Madeleine McCann: a reminder of the rogatory interviews in the UK

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In April 2008, members of the group which came to be known as 'The Tapas 9,' were interviewed in the UK, as a result of rogatory letters sent from Portugal. I am re-posting a report about Russell O'Brien's interview as I think there is a very important principle at stake here. Russell O'Brien was allowed to read statements from another witness, his partner, Jane Tanner, prior to being interviewed.

Surely there is something quite amiss when witnesses are allowed to read each other's statements before being interviewed? The inconsistencies and contradictions that might be thrown up are surely of vital importance and this is unlikely to happen when statements can be viewed.

No surprise, then, that stories from those two witnesses do not contain anything other than total agreement about events!

Re-posted article follows:

The Maddie investigation: O'Brien was questioned after having referred to Tanner's statements.

At the time of his interview, in April 2008, Russell James O'Brien was able to refer to the report of his partner Jane Tanner's statements in order to respond to questions from Andrew Gierc, a Leicestershire police officer, about the events that surrounded Madeleine McCann's disappearance.

The access of one witness to the statements of another, even when it is the same couple, is worrying and outside the norm, above all in the course of an investigation of the importance of the Madeleine McCann case. It is also judged by experts from several European police forces, consulted by SMM, as more than a simple professional error: "this can direct the witness or even worse, allow him to answer questions in a way that protects his position in the investigation," states an officer of the French gendarmerie, stressing, "that it is an error capable of compromising an entire investigation and that no professional worthy of that name would make it....The only explanation that remains is the possibility that the investigator wanted to confuse the witness for a specific reason."

"I was given the opportunity to refresh my memory about the report made by Jane Tanner (my wife) and I was allowed to see these documents. That was done in the presence of DC 1578 Gierc," O'Brien admits.

O'Brien was interviewed twice, on April 8th and 10th 2008, but strangely, his his first interview would not have been recorded on video, because, according to the British police, there was a, "technical fault." However, it now looks like the video, which was never sent to Portugal, exists but would not be attached to the report of the April 8th interview.

Russell O'Brien's second interview by police officer Andrew Gierc, was indeed recorded on video, to which we have had access.

All the other, "Tapas 7," were also interviewed: Payne was questioned for 259 minutes by police officer I. Messiah, Diane Webster for 151 minutes by police officer Fergusson, Fiona Payne for 277 minutes by police officer Messiah, Matthew Oldfield for 157 minutes and Rachael Mariamma Jean Mampilly, by police officer Andrew Gierc for 236 minutes.

Jane Tanner was interviewed for 279 minutes by police officer Fergusson, an interview with seven interruptions, the first also very hectic after only 18 minutes when the fire alarm went off.

196 witnesses and 3 arguidos.

At the time when the Portuguese Public Minister decided to place the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance on hold pending further evidence, there was a total of 196 witnesses, including the McCanns' seven friends, and three arguidos, registered in the process.

Several witnesses, who made themselves known to the British authorities, have remained unknown to the Portuguese investigators, for a reason yet to be determined. Brian Kennedy, the millionaire who would be financing Clarence Mitchell and the McCanns' team of lawyers, has even visited several of the investigation's witnesses, in particular those who were less favourable to the couple.

Robert James Queriol Eveleigh Murat, Kate Marie Healy, (also addressed as Kate McCann) and Gerald Patrick McCann were the three arguidos.

Amongst the witnesses, there are a few names already known to the general public. The, "nannies," Amy Ellen Tierney, Catriona Treasa Sisile Baker, Charlotte Elizabeth alice Pennington, Emma Louise Wilding, Jacqueline Mary Williams, Kirsty Louise Maryen, Lyndsay Jayne Johnson, Lynne Rhiannon Fretter, Sarah Elizabeth Williamson, Sinead Maria Vine, Stacey Portz, Susan Bernadette Owen and Pauline Frances McCann.

The tennis coaches, Daniel James Stuk and Georgina Louise Jackson.

George Robin Crosland (Ocean Club manager) George William James, Jennifer Anne Murat, Jeremy Wilkins, John Elliot Hill, Michaela Walazuch, Pamela Isobel Fenn, Robert James Queriol Eveleigh Murat, Sergey Malinka (Murat's friend) José Manuel Conceição Pacheco, Susan Hubard and Svetlana Malinka.

The “Tapas 9”: David Anthony Payne, Dianne Webster, Fiona Elaine Payne, Gerald Patrick McCann, Jane Michelle Tanner, Kate Marie Healy, Rachael Mariamma Jean Mampilly, Russel James O´Brien and Matthew Oldfield."

Note: The above report was originally posted on the SOS Madeleine McCann blog and on this blog in August 2008

Locard's Truth: Preface to the new book by Gonçalo Amaral, "The English Gag."

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The following is an extract from the full translation posted on Joana Morais' blog.

"14 December 2009 | Posted by astro"

"The following text is the translation of the Preface to Gonçalo Amaral's new book, "The English Gag". Titled "Locard's Truth", the preface is authored by Francisco Moita Flores, a former Polícia Judiciária inspector, now the Mayor of Santarém, and a renowned criminologist and author.

Locard’s Truth

I read this outcry for freedom by Gonçalo Amaral at a time when the country wallows, and when I say the country, I say the politicians, some characters within the judiciary system supplying the pyrotechnical material for the fireworks that the media launch every day around the ‘Face Oculta’ process [major corruption scandal presently being investigated in Portugal]. And it is the greatest example of hypocrisy. Exactly the same newspapers, the same columnists, who in the name of respect for the parents’ «pain», in the name of respect for arguidos with no other coercion measure, practically imposed the end of any newscast about Maddie, they are exactly the same that, forgetting today what they had said yesterday, flog personalities from the areas of politics or economy with suspicions, half truths and hearsay, based on wiretaps that nobody knows, savagely destroying the character and honour of their targets."

Read the full text of the preface here Joana Morais blogspot

Gerry McCann, do you think those flowers are an expression of support? Think again!

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Gerry, you look really pleased with yourself in that photo, holding that bunch of red carnations that someone gave you. Do you think those flowers were given to you as an expression of love and support? Will you put them in water to remind yourself of the 'kindness,' of the Portuguese person who thrust them into your hand? Well, Gerry, you don't know your Portuguese history or the significance of those flowers.

Let me tell you a little bit about 'The Carnation Revolution,' and those flowers you are obviously treasuring.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-carnation-revolution.htm

"In the early hours of 25 April 1974, the Carnation Revolution began in the Portuguese city of Lisbon. The military forces quickly overwhelmed the government, sparking spontaneous demonstrations in the street, in which civilians ran out to mingle with the soldiers, despite orders to stay inside. At the time, carnations were flooding the famous central flower market of Lisbon, and many citizens put them into the gun barrels of the soldiers, inspiring the name “Carnation Revolution” to describe this event in Portuguese history."

The red carnation has become a lasting symbol of that revolution and Portugal's freedom from a fascist dictatorship. Gerry, red carnations stand for the values of the revolution: freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, unions, political parties, free elections, equality for women, etc. The red carnations were brought by the supporters of Gonçalo Amaral and those fighting for freedom of expression.

