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It was
meant to be their “day in court”,
according to the BBC, but Kate and Gerry
McCann - pursuing a long-running civil
action for defamation against the former
detective who led the original hunt for
their missing daughter - were out of
luck.
Half an hour before they turned up to
testify at Lisbon’s 1º Vara do Tribunal
Cível, the man they are demanding €1.2
million in damages from slipped in
unnoticed and presented a document
revoking the mandate of his lawyer.
Gonçalo Amaral is playing his cards
characteristically close to his chest -
not even talking to the press about his
motivation for sacking lawyer Vítor
Santos Oliveira.
This was the fourth time the case opened
in 2009 has been stopped in its tracks,
but only the first time the cause has
come directly from Amaral.
Previously, hearings were adjourned due
to illness of Santos’ son, a break-in at
the judge’s home and a legal
technicality.
Nonetheless, the McCanns expressed their
“utter frustration” on the steps of the
court, calling the latest hitch a
“blatant and cynical attempt” to wear
them down.
Kate McCann said: “Every time we come
here, we have to make arrangements for
our children to be looked after.
“Every time he postpones the case like
this, it brings us more pain and
distress.”
Quizzed over whether she had any
sympathy for Amaral’s personal plight -
he has had his bank accounts frozen
since the McCanns opened their civil
case against him - Mrs McCann said: “Mr
Amaral is not the victim in this.”
The hearing has now been adjourned until
July 8, with closing arguments scheduled
for July 10.
Sky News reporter Robert Nesbitt
explained that despite this week’s
delay, the judge’s final decision was
always expected to take “a few weeks”.
Now, due to the statutory legal holiday
in August, it is unlikely that her
decision will come before September.
The case hinges on the McCanns’
contention that Dr Amaral’s book,
‘Maddie: The Truth of the Lie’, defames
them.
As many are already aware, the book
centres on Amaral’s theory that
Madeleine died in apartment 5a on that
fateful family holiday in Praia da Luz
seven years ago, and her body was
disposed of.
The McCanns vehemently deny this, and
say the theory has caused them pain and
distress. They also claim it has
hampered the search for Madeleine, which
has to date cost millions of euros and
involved the police forces of two
countries.
It has undoubtedly been the most
high-profile missing person’s case of
all time, with stories relating to
possible suspects constantly appearing
in the media.
A massive eight-day ground search
coordinated by the Metropolitan police
in Praia da Luz earlier this month is
reported to have cost an estimated
£50,000 a day despite having found “no
significant clues” as to what happened
to the three year old.
British police are now understood to be
keen to interview eight people of
interest, including three suspected drug
dealers. PJ police are understood to be
considering whether to give the official
go ahead to these interviews. |
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