15.20 AUGUST 7, 2007
KATE AND GERRY McCann are to be interviewed again about the disappearance of their daughter as PJ investigators look again at all the evidence that the couple and their friends have given.
A source close to the investigation said the fresh interviews were part of a standard review of the case and were not linked to the discovery of what is thought to be specks of blood in the bedroom where Madeleine was sleeping.
The substance which was found on a wall by a British sniffer dog last week has been sent for DNA analysis. However, it is understood said that hundreds of the visitors have stayed in the two-bedroom apartment in Praia da Luz in recent years.
In a television interview today (Tuesday) the couple refused to discuss the reports of the blood traces.
Gerry McCann said: “Kate and I believe that Madeleine was alive when she was taken from the apartment.
“We’re not naive, but on numerous occasions the Portuguese police have said they are looking for Madeleine alive. I don’t know of any information to have changed that.
“They are working incredibly hard and very long hours. They are absolutely determined to find Madeleine.”
Kate McCann said: “We are very happy with the way the investigation is going and we have said that from an early stage.”
Police are expected to ask the McCanns to confirm their movements and those of the seven other British adults who were on holiday with them in the Algarve when Madeleine disappeared.
They will be questioned separately at the headquarters of the Polícia Judiciária in Portimao as part of a review led by British detectives of the entire investigation. They have already been interviewed twice at the headquarters.
It has also emerged today that a four-wheel drive car used by the couple on their holiday in Praia da Luz was still being tested by forensic science experts and sniffer dogs.
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