(Thanks to Carolina on the MM forum for some of the above information.)

That's what you were given, Gerry, and that's what you're holding in the photo: the symbol of freedom of expression in Portugal. Portugal is a democratic state, with a formal constitution, into which is written the right to freedom of expression. May the court in Lisbon uphold the right of Dr Amaral to speak about and to publish the opinions, which were not his alone, but those of the investigating teams, that included English police officers.

Carnations in December.

"Everyone shall possess the right to freely express and publicise his thoughts in words, images or by any other means, as well as the right to inform others, inform himself and be informed without hindrance or discrimination 2.Exercise of the said rights shall not be hindered or limited by any type or form of censorship Constitution of the Portuguese Republic, Article 37.º"

Aw Gerry McCann! Who stole yer scone then?

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That's what my father used to say when somebody looked miserable, Gerry, and you really don't look too happy in that photo. And you looked a wee bit scunnered in that kind of interview when reporters pressed you for a comment at Lisbon airport.

Sky News - see video

You were asked how you felt about meeting Mr Amaral and you said, "Haven't thought about it. Thank you." Gerry, I think you're telling porky pies! You reckon Dr Amaral's book has hindered the search for your daughter and you are trying to permanently ban the book and also claim over a million quid in damages, but you haven't thought about coming face-to-face with that man? Gerry, if you told me it was raining, I'd have to look out the window to make sure.

Oh dear! Kate looks like she's had her hair done specially for the trip. It's got that just out of the salon look! So, what now that the process has been postponed? A visit to Praia da Luz? Will you and your wifie now do some searching for your daughter? Maybe you could get in touch with the PJ, get your mates over too and finally do an official reconstruction of the events of the night your daughter disappeared from the unlocked apartment. Or maybe Kate could now answer the 48 questions the Portuguese police put to her, the questions that included one about how her not answering could harm the investigation.

Now you've got some spare time on your hands since the trial has been postponed, you could surely put it to good use. Why not see the PJ and ask for the investigation to be re-opened?

So, who stole your scone, Gerry? Was it the sight of the list of witnesses being presented by Dr Amaral? Or maybe the fact that Gonçalo is publicly launching another book this very day?

"The English Gag," Sounds about right, Gerry.

One day the world will know....the truth from the lie.

Not so sweet charity!

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A few weeks ago, while I was considering finding an alternative to supply teaching work, I received a phone call from a social care agency, who asked me if I was available for work and presented me with a couple of "opportunities."

Eventually, after a few more phone calls, during one of which, a consultant from that agency suggested how much better off I would be working all the year round and not just during term times. I attended two interviews, was offered and accepted a placement working for a locally-based charity, at a specific rate of pay.

Then the trouble began! A couple of days before I was to have started, I was told that there were forms that had not been completed. That put off my starting. Then the evening before another date that had been set, I had a phone call about the agency's not having the required references. After some hurried phone calls, I got the go-ahead.

The next thing I did was to make sure of the agreed rate of pay and was given a significantly lower figure than had been agreed. More phone calls followed and I got an agreement on the original rate.

So, I got to start work for the charity. That was 4 weeks ago. Now, I thought the problems were over, but bigger ones were coming. The agency referred me to a payroll agency, which I signed up with. These payroll agencies handle the wages and the employee, me, becomes a limited company, with supposed benefits in terms of tax and expenses. All well and good I suppose, except that I was supposed to be paid weekly. I haven't been! I have received one week's wages and today again nothing paid into my bank account.

The irony of all this is that the manager of the office where I had been working decided that I was "too expensive," that the amount paid to the agency was too high.

There is indeed some irony here in being told I am too expensive when I am not even being paid! Both the agency and the payroll service are saying it's the other's fault. I am "too expensive," but having to consider taking legal action to get paid. How ironic is that?!!!

If anyone in the Warwickshire area would like to know which social care agency and which payroll service, please leave me an email address in a comment. I will not publish your details.

There are certain things I hold to be self-evident, one of those being that I go to work, I do the job, I get paid. When this does not happen, I feel somehow abused.

Gonçalo Amaral: the McCanns' spokesman comments on new book launch.

The headline in today's Metro reads, "Libel cop launches new Maddie Book on opening day of trial."

Clarence Mitchell, for the McCanns appears to be none too impressed!

"It's regrettable that Mr Amaral chooses to do this on the same day as the trial opening," said Clarence Mitchell."

Regrettable, Mr Mitchell? Who do you think regrets this timing? Carefully planned by Dr Amaral, I would say, and should attract a great deal of publicity. Is that what is regrettable? Too many of the world's journalists around, who will no doubt be giving free publicity to this new venture from Dr Amaral? Bit too close to the truth the title?

Clarence Mitchell goes on to say:

"Most people would expect him to concentrate on the trial rather than launching any new book and the court will take its own view of his activities."

There are people all over the world, Clarrie, who wonder why your clients went jogging while residents of Praia da Luz took a week off work to look for their daughter. I have often wondered why Kate McCann sat in the apartment all night on the night of May 3rd, 2007, rather than getting out there desperately hunting for her daughter.

"In his book The Truth Of The Lie, Mr Amaral - who was involved in the initial investigation but later taken off the case - claimed Madeleine was dead and questioned the McCanns' account that she was taken while they were eating with friends."

Now, the first person to suggest that Madeleine McCann was dead and that her body was hidden somewhere in the Praia da Luz area was Mark Harrison, an English specialist who was called in to help the Portuguese police. In his book, Dr Amaral simply reports Mark Harrison's conclusions. (See chapter 16 of The Truth Of The Lie)

"A year-long campaign by the McCanns' lawyers to prevent the publication of the book and a subsequent DVD led to an injunction banning its further sale or publication being granted in September."

The book was published, in fact, and sold well all over Europe before the McCanns went to court to apply for the injunction, which was, I hasten to add, a temporary one.

"Mr Amaral says his new book has emerged from his indignation in the face of censorship."

And for that I commend the good doctor and wish him the very best of luck in court tomorrow and every day of this process.

"The English Gag," a new book by Gonçalo Amaral to be launched Friday December 11th

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Thanks to Joana Morais for this information.

"Gonçalo Amaral is not a character.
He is the boldness of Truth. He is the challenge of Truth.»

Francisco Moita Flores in Preface

Gonçalo Amaral's new book, "The English Gag - The story of a forbidden book", will be publicly launched on Friday, the 11th of December, 2009, at the Ler Devagar - Lx Factory bookshop, in Lisbon, at 6.30 p.m.

With a preface by Francisco Moita Flores, the book will be presented by Professor José Adelino Maltez."

Madeleine McCann: It was the English specialist Mark Harrison who first suggested that Madeleine was dead and that the police should look for a body.

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This is chapter 16/17 of Gonçalo Amaral's book, originally published here in August 2009. I am re-publishing as a reminder of who it was who first suggested that Madeleine McCann was dead and that her body was probably hidden somewhere in the Praia da Luz area. This was Mark Harrison, who was called in to support the investigation. I have highlighted the most significant passage.

