British police have reportedly flown to Portugal to question former pals of Madeleine McCann prime suspect Christian Brueckner
British police have covertly travelled to Portugal to interview former associates of Madeleine McCann prime suspect Christian Brueckner.
The pair, who housed the convicted sex offender several months prior to Madeleine’s vanishing in Praia da Luz in 2007, were grilled for numerous hours in Faro. Metropolitan Police officers are reported to have secretly jetted to Portugal to speak with Elke Piro, 69, and her husband Bernhard, 72, both of whom have been acquainted with Brueckner for several years.
This development comes as the fiend was transferred to a fresh location in Germany following completion of a seven-year prison term for raping an elderly American woman in the same resort where Madeleine vanished two years prior to her disappearance.
Elke, a German citizen, remains convinced that Brueckner “did something bad” to Madeleine, who was merely three years old when she was reported missing.
She told The Sun: “The British police interviewed us a few days ago but I’m sad because I wasn’t able to tell them anything I haven’t said before.”
“It’s frustrating because I got to know Christian over many years and believe he did something bad to Maddie. My hope now is the police can find a way to bring him to trial in the UK. That would be wonderful. I will be happy to co-operate and testify in court if needed.”
Having known Brueckner intimately, she suspects he probably encountered the slumbering toddler whilst ransacking her parents’ flat for cash. She suggested he may have committed something “terrible” to the child and subsequently “panicked”.
Elke expressed her regret over the couple ever crossing paths with the paedophile, who revealed his horrific criminal past to them.
Former Met Police chief Sir Mark Rowley hinted that Brueckner could be extradited to the UK if fresh evidence about Madeleine’s case emerges.
Operation Grange – the Met’s own probe into the little girl’s disappearance – seems to be intensifying after German investigators failed to secure charges in the 18-year-long investigation.
The Mirror has contacted the Met for additional comment.
According to an anonymous source quoted by The Sun, Met detectives were greeted by their counterparts from the Portuguese Judicial Police before separately interviewing the Piros at a police station in Faro as witnesses.
The couple became entwined with the depraved paedophile after meeting him in 1995 on the Algarve. They maintained contact until 2018.
This isn’t the first time they’ve been interviewed by detectives, with German and Portuguese officers having previously questioned them.
Bernhard characterised Brueckner as a “classic sociopath” and has voiced his remorse for allowing him to stay with them in Barrocal, their home near Praia da Luz.
Elke described Brueckner as having two personalities. He could be gentle and kind at times, but would become “crazy” and sex-obsessed when he drank.
She added that he was an alcoholic and often spent the entire day drinking.
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