Maddie McCann’s parents release statement after formal suspect named over disappearance

Kate and Gerry McCann have 'not given up hope'

Kate and Gerry McCann have issued an official statement after police declared the first formal suspect in their daughter's disappearance in nearly 15 years on Friday. Welcoming the news that Portuguese authorities have now named an "arguido" (a named suspect), the pair wrote: "This reflects progress in the investigation, being conducted by the Portuguese, German and British authorities. We are kept informed of developments by the Metropolitan Police." They go on to add that "it is important to note the 'arguido' has not yet been charged with any specific crime related to Madeleine's disappearance". Finally, they conclude their statement by stating that, "even though the possibility may be slim, we have not given up hope that Madeleine is still alive and we will be reunited with her." Maddie McCann went missing from the Ocean Club apartments in Praia da Luz, Portugal on May 3, 2007. She was just three years old at the time of her disappearance and would now be 18-years-old if found alive. Earlier this year, it was thought that the near-15-year case, dubbed "Operation Grange" by law enforcement, could finally be closed after it was estimated that north of £12.5 million had been spent on the investigation. Little progress had been made in over a decade and a half since the high-profile missing persons case began until the formal suspect, now being referred to as Christian B, first became a person of interest following his arrest in the summer of 2020. A central subject in an upcoming documentary on Maddie's disapperance, efforts from multiple authorities to confirm suspicions surrounding the suspect included police officers going undercover in the German prison where he was already serving time as a convincted paedophile. Once again, the German individual, 44, has not yet been charged in connection to the case.

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