The section titled "Initial Conclusions," is a separate chapter (17) in the original Portuguese version.


THE HYPOTHESIS OF DEATH IS CONSIDERED.
THE ARRIVAL OF THE SPECIALISTS

After Krugel's unsuccessful visit, our English colleagues vaunt the work of their specialist dog team from the South Yorkshire Police Department of Criminal Investigation. Their dogs are specially trained to locate the most minute traces of blood and are capable of outstanding performance in the search for human remains and bodily fluids.

THE FORENSIC SPECIALISTS

It's July. The hypothesis of death, including by the parents, is being seriously considered. However, no lead has yet come to anything, and we find ourselves in a cul-de-sac. We have to re-centre the investigation around its point of departure, apartment 5A at the Ocean Club, in Vila da Luz. We officially request the help of the best experts in criminology and forensics but also the specialist dog team from the English police. A few days later, we welcome Mark Harrison, a specialist in murder, and the search for missing persons and victims of natural disasters. National advisor to the British police, he is well known for his exceptional professional experience. He has already participated in dozens of international criminal investigations.

His work consists of defining new strategies for research. He gets to work immediately, supported by the Portuguese PJ and the investigators from Leicester and Scotland Yard. On his arrival, we place at his disposal details of the case, as well as all our material and human resources. Harrison reads up on the statements and interviews from the principal witnesses - including, of course, those of the parents and friends -, all the analyses, simulations, hypotheses and cross-checking already carried out. He carries out a reconnaissance on the ground, by helicopter and then on foot. He paces the streets and the access roads to Vila da Luz and compares them to the diagrams created in the course of the investigation. Nothing is left to chance: measurement and timing of possible routes between buildings, apartments and restaurants; analyses, with the help of the best specialists, of weather, geological and maritime factors in relation to the investigation; consultation with the best forensic anthropologist in the country, who indicates for us what would be the actual state of the body in the hypothesis of death occurring on May 3rd; study of the region's natural carrion predators. All the research already conducted by hundreds of people - GNR, civil defence, firemen and other volunteers - is re-examined in detail and re-analysed.

After a week of intense work, Harrison presents the results of his study to my coordinating group. Even if we were expecting it, his conclusions confirm our worst fears. The most plausible scenario is the following: there is no doubt that Madeleine is dead, and her body is hidden somewhere in the area around Praia da Luz. He praises the quality of the work carried out by the Portuguese authorities in trying to find the little girl alive. According to him, the time has come to redirect the searches in order to find, this time, a body hidden in the surrounding area.

AMAZING STATISTICS

Great Britain has at its disposal the world's biggest data bank on homicide of children under five years old. Since 1960, the count is 1528. Harrison is well acquainted with its contents. He often draws information from there which helps him to resolve similar cases. Valuable information can be found there on on various criminal modus operandi, places where bodies are hidden, techniques used to get rid of a body. He relates that on one occasion, thanks to the data, he was able to deduce the maximum distance a body might be found in relation to where the crime had been committed.

The figures quoted in the report he hands over give us the shivers. The crimes, including those of a sexual nature, are committed by the parents in 84% of cases; 96% are perpetrated by friends and relatives. In only 4% of them is the murderer or abductor a total stranger to the victim. In this roundabout way, Mark Harrison points out that the guilty party may be a person close to Madeleine, and even her own parents. From now on, we have to explore this track, especially as the others have proved fruitless.

Harrison also suggests that we use the skills of two totally remarkable dogs: the first an EVRD (Enhanced Victim Recovery Dog), achieves outstanding performance in the detection of human cadaver odour; the second, a CSI dog (Crime Scene Investigation) is capable of smelling the tiniest trace of blood, knowing how to recognise its human origin. To convince us of their capability and the extraordinary work carried out by these very special detectives in the course of over 200 investigations, he screens a video for us, showing their training and their intervention on the ground.

He suggests that we start the operations with the inspection of apartment 5A, then those occupied by the McCanns' friends. Robert Murat's house will also be subjected to thorough examination. In addition, all the vehicles used by all of them will be sniffed by the dogs.

Meanwhile, we were supposed to receive American electronic equipment that detects human bodies thanks to the odour that emanates from them (Scent Transfer Unit 100). But the equipment, blocked by customs, arrived late. We didn't need to use it, having obtained very concrete results, thanks to the dogs.

THE ENGLISH SPECIALIST DOG TEAM

The heat is scorching on this thirtieth day of July 2007 when two Springer Spaniels, Eddie and Keela, get off the British Airways plane, accompanied by their trainer, Martin Grime. An air-conditioned vehicle is waiting to take them to their accommodation. A vet, who will be on hand during their stay, has been brought in to intervene in case of illness or if the dogs get bitten by a snake. Their mission: to find Madeleine's body and expose those responsible.

Eddie has been involved in a great number of cases, helping the police to resolve a good many riddles, thanks to his sense of smell. Even if the body has been moved, objects the body has touched have been contaminated by its odour, especially porous materials, fabrics, the upholstery in cars, etc. And that odour, Eddie knows how to recognise out of a thousand.

Keela, a scenes of crime specialist, is capable of locating particles of blood even after a place has been cleaned with chemical products or bleach. Sometimes, the residues are so microscopic they are missed by the instruments of the forensic police, as sophicticated as they are, and it's impossible to harvest them without taking all of what they are on.

Eddie is always the first to be brought onto a site. Once he has discerned the odour that he knows so well, it's Keela's turn to go into action, on the lookout for the slightest whiff of blood. The simultaneous presence of the two elements in a given place - blood and cavaver odours - is taken to indicate that a body has been there and that it's probably there that the death occurred.

The dogs' CV is impressive. Besides collaborating in hundreds of investigations, they passed the practical tests brilliantly at the FBI's "Body Farm," the only place in the world where human cadavers are used to simulate homicide scenarios and concealment of bodies.

Amongst the most media-covered cases, which they contributed to resolving, is that of the disappearance in Northern Ireland of Attracta Harron, who was last seen when she was returning home on foot, after having been to church. All searches carried out by the police were unsuccessful. The main suspect's car having been totally burnt out in a mysterious fire, couldn't be examined. They called in Eddie, who examined the charred remains of the vehicle and immediately picked out the characteristic odour. Human tissue was found amongst the debris, the DNA of which corresponded to the missing woman. Later, the dog indicated the place - close to a river - where the victim's body had been abandoned. At the home of the suspect, where the police were searching for incriminating evidence, Eddie identified cadaver odour in one of the bedrooms. The man confessed to having killed the woman then moving her body to the banks of the river.

The case of Amanda Edwards, reported missing, is also very impressive. The police, who conducted a search of her ex-partner's home, found small bloodstains there, but no trace of a body. The dog, who was brought in for the examination of the man''s vehicle, alerted to cadaver odour on the tools stored in the boot (a shovel, a level and a compactor). The police went to the building site where the suspect had worked a few days before and discovered the body, buried in a garage. The murderer had made efficient use of his tools to carry out his task.

