Madeleine McCann Missing-Praia Da Luz, Portugal 3/05/07 #1

[Sleeks]

Hey There my friend Festa - been a long time.  I see you don't have your avatar either.     Be that as it may - they just aired a clip on GMA (Good Morning America) about Madeline and they have a website;

www.findmadeline.com  - please check my spelling before trying to jump there.  Supposedly they discuss the events at that website.  

I too, unfortunately fault the parents in this case, you are on vacation in another country.  YOU DO NOT LEAVE YOUR CHILDREN ALONE.  PERIOD!!!
Sure everybody needs a break - but I think they had many other options, that they did not try.  

I too hope they find this beautiful little girl - unharmed.

[LilPuma]

My prayers each day include Madeleine, her parents and those searching for this beautiful little girl.

[Blonde]

Paper gets letter about Madeleine McCann
 Wednesday, 13 June 2007 19:33
A Dutch newspaper has received an anonymous letter and a map claiming to show where missing four-year-old Madeleine McCann's body is buried.

Police in Portugal say they are investigating the information which identified a location 15km from the Algarve resort from which Madeleine disappeared on 3 May.

The letter strongly resembles another received by the newspaper last year, accurately pinpointing where two missing Belgian girls were buried.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/0613/mccannm.html

[festa]

HI SLEEKS -

It's difficult to fault these parents at this trying time, but people need to realize what a world we live in nowadays - also, there were with other couples they were with, did everyone leave their children unattended?  (why didn't they share babysitting duties) how many children were left unattended at this resort?  at European resorts? at resorts?   how common is this practice and perhaps this needs to be addressed - Do hotels/motels/resorts etc. have policies prohibiting leaving children unattended?  (BTW, I believe this resort states it has babysitting available on the premises - they didn't want to leave the children alone with a stranger -   ) and these are both professional people, doctors - I don't know?...I guess they thought is was safe and they were checking but...maybe I'm a worry wart, but never did this, always thought how quickly a child could have a accident when alone...

but unfortunately, for Madeleine it may be too late a lesson...

[bleachedblack]

Paper gets letter about Madeleine McCann
 Wednesday, 13 June 2007 19:33
A Dutch newspaper has received an anonymous letter and a map claiming to show where missing four-year-old Madeleine McCann's body is buried.

Police in Portugal say they are investigating the information which identified a location 15km from the Algarve resort from which Madeleine disappeared on 3 May.

The letter strongly resembles another received by the newspaper last year, accurately pinpointing where two missing Belgian girls were buried.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/0613/mccannm.html

I am confused by this article. Is it saying the letter(s) received are from some type of psychic?

[Blonde]

I know BB
_________
 Last Updated: Wednesday, 13 June 2007, 22:09 GMT 23:09 UK  

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Police probing Madeleine letter  
 
Madeleine McCann has now been missing for more than a month
Police in Portugal are investigating an anonymous letter and a map claiming to show where missing four-year-old Madeleine McCann's body is buried.
The letter, sent to Dutch paper De Telegraaf, identifies an area 15km (9.3 miles) from where Madeleine vanished.

It strongly resembles another letter sent to the same newspaper last year, accurately pinpointing where two missing Belgian girls were buried.

Ch Insp Olegario de Sousa said officers were "checking the information".

Around eight plain-clothed police officers visited the village of Arao, which is 15km from Praia da Luz, on Wednesday evening.

It is understood that a formal request was made to a section of the police called the GNR to carry out searches in the area.

They spent an hour and 20 minutes looking at fields and the surrounding area ahead of possible searches on Thursday morning.

'Everything necessary'

The Madeleine letter pinpoints a dirt track north of Odiaxere in the Algarve, according to De Telegraaf.

The paper said that the letter claims Madeleine, of Rothley, Leicestershire, is buried "north of the road under branches and rocks, around six to seven metres off the road".

Beside a cross and two question marks, the sender has written "vermoedelijke vindplaats Madeleine" - the place where Madeleine can probably be found.

 

Portuguese police would not confirm whether they had begun searching the area.

But Mr Sousa confirmed Portuguese police were aware of the map and were doing "everything necessary".

He said: "There have been exchanges between Dutch police and us.

"The information indicated an area 15km from the place of the disappearance of the little child. It is not far from Praia da Luz. We are checking the information like we check everything in this case for importance."

Asked if a search would include digging, he replied: "If the information gives us a precise location where we can look, we will do it."

Tip-off letter

The BBC's Caroline Hawley said it was difficult to assess the reliability of the map, given that Portuguese detectives had received hundreds of tip-offs which have not proved useful in the course of the investigation.

Officers also reported that the map was vague, she added.

