By CECÍLIA PIRES
PORTUGUESE POLICE have refused to confirm or deny reports that the search operations carried out in recent days in Praia da Luz are the result of suspicions that Kate and Gerry McCann were involved in the disappearance of their daughter, Madeleine.
Daily newspapers in Portugal have been running stories quoting police sources saying that investigators using a special sniffer dog had found traces of blood in the apartment where the McCanns were staying at the time of the disappearance of Madeleine on May 3.
Chief Inspector Olegário Sousa, told The Resident that the claims “are not confirmed by the Policia Judiciária.”
He said the searches in the area are a fact but said there is no confirmation about any new possible evidence discovered. He also admitted that two English dogs were used at different times in recent days, but refused to explain why.
According to Olegário Sousa, one of the dogs is trained to trace smells, including bodies in decomposition, while the other dog is trained to find traces of several things, including blood.
However, the PJ inspector would not confirm if anything was found, adding that “even if anything had been found, it would be necessary to wait for the forensic analysis to say that a certain blood trace belonged to a certain person.”
And he described as “perfect nonsense” the fact that some Portuguese daily newspapers were saying that the dogs had found the blood of a dead person.
