Police conclude search in Portuguese reservoir
Portuguese police have confirmed their latest search for Madeleine McCann in a reservoir has concluded after three days.
Police said in a statement the collected material would be sent to Germany to be analysed, though there was no indication of what had been found or whether it was conclusive.
Police were searching the Barragem do Arade reservoir in the Algarve, southern Portugal, on the request of German investigators.
Their prime suspect is convicted sex offender Christian Brueckner. Portuguese newspaper Correia da Manha reported recently that German police have videos and pictures of Brueckner at the dam.
German police believe the 45-year-old killed Madeleine, who was three when she went missing, after abducting her from her holiday apartment.
Brueckner was made an official suspect in the case in April 2022. Last year, he denied allegations that he was involved in Madeleine’s disappearance.
This is the first major operation in the investigation since 2014 when British police were granted permission to dig in Praia da Luz.
A large section of the reservoir was cordoned off on Tuesday as police divers entered the water at the reservoir that morning where they were reportedly using technology to detect human remains buried underwater. The cordon has since been lifted as of Thursday night.
Sniffer dogs were also deployed while other officers were seen with rakes and metal rods preparing to search the ground.
Before the end of the search, prosecutor Christian Wolters told Reuters: “Of course there is a certain expectation, but it is not high.”
He added that the investigators were looking for the body, but also for anything that could help the investigation, such as clothing: “A lot is conceivable.”
He did not expect the results of the studies of the collected samples to be announced any time soon.
With additional reporting from agencies.
