tagged w/ British Police
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Portuguese police are dropping their investigation into the disappearance of toddler Madeleine McCann due to a lack of evidence, media reported Tuesday.
Three Portuguese newspapers said the Public Prosecutor's office would call off its search for the British girl before Aug. 15, when the customary official secrecy period covering the investigation ends.
Closing the case would mean that official suspects, including Madeleine's parents, would no longer be under formal investigation.
Police could reopen the case if new evidence were to emerge, the newspapers said.
The three -- Correio da Manha, Jornal de Noticias and Expresso -- cited unidentified police sources saying the 14-month investigation had reached a dead end.
The police media office in Lisbon said there was no official comment on the reports.
Madeleine McCann went missing in Portugal's southern Algarve region during a family vacation in May 2007, a few days before her fourth birthday. Detectives named her parents, Kate and Gerry, and local man Robert Murat as formal suspects in the case. All denied involvement in Madeleine's disappearance.
The Portuguese lawyers for the suspects could not immediately be reached by telephone.
The McCanns, who have waged an international campaign to find their daughter, returned home to central England with Madeleine's younger sister and brother last September, a few days after they were named as suspects.
Clarence Mitchell, the parents' spokesman, said they were trying to confirm Tuesday's media reports but said he expected the search for Madeleine to continue.
"The information in their files surely cannot sit on the shelf gathering dust. Kate and Gerry will never give up searching for their daughter," Mitchell said.
He said that if Portuguese police end their inquiry they should hand their files over to the McCanns' private investigators.
"The police themselves must continue looking for Madeleine. We are concerned that if they are to simply shelve the case then what will happen to all of the information in their files? They must be made available to our investigators, who are working extremely hard to find Madeleine," Mitchell said.
The case has drawn global interest. A few weeks after Madeleine vanished, Pope Benedict XVI blessed the McCanns and a photo of their daughter during his weekly general audience at the Vatican. Numerous reported sightings of the blonde-haired girl proved to be false.
British and Portuguese police have cooperated in the investigation. Sophisticated forensic tests on evidence gathered at the resort where the girl disappeared were carried out in Britain.
In April, British police in England, accompanied by Portuguese detectives, re-interviewed the McCanns' friends, who were having dinner with them when Madeleine vanished.
Portuguese police are dropping their investigation into the disappearance of toddler... more
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As of today, the Metropolitan Police will issue Tasers to all of its previously unarmed officers. They are saying the stun guns will provide an often needed method of non-deadly force to control an adrenaline-crazed criminal. Even though Amnesty International links the weapons to more than 70 deaths, and the Taser has been getting a lot of bad press recently, the UK police maintain that 'there have been "no severe or adverse reactions" since Taser was introduced in 2003.' Hmmm... maybe not in the UK anyways. Should police officers be armed with Tasers?As of today, the Metropolitan Police will issue Tasers to all of its previously... more
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Police have identified a second body, at the former home of Peter Tobin, as a teenage girl that has been missing since 1991. Forensic archeologists have discovered 10 other "hotspots" using ground penetrating radar that are still being investigated. Police have reopened the cases of 4 unsolved murders in hopes that they can be solved using new evidence found since Tobin's arrest.Police have identified a second body, at the former home of Peter Tobin, as a teenage... more
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Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair looks on during a questioning session by the London Assembly at City Hall on November 7, 2007 in London. Sir Ian Blair will have to wait a fortnight before finding out whether he will be sacked as the Metropolitan police commissioner. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair looks on during a questioning session... more
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Sir Ian Blair will again find himself fighting to keep his job today when an official report into the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes highlights multiple errors that led to his death and identifies 16 areas where police must change to prevent a repeat of the tragedy. The report by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) will intensify the pressure on the Metropolitan police commissioner to resign, and will also criticise Sir Ian's decision to try to scupper their independent investigation into the shooting by asking the home secretary to block it.Sir Ian Blair will again find himself fighting to keep his job today when an official... more
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The Metropolitan police are found guilty of "health and safety" charges brought against them in regards to the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes in the London Underground.The Metropolitan police are found guilty of "health and safety" charges... more
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An Old Bailey jury has found the Metropolitan Police guilty of health and safety failures in the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell Tube station on 22 July 2005.An Old Bailey jury has found the Metropolitan Police guilty of health and safety... more
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- Met convicted for failings that led to De Menezes death
· Tories and Lib Dems demand resignation
· Commissioner says shooting was an isolated tragedy
Sir Ian Blair vowed yesterday to stay on as Britain's top police officer, despite sustained calls for his resignation, after his force was found guilty of "catastrophic" failings that led to the shooting dead of Jean Charles de Menezes.
An Old Bailey jury found the Metropolitan police guilty of breaking health and safety law in July 2005 when De Menezes was killed after being mistaken for a suicide bomber. Fining the force £175,000 and ordering it to pay £385,000 in costs, judge Mr Justice Henriques called on the force to learn lessons.- Met convicted for failings that led to De Menezes death
· Tories and Lib... more
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Despite the shooting dead at point blank range of an innocent man, no one - neither a person nor organisation - was on trial at the Old Bailey for murder or manslaughter. Jean Charles de Menezes was shot dead by police after being mistaken for a suicide bomber in July 2005. Instead, the police have been charged with failing to protect the public in London.Despite the shooting dead at point blank range of an innocent man, no one - neither a... more
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