Christian Brueckner Says He Was Near Madeleine McCann’s Resort the Night She Disappeared — But Denies Any Involvement

Christian Brueckner, the German national who remains the prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, has publicly described his whereabouts on the night the three-year-old vanished in Praia da Luz, Portugal.

In an interview published on September 20, 2026, Brueckner said he was approximately 150 yards (137 meters) from the Ocean Club resort on the evening of May 3, 2007 — the same night Madeleine disappeared. It was the first time he had publicly discussed where he says he was that evening.

According to Brueckner’s account, he was on a beach near the resort selling marijuana. He said the drugs had been smuggled from Spain into Portugal and that he was carrying a large quantity in his van.

Brueckner also claimed that police stopped him three times that night as officers searched Praia da Luz for Madeleine. He said authorities did not discover the drugs and allowed him to continue, while he was attempting to leave the area because he feared being caught with the marijuana.

He described seeing flashing police lights and checkpoints throughout the area and said his decision to leave had nothing to do with Madeleine’s disappearance. Brueckner maintains that he had no involvement in what happened to the child.

He also explained why he had never previously revealed his claimed whereabouts. Brueckner said he believed investigators were attempting to frame him for Madeleine’s disappearance and that this was why he had remained silent about being near the resort.

Madeleine disappeared while her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, were dining with friends at a nearby restaurant. German authorities named Brueckner as a suspect in the case in 2020, and he has never been charged in connection with Madeleine’s disappearance. He has consistently denied involvement.

The Metropolitan Police continue to investigate Madeleine’s disappearance through Operation Grange, working with authorities in Germany and Portugal. British police have said they will continue pursuing viable lines of inquiry. The British investigation remains a missing-persons investigation rather than a murder inquiry.

Brueckner’s admission that he was close to the resort provides a new account of his movements that night, but his statement is his own version of events and does not by itself establish what happened to Madeleine or demonstrate his involvement in her disappearance. He remains a suspect, not a person convicted or charged in the McCann case.

Source: Metro