Dutch police are studying similarities between the new letter and one received by De Telegraaf pointing to the whereabouts of Belgian step-sisters Stacey Lemmens, seven, and Nathalie Mahy, 10.

The girls were murdered in June 2006 after they disappeared from a late-night fair in the town of Liege.

On the day that the letter was received, police found their bodies at the spot indicated on an enclosed map.

A convicted paedophile, Abdullah Ait Oud, is now on remand awaiting trial for murder.

The Telegraaf believes the letter comes from the same sender because the phrase "vermoedelijke vindplaats" was also used in the tip-off letter last year about Stacey and Nathalie, BBC correspondent Alix Kroeger added.

Madeleine disappeared while on holiday with her parents in Praia da Luz on 3 May.

It is believed she was abducted from a holiday apartment while her parents ate at a nearby restaurant.

Her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, have travelled across Europe in an effort to find her.

The couple were also featured in an appeal for information on BBC One's Crimewatch.

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6749131.stm

[Blonde]

Latest Update - Gerry's Blog/Diary  
12th of June 2007
Day 41
Met with Portuguese and British police today to get an update on the investigation.We were reaasured that information continues to come in, and we continue to pray for a breakthrough.

We were extremely disappointed in the publication of the anonymous letter in The Telegraaf (Netherlands) claiming to know where Madeleine is buried. Although all information will be taken seriously, we were very upset that the credibility of this letter had not been examined and, more importantly, published before the Portuguese police had an opportunity to investigate the claim, and search the area if appropriate without massive media attention. We feel strongly that this was an irresponsible piece of journalism and even if it were true is insensitive and cruel.

One can imagine how upsetting it is for Kate and I to hear of such claims through the media and if every piece of information was published like this there would be nothing else in the newspapers
 
http://findmadeleine.com/

[Blonde]

Scrubland search for Madeleine ends
ITN - 35 minutes agoThere are no plans to further search the scrubland where a letter said missing Madeleine McCann could be buried, Portuguese police have said.


An anonymous letter in a Dutch newspaper said the four-year-old's body could be found "under branches or stones" nine miles from the Algarve resort where she disappeared from her bedroom on May 3.

Seven police searched the area described in the letter, according to reports.

Police chief inspector Olegario de Sousa said: "For now, we have no concrete plans to enter the terrain (again)."

A spokesman for the local GNR police, which handles day-to-day policing, said they had received no request from the investigative team for help or to bring sniffer dogs to the area.

Clarence Mitchell, a spokesman for Madeleine's parents, said police are examining the letter to verify whether it was authentic.

The police have received countless leads in their investigation, including a possible sighting of Madeleine in Morocco.

So far they have made no arrests and have identified only one suspect - Briton Robert Murat - in their case.

Ch Insp De Sousa said a group of journalists had hired sniffer dogs to search the area. He said: "These people are people who have no police training and who are walking around the bush looking for a scoop."

Madeleine disappeared from her bed while her parents dined at a nearby restaurant in the small Praia da Luz Algarve resort.

Her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, have launched a high-profile campaign to draw attention to her disappearance, including meeting with the Pope in Rome and winning support from personalities such as David Beckham.

Gerry McCann said in the diary he publishes online (www.findmadeleine.com) he was upset by the Dutch paper publishing the letter, saying it should have been passed on to Portuguese police before publication.

He said: "We were extremely disappointed in the publication of the anonymous letter in the Telegraaf claiming to know where Madeleine is buried."

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/itn/20070614/twl-scrubland-search-for-madeleine-ends-41f21e0_1.html

[festa]

New evidence in Madeleine McCann

Portuguese police are interviewing two Dutch newspaper reporters who have found a towel in the area identified as the possible burial location of four-year-old British girl Madeleine McCann in a tip-off from a Dutch source.
 
According to their newspaper De Telegraaf, another tip-off has come in from a different source claiming that a man was seen carrying a child wrapped in towels near the place where Madeleine disappeared. Five Portuguese detectives accompanied the Dutch reporters to the spot where they found the towel, followed by a Portuguese TV camera crew.

http://www.radionetherlands.nl/currentaffairs/mcC070614nws


bleachedblack, maybe I'm missing something while skimming the articles, but I didn't see any reference to a psychic - do you have that statement?
I am confused as the sequence of events regarding searching - Are all searches called off in this area? even after this supposed finding a towel?
Police are talking to these Dutch reporters, are they meddling too much and interfering, possibly destroying evidence? OR do police suspect they might be planting things to create a story?

It seems to me that if they received a letter similar to one they received last year and they found those girls bodies AND now they received this one concerning Madeleine, this would be credible enough for an extensive search - AND it would also imply that these are connected and there is a serial child killer in this area - how many missing girls within this age range in this area over the past few years?