It's also thanks to the help of the dogs that the case of Charlotte Pinkley, a missing British woman, who had been imprisoned by her ex-partner, was resolved. The police requested the help of the specialist dog team to try to find the young woman's body. Eddie picked out a place where the abductor had provisionally left his victim. In the surrounding area, the investigators found the button from a dress that had belonged to Charlotte. That clue exposed the murderer, who ended up showing the police the place where he had hidden the body.

More recently, it's Eddie who helps to find a body buried under a flagstone at the former orphanage, Haut-de-la-Garenne, in Jersey, setting for a terrible case of paedophilia and child murder.

The achievements of the dog detectives are the result of a very long apprenticeship. It all starts with the selection of the best puppies when they are only a few months old. The most talented breed for this unusual "profession," is the Springer Spaniel. The trainer, Martin Grime, and his pupils undergo aptitude tests every year in order to obtain certificates proving their capability. In Great Britain, the police have no hesitation in calling in the specialist dog teams to assist in certain criminal investigations. Their skills are nowadays recognised by journalists, police and courts all over the world.

EXAMINATION OF THE OCEAN CLUB APARTMENTS BY THE SPECIALIST DOGS

On August 3rd 2007, I am having dinner in Praia da rocha, near Portimão, with my friend Gaivota. Unable to hide my anxiety, I keep looking at my watch and my telephone. Gaivota asks me if everything is OK: I respond with an absent-minded "Yes." A few kilometres away one of the most important search operations ever carried out in Portugal has begun. Perhaps we will finally manage to clear up the mystery of Madeleine's disappearance.

The investigation starts in apartment 5A. The grey jeep transporting the dogs pulls into the car park in front of the building. There is hope and anxiety on people's faces. Martin Grime gets out of the car, holding Eddie on a tight leash. He takes it off and orders Eddie to sit down. Instead of obeying as would be expected of such a well-trained dog, Eddie immediately rushes into the building. He then goes to and fro between the lounge and the bedroom in an agitated manner. Martin wonders what could be making his animal so nervous and calls him back to give precise orders. An investigator is filming the entire scene. A little later, Eddie is examining the floor in the parents' bedroom, near the wardrobe, when he lets out a strident howl, indicating that he has detected a cadaver odour. The investigators have hardly recovered from their amazement, when another, equally impressive, howl startles them. This time, Eddie has picked out that same odour under the window, just behind the sofa, on one of the walls in the lounge. That evening, in apartment 5A, the investigators begin to glimpse what might have happened.

At around 10pm, police officers see Gerry McCann, going past the apartment at the wheel of his hire car, a Renault Mégane Scenic, an impenetrable look on his face.

Then it's Keela's turn to intervene. She points her muzzle at the same place where Eddie gave the alert: traces of blood are found on the tiling between the window and the sofa. Outside, Eddie barks twice: on the veranda at the back of the building and in the garden, just below it. At this place, the dog's bark is weaker and might mean "maybe, who knows....". Thus from the indications provided by Eddie, we can pinpoint the places where the body was moved around. Apartments 5B, 5D and 5H, where the McCanns' friends stayed, are examined that same night. The investigators are expecting new developments. However, nothing happens. Eddie does not show the slightest reaction. Therefore, Keela does not get involved.

From then on, we are sure that, at a given moment, there was a body in apartment 5A. We now have to interview firemen, medical services personnel, previous tenants and employees of the Ocean Club to make sure that no death has taken place in this accommodation, which they confirm. So, we can conclude that the odour discovered is certainly that of Madeleine Beth McCann.

SEARCHES IN THE AREA AROUND VILA DA LUZ

As planned, the searches with Eddie go ahead in and around the village. To leave nothing to chance, he is also put to inspecting the area outlined by Krugel.

Mark Harrison organises a big meeting to direct the work of the search teams. He has conceived the idea of iron bars, whose production he has consigned to a local company. They will be used to sink holes into the ground which will facilitate the possible release of gas emanating from a decomposing body.

Martin, Eddie, the PJ inspectors and members of the GNR, go over with a fine-tooth comb, all the areas where the body of a child might be found. Eddie runs his nose over kilometres of waste ground, ruins, buildings abandoned or under construction, waterways, pipework, along the beach, under every bush, not forgetting the famous Rocha Negra. No evidence of the presence of a body, no cadaver odour anywhere.

EXAMINATION OF THE McCANNS' HOUSE.

"The moment of truth has arrived." That's what everybody is thinking when searching begins at the accommodation the family is occupying from now on: either we find evidence of their responsibility in Madeleine's disappearance, or they will definitely be cleared of all suspicion.

Being convinced of having made a mistake in not placing either the couple or their friends under surveillance, we decided to rectify it. We ask the Public Minister for authorisation to search and, at the same time, authorisation for phone taps. Our request is sent to the judge. He being absent, his deputy is called upon. Finally, after 24 hours of anxious waiting, we learn that authorisation is refused. The disappointment is enormous because we will never have access to conversations the McCanns have away from the microphones, and this not least because the McCanns are preparing to return to England. We cannot count on any more than the search of the house they have occupied since May 3rd, 27 Rue das Flores, which they have been able to rent thanks to money collected by the Madeleine Fund.

To avoid contamination of evidence that will be gathered at the McCanns', Mark Harrison has insisted on the availability of decontaminated premises exclusively set aside for this purpose. Julio Barroso, mayor of Lagos, agrees to lend us the garage of a new, unoccupied building in the centre of Lagos. The place is cleaned from top to bottom.

On August 2nd, at 6pm, the inspectors arrive at the McCanns' residence and present the search warrant. The principle of the examination by the specialist dogs is explained. Kate and Gerry are in the swimming pool in the garden with the twins. Contrary to all expectations, they allow us access to their house in a very natural way.

Eddie goes immediately to the lounge. He comes to a stop in front of a wicker armchair on which is lying Madeleine's small pink soft toy, which Kate was never without in the early days of the investigation. Nowadays, she wears a rosary and a green ribbon around her neck. Eddie barks to let us know that he has detected an odour: the soft toy has been in contact with a body.

The soft toy and all the clothes from the house are placed into boxes specially made to preserve evidence. These objects are then conveyed to the decontaminated premises. They are placed on the ground, a good distance apart for the dogs to examine.

At 8pm, Tavares de Almeida calls me to let me know that Mark Harrison requires another place because this one is not sufficiently clean.

- How do I find a place at this kind of time?

- Sort it out!

Julio Barroso offers us the new sports hall in Lagos which, finally, meets the required standards. The objects are once again laid out on the ground and the dogs can start. Eddie alerts us to a strong cadaver odour on some of Kate's clothes, but the CSI dog doesn't detect the slightest trace of blood.

EDDIE AND KEELA AT ROBERT MURAT'S HOUSE.

Robert Murat's residence and the adjacent grounds are gone over with a fine-tooth comb in their turn. Mark Harrison, rigorously professional, has planned to devote three days to this job. This seems long to us. We want to limit the duration of this operation to avoid having the media besiege the premises. Mark agrees not to prolong the search any longer than is necessary, and manages to finish it in two days.

