JUSTICE FOR MADDIE AND THE TWINS

Madeleine clues hidden for 5 years, 27 October 2013


Madeleine clues hidden for 5 years The Sunday Times (paper edition)







The Sunday Times, 27 October 2013







THE critical new evidence at the centre of Scotland Yard's search for Madeleine McCann was kept secret for five years after it was presented to her parents by ex-MI5 investigators.

The evidence was in fact taken from an intelligence report produced for Gerry and Kate McCann by a firm of former spies in 2008.

It contained crucial E-Fits of a man seen carrying a child on the night of Madeleine's disappearance, which have only this month become public after he was identified as the prime suspect by Scotland Yard.

But the trail was left to go cold for five years because the McCanns and their advisers sidelined the report and threatened to sue its authors if they divulged the contents.

The report, seen by the Sunday Times, called for the E-Fits to be released immediately and said "anomalies" in statements by the McCanns and their friends must be resolved.

A source close to the McCanns said the report was considered "hypercritical of the people involved" and "would have been completely distracting" if made public.



Madeleine clues hidden for 5 years The Sunday Times

The new prime suspect was first singled out by detectives in 2008. Their findings were suppressed. Insight reports

The Sunday Times Insight team Published: 27 October 2013




Madeleine disappeared from the Praia da Luz resort in May 2007 (Adrian Sheratt)

Madeleine disappeared from the Praia da Luz resort in May 2007 (Adrian Sheratt)


THE critical new evidence at the centre of Scotland Yard's search for Madeleine McCann was kept secret for five years after it was presented to her parents by ex-MI5 investigators.

The evidence was in fact taken from an intelligence report produced for Gerry and Kate McCann by a firm of former spies in 2008.

It contained crucial E-Fits of a man seen carrying a child on the night of Madeleine's disappearance, which have only this month become public after he was identified as the prime suspect by Scotland Yard.

A team of hand-picked former MI5 agents had been hired by the McCanns to chase a much-needed breakthrough in the search for their missing daughter Madeleine.

But within months the relationship had soured. A report produced by the investigators was deemed "hypercritical" of the McCanns and their friends, and the authors were threatened with legal action if it was made public. Its contents remained secret until Scotland Yard detectives conducting a fresh review of the case contacted the authors and asked for a copy.

They found that it contained new evidence about a key suspect seen carrying a child away from the McCanns' holiday apartment on the night Madeleine disappeared.

This sighting is now considered the main lead in the investigation and E-Fits of the suspect, taken from the report, were the centrepiece of a Crimewatch appeal that attracted more than 2,400 calls from the public this month.

One of the investigators whose work was sidelined said last week he was "utterly stunned" when he watched the programme and saw the evidence his team had passed to the McCanns five years ago presented as a breakthrough.

The team of investigators from the security firm Oakley International were hired by the McCanns' Find Madeleine fund, which bankrolled private investigations into the girl's disappearance. They were led by Henri Exton, MI5's former undercover operations chief.

Their report, seen by The Sunday Times, focused on a sighting by an Irish family of a man carrying a child at about 10pm on May 3, 2007, when Madeleine went missing.

An earlier sighting by one of the McCanns' friends was dismissed as less credible after "serious inconsistencies" were found in her evidence. The report also raised questions about "anomalies" in the statements given by the McCanns and their friends.

Exton confirmed last week that the fund had silenced his investigators for years after they handed over their controversial findings. He said: "A letter came from their lawyers binding us to the confidentiality of the report."

He claimed the legal threat had prevented him from handing over the report to Scotland Yard's fresh investigation, until detectives had obtained written permission from the fund.

A source close to the fund said the report was considered "hypercritical of the people involved" and "would have been completely distracting" if it became public.

Oakley's six-month investigation included placing undercover agents inside the Ocean Club where the family stayed, lie detector tests, covert surveillance and a forensic re-examination of all existing evidence.

