Madeleine McCann: Police compare soil from Portuguese reservoir to samples found in Christian Brueckner’s van

Soil from a reservoir in Portugal searched by police last month is being compared with samples from main suspect Christian Brueckner’s camper van, according to reports. Detectives in the case believe Brueckner visited the remote reservoir in Portugal in the days after Madeleine disappeared.

After launching a major search of the area last month, police now hope they can prove that Brueckner’s van was in the area at the time the three-year-old was abducted. An insider told the Daily Mirror, that if the soil sample analysis reveals a “positive match”, police may be able to further “close the net” around Brueckner, 45, who has not yet been charged.

Madeleine went missing from a holiday apartment in Praia De Luz aged three while her parents, Gerry and Kate McCan were out at a nearby resort restaurant. The disappearance sparked a major search which is still unsolved to this day.

In June 2020, German police authorities said they believed a man in their custody, Christian Brueckner, was responsible for Madeleine’s kidnapping and believed that he murdered the British child after taking her. Brueckner is currently serving a prison sentence for rape and has never been charged over Madeleine’s disappearance, denying any involvement.