Latest news with #BritishPolice
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Former Portuguese detective says new search for Madeleine McCann is over the top and German police 'have got nothing' on Christian Brueckner as hunt for clues continues
Disgraced former Portuguese police chief Goncalo Amaral has branded the new Madeleine McCann searches over the top and wheeled out a sick theory about her disappearance. The ex-detective, who was sued over a 2008 book about the 18-year-old mystery in which he pointed the finger at the missing youngster's parents, also accused his own former police force of 'connivance' with 'shoddy' German cops in a foul-mouthed blast 24 hours after the start of a fresh operation to find Maddie's body. Amaral, thrown off the Madeleine investigation in 2008 after publicly criticising British police involved in the case, revealed his theory to Portuguese daily Correio da Manha. He claimed of the fresh searches that are taking place near suspect Christian Brueckner 's old cottage close to the Algarve holiday resort of Praia da Luz where Madeleine vanished on May 3 2007 as her parents Kate and Gerry ate tapas: 'This much wasn't needed. 'A plane with geo-radar would have been enough and reduced the search area.' He added: 'The Germans should have had nothing to do with the investigation. This was a British police strategy with support from the Portuguese police.' Firefighters and search teams check a well at a derelict and abandoned property to the west of Praia De Luz, Portugal, where searches are being carried out by officers investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann Amaral repeated earlier claims convicted paedophile Brueckner was a scapegoat. He told Correio da Manha: 'There's nothing on him. I'm not trying to defend him, he's not a flower you'd want to smell, but I've never seen such shoddy work as the German police's. 'We've already searched the area that's being looked at now, there's nothing new. 'We're abdicating our technical competence. We're not being complacent anymore, we're conniving.' Taking a new dig at Maddie's parents without naming them and fuelling hurtful troll claims about them which have been debunked by Portuguese police, he added: 'This show came in handy for the British to divert attention from the principal focus. 'Normal suspects in child disappearances are people with a duty of care towards them.' Amaral went on to put another bizarre theory into the mix with an allegation he has made before and investigators have ruled out, focusing on a coffin 'incineration' in the municipality of Ferreira do Alentejo a near-two-hour drive north-east of Praia da Luz. He spouted: 'There are strong indications Madeleine's body was placed under another in a coffin in Praia da Luz that was incinerated in Ferreira do Alentejo.' Amaral has continued to make hurt claims about Madeleine's parents since his 2008 book in which he accused them of covering up her 'accidental' death in their holiday apartment. The ex-cop's claims about them were dismissed years ago by Portuguese police and Scotland Yard detectives. Amaral described the last German police searches in Portugal two years ago, at the Arade Dam a 40-minute drive away from Praia da Luz, as another attempt to 'frame' Brueckner after being given a previous platform to air his controversial opinions. He told Portuguese media outlet Sabado at the time: 'In a simple analysis, I see there is no new investigation and what is occurring is more a case of constructing a profile and a scapegoat.'
Washington Post
3 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Fourth man arrested over fires at properties linked to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer
LONDON — British police said Monday that a fourth man has been arrested in connection to a series of fires at properties and a car linked to Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The 48-year-old man, who hasn't been identified, was arrested at Stansted Airport near London on Monday on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life.
Reuters
3 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
UK police arrest fourth man over fires linked to PM Starmer
LONDON, June 2 (Reuters) - British police on Monday arrested a fourth man as part of an investigation into a series of fires linked to Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The 48-year-old man, who was arrested at London Stansted Airport, was initially stopped by officers under the Terrorism Act, before being arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life, the police statement said.
