New suspect identified in Madeleine McCann disappearance case

“All we have ever wanted is to find her, uncover the truth and bring those responsible to justice."

A new suspect has been identified in the Madeleine McCann disappearance case. Detectives have identified a German man, who is currently imprisoned, who lived in the Algarve between the years of 1995 and 2007. The man, whose identity has not been revealed by police, is connected to the area of Praia da Luz where Madeleine was last seen. He is white and in 2007 is believed to have had short blond or fair hair. He was about 6ft in height with a slim build. He is 43-years-old, but in 2007 may have looked between 25 to early 30s. The man is currently serving jail time for an unrelated matter. Madeleine McCann disappeared 13 years ago while on a family holiday in Praia da Luz. Her case has since garnered international attention with several public appeals being made by the Metropolitan Police over the years. This new appeal is concerning two vehicles that the German suspect was using in Praia da Luz around the time of Madeleine's disappearance. It is believed that the suspect may have been living in one of the vehicles around this time. The other vehicle was registered under the suspect's name but was re-registered to a person in Germany the day after Madeleine went missing. Detective Chief Inspector Mark Cranwell, who leads the Madeleine McCann case in the UK, said that a "huge amount of work" has taken place between the Met Police, and authorities in Portugal and Germany. “It’s more than 13 years since Madeleine went missing and none of us can imagine what it must be like for her family, not knowing what happened or where she is," he said. “While this male is a suspect we retain an open mind as to his involvement and this remains a missing person inquiry." Gerry and Kate McCann said that they "welcome" the new appeal to find their daughter, who would be 17 years old now. “All we have ever wanted is to find her, uncover the truth and bring those responsible to justice," they said. "We will never give up hope of finding Madeleine alive but whatever the outcome may be, we need to know, as we need to find peace." You can find out more details about the new appeal here.