PJ, GNR, Civil Defence: dozens of men are mobilised. They have to work their way through the jungle that's invaded the land all round the house - Murat will not recognise his garden any more once the investigators have been through. The ground is examined with radar, centimetre by centimetre, by a specialist from Aveiro university. In vain: the dogs detect nothing. No evidence is found anywhere within the area examined. All the same, the radar reveals that Murat's house is built over an ancient Roman villa.

EXAMINATION OF THE VEHICLES

Not having been able to find an available garage in Lagos, we appeal to the mayor of Portimão, Manuel da Luz. In this case as in others before, the police have been able to count on the practical support of the mayor's office.

Finally, on August 6th, in the unoccupied floors of an underground car park, opposite the PJ's offices, the inspection of the vehicles takes place. To be examined are those of Robert Murat, Michaela, Sergey Malinka, Luiz Antonio, the McCann couple, and one that Russell O'Brien may have used. Driven by the investigators, the cars are parked in the reserved areas, doors closed and windows raised, with a space of 10 metres from one to another to avoid contamination. According to planned procedure, Eddie goes in first; Keela will be brought in if necessary.

In the immense underground car park, Martin commands Eddie to begin the examination. The dog then intensively sniffs each of the first three cars, at tyre level, the side doors and the boot, then all round. When he gets close to the fourth, the McCanns' Renault, he becomes agitated, raises his nose while running around, as if he is trying to locate the source of the odour he has detected. Martin tells him to stop running around and concentrate on the search. Finally, he starts to growl, bark and wanting to bite the bottom of the driver's door and the boot. The odour is coming from inside. The PJ's experts examine the vehicle for hours with the help of Keela. At dawn, traces of human blood are found in places indicated by the female dog: the key and the boot. The harvested samples are packed, then sent to a forensic laboratory in Birmingham, Great Britain.

Eddie did not hesitate for a moment. He was only interested in the McCanns' automobile. No other attracted his attention or provoked any reaction whatsoever on his part. So, why would certain people want to minimise the evidence produced by this method?

Later, I am brought the witness statement of a neighbour, according to whom, the McCanns left their car boot open all the time. For Gerry's brother-in-law, the bad smell was explained by the fact that the McCanns transported their bins in it. As for the blood, it had been left by a piece of meat fallen out of a shopping bag. Kate's cousin explained that the unpleasant smells were due to the little ones' dirty nappies.

None of that stands up to scrutiny faced with the reactions of these dogs, who are thoroughly trained to detect only blood and cadaver odours.

HARVESTING OF THE SAMPLES DERIVED FROM THE SPECIALIST DOGS' INSPECTIONS.

So that the items of evidence might constitute admissible proof, the harvesting and packing must conform to the rules avoiding all risk of deterioration and contamination. It is experts from our police forensic laboratory who carry out the harvesting. The minuscule traces cannot be gathered in situ, so the tiling is gently lifted out before being transferred to the Forensic Science Laboratory in Birmingham. Photos bear witness to every stage of the operation. For added security, it is the expert responsible for the collection who takes them to FSS on the morning of August 7th. The choice of this laboratory is not insignificant. Apart from their use of cutting-edge technologies - LCN (Low Copy Number) a DNA identification test, used particularly when only microscopic samples are available -, the results, whatever they might be will not be able to be contested by the British since it's one of their most reliable laboratories. All other items of evidence gathered - the keys to the McCanns' car, hair and traces of blood found in the boot - are also sent to England.

INITIAL CONCLUSIONS

English and Portuguese police get together to analyse the results of Eddie and Keela's searches.

- What we can deduce at this stage is that only the McCanns are implicated. The dogs did not detect blood or cadaver odour other than with them.

- From now on we have the certainty that there was a body behind the sofa before being taken into the parents' bedroom.

- If the blood found behind the sofa is that of the little girl, we can assume that she died there.

- That could explain why the sofa was pushed up against the curtains.

- In Madeleine's bedroom and on her bed, there was no cadaver odour.

- On the other hand, the odour on the soft toy indicates that she was holding it when she died....

These conclusions do not, for the moment, constitute proof. If the laboratory results are positive, and only in that case, we will have our proof.

Madeleine McCann: Trial Over Prohibition to Sell Gonçalo Amaral's Book Starts On December 11th In Lisbon

http://www.mccannfiles.com/id232.html

05 December 2009, 07:40

Thanks to Astro for translation

Lisboa, 05 Dec (Lusa) – On the 11th of December, the Civil Court of Lisbon starts the trial over the injunction that forbids the sale of the book "Maddie – The Truth About the Lie", about the disappearance of the child in 2007, written by Gonçalo Amaral.

During the sessions scheduled for the 11th, the 14th and the 16th of December, at the 7th Section of the Civil Court of Lisbon, the former Polícia Judiciária inspector's defence will present its opposition to the argumentation of the McCann family, that was the basis for the temporary injunction that was granted on the 9th of September.

Kate and Gerry McCann, represented by lawyer Isabel Duarte, allege that the book and the video that was based on it, divulge Gonçalo Amaral's thesis, which they consider unsustainable, of Maddie's parents' involvement in her disappearance.

(Published in The McCann Files 5th December 2009)

12 Reasons To Re-open Madeleine McCann's Case

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Gerry McCann: The Dogs Are Unreliable? Not according to police forces and courts all over the world!

This is from chapter 16 of Gonçalo Amaral's book, "The Truth Of The Lie." It is verifiable simply by going to any search engine and looking up the cases specifically mentioned.


THE ENGLISH SPECIALIST DOG TEAM

The heat is scorching on this thirtieth day of July 2007 when two Springer Spaniels, Eddie and Keela, get off the British Airways plane, accompanied by their trainer, Martin Grime. An air-conditioned vehicle is waiting to take them to their accommodation. A vet, who will be on hand during their stay, has been brought in to intervene in case of illness or if the dogs get bitten by a snake. Their mission: to find Madeleine's body and expose those responsible.

Eddie has been involved in a great number of cases, helping the police to resolve a good many riddles, thanks to his sense of smell. Even if the body has been moved, objects the body has touched have been contaminated by its odour, especially porous materials, fabrics, the upholstery in cars, etc. And that odour, Eddie knows how to recognise out of a thousand.

Keela, a scenes of crime specialist, is capable of locating particles of blood even after a place has been cleaned with chemical products or bleach. Sometimes, the residues are so microscopic they are missed by the instruments of the forensic police, as sophicticated as they are, and it's impossible to harvest them without taking all of what they are on.

Eddie is always the first to be brought onto a site. Once he has discerned the odour that he knows so well, it's Keela's turn to go into action, on the lookout for the slightest whiff of blood. The simultaneous presence of the two elements in a given place - blood and cavaver odours - is taken to indicate that a body has been there and that it's probably there that the death occurred.

The dogs' CV is impressive. Besides collaborating in hundreds of investigations, they passed the practical tests brilliantly at the FBI's "Body Farm," the only place in the world where human cadavers are used to simulate homicide scenarios and concealment of bodies.