[festa]

Hmmm, as I continue reading the posts Blonde has up, I see that the person suspected in the 2 Belgium girls deaths is awaiting trial - so not involved here, so if this info is credible (although they have not found Madeleine) this would be a copycat - AND why would someone contact a DUTCH newspaper?  in the 2 Belgium girls disappearance I can see, large Dutch speaking population in Belgium, but Madeleine is British - seems someone might be messing around, quite sad...and very hurtful if true.

[Blonde]

Yesterday, there was a towel found by the Dutch report donor, from de Telegraaf. The towel to see in a picture below, is for search by the Portugese police.

[festa]

Petitioners want McCann inquiry  
 
The McCanns are continuing to make appeals across Europe
An online petition is calling for the parents of abducted British four-year-old Madeleine McCann to be investigated by social workers.
It calls on Leicestershire County Council to look into the circumstances which saw Madeleine and her younger siblings left alone in a hotel room.

The council said it was "discharging our duties in... a full and professional manner".

The family has declined to comment on the petition.
 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/leicestershire/6740315.stm


Well, this goes to Sleeks and my point regarding why those children were left unattended - it is a difficult call - on the one hand, my feeling is they were negligent in leaving those very young children unsupervised, especially when other options were available, ex: onsite babysitting, other couples they were with could have helped, they could have stayed in or taken the children with them for a early supper - and they are suffering more than we can imagine, but how much is Madeleine suffering? or did she suffer? sure this haunts them daily - I think they need to be left alone for now, and have to focus on their daughter, and later on they could serve some good in making people aware of the dangers in our society.

[festa]

Police spokesman Olegario Sousa said the second swab was taken because the first sample may not have been large enough, may have been contaminated or even LOST.


Oh boy, they are talking about Robert Murat's DNA sample, they took another one about a week ago and are awaiting the results - they might have LOST the 1st one?? they also took samples from the McCanns, but I don't see that they took any from the Russian man - is he cleared?  wasn't there child pornography on his computer? on Murat's computer?  no laws against that?

[mrs. red]

Sleeks and Festa... I am so glad to see you both... if you go in the lounge, there is a thread for the avartars on holiday or so and CBB or Klaas will fix you up if you wish... ( I don't know how or I would do it myself... )


Thank you all for bringing all if this information in here... I don't have a good feeling about this story and I don't understand the parents, but looking back on it, my parents used to leave us in the room and go out when we were on vacation, but we were 13 or so... I think the world is different now and I wouldn't even let my kids play outside without supervision (if i had kids)....

I have to wonder if there is a serial killer at work , or a copy cat or both?  This letter is bizarre!

[klaasend]

O/T

Sleeks and Festa - Avatars need to be located on the internet for them to work now.  If you have photobucket, upload your avatar there and then copy the link, without the URL tags and paste into the THIRD option in your profile for avatars.

Sleeks - I found this for you if you want it

[Sleeks]

Well hello to Mrs. Red and Klaasend.  Fhew - I am feeling like my old self with my old avatar back!!!    

And Klaasend - I have seen that one before - I may use that one also one of these days.  Thanks!

Any more updates on Madeleine???  Have to see what I can find.

[mrs. red]

Well hello to Mrs. Red and Klaasend.  Fhew - I am feeling like my old self with my old avatar back!!!    

And Klaasend - I have seen that one before - I may use that one also one of these days.  Thanks!

Any more updates on Madeleine???  Have to see what I can find.

I need to do some looking around...  I truly appreciate all the information that y'all bring in here though, it is what keeps me updated, sorry to say...I always get the news from y'all.... and Red of course!

[Blonde]

Madeleine McCann Search: After 'Blanket' Found, Police Recheck Area
By Mitch Marconi
Jun 15, 2007
 
Madeleine McCann Mystery Continues - Portuguese police have again started searching an area of scrubland today, just nine miles from where young Madeleine McCann was abducted.
Police vans, one carrying sniffer dogs, moved in at dawn in the village of Arao, not far from Praia da Luz.  

According to a report from This Is London, forensic teams are now examining a light brown beach towel found at the scene to establish if there was any link to the missing four-year-old.

They will also attempt to determine whether it might be the "blanket" her kidnapper is believed to have utilized in order to sneak her away that fateful night six weeks ago.

 http://www.postchronicle.com/news/original/article_21286617.shtml

[Sleeks]

WOW - I remembering reading yesterday (sorry now that I didn't post it) that they were NOT going to search.  Well I am happy to hear they are.  Even if they find nothing - at least it will one less place to look.

I just pray for this little girl.

[klaasend]

This photo came from DUTCHLADY - it appears she is doing some work on this case:

Dutchlady wrote:

This is one of the images we took in Praia da luz, and is the door and window she is believed to have been taken from