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Scotland Yard detectives have spent time in Spain as part of their
re-examination of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann in Portugal.
The Metropolitan Police joined the hunt for the missing girl, who
vanished in 2007, following a request by Home Secretary Theresa May made
with the backing of Prime Minister David Cameron.
The force has now revealed that detectives working on the case flew to
Spain as part of their review and spent three days with police in
Barcelona.
Officers working on the case also travelled to Portugal three times as
they continue to hunt for leads.
The Met has vowed there will be no limits in its re-examination of how
Madeleine disappeared from a holiday flat in Praia da Luz in the
Algarve.
A huge hunt was launched after she went missing on May 3, 2007 while her
parents Kate and Gerry dined with friends nearby but she has never been
found.
Her frustrated parents, both doctors who live in Rothley,
Leicestershire, have battled to retain the case's high-profile.
Mrs McCann wrote on the Find Madeleine website at the end of October:
"It is a big relief to us that our Government finally agreed for a
review to take place.
"We are grateful to them and to the Metropolitan Police Service for
undertaking this fundamental and highly valuable procedure which has
been underway now for several months.
"Although it will be a lengthy and difficult process, it is definitely a
major step forward for Madeleine."
Detectives refused to reveal what led them to Barcelona between November
23 and 25, but a Scotland Yard spokesman said: "The review continues.
"There has been very good co-operation with Portuguese authorities and
liaison will continue. We are not prepared to discuss specific details
of these visits nor speculate about any future deployments to Portugal
or elsewhere."
Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood, the senior investigating
officer, is understood to have been among a team of detectives who went
on the trips.
Sky's crime correspondent Martin Brunt says police are not believed to
have made a breakthrough and are still doing the groundwork of liaising
with foreign officers.
A total of 30 people are now working on the force's Operation Grange.
The review prompted criticism when it was launched in May, with
politicians expressing concerns that it would divert resources from
other crime victims.
Portuguese detectives, helped by officers from Leicestershire Police,
carried out a massive investigation into Madeleine's disappearance.
But the official inquiry was formally shelved in July 2008, after which
no police force was actively looking for her. |
