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[image
caption:
Parents: Kate and Gerry McCann were hurt
by a controversial book about Madeleine,
a judge ruled]
The 57-year-old told Portuguese
television on Friday that Maria Emilia
Melo e Castro’s indications so far led
him to believe he would win the case,
according to the Daily Star.
His comments came as a ruling emerged
that the McCanns were hurt by the book
written by Mr Amaral, who was tasked
with finding the girl.
But the pain the couple feel existed
before Mr Amaral published the
controversial claims, Mrs Melo e Castro
said.
The finding came out of a key hearing on
Wednesday in Lisbon ahead of a final
judgement in the long-running £1million
libel trial which has pitted the McCanns
against the disgraced former detective
they accuse of hampering the search for
their daughter.
The judge presiding over the
high-profile case ruled on 37 points she
found had been proven and not proven
since lawyers started their court battle
in October 2013.
She said statements made by Mr Amaral in
his July 2008 book The Truth of The Lie
and a subsequent TV documentary and
Portuguese newspaper interview had left
the McCanns suffering ‘rage,
desperation, anguish, worry, insomnia
and lack of appetite’.
But she ruled that although the book had
affected the couple, those feelings
pre-existed the book’s publication three
days after the first Portuguese
investigation into Madeleine’s
disappearance was shelved and the
McCanns were told they were no longer
‘arguidos’ (formal suspects).
-----
[Image
caption
Former police chief: The
judge said statements made by Goncalo
Amaral in his book The Truth of The Lie
and a subsequent TV documentary and
Portuguese newspaper interview had left
the McCanns suffering 'rage]
-----
[Image
caption:
Mrs Melo e Castro also
ruled it had not been proven Kate and
Gerry, from Rothley, Leicestershire,
were ‘completely destroyed, from a
moral, social, ethical, sentimental and
family perspective beyond the pain their
daughter’s absence causes them’ by
statements made in Amaral’s book.]
-----
[Image
caption
: Still missing: Portuguese prosecutors
reopened their probe into Madeleine’s
disappearance last year]
-----
She also decided it had been proven the
couple felt badly about being considered
responsible for hiding their daughter’s
body - a thesis which Portuguese police
behind a new probe into Madeleine’s
disappearance have publicly rubbished -
but described those feelings as
‘expectable.’
But she dismissed the idea Mr Amaral’s
claims about the McCanns had stopped the
Portuguese police investigating
Madeleine’s disappearance.
The rulings left Mr Amaral confident of
court victory next month when the judge
is expected to announce her final
verdict in open court before releasing
her sentence in writing.
He accused the McCanns of taking him to
court so they could exonerate themselves
of blame for the disappearance of their
daughter, who vanished aged three from
their Praia da Luz holiday flat in May
2007 while they were eating tapas nearby
with friends.
Portuguese papers signalled the outcome
of last Wednesday’s hearing as a
positive one for heart specialist Gerry
and Kate moments after it finished.
But as the full findings became apparent
they changed their tune to portray the
judge’s rulings as a slap in the face
for the couple.
Leading Portuguese daily Correio da
Manha headlined an article on the result
of the hearing: ‘McCanns destroyed
before the book.’
Rival Jornal de Noticias reported:
‘Judge without proof that the book about
Maddie "destroyed" her parents.’
The McCanns told the Lisbon court
staging the Amaral libel trial last
summer they were left ‘devastated and
crushed’ by his book, which sold around
120,000 copies before it was withdrawn
when the British couple won an
injunction against the ex-police chief.
Mrs McCann, 47, said Madeleine’s twin
siblings Sean and Amelie, now ten, knew
Mr Amaral had written a book but didn’t
know the detail.
----
[image
caption:
Legal
case: The rulings left Mr Amaral
(pictured) confident of court victory
next month when as expected the judge
announces her final verdict in open
court before releasing her sentence in
writing]
----
She told the court last July after
applying to make a statement: ‘I believe
that’s what's in Mr Amaral’s book and
the documentary is very distressing to
adults. To a child it could be very
damaging.’
|
“I
was devastated. It made me
feel quite desperate because
of the injustice I felt
towards my daughter and our
family as a whole
Kate McCann ” |
Asked
by the judge how she felt after reading
the book, she said: ‘I was devastated.
It made me feel quite desperate because
of the injustice I felt towards my
daughter and our family as a whole.
‘It was very painful to read and I felt
sad for Madeleine. I also felt anxious
and fearful because of the damage I felt
it was doing in Portugal.’
She went on to accuse Mr Amaral, thrown
off the Madeleine McCann investigation
in 2007 for criticising British police,
of ‘consistently smearing’ she and Gerry
- and claimed they feared the book may
have stopped people coming forward with
information about their daughter’s
whereabouts.
It has already been revealed Mr Amaral,
56, earned at least £344,000 from his
book and TV documentary. The ex-police
chief, who is being sued for £1million,
is denying defamation.
---
[Image
caption:
Case: Mr and Mrs McCann
arrive for the libel case against Mr
Amaral at Lisbon's Palace of Justice
last June]
---
His lawyer Miguel Cruz Rodrigues claimed
in the last open court hearing in
December the McCanns had taken legal
action against his client ‘to rid
themselves of guilt for their negligent
conduct’ in leaving Madeleine and her
siblings alone.
|
“It
was very painful to read and
I felt sad for Madeleine. I
also felt anxious and
fearful because of the
damage I felt it was doing
in Portugal”
Kate McCann |
He also claimed their lack of
cooperation with the Portuguese police
authorities had led to the archiving of
the investigation in 2008.
Portuguese prosecutors reopened their
probe into Madeleine’s disappearance
last year and are conducting a separate
investigation to one led by Scotland
Yard.
No date has been set yet for the final
judgement in the libel case. The
judgement will be read out in court
before being released in writing on the
same day.
A source close to the McCanns said last
night: ‘We expect it to be ready for
next month.’ |
