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Ex-Maddie cop - “She died in apartment” Gonçalo Amaral, who was removed as chief investigator into the case of Madeleine McCann after lashing out at her parents, has this week launched an explosive book in which he makes a number of controversial statements, saying the toddler died in the apartment on the night she was reported missing. In the book, which has been read by the The Portugal News after it was received in Lisbon on Wednesday morning, almost 36 hours before its publication, Gonçalo Amaral accuses Kate and Gerry McCann of possibly having concealed Madeleine’s body after she died in what he believes was the result of a “tragic accident”. In a separate development, the chief of the the National Director of police has this week vowed to “search to the ends of the Earth” to find the missing girl. The book is entitled, “Maddie – a verdade da mentira”, or “The Truth of the Lie”, and is promising to be a best-seller here in Portugal, following the enormous coverage it has received by the media here the past few days. Over 200 pages, the former chief inspector, who resigned in June to unveil the “facts of the investigation”, gives his version of the events, especially the initial stages of the investigation. These latest revelations come as a fresh blow to the McCanns, who learnt on Monday that Portuguese authorities had closed the investigation and lifted their status as arguidos or persons of interest. A statement handed to The Portugal News by the Attorney General’s office on Monday said the investigation had been closed due to lack of evidence against the McCanns and Robert Murat. The missing girl’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, were made arguidos, last September as part of a police investigation into the disappearance in May 2007 of their then three-year-old daughter from an Algarve holiday complex. British-born Robert Murat, a long-time Algarve resident who lived close to resort where the McCanns were staying, was made an arguido two weeks after the young child’s unexplained disappearance on May 3, 2007. The Attorney General’s office added that the McCann case might be reopened if any “relevant” evidence emerges. In the meantime, Amaral (48) says the abduction of Madeleine McCann was “fabricated” and that her parents were guilty of negligence for leaving their three children alone and unattended in their holiday apartment as they dined at a nearby Tapas restaurant. The former police detective adds at one stage, he and colleagues were led to believe that Kate McCann was willing, in an “indirect manner”, to indicate where the body of Madeleine could be found. “According to Kate McCann, details of where Madeleine might be, was given to her by people with psychic or paranormal powers. The body could be in a drain that leads out near the beach at Praia da Luz or on the eastern side of the beach”, he writes in his book. Amaral has justified the writing of the book “from the necessity I felt to reinstate my good name which was smeared in public without support of the institution that I have belonged to for 26 years, the Portuguese Judiciary Police, or allowing me to defend myself ”. He explains that when “I was laid off the case, I realised it was time to publicly defend myself. I immediately asked for retirement so I could regain my full freedom of expression. “A criminal investigation should only commit to finding material truth. It should not be concerned by political correctness”, he says accusingly, with a veiled reference to the said interference by Whitehall in the investigation shortly after Madeleine went missing. He continues: “For me the investigation was killed off on October 2nd 2007 (…) when the McCann’s released a photo-fit of the alleged kidnapper. He continues later: “I had the feeling that with that statement [when the former National Director of Police publicly declared that giving the McCanns ‘arguido’ statuses had been a rushed decision] he was preparing the public for the inevitable, the end of the investigation and the shelving of the case. “We always found it odd the way the couple were treated”, he says, “even after being made official suspects, and how they eventually had access to police information”. “If there were mistakes in this case, then that is one of them”; referring to the delay in making the McCanns official suspects. “There was too much politics and too little policing”, admits Amaral. He reports that every day, for the first few days, around 09h00, the children would be handed over to the on-site crèches, picked up at around 12h30, taken back at 14h30, and collected at 17h30. They would then be taken to the apartment where the couple would bathe and relax enjoying New Zealand wine before putting the children to bed at roughly 19h30 – 20h00. They would then all go for dinner. All the families put their children to bed at the same time, he writes. The book also says Kate brought Calpol with her to Portugal, but to use as paracetamol, not as a sedative, and claims she never gave the children any whilst they were in Portugal. During police investigations in the UK, he alleges a schedule was found on the fridge on which it was detailed that Madeleine had bad or inconsistent sleeping patterns. The only medication found in the apartment was a box of paracetamol. “When police arrived on the night Maddie disappeared, the cots in which the twins slept had no blankets and Madeleine’s bed was only slightly unmade”, he claims, adding: “The twins slept soundly throughout the ordeal despite the mother’s screams when she found Maddie missing”. He also claims that despite claiming the window was open and the bedroom curtains flying in the wind, Kate left the twins alone to go back to the restaurant and raise the alarm. Gonçalo Amaral also writes that the only finger-prints found on the window shutter belonged to Kate McCann. Concerning mobile telephone records, Amaral reveals that no phone calls were made from Kate’s mobile phone between April 27th and May 4th, nor received between 11h22 and 23h17 on the night Madeleine disappeared. “There were no calls registered on Gerry’s phone before 00h05 on May 4th, despite Kate’s phone showing she received a phone call from her husband on the night their daughter disappeared, at 23h17.” In the book, he concludes that these records had been deleted. On discovering that her daughter had disappeared, says the retired detective, Kate is said to have screamed “We let her down”. He also writes that an Irish family also claim to have seen a man walking in Praia da Luz carrying a child on the night Maddie disappeared. After apparently watching the BBC news at 22h00 on the day that Kate and Gerry McCann left Portugal and returned to the UK, one family member is said to have become convinced the man he saw carrying a child was Gerry McCann. In his book, Amaral says the “the likeness became obvious as he watched images of Gerry disembarking the plane carrying son Sean.” “For me and my team, working with me at the time and until October 2007, the conclusions we reached are: Minor Madeleine McCann died in apartment 5A of the Ocean Club, in Vila da Luz, on the night of May 3rd 2007. There was a fabrication of kidnap. Kate Healy and Gerry McCann are suspected of being involved in covering up the disposal of their daughter’s body. Death could have been caused by a tragic accident. There are signs of negligence in the keeping and safety of their children.” At the time of going to press, it was unclear whether or not Kate and Gerry McCann would be looking to take legal action against Gonçalo Amaral. Earlier this week, Kate McCann said in a statement to the media that they welcomed the announcement from the Portuguese Attorney General to lift their status as arguidos, “although it is no cause for celebration”. “It is hard to describe how utterly despairing it was to be named arguidos and subsequently portrayed in the media as suspects in our own daughter’s abduction - and worse. It has been equally devastating to witness the detrimental effect this status has had on the search for Madeleine. “We look forward to scrutinising the police files to see what has actually been done and, more importantly, what can still be done, as we leave no stone unturned in the search for Madeleine. We would once again urge anyone with relevant information to come forward and call our helpline on +44 845 838 4699 or send information to investigation@findmadeleine.com Kate McCann concludes: “Finally we would like to thank everyone who has supported us and stayed with us during this particularly difficult period. We assure you we will never give up on Madeleine”.
Edition: 969 |
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