'I've covered Madeleine McCann for 18 years - I pray new search solves the case'
The German police officer stood on the partially-collapsed roof of the abandoned farmhouse, pick-axe in hand. Less than 100 yards away, holidaymakers walked hand-in-hand along the coastal path linking Praia da Luz and Lagos in Portugal.
The only sign that something terrible might have happened on this clifftop was police tape cordoning off the scene. The tourists looking out at the choppy Atlantic Ocean probably had no idea why dozens of officers were there. But the rest of the world now does - they were looking for the remains of Madeleine McCann. I have covered this sad story for over 18 years and have witnessed these type of searches first-hand on numerous occasions.
First it was British police officers digging up and cutting back wasteland in the centre of Praia da Luz. Then it was the turn of German officers to carry out searches close to the home of prime suspect Christian Brueckner.
Each search follows a familiar pattern. Overseas police forces are granted permission by Portuguese authorities to hunt for clues that could solve the case.
Unnamed Portuguese officials then dismiss the probes, saying they are wasting their time. Bored-looking uniformed Policia Judiciaria officers man the cordons as the world's media try to catch glimpses of the searches.
And finally, the British and the Germans return home empty-handed and life returns to normal on the Algarve. This time it feels slightly different.
It feels like it's last-chance saloon for the German investigation - with Brueckner due to be released in months. Their public announcement claiming they had evidence that Madeleine was abducted and had been killed stunned the world in June 2020.
But nothing has emerged since that makes me think they have definitely got their man. I really hope this search will be the one that solves Madeleine's disappearance.
German authorities clearly have intelligence linking the abandoned farmhouse in Atalaia to their main suspect. It is a ten-minute drive from Brueckner's ramshackle former home on the outskirts of Praia da Luz.
The site is also close to 'Rocha Negra' - Black Rock - a lookout point where Kate and Gerry McCann would regularly jog to. Whether the search teams discover any significant this time round remains to be seen.
Meanwhile Madeleine's parents, and the world, continue to pray.
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