Kate and Gerry McCann have released a new picture of their daughter Madeleine as they prepare to commemorate tomorrow’s third anniversary of her disappearance.The photo shows her when she was three after a raid on the dressing-up box – she has a pink bow in her hair and a gold bead necklace and is wearing blue eyeshadow.
It was taken weeks before the fateful family holiday to the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz when Madeleine vanished. She had been left sleeping with her younger twin siblings, Sean and Amelie, on May 3, 2007.
Last week her parents returned to Portugal to put pressure on the police to renew their investigation, which was dropped in July 2008, and released the photo and a new video in the hope of triggering new leads in the search for their daughter, who would now be six.In an interview with a Portuguese newspaper, Mr McCann said: ‘There are leads, clues which weren’t investigated. That information has been sent to the authorities.
‘We know that one of the leads was followed up and eliminated, and another was considered irrelevant. We don’t agree. I’m not saying we have somebody who saw Madeleine. But clues lead to other clues and we have to convince the police to investigate them.The couple, who will spend tomorrow with friends, would not give more details of the leads they want followed up, saying that could hinder the investigation.
Mr McCann added: ‘We are going to call for the case to be reopened. Can it be done? It can. Will it be done? I don’t know.’ (Daily Mail)