Christian Brueckner Says He Was Just 150 Yards From Madeleine McCann’s Resort on Night She Vanished

Christian Brueckner, the German man identified as the prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, has revealed new details about where he says he was on the night the three-year-old vanished from Praia da Luz, Portugal, in 2007.

Brueckner claims he was only about 150 yards, or roughly 137 meters, from the resort where Madeleine was staying with her family on the evening of May 3, 2007. His account marks the first time he has publicly described his whereabouts that night in such detail.

According to Brueckner, he was on a beach near the Praia da Luz resort selling marijuana. He claims he had traveled from Spain with cannabis that he had smuggled into Portugal and that the drugs were inside his van at the time.

Brueckner also alleges that Portuguese police stopped him three times that evening as officers were searching for Madeleine. He says the officers did not discover the drugs inside his vehicle and allowed him to continue. There has been no public confirmation from authorities of his account of the three alleged police stops.

He says he became increasingly anxious after seeing police vehicles, flashing blue lights and checkpoints throughout the area. According to his version of events, he wanted to leave Praia da Luz quickly because he feared police would discover the drugs he was carrying.

Madeleine disappeared from her family’s holiday apartment at the Ocean Club in Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007. Her parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, had been dining with friends at a restaurant roughly 100 yards from the apartment when she disappeared.

Brueckner continues to deny having any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance. He claims he previously refused to discuss his whereabouts because he believed police were attempting to frame him for the case. His statements remain his own account and have not been established as fact by investigators.

German authorities identified Brueckner as the prime suspect in the case, while British and Portuguese authorities have continued working with German investigators. However, he has not been formally charged over Madeleine’s disappearance, and the case remains unresolved.

The new account therefore adds another disputed element to one of Britain’s most closely followed missing-person cases. Brueckner’s admission that he was in the immediate area on the night Madeleine disappeared is significant as a statement about his claimed whereabouts, but it does not by itself establish his involvement in her disappearance.

Source: People.com