Media Links ONLY - No Discussion

[colomom]

from Lusa today:

http://noticias.sapo.pt/lusa/artigo/aLOIjsy%2Fjp+0T80xz/15UQ.html

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.co...eral&action=display&thread=1191345127&page=10 post #146

Madeleine: Successor of Gonçalo Amaral will be known next week, guarantees PJ's national director

The national director of Policia Judiciaria (PJ) said today that next week it will be known who the successor of Gonçalo Amaral will be, as he was removed from his post as coordinator of the Criminal Investigation Department of PJ in Portimao and from the Madeleine McCann case.

Gonçalo Amaral ceased on Tuesday his service commission in those functions, after statements to the Diario de Noticias in which he accused the English police of favouring the McCann couple in the investigation into the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine from the Algarve on May 3.

Questioned about the choice of the successor of Gonçalo Amaral, Alipio Ribeiro said he is going to "think about the matter", to "analyse the situation with the people" he works with and then he "will decide", and the name should be known next week.

(...)

When asked about the "dismissal" of Gonçalo Amaral, Alipio Ribeiro considered that "a very strong word", preferring to say that the coordinator "ceased the service comission" and that such a decision "is within the powers" of the PJ's national director.

As to the reasons that prompted the removal of that coordinator, Alipio Ribeiro stressed that "there are limits for what the members of PJ can say publicly".

"I understand that people are subject to great tension and to periods of great tiredness, but they don't control themselves and say things they shouldn't say", Alipio Ribeiro said.

The national director placed the problem in the sphere of "deontology", adding that this is "radicated in ethics".

Alipio Ribeiro added that he hopes "such situations will not be repeated" and explained it was "an occasional situation", where he had to "act in conformity" with his powers as the head of PJ.

He also added that PJ has a relationship of "great collaboration" with all police forces in the world, including the English, and that "in no moment" that relationship of "respect" and "loyalty" should be broken.

The minister of Justice assured this morning that he approves of the decision of the PJ's national director to remove Gonçalo Amaral of his functions at the CID of PJ in Portimao.

 

[colomom]

http://ultimahora.publico.clix.pt/noticia.aspx?id=1306534

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=35 post #523

from Publico:

Gerry and Kate McCann were constituted arguidos with the approval of English police

On the day the Policia Judiciaria's team leaders decided to constitute Gerry and Kate McCann as arguidos in the process of the disappearance of their daughter, they first communicated their intention to British police investigators that were in Praia da Luz. "I have made arrests for less than that", one of them apparently replied.

An element connected to the investigation, who is obliged to anonimity, guaranteed to PUBLICO that the English police was always informed about the diligences that were developed by PJ within the Maddie process, and has always cooperated and supported the investigation, even from England. One of the clearest examples of that cooperation is that all analyses on residues that were collected in the apartments at Praia da Luz and from the vehicles that were used by the McCanns and their friends, performed in in Birmingham lab, were paid by the English.

According toinformation that was collected by PUBLICO, the announcement of new data was shared between Portuguese and English policemen and the clues that appeared along the process were even discussed together.

The news that suggest rivalries between the investigators from both countries, and divergences as to the methods that are used, and which are reported, "mainly by the English media and by retired policemen, are nothing but journalistic speculation", the same source that is close to process says, assuring that, between the policemen, "the relationship is excellent".

Constant criticism of the PJ's work in the investigation into the Maddie case, made in British media, were at the origin of the statements from inspector Gonçalo Amaral, who was responsible for the inquiry into the disappearance of Madeleine, published by Diario de Noticias on Monday, and which led to him being removed from the Criminal Investigation Department in Portimao.

(...)

The removal of PJ inspector Gonçalo Amaral from the coordination of the inquiry into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann will not imply any change to the direction of the investigation, a senior officer from that police force assured to PUBLICO. The strategy is drawn and will be maintained, he guarantees.

