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Family Fury Over 'Madeleine Is Dead' Interview |
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Madeleine McCann's parents were not told by a Portuguese police chief that he
would go public with his belief that the youngster is dead, it has emerged.
A family friend said it was "extraordinary" the police had "not
had the decency" to tell the couple they now believed Madeleine could be
dead before giving interviews to the media.
Speaking on the 100th day of Madeleine's disappearance from an Algarve hotel,
Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa said he believed the four-year-old may not be
alive.
The acknowledgement threatens to open up a rift between the McCanns and police.
The senior officer's comments appear to contradict the message that the
McCanns, from Rothley, Leicestershire, have been receiving from investigators.
On Tuesday, Mrs McCann said police had told her only the previous week that
they were "looking for a living child".
But Mr Sousa said new evidence suggesting Madeleine was killed was being
investigated with "intensity".
"In these past few days, there have been some developments, and some clues
have been found, that could point in a possible death of the little
child," he said.
Sniffer dogs last week discovered blood specks on a wall in the McCanns'
holiday flat in the resort of Praia da Luz.
The samples have been sent to Britain
for DNA tests, which are expected to be returned early this week.
Mr Sousa also said the McCanns and the seven friends with them on holiday when
Madeleine disappeared on May 3 were not considered suspects.
That contradicted unconfirmed reports in Portuguese papers suggesting they were
now under suspicion.
On Saturday, the McCanns attended a poignant service for Madeleine and other
missing children in the church
of Nossa Senhora da Luz
in Praia da Luz.
Clutching her daughter's favourite soft toy, Mrs McCann made an emotional
appeal for people to keep supporting her and her husband through their
"journey of hope". |
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