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The couple were ruled out as formal
suspects, or “arguidos”, back in 2008
due to lack of evidence – but in court
papers released today, judges have said
this does not equate to a ruling of
innocence |
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Kate and Gerry McCann are
"not formally in the clear"
(Photo: PA) |
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Kate
and Gerry McCann have been dealt another
cruel blow as a Portuguese court failed
to put them in the clear over the
disappearance of daughter Madeleine.
The couple were ruled out as formal
suspects, or “arguidos”, back in 2008 –
but in newly released court papers,
judges have specified that this does not
equate to a ruling of ¬innocence.
It will add to the McCanns’ torment,
after the same judges ruled against the
couple last week in a legal battle with
the police officer who led the hunt for
their daughter.
The couple sued ex-police chief Goncalo
Amaral after he wrote a book claiming
they were responsible for Madeleine’s
“death” in May 2007.
But he fought the case and Portugal’s
Supreme Court sided with him. |
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Madeleine McCann has been
missing since 2008 (Photo:
PA |
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In the
76-page ruling on the case – made public
– they also said the archiving in 2008
of the criminal case into Madeline’s
¬disappearance does not prove the
McCanns are innocent.
They wrote: “It should not be said that
the appellants were cleared via the
ruling announcing the archiving of the
criminal case.”
While the judges said it would be wrong
to draw any inferences about the
couple’s guilt or innocence from the
decision, they noted that the case was
not shelved because prosecutors believed
that Kate and Gerry, from Rothley, Leics,
were innocent – but due to a lack of
evidence. |
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The court sided with Goncalo
Amaral (Photo: Mirrorpix) |
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They
wrote: “That ruling was not made in
virtue of Portugal’s Public Prosecution
Service having acquired the conviction
that the appellants hadn’t committed a
crime.
"The archiving of the case was
determined by the fact that public
prosecutors hadn’t managed to obtain
sufficient evidence of the practice of
crimes by the appellants.
The court concluded that the archiving
of the case should not be seen as proof
the McCanns are not guilty, stating: “It
doesn’t therefore seem acceptable that
the ruling, based on the insufficiency
of evidence, should be equated to proof
of innocence.” |
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How
the Daily Mirror reported the court case
The damming document means suspicion
still hangs over the heads of the
McCanns, who have always claimed their
innocence.
It was released after the court decided
Amaral’s “right to freedom of
expression” was worthy of greater
protection than the couple’s “right to
honour”.
Amaral, 57, was ordered to pay the
couple £360,000 in damages in 2015 for
claims he made in The Truth Of The Lie. |
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Kate and Gerry McCann
outside court (Photo: Daily
Mirror) |
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McCanns may take the case to the
European courts, but legal experts say
they must prove they have a valid reason
of appeal before any hearing would be
even considered. |
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Madeline vanished from an apartment in
Praia da Luz as her parents ate at a
nearby restaurant. Detectives are said
to be working on a theory that she was
kidnapped by a European trafficking
gang. |
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