Amongst the most media-covered cases, which they contributed to resolving, is that of the disappearance in Northern Ireland of Attracta Harron, who was last seen when she was returning home on foot, after having been to church. All searches carried out by the police were unsuccessful. The main suspect's car having been totally burnt out in a mysterious fire, couldn't be examined. They called in Eddie, who examined the charred remains of the vehicle and immediately picked out the characteristic odour. Human tissue was found amongst the debris, the DNA of which corresponded to the missing woman. Later, the dog indicated the place - close to a river - where the victim's body had been abandoned. At the home of the suspect, where the police were searching for incriminating evidence, Eddie identified cadaver odour in one of the bedrooms. The man confessed to having killed the woman then moving her body to the banks of the river.

The case of Amanda Edwards, reported missing, is also very impressive. The police, who conducted a search of her ex-partner's home, found small bloodstains there, but no trace of a body. The dog, who was brought in for the examination of the man''s vehicle, alerted to cadaver odour on the tools stored in the boot (a shovel, a level and a compactor). The police went to the building site where the suspect had worked a few days before and discovered the body, buried in a garage. The murderer had made efficient use of his tools to carry out his task.

It's also thanks to the help of the dogs that the case of Charlotte Pinkley, a missing British woman, who had been imprisoned by her ex-partner, was resolved. The police requested the help of the specialist dog team to try to find the young woman's body. Eddie picked out a place where the abductor had provisionally left his victim. In the surrounding area, the investigators found the button from a dress that had belonged to Charlotte. That clue exposed the murderer, who ended up showing the police the place where he had hidden the body.

More recently, it's Eddie who helps to find a body buried under a flagstone at the former orphanage, Haut-de-la-Garenne, in Jersey, setting for a terrible case of paedophilia and child murder.*

The achievements of the dog detectives are the result of a very long apprenticeship. It all starts with the selection of the best puppies when they are only a few months old. The most talented breed for this unusual "profession," is the Springer Spaniel. The trainer, Martin Grime, and his pupils undergo aptitude tests every year in order to obtain certificates proving their capability. In Great Britain, the police have no hesitation in calling in the specialist dog teams to assist in certain criminal investigations. Their skills are nowadays recognised by journalists, police and courts all over the world.

* Note: I would just add this addendum to the information about the Haut-de-la-Garenne case. Eddie can detect cadaver odour where a corpse has just rested and been moved. The fact that Eddie alerted to an area at the childrens' home and no body was found, means only that at some point a body was probably in that place. Look at some of the other cases, where Eddie alerted to the odour he is trained to detect, but there was no body in situ.

Madeleine McCann: Her Parents Use Psychologist To Help Tell Twins About Madeleine

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Mail Online Sunday November 8th.

"The parents of Madeleine McCann have revealed how a child psychologist is helping them to tell their two other children about her disappearance.

Kate and Gerry McCann said they would be ‘frank and open’ with their four-year-old twinsSean and Amelie when they ask why their sister is still missing.

Mrs McCann, 41, said experts have said the youngsters will ask about Madeleine’s disappearance when they are ready.

‘We’ll be led by them,’ she said. ‘We’ve had advice from a child psychologist and they’ve said Sean and Amelie will lead the way.

‘If they ask a question, we’ll answer them honestly. I’m not going to rush them, but if they ask something then I’ll answer them.’

I'm slightly confused by the use of the conditional, "if," here. If they ask a question? Does that mean that they have not yet asked a question? And, "Sean and Amelie will lead the way." Does that mean they haven't yet done so?

The reason I pose these questions is that in January 2008, several news media, including The Metro, reported that the twins played a game called, "Find the monster that took Maddie." Now where did they get that from? Why did they believe that Maddie had been taken by a monster? Do you think they came up with that all by themselves?

Although there is a disclaimer at the foot of The Metro story, which adds that a source close to the McCanns said they denied the story, the game was reported by Ray Wire, said to be a "top criminologist," after meeting Kate and Gerry McCann, it was also repeated in The People, on January 20th 2008.

"By Daniel Jones

Maddie's little brother and sister are learning to cope with their devastating loss by playing a game called Find The Monster Who Snatched Her."

"Wyre went on: "Kate and Gerry told me they were sitting together the other day when the twins rushed into the room screaming and shouting.

"They asked what they were up to and the twins told them they were going to go and find the monster that took Maddie.

"Then they dashed off to play the game."

This article in the Scottish Daily Record Scottish Daily Record appeared later in April 2008, but it seems to demonstrate that members of the family were not exactly guarded about what they said around the twins. Eileen McCann, the twins' Scottish grandmother was interviewed, while Amelie was sitting on her lap. It doesn't say where the interview took place.

"LITTLE Amelie McCann clambered on to her grandmother's knee, gently touched the chain around her neck and whispered: "That's Madeleine. She's lost."

Later in the interview Eileen McCann says: "It's unimaginable. Whoever did this is a monster."

She also describes at length what she was told had happened that night, how Kate and Gerry left the children asleep, checked half-hourly, and how Kate found that Madeleine was gone. And all this with Amelie clambering onto her lap, but now Kate and Gerry say they will wait until the twins ask questions?

Another thing I picked up from that Daily Record article was that Eileen McCann, stressed each time she referred to Madeleine's being taken from her bed, that she had been taken, "in her pyjamas." I wonder why she kept stressing that? I think most people would assume that if a child had been left in bed asleep and they were taken from that bed, that they'd have been in pyjamas. No need to keep reinforcing that, surely?

In today's Mail Online article, Kate McCann is quoted as saying, "If they ask a question, we’ll answer them honestly. I’m not going to rush them, but if they ask something then I’ll answer them." Well, Kate, do you think your children don't actually listen to conversations going on around them?

Going back, once again, to that Scottish Daily Record article, I noticed that Eileen McCann talked about Madeleine's having spent Christmas at her house when she was two. (That would be Christmas 2005, when the twins were 10 months old.) She doesn't say that Madeleine was there with her parents and twin siblings. She just says, "When she was two, Madeleine spent Christmas at my house and it was lovely."

"The next year, the family came up for New Year but on Christmas Day Madeleine called and said she'd got a kitchen from Santa. She was very excited and said 'I'm going to make some tea'."

And differentiates the next year by saying that the family came up. I wonder why Madeleine was not part of the family Christmas that year, but instead spent it with her grandmother in Scotland? If Christmas with three children, all under three years old was difficult, surely Eileen, or some other member of the family could have stayed in Rothley to help out? In that way, Madeleine would have been part of the family celebration, especially as it was the twins' first Christmas.

I seem to have discovered a few extra puzzles there as I was looking for items about the twins and their search for Madeleine. The other reference to "monster," that occurs to me is that I recall Kate, I think, being quoted as saying that, "the only monster out there is the one who took Madeleine," but at the moment, I haven't found any link to that quote.

Intellectual Property

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It has come to my attention today, that someone is seeking to publish an English version of the book by Gonçalo Amaral, English title, "The Truth Of The Lie." That person has views of opened pages of the book on his web site and it can be read easily. The wording is identical to my translation. Now, since no two people translate exactly word-for-word, I suspect that the contents of this book are my translation.