While the name of Amaral's substitute is not known, routine proceeds undisturbed in Portimao, under the supervision of the PJ's directory in Faro, led by Guilhermino Encarnação.

This assistant national director is now in charge of assuring the investigation's continuity, as long as the substitute of Gonçalo Amaral is not known, and to manage any agitation that may naturally result from the coordinator's removal.

(...)

 

[Barnaby]

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/features/btwoman/article3027614.ece

Psychics claim

 

[Barnaby]

'Every time I close my eyes I see Maddy's face'

As the parents of Madeleine McCann admit they plan to consult psychics, Strabane mum of five Kate Houston (47) claims the youngster has been in touch with her. Gráinne McCarry finds out more

Thursday, October 04, 2007
You say Madeleine McCann has visited you. Tell us more.
I've thought of her a lot since she disappeared and I keep a picture of her beside my bed. I haven't been following the case in the media, but I often wonder about where she could be.

I was sitting up in my bedroom about four weeks after Madeleine disappeared wondering where she was - that's when the word 'navro' came to me in the form of a little girl's voice. The voice was coming from the left hand side of the bed where her picture is kept. She kept saying 'navro' and 'novarina'.
I did an internet search on the words and a found a place in Portugal called 'Mavro' which is on the coast. Novarina, also, has a literary connection to Portugal.
But, when I think of the word 'navro' a native Indian or an American connection comes to mind. It took me back to my childhood and watching old cowboys and Indians films.

What happened next?
Information comes to me in a cryptic way and I have to try and decipher it.
I decided to go to my Tarot cards to find out more information. They brought up an educated man with a good reputation and standing and a younger man. Something went wrong and the younger man was somehow brought into it. He got caught up in it, the whole adrenalin rush at the time of being involved in whatever went on. But, he didn't realise what he was getting himself into. The educated man is clever and a charmer. He's a rogue and behind closed doors he is not actually the person everyone thinks he is.
They also showed a lady, a woman who was hardened emotionally. She has this belief that no matter what, she can walk away unscathed.
I kept being brought back to a place with two streams; one runs into water, maybe a pool, and the other runs onto land. The area is barren, but green with a few trees in the distance.
There are two pillars and a connection with nuns or religion. There's an ancient theme or a historical feel to the area.

Any premonitions?
Every time I lie down or I close my eyes I see Madeleine's face. I can't tell if she's dead or alive as I can pick up messages from both dead and alive people.
To me, the person is always alive until I am told otherwise. Her face keeps coming back to me. The main message I keep getting is that in order to understand what happened they (the investigators) must go back to the very beginning and look in a different direction. There's something not right about this case, but I just can't put my finger on it ... someone could have been watching the children.

What are you going to do with this information?
I've a lot of notes written down that I hope to pass on to the correct source. I'm available if the McCanns have any questions about it.

From what age were you aware of your psychic abilities?
Three years old. I always seemed to be standing back from everyone else, on a different level from them. For me, it was like I was looking at people from a different world. I'd also had a sighting of the banshee cat when I was a young girl. I heard a high pitched wailing sound and saw a strange formation. I was living in Sion Mills and didn't know what the noise was. The next morning, a woman came to the door to tell us that my friend's mother had died and that the banshee had been seen the night before at the woman's door. Over the years I've heard people talking about the banshee or the banshee cat. It is said that only people with Mac/Mc or O' in their surname can see or hear them. My mother's maiden name had an O' in it ...

Do any of your family members possess a psychic ability?
Relatives on my mother's side have 'the gift'. They live in America.

How has being a clairvoyant impacted upon you?
There is no switching off from it. I would never dismiss them (the voices or sightings) at all as you never know when it could be important. They are coming to me because they need to talk to someone. It's very tiring - I'm very serious and focused about my work, it could take over my whole life if I let it.