It was immediately clear that two sightings of vital importance had been reported to the police. Two men were seen carrying children near the apartments between 9pm, when Madeleine was last seen by Gerry, and 10pm, when Kate discovered her missing.

The first man was seen at 9.15pm by Jane Tanner, a friend of the McCanns, who had been dining with them at the tapas bar in the resort. She saw a man carrying a girl just yards from the apartment as she went to check on her children.

The second sighting was by Martin Smith and his family from Ireland, who saw a man carrying a child near the apartment just before 10pm.

The earlier Tanner sighting had always been treated as the most significant, but the Oakley team controversially poured cold water on her account.

Instead, they focused on the Smith sighting, travelling to Ireland to interview the family and produce E-Fits of the man they saw. Their report said the Smiths were "helpful and sincere" and concluded: "The Smith sighting is credible evidence of a sighting of Maddie and more credible than Jane Tanner's sighting". The evidence had been "neglected for too long" and an "overemphasis placed on Tanner".

The new focus shifted the believed timeline of the abduction back by 45 minutes.

The report, delivered to the McCanns in November 2008, recommended that the revised timeline should be the basis for future investigations and that the Smith E-Fits should be released without delay.

The potential abductor seen by the Smiths is now the prime suspect in Scotland Yard's investigation, after detectives established that the man seen earlier by Tanner was almost certainly a father carrying his child home from a nearby night creche. The Smith E-Fits were the centrepiece of the Crimewatch appeal.

One of the Oakley investigators said last week: "I was absolutely stunned when I watched the programme . . . It most certainly wasn't a new timeline and it certainly isn't a new revelation. It is absolute nonsense to suggest either of those things . . . And those E-Fits you saw on Crimewatch are ours," he said.

The detailed images of the face of the man seen by the Smith family were never released by the McCanns. But an artist's impression of the man seen earlier by Tanner was widely promoted, even though the face had to be left blank because she had only seen him fleetingly and from a distance.

Various others images of lone men spotted hanging around the resort at other times were also released.

Nor were the Smith E-Fits included in Kate McCann's 2011 book, Madeleine, which contained a whole section on eight "key sightings" and identified those of the Smiths and Tanner as most "crucial". Descriptions of all seven other sightings were accompanied by an E-Fit or artist's impression. The Smiths' were the only exception. So why was such a "crucial" piece of evidence kept under lock and key?

The relationship between the fund and Oakley was already souring by the time the report was submitted — and its findings could only have made matters worse.

As well as questioning parts of the McCanns' evidence, it contained sensitive information about Madeleine's sleeping patterns and raised the highly sensitive possibility that she could have died in an accident after leaving the apartment herself from one of two unsecured doors.

There was also an uncomfortable complication with Smith's account. He had originally told the police that he had "recognised something" about the way Gerry McCann carried one of his children which reminded him of the man he had seen in Praia da Luz.

Smith has since stressed that he does not believe the man he saw was Gerry, and Scotland Yard do not consider this a possibility. Last week the McCanns were told officially by the Portuguese authorities that they are not suspects.

The McCanns were also understandably wary of Oakley after allegations that the chairman, Kevin Halligen, failed to pass on money paid by the fund to Exton's team. Halligen denies this. He was later convicted of fraud in an unrelated case in the US.

The McCann fund source said the Oakley report was passed on to new private investigators after the contract ended, but that the firm's work was considered "contaminated" by the financial dispute.

He said the fund wanted to continue to pursue information about the man seen by Tanner, and it would have been too expensive to investigate both sightings in full — so the Smith E-Fits were not publicised. It was also considered necessary to threaten legal action against the authors.

"[The report] was hypercritical of the people involved . . . It just wouldn't be conducive to the investigation to have that report publicly declared because . . . the newspapers would have been all over it. And it would have been completely distracting," said the source.

A statement released by the Find Madeleine fund said that "all information privately gathered during the search for Madeleine has been fully acted upon where necessary" and had been passed to Scotland Yard.

