A latest Madeleine McCann search carried out by German and Portuguese teams has taken place near to where she disappeared and now we will wait to see what they have found
For three days we stood on a windswept headland, desperate for any sign of a development in the long-running Madeleine McCann mystery.
German officers armed with pick-axes, shovels, hi-tech radar and chainsaws painstakingly searched for clues that could solve the case. We saw them carrying away boxes of soil, a children’s car seat and white bags filled with unknown contents. And then it all came to an end. As quickly as the German and Portuguese search teams arrived, they were gone, after cordial handshakes and a round of applause. German detectives handed a crate of beer to Policia Judiciaria officers as a thank you – but there appeared little to celebrate.
As with previous searches, we now wait and see what they found. But it’s very apparent they didn’t find the one thing they were hoping to discover – Madeleine’s body.
German authorities believe they have identified the man responsible for her abduction and murder. But Christian Brueckner appears no nearer to being charged.
In fact he is now three days nearer to his release from a German prison, possibly as soon as September. I filed my report saying the search had ended without success.
But what does success mean to Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry. Would finding their daughter’s body be a success for them? Or is it a success that they did not make that grim discovery – leaving open the prospect that she could still be found alive?
It is impossible to know what must have been going through their minds over the past three days. But the sad fact is the mystery of her disappearance in May 2007 still remains unsolved. And the clock counting down the days until Brueckner’s release is ticking louder than ever.