Madeleine went missing well before RT started and so there is no thread to update. However with some news today I am starting this thread to follow any developments.


Madeleine McCann Investigators Prepared to Dig
June 2, 2014
ABC News via Good Morning America



Portuguese police searching for missing toddler Madeleine McCann today cordoned off scrubland just 300 yards away from where she vanished in preparation for an intensive search of the ground.

Police will be inspecting the ground - marked off with yellow and white police tape - looking for terrain that may have been disturbed. If they find suspicious ground, police will then bring in sniffer dogs, ground penetrating radar and possibly excavation equipment, officials said.

The area to be combed is the size of three football fields and is where a suspect was seen walking away with a little girl in his arms the night McCann disappeared seven years ago.

The area had been searched in the days following her disappearance in May 2007.

The case has been one of the world's most enduring mysteries. The British girl, who was 3, vanished from her bed at a Portuguese resort while her parents were dining with friends at a nearby restaurant. The parents were the initial suspects, but were eventually cleared and Portuguese police closed the case without any arrests in 2008.

But last year British police made a televised appeal for tips on the case, and information poured in. Investigators are now focused on a series of child assaults in the area before Madeline McCann disappeared.

...more at link
http://abcnews.go.com/International/mad ... d=23955417

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Madeleine McCann the British girl who went missing while on holiday in Portugal five years 'could be alive' say detectives as a new “age progression” image is released of what she would look like today at the age of ninePicture: Teri Blythe



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... me=2202507

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Scrubland search in hunt for Madeleine McCann

Detectives may use excavators, dogs and ground-penetrating radar in area about 2km from where child went missing


Brendan de Beer in Praia da Luz and Ben Quinn
The Guardian, Monday 2 June 2014 20.51 BST



Police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have begun searching a piece of land roughly the size of three football pitches near the Portuguese resort where she vanished seven years ago.

Investigators erected tents and put down numbered markers yesterday on scrubland near the resort of Praia da Luz after an area located about 2km from the apartment where the child went missing was cordoned off by local police in the early hours. Nine vehicles, including two large vans, congregated on a hilltop in the secured area, with officers surveying the area with binoculars.

A search started at 11 am, while 15 officers from the Metropolitan police left the site about three hours later. At one point, three tents had been erected.

British officers at the site included detective chief inspector Andy Redwood, the senior British officer investigating Madeleine's disappearance.

Officials have said detectives may use excavators, dogs and ground-penetrating radar in the search.

Scotland Yard refused to comment on reports that British officers were at the scene and said the force was "not prepared to give a running commentary" about the case. A local resident, who had joined a handful of residents on the fringe of the scrubland, was sceptical as to what police would achieve in their search.

"This is very rugged terrain and it hasn't rained for several days, so any digging will be a thankless task," one said.

Praia da Luz mayor Victor Mata said the people of Luz had always supported the hunt for Madeleine, but questioned the timing of the new search.

...more at link
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014 ... ine-mccann

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Kate and Gerry McCann ready for 'significant news' on missing Madeleine as British police prepare to dig up wasteland in Portugal

• Up to 30 British police searching hilltop in Praia da Luz, Portugal
  
• Site is 300 metres from apartment where Madeleine disappeared in May 2007
  
• Parents Gerry and Kate ready for 'significant news' but are not in Portugal
  
• Their lawyer has said the groundwork marks 'a stressful time for them'
  
• Radar and diggers to be used to try to find out if she is hidden on scrubland
  
• Police focussing search on area where mystery man seen carrying a child

By Paul Bentley In Praia Da Luz and Martin Robinson
Published: 06:30 GMT, 3 June 2014 | Updated: 07:03 GMT, 3 June 2014



Kate and Gerry McCann are ready for 'significant news' on the fate of their daughter Madeleine as British police today prepare to dig up wasteland 300 metres from where she disappeared in 2007.

A team of 30 Scotland Yard detectives with dogs, picks and shovels will continue searching scrubland in Praia da Luz, a five-minute walk from the apartment where she was last seen alive.