It continued: "Throughout the investigation, the Find Madeleine fund's sole priority has been, and remains, to find Madeleine and bring her home as swiftly as possible."

Insight: Heidi Blake and Jonathan Calvert






Maddie: Vital clues hidden for 5 years, 28 October 2013




Maddie: Vital clues hidden for 5 years Daily Star (paper edition)








Daily Star, 28 October 2013







by JERRY LAWTON

CRUCIAL evidence that could hold the key to finding Madeleine McCann was kept secret for five years, it was revealed last night.

The bombshell file includes two e-fits of a man seen carrying a sleeping blonde-haired girl to the beach in Praia da Luz, Portugal, the resort in which Maddie vanished.

Full story: Page 7



Maddie Crimewatch pictures kept secret for five years Daily Star

VITAL evidence about the prime suspect in Madeleine McCann's abduction was kept secret for five years, it was reported yesterday.

By Jerry Lawton / Published 28th October 2013

Crucial evidence that could hold the key to finding Madeleine McCann was kept secret for five years [KATE MCCANN/PA WIRE]

The file was suppressed after being handed to her parents by ex-MI5 investigators, it is claimed.

It included two e-fits of a man seen carrying a sleeping blonde girl to the beach in Praia da Luz, Portugal, at the same time the then-three-year-old's mum Kate, 45, found her missing.

That man is now the focus of a worldwide police hunt.

Scotland Yard detectives released the e-fits a fortnight ago in a Crimewatch special about Madeleine's May 2007 disappearance.

The show prompted 2,400 calls from the public after being broadcast across Europe.

But yesterday it was reported the pictures were available five years ago.

Madeleine has been missing since 2007

Kate, husband Gerry, 45, and their advisers sidelined the private detectives' file and instructed them not to divulge its contents.

The report, delivered to the McCanns in November 2008, said the sighting by Irishman Martin Smith was "credible evidence", had been "neglected for too long" and called on the e-fits to be immediately released.

Oakley International investigators were hired by the Find Madeleine fund set up to bankroll the McCanns' search.

A source close to the McCanns said the report "would have been completely distracting" if made public.

They instead wanted to focus on a man seen by one of their friends and it would have been too expensive to conduct full investigations into both sightings, the source added.

Scotland Yard has since discovered that suspect was a dad carrying his own child.

The first e-fit released on Crimewatch

Former MI5 undercover operations chief Henri Exton, 62, who led the Oakley probe, said the fund took legal action to stop his team divulging its findings.

He said: "A letter came from their lawyers binding us to confidentiality."

It stopped him handing the report to Scotland Yard's Operation Grange team until detectives had written permission from the fund, he added.

One Oakley investigator said he was "absolutely stunned" when he saw their theories and e-fits being unveiled on Crimewatch as a "new revelation".

The second e-fit released by Crimewatch

A Metropolitan Police official said yesterday any withholding of the report was "not an issue" because they were not investigating the case at the time.

Portugal's national police force last week reopened its own investigation.

A source close to the McCann fund said they had been wary of Oakley after allegations of financial irregularities.

A spokesman for Find Madeleine said "all information privately gathered" had been "fully acted upon where necessary" and passed on to Scotland Yard.

The McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell was unavailable for comment.






Daily Star, paper edition, page 7: 'MADDIE: WE HAD E-FIT OF NEW SUSPECT 5 YRS AGO BUT IT WAS SUPPRESSED', 28 October 2013



Daily Star, paper edition, page 7: 'MADDIE: WE HAD E-FIT OF NEW SUSPECT 5 YRS AGO BUT IT WAS SUPPRESSED', 28 October 2013




Why were Maddie suspect E-fits kept SECRET for five years? Images and evidence of sighting uncovered by private detectives were suppressed, 28 October 2013




