The number of detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is
set to dwindle to just three in the wake of a series of departures.
The inquiry team has already been hit by the sacking of its chief and the
expected departure of his deputy, and there is no guarantee that replacements
for the politically-sensitive roles will be found soon.
On Friday there were fresh fears that the investigation will stall after it
emerged that the four remaining exhausted officers working on the investigation
– which in the early days of the four-year-old's disappearance in May saw 200
people from various police and fire departments working round the clock – are
legally obliged to take holidays before the end of the year.
Madeleine's parents responded by appealing for all the resources necessary to
be deployed in the hunt for their daughter.
But their concerns will be heightened by claims that Portugal's most senior policeman
said there seemed to be a "new crisis" every day.
Alipio Ribeiro, head of the Policia Judiciaria in Portugal, has ordered his officers
to knuckle down and warned that anyone leaking information to the media will be
sacked.
Goncalo Amaral, the head of the Policia Judiciaria in Portimao and
investigation coordinator, was kicked off the case after he launched an
astonishing attack on the British police, claiming they were being manipulated
by the McCanns.
The extent of Mr Amaral's conviction about Kate McCann's alleged culpability
has been highlighted in reports that he had sought to have her remanded on
charges of "exposition and abandonment" for leaving her Madeleine and
her young twins, because she refused to answer questions about forensic
evidence.
However, public prosecutor Jose Magalhaes e Menezes refused his request,
leading to a rift between the two which contributed to Amaral's demise,
Portuguese weekly paper Expresso said.
The paper also claimed that Mr Ribeiro told aides: "There is a crisis
every day, this one is resolved let's see what tomorrow's is".
Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman said: "We hope there always have
been, are now and will continue to be sufficient resources available in the
search to find Madeleine."
Six detectives have been working flat out on the case, according to their union
head, but under Portuguese law they have to take at least 15 days' holiday
before December, on a rotational basis. Until Mr Amaral and Mr Almeida are
replaced, that means there could be as few as three inspectors on the case.
Carlos Anjos, president of the police union, told 24 Horas: "Nobody can
think clearly if they are exhausted."
A police source conceded the investigation would be compromised by this.
"This is too small a team for the demands of this case, so naturally, from
now on, the investigations slow down," he said.
Meanwhile, Portuguese police defended their theory that the McCanns were behind
Madeleine's disappearance from their rented apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3.
Sources speaking to the Correio da Manha newspaper said that British police
brought in not only sniffer dogs but also equipment used to detect if subsoil
has been disturbed, for example to bury a body.
Portuguese police sources claimed this showed the British supported their
hunch, although the McCann family have strenuously denied this is the case.
A legal source close to the inquiry said: "The Portuguese police had their
suspicions two weeks after Madeleine disappeared.
"At that stage they couldn't do much with their suspicions. It was only
when the British got involved that the inquiry began to move on quite
quickly."
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