Kate, 46, and Gerry, 45, have not travelled to Portugal but are being kept informed by Scotland Yard during a 'stressful time for them'.

'They understandably have to remain positive and assume Madeleine is alive, but the dig raises the possibility of finding evidence that she is not', a source close to the couple said.

The wasteland, about the size of three football pitches, has reportedly been chosen because it is close to where a suspect was seen with a little girl in his arms on the night three-year-old Madeleine vanished seven years ago.

...more at link
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... tugal.html

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Madeleine McCann police begin digging in scrubland search
BBC, 3 June 2014 Last updated at 17:31



Police officers investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have been seen using spades and pitchforks in a cordoned-off area of land in Praia da Luz.

Officers from the Metropolitan Police and South Wales Police joined their Portuguese counterparts in searching the section of scrubland in the Algarve resort.

It is the second day of the search.

The British girl was three when she went missing in the resort in 2007.

The digging is at this stage small scale, and officers have been seen taking samples of rock and putting them into buckets.

Two sniffer dogs, and their handlers, have also been provided by South Wales Police for the search. The springer spaniels were used in the hunt for murdered schoolgirl April Jones in Powys in 2012.

The Met has also asked for two other locations in Praia da Luz to be examined, and the BBC understands that all the searches will be completed by Friday.



...more at link
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-27679130

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Madeleine McCann police confirm further sites to be searched

The BBC's Tom Burridge says police have erected tents over a hole

BBC, 4 June 2014 Last updated at 17:49

Police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have confirmed that two further sites will be searched in Praia da Luz in Portugal.

The Met Police had previously requested for two other sites to be searched, but until now it was not known whether those requests had been granted.

Officers have also begun using ground-penetrating radar equipment, which looks for signs of disturbed earth.

Madeleine was three when she went missing in the resort in 2007.

British and Portuguese officers have been searching a 15-acre site for a third day.

...more at link
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-27693059

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Madeleine McCann scrubland search expected to stretch into second week

Forensic officers focusing on two key areas in dense scrub in Praia da Luz, Portugal

Josh Halliday and Brendan de Beer in Praia da Luz
The Guardian, Wednesday 4 June 2014 22.22 BST

Detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have formally applied to extend the ground-level searches into next week as forensic experts joined the investigation.

The operation was initially expected to end on Friday but progress has been slow in the meticulous search of dense scrubland a short distance from where the then three-year-old girl was last seen in 2007.

In the past 48 hours, officers have focused their searches on two key areas, including a hole in the ground concealed by corrugated iron, which on Wednesday was investigated by forensic experts wearing protective clothing.

The painstaking investigative work, which began on Monday, is being delayed by a need to clear the sites using petrol strimmers and chainsaws.

It is expected that the searches will now stretch into a second week, after Scotland Yard applied to extend the operation as they await formal approval from Portuguese police.

...more at link
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014 ... and-search

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Hi Rumpole,

BIB: I haven't been following this case, but have seen the odd article here and there. I'm just wondering though. In the first article you posted it says the area was searched in the following days after Madeleine went missing in 2007. Did they search the area but not thoroughly which is why they've returned seven years later?

Hi UT...

I followed Madeleine case as a big news event.. but never the details. So I don't know about searches at the time... but it seemed to me they were treating it as an abduction, rather than looking for a body?

This search has sparked an interest. They would not have launched such a major search unless they had SOME information... and finding a body would at least narrow things down.

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Madeleine McCann police search drains
BBC, 5 June 2014 Last updated at 14:36



Police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have begun searching drains and sewers close to where the three-year-old went missing.

Officers who are searching a 15-acre site in Praia da Luz have been removing manhole covers and used probe-like devices to investigate inside.

Met Police were due to end their search on Friday but have been given permission to continue in to next week.

Madeleine was three when she went missing in Portugal in 2007.

Forensic teams are examining the sewers close to the edge of the site, close to where they have also been seen clearing patches of land with pickaxes and pitchforks.