Japan Times
28-05-2025
- General
- Japan Times
Man arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after Liverpool parade crash
A 53-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, dangerous driving and driving while unfit through drugs after a car ploughed into a crowd of Liverpool fans during a Premier League title parade, injuring more than 50, British police said. Eleven people remained in the hospital in stable condition on Tuesday, police said, adding that they all appeared to be recovering well. British police believe the incident, in a packed Liverpool city center on Monday, was isolated and not an act of terrorism. They said the driver of the gray Ford Galaxy minivan involved in the incident was believed to have followed an ambulance into a closed street when a road block was lifted to allow paramedics to attend to a suspected heart attack victim. Videos posted online showed the vehicle driving through the street crowded with fans, sending several flying into the air and dragging at least four under its wheels. When the vehicle stopped, angry people converged on it and began smashing the windows as police officers battled to prevent them from reaching the driver. Police said 50 people, including children, had been treated for their injuries, with 11 still in the hospital. "They are all in a stable condition, and I am pleased to say that they appear to be recovering well," Deputy Chief Constable Jenny Sims said. King Charles III, who is visiting Canada, said he was "deeply shocked and saddened to hear of the terrible events." His sister, Princess Anne, met medics who had treated some of the injured at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital. With most people off work for the Spring Bank Holiday, officials estimated that around 1 million people descended on the 16-kilometer parade route to watch the Liverpool team travel through the city on an open-top bus with the Premier League trophy. Liverpool last won the league in 2020, ending a 30-year-wait, but fans were unable to celebrate due to lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Police said the car hit the spectators as the event was winding down. In the aftermath, a Reuters photographer saw emergency services carrying victims on stretchers and in their arms to nearby ambulances. One source told MailOnline that it looked like the driver panicked when he realized he was in the crowd and people started banging on his car. The driver, who was sounding his horn, reversed and then accelerated forward, according to reports from other witnesses. Police were unusually quick to provide a description of the man they arrested, saying around two hours after the incident he was a "53-year-old white British man from the Liverpool area." Former police officers and local politicians said that statement was needed to cool social media speculation that the episode was an Islamist attack. "That was one of my first concerns, that we needed to get the story out quickly," Mayor of Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram told the BBC. "If there's a vacuum, we know there are some elements that will try to inflame the situation and to create that speculation and to put misinformation out there." The same police force oversaw the response to the murder of three young girls in the nearby town of Southport last year, an incident which sparked days of rioting, fueled initially by speculation online over the identity of the attacker.
CNA
27-05-2025
- General
- CNA
Man arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after Liverpool parade crash
LIVERPOOL, England: A 53-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, dangerous driving and driving while unfit through drugs after a car ploughed into a crowd of Liverpool fans during a Premier League title parade, injuring more than 50, British police said. Eleven victims remained in hospital in a stable condition on Tuesday (May 27), police said, adding that they all appeared to be recovering well. British police believe the incident, in a packed Liverpool city centre on Monday, was isolated and not an act of terrorism. They said the driver of the grey Ford Galaxy people-carrier involved in the incident was believed to have followed an ambulance into a closed street when a road block was lifted to allow paramedics to attend to a suspected heart attack victim. Videos posted online showed the vehicle driving through the street crowded with fans, sending several flying into the air and dragging at least four under its wheels. When the vehicle stopped, angry people converged on it and began smashing the windows as police officers battled to prevent them from reaching the driver. Police said 50 people, including children, had been treated for their injuries, with 11 still in hospital. "They are all in a stable condition, and I am pleased to say that they appear to be recovering well," Deputy Chief Constable Jenny Sims said. King Charles, who is visiting Canada, said he was "deeply shocked and saddened to hear of the terrible events". His sister, Princess Anne, met medics who had treated some of the injured at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital. A MILLION PEOPLE With most people off work for the Spring Bank Holiday, officials estimated that around 1 million people descended on the 16km parade route to watch the Liverpool team travel through the city on an open-top bus with the Premier League trophy. Liverpool last won the league in 2020, ending a 30-year wait, but fans were unable to celebrate due to lockdowns during the pandemic. Police said the car hit the spectators as the event was winding down. In the aftermath, a Reuters photographer saw emergency services carrying victims on stretchers and in their arms to nearby ambulances. One source told MailOnline that it looked like the driver panicked when he realised he was in the crowd and people started banging on his car. The driver, who was sounding his horn, reversed and then accelerated forward, according to reports from other witnesses. Police were unusually quick to describe the man they arrested, saying around two hours after the incident he was a "53-year-old white British man from the Liverpool area". Former police officers and local politicians said that statement was needed to cool social media speculation that the episode was an Islamist attack. "That was one of my first concerns, that we needed to get the story out quickly," Mayor of Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram told the BBC. "If there's a vacuum, we know there are some elements that will try to inflame the situation and to create that speculation and to put misinformation out there." The same police force oversaw the response to the murder of three young girls in the nearby town of Southport last year, an incident which sparked days of rioting, fuelled initially by speculation online over the identity of the attacker.
