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CRUCIAL
evidence which could point the finger of suspicion at Kate and
Gerry McCann is being kept under lock and key, it was revealed
last night.
DNA tests are
said to undermine their claims that they had nothing to do with
the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine.
A piece of
lining from the couple’s hire car is being held in high-security
storage at a laboratory in Birmingham.
It is there
that tests into DNA particles allegedly linking the McCanns to
Madeleine’s death have been carried out.
The
disclosure, made by sources within the laboratory, undermines
claims by the couple that their own tests have cleared them of
involvement in the four-year-old girl’s disappearance.
Last week
sources close to the McCanns told the Daily Express that
examinations of the couple’s Renault Scenic hire car – in which
Madeleine’s body is alleged to have been carried – discovered
“no DNA evidence linked to Madeleine”.
These tests
were made by an independent team of Home Office-accredited
pathologists whose results appear to contradict completely
Portuguese police findings.
But yesterday
sources within the laboratory of the Forensic Science Service
said key evidence from the car – a piece of its boot lining – is
being kept locked away and the McCanns’ scientists have had no
access to it.
It is claimed
this means that the results from the couple’s own DNA tests
cannot absolve them because they were carried out on the wrong
material.
Last night
the McCanns’ official spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, confirmed
that a piece of evidence had been retained by the Forensic
Science Service but added that this did not alter the couple’s
position.
Mr Mitchell
said: “We do not believe that this affects the results of our
tests at all.
“They were
extremely thorough and covered all aspects of the vehicle. The
piece retained by the Forensic Science Service is extremely
small. If anything has been found on it there is a wholly
innocent explanation for it.”
Several other
pieces of crucial forensic material are also being kept in the
high-security storage facility at the laboratory in Birmingham,
it is claimed.
Leaks from
the Portuguese police maintain that these official tests
discovered traces of Madeleine’s bodily fluids and hair in the
back of the car.
Detectives in
the Algarve see this as highly significant because the car was
rented 25 days after she vanished and was one of the main
reasons police directed their investigation towards the parents.
No official
statement has ever been made on these forensic examinations
which were carried out at the British laboratory at the request
of the Portuguese authorities.
But within
hours of the first batch of results arriving in Portugal, both
Kate and Gerry McCann were called in for questioning and were
named as arguidos – official suspects.
A second set
of test results, which are understood to have supported the
initial conclusions, were subsequently sent to detectives in the
Algarve.
The McCanns
have always maintained there are innocent explanations for any
traces of Madeleine in the car because her DNA could have been
transferred via her clothes or toys. But these suggestions have
been dismissed by detectives, claim sources close to the
investigation.
They point
out that the highly-regarded scientists conducting the tests
take such possibilities into account.
Detectives
also emphasise that the scientists are able to distinguish
between DNA which has been deposited directly from a body and
that which has been passed on via a secondary source such as
clothing.
The official
forensic tests are also understood to have found traces of
Madeleine’s blood at the Mark Warner holiday apartment in Praia
da Luz where she disappeared. Specially-trained sniffer dogs
detected the scent of death on Kate McCann’s clothes, in the
hire car and at the apartment.
However,
Portuguese police sources say forensic test results are rarely
enough to press charges and add that other evidence is usually
needed.
The McCanns
deny any involvement in their daughter’s disappearance.
Last week
their lawyer, Edward Smethurst, said he believed it was “highly
unlikely” that charges would ever be brought against the couple.
Madeleine has
now been missing for 208 days.
She vanished
from the family apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3 while her
parents were dining with friends at a nearby tapas bar.
As she was
being tucked up in bed, she said: “Mummy, I’ve had the best day
ever. I’m having lots and lots of fun.”
Last week
father Gerry again used his online blog to emphasise his belief
that she was abducted and “is still out there somewhere”. |