If this is my translation, I have not been approached for my permission to use this version, which I have spent months working on.

I hereby state that everything on this blog is my intellectual property and that I have not given anyone permission to transmit any of it in printed form.

Maddie: Video Reveals An Image Of Her Looking North African

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http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

The new campaign includes an appeal video and interviews with Kate McCann

Portugais - Español

A video with unpublished images of Maddie, at age six, tanned, with dark hair, as if the child had spent two years in North Africa or in the south of the Iberian peninsula, is the focal point of a new appeal for witnesses which the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) launched yesterday in England in connection with Kate and Gerry McCann's campaign.

This new instrument of the campaign presents a series of already known photos and video images of Madeleine, but also three images of what the child might look like now, if she were still alive.

(Video can be viewed here)

The video, translated into seven languages - English, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish - and specially produced for the internet, claims to appeal to the conscience of a potential witness, "who knows what happened to Maddie".

With the assistance of Jim Gamble, a CEOP's officer, the video was produced with the help of psychologists and aims to convince, "a friend or a relative of the person responsible for the little girl's disappearance," that they would be, "doing the right thing". "The person we are trying to reach out to is probably a partner, a family member, a friend or a work colleague of the person or persons who were involved in Madeleine's disappearance," the CEOP's officer said, stressing that it, "was more than likely that they, or someone close to them used the internet to find all news items that might suggest that the police were very close to discovering the truth."

This latest video includes new virtual images of Maddie which have just been added to the photo previously presented in the United States by the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), and which showed Maddie with a, "more American," appearance.

CEOP is banking on the internet to disseminate the new appeal - the first of its kind - and hopes the message will reach the whole world through blogs, but also via social network sites like Facebook and Twitter.

The Judiciary Police (PJ) is excluded from the campaign.

CEOP is not working with the Judiciary Police, although they are the authority responsible for the investigation into Madeleine McCann's disappearance, but promises that all relevant information received will be handed over to the Leicestershire Police, "who will coordinate with the Portuguese detectives."

"I have no knowledge of this new campaign or of the appeal," a PJ source said, showing some hesitation about collaboration with CEOP: "that's the organisation that in 2007 asked tourists for photos taken in Praia da Luz and which subsequently we received none of," the same inspector said.

After Maddie's disappearance, that organisation asked tourists who visited Praia da Luz to send photos from their holidays so that they could be compared with a data bank of images of UK paedophiles and other criminals.

The new campaign, according to the CEOP officer, has the support of police around the world, in particular Interpol, Europol, Australian, North American, Canadian and United Arab Emirates police. The new appeal launched by CEOP, with Jim Gamble - known in England for his involvement in Operation ORE - claims to respond to Kate and Gerry's frustration with the lack of new evidence and leads.

"We are extremely grateful to CEOP for launching this new message world-wide in such an effective way. It's vital that it's seen as widely as possible," the couple said in a press release.

By Duarte Levy

Maddie: The New Campaign Kicks Off Today.

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SOS Madeleine McCann

2/11/09

By Duarte Levy

.......>>>>>>>>>

Kate's time has come.

Kate McCann, mother of the little English girl who disappeared in the Algarve two years ago, is the face of the new campaign which the couple launch today jointly with the English police in London and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP)
Now that the twins Sean and Amélie are in full-time education, Maddie's mum is taking on a more active role in the campaign which the couple launched nine days after the disappearance and which is now entering, "a new phase."

The new campaign, with the assistance of Lift Consulting, Portuguese PR specialists, is targeted at our country, where the McCann couple say they believe that someone could still hold information on the subject of what, in fact, happened to the child on the night she disappeared.

The launch of the new campaign kicks off today in the British capital where the press is invited to two briefings - "because of a time difference," as confirmed by Claudia Nogueira of Lift Consulting, the first meeting will only involve English journalists, the second being scheduled for the Portuguese press.

The two ex-police officers hired by the couple, David Edgar and Arthur Cowley, believe that the answer to Maddie's mysterious disappearance lies in a radius of 10 miles around the Ocean Club, from where the child disappeared on May 3rd 2007. With the new campaign they say they expect that someone will come forward who will lead them to the answer.

For the moment, Kate and Gerry McCann will not be returning to the Algarve and will see journalists in England, but they say they are in the process of organising a private trip back to Praia da Luz, probably before the end of the year.

"Imagine if it had been your daughter. Imagine the sadness and suffering. Imagine someone like yourself never coming forward. If you remain silent, you are as guilty as those who have taken her," the couple write on the internet site for the private fund which they created after the alleged abduction.

The campaign, launched almost simultaneously with legal action against the former coordinator of the PJ who investigated the disappearance, Gonçalo Amaral, includes interviews which Kate MCann will give this week to the English and Portuguese press.

Maddie: English Tabloid Talks About Police Operation In Morocco.

...
SOS Madeleine McCann 26/10/09

By Duarte Levy

The theory isn't new, but according to yesterday's edition of the British daily, the Daily Star Maddie's kidnap is allegedly a crime under police investigation, perpetrated by a dangerous Algerian criminal who, in exchange for one hundred thousand Euros, is claimed to have taken the child to Morocco.

According to this same information, Maddie was transported to North Africa aboard a ferry that links the south of Spain with Morocco.

The British daily, which states having received the information from, "the criminal underworld," puts forward that the information became known when the Algerian criminal boasted about the kidnap to two English drug traffickers, Paul Bennett and James Neil.

The Algerian, who goes by the name Younis or Tariq, is described as having dark skin, curly hair and a pock-marked face, resembling one of the robot-portraits already produced in the case. According to the source quoted by the English daily, the man is allegedly, "known to the Portuguese police."

24 Horas (Portuguese daily newspaper) is meanwhile able to report that the information cited by the Daily Star, and so-called coming from, "the criminal underworld," had already been sent to Portugal by a lawyer linked to the case, based on a report from the Spanish detectives Metodo 3, who were hired by Kate and Gerry McCann.

The Spanish agency produced various reports on the subject of Maddie's disappearance, but also on the subject of the private lives of the PJ inspectors in charge of the investigation, notably on Gonçalo Amaral - reports which the detectives placed at the disposal of this lawyer, who used them publicly.
"No ongoing investigation exists into this or any other lead, and the case continues to be the responsibility of the Portuguese authorities," stated a source from Leicestershire police contacted by 24 Horas.

Police officers with a British sense of humour.

It's not the first time that, "supposed information," and "speculations," about the Maddie case have hit the headlines in the English newspapers. Just last week the British government officially denied that the Prime Minister would be contacting the American authorities, from whom, according to the Sunday Express - a newspaper in the same group as the Daily Star - Gordon Brown allegedly wanted to request images from a satellite which supposedly monitored the Portuguese coast.
Information put forward yesterday by the Daily Star: "for the price of its Sunday promotion for 40 pence the reader gets two newspapers," a Home Office source said sarcastically in response to 24 Horas.

"Faked Abduction," A New Book Coming Soon From The USA

By Brian Johnson.

The Conclusion Of The Portuguese Police Investigating The Madeleine McCann Disappearance.

http://fakedabduction.com/

From the above web site:

"Faked Abduction will soon be available to purchase from this website.