Do you think US shows like Medium and The Ghost Whisperer have shed new light on psychics?
Yes, I think that they are helping to show the public that it is something that we have no control over. In Medium, Patricia Arquette's character has 'the gift' and the programme shows the effect it has on her family life. She wakens up a lot in the night to voices and visions and it causes a lot of disruption in her life.

You've helped the families of missing people to trace their loved ones. Explain.
The families contact me privately to see if I can shed any light into the whereabouts of their loved ones.
Out of respect to the families I don't discuss individual cases.
This can result in both sad and happy outcomes. The missing person isn't always dead, sometimes they have gone away to be by themselves for a while.
When the missing person comes to me, they direct me to where they are.

What services do you offer?
I read Tarot cards, palms and tea leaves. People get in touch through word of mouth recommendation and I try and fit them in when I've a free minute. I've had palm readings posted to me from as far away as Australia and America.
I, also, do spirit cleansing. People who are frightened or concerned about disturbances in their home contact me and ask me to go to their home. I find that a lot of the activity is just trapped energy connected to the people living there, for example, if there's a lot of stress in the house coming, a new baby or an adolescent teenager. It could also be spirits who are very restless and have lost their way. I pray for them that they will find it again.

What type of people come to you?
I help people who've lost loved ones and don't want to believe that their life has ended. It brings them comfort knowing that their loved ones exist in another world.

Are there any misconceptions you'd like to clear up?
I help families in cases where there are people missing presumed murdered. When I do this I am looking for the victim not the murderer. My gift isn't used to hunt out murderers and I'd like to emphasis that.

What's the most shocking or astonishing thing 'the gift' has revealed to you?
A woman came to me a few years ago and handed me a photo of three brothers. I didn't know who she was. I told her the middle boy would be ok, the boy on the right wouldn't have a long life and the one on the left would die a horrific death.
The woman contacted me a few years later to let me know that the boy on the left had been horrifically murdered, the boy on the right was killed by a train and the middle boy was ok.

There are a lot of cynics out there. What do you say to them?
You will always get people who don't believe in it or agree with it. I would say to them that if I was doing this in Biblical times I would be called a prophet.

 

[Morag]

From the CBS website:

The Early Show gets an exclusive interview with Gerry and Kate McCann tomorrow morning. CBS says this is the last interview the McCanns were allowed to grant under Portuguese law. The couple has been named suspects in the disappearance of their daughter, Madeleine.

 

[april4sky]

Sacked Madeleine detective's deputy Chief inspector Tavares Almeida seeks leave

http://www.guardian.co.uk/internatio...184275,00.html

Chief inspector Tavares Almeida, 48, was reported by the Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas to have asked for an extended period of unpaid absence usually used by police officers for studying or training. The reports emerged two days after Mr Amaral was taken off the case.

It appears that Mr Almeida put in his request for leave before the removal of Mr Amaral, with whom he reportedly did not see eye to eye over his handling of the case. It is believed that, following Mr Amaral's demotion, the national director of the Policia Judiciaria, Alipio Ribeiro, may be able to convince Mr Almeida to remain on the case.

***********

In disarray. It certainly sounds like it.

Not a happy camp. :slap:

Almeida will be the THIRD detective to leave the farcical five-month long investigation.
Police spokesman Olegario Sousa also left, reportedly because he was infuriated by officers leaking information.

 

[colomom]

in Correio da Manha this morning:

http://www.correiodamanha.pt/noticia.asp?id=260522&idselect=9&idCanal=9&p=200

http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=35 post #524

Maddie: English police also believes in death
Sensor looked for body

The English police also believes in the death of Madeleine, the British girl that disappeared from the Ocean Club on May 3 this year. CM knows that the change in the direction of the Policia Judiciaria's investigations, which initially believed it was a kidnapping, were accompanied by the English that even had a determining role in the searches for a cadaver. First, with technology that can identify changes of the terrain at subterranean level, and then with the dogs.

The change of director at PJ in Portimao didn't change the traced scenario. The investigation still defends that the child died in the apartment, on the evening of the 3rd, and that her body was hidden by one or both of her parents, with or without the help of a third party.

