Madeleine McCann: Portugal dam search enters second day
Fresh searches in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have entered a second day as police clear undergrowth near the banks of a remote reservoir in Portugal.
Officers were working heavy machinery at the Barragem do Arade on Wednesday, around 30 miles from where Madeleine went missing in 2007.
A fire service vehicle and rigid-hull inflatable boat were also on the banks of the reservoir.
The three-year-old from Leicestershire went missing on May 3 in 2007 when the family was on holiday in Praia da Luz in southern Portugal.
The area, close to where Madeleine went missing, has been searched previously in 2008.
Other officers with a sniffer dog were seen entering an area of woodland as the search continued, while colleagues carried spades and rakes.
The fresh searches are being carried out at the request of German investigators who believe their prime suspect, convicted sex offender Christian Brueckner, 45, kidnapped and murdered the little girl.
He is currently in prison in Germany for the rape of a woman in Praia da Luz in 2005, and is suspected of further rapes and child sexual abuse committed in the area between 2000 and 2017.
The 45-year-old was made a formal suspect by Portuguese prosecutors in 2022 and is being held in custody.
The operation is being led by German police after new lines of inquiry came about in relation to Madeleine's disappearance.
The coordinated search is expected to continue over the next few days, at the request of the German police and in the presence of British officers.
The most recent search in Portugal in relation to her disappearance was in 2014, when British police were given permission to examine scrubland near where she vanished.
Earlier this month, Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry McCann posted a short statement on their Find Madeleine Campaign website to mark the anniversary of her disappearance.
They said: “Today marks the 16th anniversary of Madeleine’s abduction.
“Still missing… still very much missed.
“It is hard to find the words to convey how we feel.
“The police investigation continues, and we await a breakthrough.”
What do we know so far?
German police said new lines of inquiry were identified which led to the new coordinated search in the Algave.
Police officers, sniffer dogs, and divers are expected to take part in the search at a dam 50km from Praia Da Luz, where McCann went missing in 2007.
Forensic tents have been set up for analysis of any evidence that may be found.
Heavy machinery from Portugal's Department of Civil Protection is also being brought to the area for the search.