How the disappearance of Maddie McCann has unfolded over 11 years

2007 May 3: Gerry and Kate McCann leave their three children, including Maddie, asleep in their hotel apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, as they eat with friends in a nearby restaurant. Meanwhile, airports and borders are put on high alert as search gets underway May 14: Robert Mural, a property developer who lives a few yards from the hotel, is made a suspect by Portuguese police May 30: The McCanns meet the Pope in Rome in a bid to bring worldwide attention to the search August 11: Police in Portugal acknowledge for the first time in the investigation that Maddie might be dead. Two days later the family flies back to England 2008 July 21: Spanish police remove the McCanns and Mr Mural as official suspects as the case is shelved 2009 May 1: A computer-generated image of what Maddie could look like two years after she disappeared is released by the McCanns 2011 May 12: A review into the disappearance is launched by Scotland Yard, following a plea from then-Home Secretary Theresa May 2012 April 25: After a year of reviewing the case, Scotland Yard announce they belief that Maddie could be alive and call on police in Portugal to reopen the case, but it falls on deaf ears amid 'a lack of new evidence' Kate and Gerry McCann mark the fourth anniversary of the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine with the publication of the book written by her mother in 2011 2013 July 4: Scotland Yard opens new investigation and claim to have identified 38 'people of interest' October 24: A review into the investigation is opened by Portuguese police and new lines of inquiry are discovered, forcing them to reopen the case 2014 January 29: British officers arrive in Portugal as a detailed investigation takes place. During the year, several locations are searched, including an area of scrubland near the resort 2015 October 28: British police announce that team investigating Maddie's disappearance is reduced from 29 officers to just four, as it is also revealed that the investigation has cost £10million 2016 April 3: Operation Grange is handed an additional £95,000 by Theresa May to keep the investigation alive for another six months 2017 March 11: Cash is once again pumped into keeping the investigation alive, with £85,000 granted to keep it running until September, when it is extended once again until April next year 2018 March 27: The Home Office reveals it has allocated further funds to Operation Grange. The new fund is believed to be as large as £150,000 September 11: Parents fear as police hunt into daughter's disappearance could be shelved within three weeks by the new Home Secretary amid funding cuts September 26: Fresh hope in the search for Madeleine McCann as it emerges the Home Office is considering allocating more cash for the police to find her