The
wave of public support for former PJ
investigator
Gonçalo Amaral has hit a new record
this week, with over €50,000 now amassed
to help him fight his appeal over the
€500,000-plus damages awarded against
him in the long-running civil action
taken out by the parents of Madeleine
McCann.
But as supporters shared the news, calling it a victory for “people who
put their heads above the parapet”, an
internet campaign trying to prove “there
is no appeal” and that Amaral is simply
raising money under false pretences is
trying to gather steam.
In a bid to establish the true picture, the Resident has been in touch
with the offices of Isabel Duarte and
Ricardo Correia, the lawyers acting for
the McCanns. Dr Correia told us: “You
are right. Gonçalo Amaral made an appeal
on 15th June, and we replied on 13th
July”. As to the length of time this
appeal is likely to take, he was unsure.
“It is an appeal that goes up in the
ranking of the courts”, he told us,
adding it would take “at least a month”.
And as to why no lay person has been
able to access these details via
Portugal’s judicial website, CITIUS, he
explained: “You aren’t able to get
details unless you have a password and a
log-in”. As a lawyer, you “don’t see any
lawyer’s cases, just your own”, he
added, which explains why anyone trying
to research this case and where it
stands will only ever find screenshots.
With the August judicial holiday almost
upon us, the chances of Amaral’s appeal
being heard before October look slim -
but in the meantime, the
online
appeal to help him pay legal costs
is ongoing. Intriguingly, this appeal
that has joined over 2,000 people - many
of them giving small amounts every week
- has been virtually ignored by
mainstream media. No one is sure why it
is being ignored, but certainly the
truth is that anyone who publicises it
will then find themselves vilified
online.
As a legal expert agreed, “it is a
curious mark of this case that anyone
who does not comply with the accepted
storyline will find him or herself being
insulted, harassed and generally abused.
I can see a story there, actually”. It
is indeed a story. And as the expert
warned: “You do realise that the minute
you stop this rumour, they will find
another one to bug you with, don’t you?”
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