Police use X-ray machines and digger to search scrubland and abandoned buildings 6km from where Madeleine McCann went missing
©Press Association
Today at 21:30
Police are continuing to scour scrubland and abandoned buildings in the second day of the latest searches for missing Madeleine McCann.
Teams of German and Portuguese police officers, as well as firefighters, face the daunting task of hunting for evidence 18 years on from the disappearance of the British three-year-old in 2007.
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Irish Daily Mirror
39 minutes ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Eerie 5 words man at centre of new Maddie McCann theory 'was overheard saying'
A British man has been thrust into the spotlight with a shocking new theory about Madeleine McCann's vanishing, after he was allegedly overheard uttering five spine-chilling words. Reports today claim that German prosecutors have turned down a probe into a couple suspected of accidentally hitting Madeleine during a drink-driving incident. The Portuguese paper Correio da Manhã reports that Portuguese officials pressed for action following a harrowing tip from a British woman who suspected her brother and his German partner might be concealing the truth about Madeleine's fate. She expressed to the police her concern that her brother might be hiding a dark secret. Portuguese detectives requested permission from German authorities to send in an undercover officer with a false identity to cosy up to the wife, who is thought to have been driving the car that supposedly hit Madeleine. However, it's reported that the Germans knocked back the request. The tabloid disclosed that the British sister of the man at the heart of this latest theory alerted UK police back in 2018. "German prosecutors were asked to authorise a covert police operation with someone posing as a friend of the woman's and trying to get her to confess, but the courts refused," the newspaper stated, reports the Mirror. "It was decided to continue solely with the investigation into suspect Christian Brueckner, rejecting other possibilities." The newspaper Correio da Manha has cast suspicion over a mystery couple, describing the British man and his wife as "alcoholics". The report places the wife in a café near the Ocean Club where she'd been "drinking" on the night Madeleine McCann vanished from the Algarve resort. Additionally, Correio da Manha cites another witness, said to be the couple's neighbour, who told police she overheard them arguing the following day, with the man shouting: "Why did you bring her?". Portuguese authorities allege their efforts were rebuffed by the German police when they suggested the woman could have driven home "drunk" with Madeleine after a possible accident. Sadly, the British man identified in the claims has since passed away, with no word on whether his German partner is still living. Correio da Manha's headline story stated today: "The German police refused to co-operate with Portugal's Policia Judiciaria in the investigation of a clue that pointed towards Madeleine McCann being run over." Furthermore, the paper details how in 2018, a British woman approached UK police suspecting her brother's involvement in young Madeleine's disappearance, mentioning he was an alcoholic who seemed tormented by a heavy secret post the child's disappearance. "When British police exchanged information with the PJ, a coincidence was discovered. On 4 May 2007 a woman told police she had heard her neighbours arguing. They were both alcoholics, he was English and she was German, and she heard the man shouting repeatedly: 'Why did you bring her?'. "The neighbour discovered afterwards it was the man whose sister had reported him to police and was married to the woman who had been drinking in a café next to the Ocean Club where little Madeleine was staying with her parents and twin siblings. "Another report the police had indicated that in an identical car to the one the woman was then using, around the time of Madeleine's disappearance, a female and little girl had been seen inside. The PJ concluded she could have run Madeleine over and panicked." The newspaper also claimed the mystery British man had always "refused to tell his sister if he had been involved in Madeleine's death" before she alerted the authorities. Portuguese police are yet to respond to the Correio da Manha newspaper report. German police yesterday wrapped up a three-day search on the ground near prime suspect Christian Brueckner's old cottage home close to Praia da Luz where Madeleine disappeared on 3 May, 2007.
The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Woman appears in court charged with murdering mum ‘found buried in garden' 15 years after she vanished
A WOMAN has appeared in court charged with murdering a mum "found buried in a garden" 15 years after she vanished. Izabela Zablocka disappeared on August 28, 2010, after speaking to her family in Poland. 3 Izabela Zablocka vanished 15 years ago Credit: PA Police launched a murder probe two weeks ago after new information came to light. Human remains, believed to belong to Izabela, were then found in the garden of a home in Normanton, Derbyshire. Anna Podedworna appeared at Derbyshire Magistrates' Court today charged with murder. The 39-year-old is also accused of preventing a lawful burial and perverting the course of justice. Read more news Podedworna spoke only to confirm her name, date of birth and address during the hearing. She was remanded into custody to next appear at Derby Crown Court on Monday. Five people have been arrested as part of the murder investigation , including two women aged 39 and 43. All five have bailed pending further inquiries, Derbyshire Police confirmed. Most read in The Sun Izabela came to the UK from Poland in 2009 and worked at the former Cranberry Foods Turkey and Chicken Factory. Her family reported her missing to Polish police in August 2010 but the report never reached British cops. Her daughter Kasia, who was nine at the time of her mum's disappearance, contacted Derbyshire Police in May. She spoke out after the body was found, telling The Sun: "I definitely want to know the truth as soon as possible." Samanatha Shallow, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor in the East Midlands, said: 'Following a review of the evidence provided by Derbyshire Constabulary, we have authorised criminal charges in relation to the death of Izabela Zablocka 'Ms Zablocka went missing in August 2010, when she was aged 30. Her body was recovered in Derby on 1 June 2025. 'Anna Podedworna, 39, from Derby, has been charged with her murder. She has also been charged with preventing a lawful and decent burial and perverting the course of justice. 'Our thoughts remain with the family of Ms Zablocka at this time." Crimestoppers is offering a £20,000 reward for information, which expires on August 27. Anyone with information can call the charity anonymously on 0800 555 111. 3 Izabela's daughter Kasia contacted the police about her mum's disappearance Credit: Kasia Zabłocka 3 Human remains were found in Derbyshire Credit: SWNS
Irish Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Mystery couple at centre of bombshell new theory on Maddie McCann disappearance
New bombshell claims have emerged in the Madeleine McCann case with reports that the three-year-old was killed in a drink-driving accident and her body spirited away by a drunken couple. The latest theory was reportedly not acted upon by officials in Germany, despite Portuguese authorities requesting an investigation into a British man and his German wife. The claims include that the man's UK-based sister tipped off cops. But Portuguese media reports the German authorities rejected a request to use an undercover police officer with a fake identity to try to befriend the female suspect. The woman was allegedly driving a car that hit Madeleine whilst under the influence of alcohol, Portuguese daily Correio da Manha claimed today. Follow our liveblog below for go to our homepage for all the latest headlines. A British woman is reported to have tipped off police as long ago as 2018. She is the sister of an unnamed man at the centre of a new theory about Madeleine's disappearance. Describing the mystery couple - a British man and his German wife - as 'alcoholics' they place the woman in a cafe near the Ocean Club where she had been 'drinking' the night Madeleine went missing from the Algarve resort. The Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha has claimed: "German prosecutors were asked to authorise a covert police operation with someone posing as a friend of the woman's and trying to get her to confess, but the courts refused. "It was decided to continue solely with the investigation into suspect Christian Brueckner, rejecting other possibilities.' It has been claimed that the woman of the British man told investigators that she heard the man yelling: 'Why did you bring her?' Portuguese police are reportedly said to have got the knock-back from the Germans after urging them to look more closely into the possibility the woman they were tipped off about had driven home 'drunk' with Maddie after knocking her down and enlisted her husband's help in disposing of the "youngster's body at sea."
