘the fund’ a couple of days after “the incident”.
Journalist: So what will the fund be used for?
Gerry: To continue looking for Madeleine after the official search ends.
So there you are, folks. Even though the Portuguese Polícia de Segurança Pública, the Guarda Nacional Republicana, the Policía Marítima and some Army Units were searching high and low for Madeleine, our Gerry knew that they didn’t stand a chance because only they knew where they had hidden Madeleine’s body. Furthermore, that’s why they stayed in the apartment and never took part in the frantic search that night. There was no point, was there?
Interview shortly after “the event”.
Q – How did you feel when you found that Madeleine had been taken?
Gerry: The only analogy I can think of is when we, as students, had gone over the top with our overdraft.
With Jenny – Women’s Hour
Jenny: ‘Was she sleeping when you left her?’
Kate: (L o n g p a u s e. . .) Errm, yes, she was, yeah.
Have you seen the latest bit of spin?
The British Police team that are reviewing the files containing the conclusions to which both the PJ and the British Officers temporarily assigned to Portimão had arrived at, i.e. what we all know: “Have been appointed to look for Madeleine”. Pathetic!
May 21, 2010 at 19:48:41
A very big penny dropped for me when I watched Goncalo Amarel’s documentary and read his book on his online webblog. It all only makes sense if it happened the way he describes, and it certainly looks likely that one or more of the McCanns friends were involved in the deception. I can’t believe that the McCanns have got away with stopping the book neing published, and the documentary being broadcast without a huge public outcry.
Site Admin: The public were duped by a gargantuan government propaganda vehicle. This is why there is no public outcry. The public were not allowed to know or see the facts in the mass media. Read “Faked Abduction” – the only English book exposing the deception (http://fakedabduction.com).