Containing many details from the comprehensive police files, the book highlights the inconsistencies in the various alibis, the ever-changing witness accounts and the lack of police cooperation from the McCanns and their friends, the so-called Tapas 7.

The McCanns have tried to gag people from publishing the truth about the case. In 2007, despite making several public assurances to donors to their “Madeleine Fund” that they would not spend any money on lawyers, they have employed some of the most expensive law firms in Britain to intimidate and suppress those who publicly doubt their abduction story.

While researching the book, the McCanns have declined to answer important questions relating to the disappearance of their daughter.

After reading the book, decide for yourself if this was a Faked Abduction."

Jack Straw To Consult Newspapers On Super-Injunctions.

By Oliver Luft Press Gazette

Justice Secretary Jack Straw has launched a consultation with lawyers from major newspapers following the row over "super-injunctions" following the Trafigura row.

Junior justice minister Bridget Prentice told MPs last week that a number of senior judges would also be involved in a consultation over court orders which ban publication of certain information and also ban reporting about the order being made.

Prentice told MPs: "We are very concerned that super-injunctions are being used more commonly, particularly in the area of libel and privacy.

"The Secretary of State for Justice [Straw] has already asked senior officials in the department to discuss the matter with lawyers from the major newspapers. We are also involving the judiciary in a consultation.

"We are looking specifically at how the use of super-injunctions has had an effect and what we therefore need to do on that."

"We are looking specifically at how the use of super-injunctions has had an effect and what we therefore need to do on that."

Prentice told MPs during a debate on 21 October she would relay MPs message that further guidelines might be needed for judiciary to the Justice Secretary and the Lord Chief Justice.

The Prime Minister told MPs earlier this month Straw would examine the use of so-called "super injunctions" after the Guardian reported that it had been prevented from reporting a Parliamentary question tabled by Newcastle-under-Lyme MP Paul Farrelly, a former journalist, relating to oil company Trafigura because of an injunction obtained by the firm's lawyers, Carter Ruck.

Prentice told MPs the advice given to the Guardian by Carter-Ruck that the newspaper would be in contempt for reporting Farrelly's question, was incorrect.

She added: "I am happy to ensure that we send them a copy of Article 9 [of the Bill of Rights 1689], so that they can read and peruse it at their leisure."

So, let's have a wee look at this mega expensive company Carter Ruck. It amazes me that a couple of doctors like Kate and Gerry McCann can associate themselves with a company like Carter Ruck, that tries to use such tactics against a national newspaper, with legal advice that is incorrect. And a firm of solicitors that would seek to prohibit the publication of information about a company like Trafigura polluting the environment at serious risk to health and the environment?

Have the McCanns no shame? Or do they just not care as long as they have, "..the most feared libel lawyers," and they can shut people up, whatever the tactics or the cost to their wealthy backers? Let's face it, the McCanns must have some seriously heavy-duty backing to be able to afford to use five hundred quid an hour Carter Ruck to put the thumbscrews on ordinary people like those who set up The Madeleine Foundation.

The police files from the Maddie investigation in Portugal are in the public domain: they were released when the case was archived. The Madeleine Foundation simply presents information that is already in the public domain, but possibly few members of the general public have read it. The McCanns by way of Carter Ruck would seek to make sure that ordinary Joe Public does not have this information presented to him in a user-friendly way.

Conclusion: the McCanns have no shame, either about leaving three small children on their own, night after night in an unlocked apartment in a foreign country, or in using a bunch of heavy-handed legal representatives like Carter Ruck.

Jack Straw please do your job and get this properly investigated. Carter Ruck must be stopped from silencing people with their mighty fist of super-injunctions and efforts to intimidate people who do not have the financial resources to defend themselves.

SOS Madeleine McCann: Gonçalo Amaral's planned TV appearance annoys the McCann couple.

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

By Duarte Levy 21/10/09 (Comments in gray are mine and not those of Duarte Levy.)

"Gonçalo Amaral is the only citizen who persists in not respecting the court's injunction."

Note: at the last moment, the showing of the W9 programme on the Maddie case was canceled and replaced for legal reasons, following the intervention of lawyers acting for the McCann couple.

The participation of Gonçalo Amaral, former coordinator of the Judiciary Police, who led the investigation into Maddie's disappearance, in a television programme, in this case in France, got the little English girl's parents so worked up that, according to a representative of the couple's campaign, they are now accusing the ex-inspector of "not respecting the court's decision," threatening that this fact, "will not go unanswered."

In spite of an injunction by Lisbon's Civil Court, which bans him from speaking about several aspects of the Maddie case, Gonçalo Amaral is (should have been!) the special guest on the, "Criminal Investigations," programme, which the W9 channel will show today at 8.35pm and which will also be available on the internet. (I guess that's what got the McCanns rather worked up! Fancy all those internet users in the UK being able to hear what Gonçalo Amaral has to say!)

"No matter where in the world, Gonçalo Amaral is banned from speaking about the theory he presents in his book...Whether it's in Portugal or Burundi," Isabel Duarte, the lawyer representing the McCann couple, who obtained the injunction that also bans the sale of the book, "Maddie: A Verdade da Mentira," told 24 horas. (in France: Maddie: L'Enquête Interdite) as well as the distribution of the documentary based on it.

The decision by the judge of Lisbon's Civil court rules Gonçalo Amaral, as well as the publishers Guerra e Paz and Valentim de Carvalho, are banned from speaking publicly about the theory presented by the former PJ inspector on the Maddie case - reading the decision, the former PJ inspector and his publishers are prohibited from reproducing, talking about, or giving an opinion or interview that might support that theory.

The French television programme, to which 24 Horas has had access, is presented by journalists Sidonie Bonnec and Paul Lefèbre, "and claims to present the French viewers with a real idea of what happened to Maddie," a representative said, adding that, "the channel also presents Amaral's unpublished (in France) documentary, which supports the parents' guilt." The ex-inspector is then called upon to comment on a different version of the events which is supported in a report produced in England.

Called on to comment, the lawyer Isabel Duarte told 24 Horas that, "the citizen Gonçalo Amaral persists in not respecting the court's injunction," admitting that this subject is going to be presented before the court, but that, "the date for the hearing is not yet known."
"No definitive decision is going to be known this year," the lawyer said.

The McCanns want to ban Amaral's book abroad.

Amaral, who had already told 24 Horas that nobody was going to silence him, "if the McCanns want to prevent the book from being translated into English, they are seriously fooling themselves," now runs the risk of seeing, "A Verdade da Mentira," banned abroad. At least that is the intention of the McCanns' lawyers.

Isabel Duarte, who is only dealing with this case in Portugal, confirmed for 24 Horas that, "the couple's lawyers in England are dealing with this question."
The first countries targeted will be Spain, France and The Netherlands.

Ed Smethurst, the McCanns' English lawyer, has already acknowledged that the Lisbon Civil Court's ban on the sale of the book, "A Verdade da Mentira," deals with the first phase of the legal action and that other legal actions were planned in further phases.