As CM could establish, this scenario started being considered in July, after the abduction theory had been carefully verified. No phone call was traced, no suspect was in the surroundings of the apartment, and the contradictions resided essentially in the English community.

If initially the contradictions between parents and friends were understood as a symptom of "confusion", propmted by the child's disappearance, the authorities rapidly moved on to another thesis and bet on the possibility of a domestic accident and consequent death.

Then the English suggested the sending of the dogs. PJ didn't know about the reliability of the results that come from those animals, and immediately accepted the suggestion. The English also brought to Portugal the sensor that searches for changes in the subsoil, and the target was to verify if the child had been buried in the resort's surroundings. One of the searched areas was the house of English suspect Robert Murat and nothing was found. Some sources contacted by CM guarantee that the searches also reached into other areas.

This apparent "harmony" between the Portuguese and the English authorities led to the statement of Gonçalo Amaral hitting the Policia Judiciaria like a bomb. And not even the fact that he denied himself that he was talking about the English police - internally, the Portimao PJ's ex-director explained that he was talking to the 'Diario de Noticias' journalists about the retired policemen that work for the McCanns - made Alipio Ribeiro take softer measures.

It was necessary to show the British that there were no suspicions about their work, even more so when the Judiciaria had always given the best collaboration.

(...)

 

[april4sky]

British police attack Portuguese 'dirty tricks' over Madeleine

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/a...ine/article.do

British police entered the war of words over Madeleine McCann.

The Leicestershire force said it did not back the theory put forward by Portuguese detectives that the four-year-old died in the care of her parents, Gerry and Kate, which was leaked to a Portuguese newspaper this week.

The force refuted the claim, saying: "Leicestershire Constabulary have been careful not to offer an opinion as to what has happened to Madeleine as it is not party to all the evidence as it is not our investigation."

Such a statement is unprecedented for the British force

 

[colomom]

British police attack Portuguese 'dirty tricks' over Madeleine

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/a...ine/article.do

British police entered the war of words over Madeleine McCann.

The Leicestershire force said it did not back the theory put forward by Portuguese detectives that the four-year-old died in the care of her parents, Gerry and Kate, which was leaked to a Portuguese newspaper this week.

The force refuted the claim, saying: "Leicestershire Constabulary have been careful not to offer an opinion as to what has happened to Madeleine as it is not party to all the evidence as it is not our investigation."

Such a statement is unprecedented for the British force

"Leicestershire Constabulary have been careful not to offer an opinion as to what has happened to Madeleine as it is not party to all the evidence as it is not our investigation."

The actual quote shown here does not really say one way or the other, does it?

 

[colomom]

in Correio da Manha this morning:

http://www.correiodamanha.pt/noticia.asp?id=260738&idCanal=10

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=36 post #527

Study: Data reveals that parents lied
3D video dismisses abduction theory

Paulo Sargento and Pedro Gamito, forensic psychology professors at the Lusofona University in Lisbon, made a scientific study and created a video that shows the Ocean Club in three dimensions. The purpose was to show the space of the resort where the McCann couple and their friends were spending their holidays, and what movements they may have made on the day that Madeleine's trace was lost.

Based on chronologies that were supplied by the Portuguese and English press, the academic study shows the crime scene in detail. And it proves that the route that Kate and Gerry walked at 6.30 p.m. to pick up their children at the creche has a length of 120 meters and not 50, as referred by them. It could also be verified that the McCanns lied when they said the children's room was visible from the restaurant.

"In that small space where we don't know what happened, there are a lot of discrepancies concerning the time. For example, between 8.03 and 8.10 p.m. there is an excess 20 minutes. This means that what happened in seven minutes, was described by the couple as if 20 minutes had passed", Paulo Sargento explained on SIC show 'Fatima' on Friday.

