‘Currently no prospect’ of Madeleine McCann suspect facing charges, German prosecutor says

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy There is currently no prospect of the suspect in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance facing charges, the German prosecutor investigating him has admitted. open image in gallery Christian B was acquitted on unrelated charges in October German prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters, who has been leading the investigation, told the BBC in 2020 that he believed the public would reach the same conclusion over Christian B’s alleged involvement if they “knew the evidence we had”, but has never made this alleged evidence public. “As things stand, the accused Christian B’s imprisonment will end in early September.” The suspect – who has always denied any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance, and insists he was miles from the Praia da Luz resort on the night she went missing – is already in prison in Germany for the rape of a 72-year-old American woman in Portugal in 2005. But the judge ruled the evidence against him was “insufficient”, and his lawyer Friedrich Fülscher argued that he should be acquitted, questioning the veracity of witness statements and telling the court: “The trial should never have taken place.” open image in gallery Kate and Gerry McCann, whose daughter Madeleine disappeared from a holiday flat in Portugal in 2007 Madeleine was just three years old when she disappeared from a holiday resort in Praia da Luz on 3 May 2007 while her parents were dining with friends nearby.