Why were Maddie suspect E-fits kept SECRET for five years? Images and evidence of sighting uncovered by private detectives were suppressed Daily Mail
•Images of man seen carrying child through Praia da Luz on the night of Madeleine's disappearance were unveiled on Crimewatch two weeks ago
•Based on evidence from Irish holidaymaker Martin Smith and his family
•Emerged yesterday that E-fits were contained in files from five years ago
•Produced by private investigators hired by the McCanns
By NEIL SEARS
PUBLISHED: 01:15, 28 October 2013 | UPDATED: 08:48, 28 October 2013

Under wraps: This is one of the E-fits drawn up by the investigators



The E-fits of a 'new' suspect for Madeleine McCann's disappearance were drawn up five years ago – and suppressed.

Images of a man seen carrying a child through Praia da Luz at 10pm on the night the then three-year-old vanished were unveiled on BBC1's Crimewatch two weeks ago.

They are based on evidence from Irish holidaymaker Martin Smith and his family. At the same time, the British police team behind a new investigation revealed they had discounted a 9.15pm sighting of a man with a child by Jane Tanner, a friend holidaying with parents Gerry and Kate McCann and their three children.

It meant there was a new 'timeline' of Madeleine's presumed abduction. Yet it emerged yesterday that the recently released E-fits were in fact contained in files produced five years ago by private investigators hired by the McCanns. Similarly, those private detectives had questioned the Tanner sighting and the timings associated with it.

But the E-fits were kept private, and the questioning of the Tanner sighting and related timeline were kept quiet. One detective said he was 'utterly stunned' to see his five-year-old dossier suddenly presented as new on TV.

The investigator told a Sunday newspaper: 'I was absolutely stunned when I watched the programme... it most certainly wasn't a new timeline and it certainly isn't a new revelation. It is absolute nonsense to suggest either of those things... and those E-fits you saw on Crimewatch are ours.'

The McCanns are now fully behind the fresh police drive and release of the E-fits – but five years ago they were reluctant to issue them, possibly in part because witness Mr Smith's account seemed inconsistent and unreliable.

Months after the disappearance and after seeing Gerry McCann on TV, Mr Smith told police that he thought the man he saw carrying a girl around Madeleine's age at the very time she went missing reminded him of Gerry McCann himself.

Mr Smith has reportedly since withdrawn that claim – just as Portuguese police have officially told the McCanns they are no longer suspects for their daughter's disappearance.

The couple have also won libel damages for false suggestions that they were in any way involved.

Numerous witnesses have also given statements making clear that Mr McCann was at his holiday complex at the moment the sighting occurred – which was at the very time when he and his wife started calling for help looking for Maddie.


Madeleine McCann went missing in Praia da Luz in May 2007



Madeleine McCann went missing in Praia da Luz in May 2007

But shortly after Mr Smith told police Mr McCann may have been the man he had seen carrying a little girl, a friend of the McCanns said: 'Look at the facts. This man sees an individual carrying a child on the night Maddie vanished.

'He waits 13 days to report this to the police, going back to Ireland in the meantime. At this stage he admits he has no idea who the man is. Almost four months go by before, after seeing him on TV, he feels that it could be Gerry.

'The truth is that this is part of the victimisation of Gerry and Kate which has gone on from the very beginning by the Portuguese.'

Portuguese police have officially told Kate and Gerry McCann they are no longer suspects for the disappearance



Portuguese police have officially told Kate and Gerry McCann they are no longer suspects for the disappearance

In 2008, the McCanns used money from their charity fund to hire investigators from a firm called Oakley International, led by former MI5 surveillance officer Henri Exton, to look into the mystery – and they focused on the Smith sighting.

They produced a dossier and called for the E-fits to be published. They also suggested Madeleine could have died after wandering off.

The McCanns, who became embroiled in an unconnected financial dispute with Oakley International at around the time they received the dossier, responded by warning the detectives of legal action if they publicised their report.

A source close to the fund said the report would have been 'completely distracting' if it had become public.