By: CECÍLIA PIRES
TWO MONTHS after the disappearance of Madeleine, Gerry and Kate McCann believe their daughter could still be in the region and said there continued to be excellent cooperation with the local police investigators.
At a press conference on Tuesday (July 3), the McCanns said they were not convinced that she was taken away from the Praia da Luz area. This belief seems to be shared by the Portuguese Police, who are still investigating the area around the resort. However, they open up the search area whenever a new lead comes up.
That, said the police, was the case of a couple’s arrest last week in the south of Spain, near Algeciras. Despite the case now being under “secrecy of justice” by a Spanish court order, the local police previously revealed the couple had supplied the McCanns with false information about the whereabouts of Madeleine. They had done this, it was said, to get the reward money from them.
Because of the “secrecy of justice” system, the Portuguese Polícia Judiciária investigators are more and more discreet about any new leads.
They say they’re still waiting for forensic analysis results and confiscated material from the Morocco and Malta leads, where several people said they had spotted Madeleine two weeks ago.
Now, say the McCanns, “each day is incredibly difficult to spend without Madeleine”.
The family’s efforts to find their daughter are now more focused on the police investigations.
“Our frequent meetings with the police help us stay informed, allow us to feed information into the investigation and let clarify information with senior officers conducting the investigation,” said Gerry.
The McCanns have recently moved with the twins from the Ocean Club Resort to a private villa, also in Praia da Luz.
“It took longer than we expected,” said Gerry about the move, saying the thousands of letters of support and all the new toys received made things more difficult.
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