Sainde, Germany Police say a German national was investigated for the disappearance of a child Madeleine McCann in the UK 18 years ago, and the country was released from prison on Wednesday after serving a sentence in an unrelated case.
The man was identified by the media as Christian Brückner, whose sentence lasted seven years, stemmed from his 2019 charge of rape of a 72-year-old American woman in Portugal.
A car accompanied by several police vans drove out of the prison in Sehnde near Hannover in northern Hanover Germanyon Wednesday morning. Police confirmed that the man had left.
German prosecutors said in June 2020 that the man was investigated for alleged murder, who was murdered on May 3, 2007 from the apartment building of Praia da Luz in the Portuguese resort. They said they thought the girl was dead.
Police have since conducted more searches in Portugal. But the suspect denied any involvement in her disappearance, but was not charged. The investigation is not affected by his release. He remains an investigation into McCann’s disappearance by the UK Metropolitan Police, who said he declined their request for interview.
His attorney, Friedrich Fülscher, said that if there is enough evidence, a lawsuit will be filed against his client.
The 48-year-old spent many years in Portugal, including the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz when Madeline was missing.
United Kingdom, Portugal and Germany What happened to Madeleine, 3, that night is still pieced together. She was in the same room with her siblings (twins of 2 years old), while their parents, Kate and Gerry, had dinner with friends at a nearby restaurant.
Last year, the suspect was tried on several unrelated sexual offences committed in Portugal between 2000 and 2017 and was acquitted in October. The Chairman’s Justice said the evidence was not sufficient for conviction and the court heard from unreliable witnesses that some were affected by media reports from the accused.
The state court in Hildeshm state said it could not legally disclose whether he had to fulfill any conditions after his release. But Fülscher confirmed to the regional public broadcaster NDR that his clients will be required to wear electronic foot tags, report to probation services regularly and waive their passport. German weekly Der Spiegel first reported the decision without naming resources.
He is still facing a court date in Oldenburg, northwest on October 27 Germany In the event that he was accused of insulting prison employees. A district court in the city sentenced him to six weeks in prison for this, but the defense appealed.