However, the British and Portuguese officers continue to examine several other patches of scrub land on the fourth day of their search.

...more at link
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-27713826

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Thanks, Rumpole.

Yes, I'm thinking you're right. From the first article you posted:



Going by the quote, they certainly received a tip off that warranted a major search in that particular area.

I remember when Madeleine first went missing. I could not believe how a parent could leave children that young, alone in a Foreign Country. I don't care how far away they were dining it just shouldn't be done. Were Kate and Gerry McCann charged with anything, namely, neglect...do you know? I wish I had followed this case more closely. Such a beautiful child, so sad!

I agree... it was negligent to leave children... but if that was the parents only "crime" then it is probably one that MANY are guilty of.

I can see how parents might do that... but of course now in hindsight it was a seriously wrong thing to do.

I am reluctant to even speculate on what happened... I see a lot of "lynch mob" comments about the parents involvement.

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Madeleine McCann cops carry out DNA tests on 'scraps of clothing' found near holiday resort
Jun 05, 2014 17:09
By Martin Fricker

A Portuguese military jet also swooped low over the site in Praia da Luz to gather detailed imagery of the terrain which will aid detectives in the search for Madeleine

British cops are carrying out forensic tests on material discovered near a hidden pit on wasteland close to where Madeleine McCann vanished .

Experts drafted in from the UK are carrying out scientific analysis of the “non-organic” items - believed to include scraps of clothing.

Search teams scoured the cordoned off area for a fourth day and inspected sewers with hi-tech cameras.

A Portuguese military jet also swooped low over the site in Praia da Luz to gather detailed imagery of the terrain which will aid detectives.

UK sniffer dogs continue to work inside the taped-off area - which is 300 metres from the apartment where Madeleine disappeared in May 2007.

Detectives from Scotland Yard’s Operation Grange need at least another week to scour the land and two more areas in the Algarve resort.

...more at link
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news ... ut-3649912

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Madeleine McCann police to question 'several suspects'
BBC, 7 June 2014 Last updated at 16:24

"Several suspects" are likely to be questioned in the "very near future" by officers investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, Portuguese police have told the BBC.

It is understood UK police have already asked Portuguese authorities if they can speak to three people of interest.

But the Portuguese now say more than three suspects will be interviewed by their officers.

...more at link
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-27745593

Video report at link
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-27748671

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Search for Madeleine McCann to move to new site around water treatment plant as police prepare to interview eight suspects including three drug dealers

• Officers due to start scouring area near Praia da Luz resort on Wednesday
  
• Police will focus on area by a small water sub-station, farmhouse and well
  
• Heroin addict Euclides Monteiro working at water and sewage plant
  
• It was four miles from Ocean Club where she was staying with parents

By Andrew Young In Praia Da Luz, Portugal and Paul Bentley
Published: 01:19 GMT, 8 June 2014 | Updated: 14:38 GMT, 8 June 2014

The search for Madeleine McCann is to move to scrubland around a water treatment plant where a prime suspect may have worked.

Portuguese police sources have revealed that British officers are due to start scouring the area near the resort of Praia da Luz on Wednesday.

A fingertip search of wasteland in the centre of Praia da Luz is due to be completed today.

It comes as it has emerged Scotland Yard detectives searching for Madeleine in Portugal have been granted permission to question their prime suspects.

Police identified eight local men earlier this year who they believe could hold the key to solving the mystery of Madeleine’s disappearance.

The suspects, three of whom are convicted drug dealers, were traced from phone records linking them to Praia da Luz on the night Madeleine was last seen alive.

Officers will next turn their focus to two areas by a small water treatment sub-station, a derelict farmhouse and an abandoned well, in their search.

Heroin addict Euclides Monteiro was working at a water and sewage plant in Lagos, four miles from the Ocean Club in Praia da Luz where Madeleine was staying with her parents, Gerry and Kate.

...more at link
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... spect.html

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light