Criminologist Moita Flores' opinion is that "the couple lied" and thus displayed "an indifference and omission concerning their children's destiny". "The essential fact that escapes no police investigation is that the parents and the friends all lied about the timings", Moita Flores said.

The data from the study that was done by the forensic psychology teachers show that the times have 88,9% matchings and that it is from the English sources that the largest discrepancies are found. "This [the video] is material that must be investigated by the PJ. The story of an abductor entering the apartment is not feasible", the ex-investigator says.

At 9.25 p.m., the time at which the alleged abductor takes the child, Russell and Matthew are close to the apartment where Maddie was sleeping with her siblings. And this is another reason why Moita Flores believes that "the kidnapping theory is not believable", adding that this "study is important if the PJ grabs it within a criminal process".

(...)

 

[colomom]

in 24Horas yesterday (Oct 6):

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=36 post #528

Portuguese authorities still wait - and despair - for forensics

English stall PJ

The delay in finishing the forensics testing from the forensics lab in Birmingham is stalling the Policia Judiciaria's investigation into the case of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, 24Horas could find out with police sources.

The delay in the performance of tests - sent three months ago to England - is justified by the spokesperson of the Birmingham lab, Neil Holland, by the complexity of the tests that have to be made. "These are very specific exams and they are still being performed. We have maintained a close collaboration with the police", a senior officer from the British lab, one of the most reputed worldwide for DNA analyses, told 24Horas.

But the PJ assumes these data will be fundamental.

"The McCanns would not have been made arguidos solely based on the searches that were performed by the dogs that specialize in detecting cadaver odour. Naturally, the results that were sent from Birmingham gave the suspicions consistency. There are still several diligences to be performed and we have to wait for the rest of the tests, which we haven't received yet. They are fundamental for advancing the investigation", a senior officer from PJ told 24Horas, asking for anonimity.

The time that the laboratory has already taken to perform the testing on the material that was collected by PJ from the McCanns' apartment and vehicle is considered not to be very normal, but justifiable, by a senior officer at the National Institute for Forensics Medicine: "It starts to look like a lot of time, but it depends entirely on the analyses that have to be performed, and the quality of the collected samples. I think the international cooperation that has been displayed in this case is extremely positive."

Prudence with decision-amking seems to be the motto that was adopted by the Birmingham lab.

It can be said there is now a true information blockage. The Portuguese authorities that are connected to the investigation are forbidden from supplying any information to the media, by an express order from the Public Ministery, and under the judicial secret.

In England this law doesn't exist, but local police has also determined that the investigations that are being developed there are secret, and don't supply any information.

 

[colomom]

This is an article from Correio da Manha. It's dated October 6:

http://www.correiodamanha.pt/noticia.asp?idCanal=0&id=260651

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.co...eral&action=display&thread=1191612962&page=20 post #293

DNA tests from hair
PJ explores possibility of fall from sofa

To know how Madeleine McCann died is the big doubt facing the Policia Judiciaria's investigators. Who, in spite of believeing that an accident took place in the Ocean Club apartment, don't know the exact circumstances of the events on that late afternoon in May.

One of the possibilities the investigators advanced to CM includes the possibility that the child accidentally fell and hit her head inside the house where she was in the company of her younger siblings. The fall would have been deadly, and, for circumstances that are not clarified yet, her parents managed to hide the body and simulated her disappearance. Where they did this is another unknown variable, although authorities defend that her body was buried at the beach, in the hours that immediately followed her death.

Sources that were contacted by CM also guarantee that the exams on hair that was found near the living room couch are fundamental. First, because these residues allow to verify whether the person was alive or dead when the hair fell off, and also because they allow to analyse whether there was an ingestion of medication or not.

The result from these exams has not reached the authorities yet - the residues were sent to the Birmingham lab over a month ago - but the expectation of an advance in the investigations is rather high.

Also as CM could establish, other exams were meanwhile sent to Portuguese authorities, but failed to reveal anything important. Either the results were inconclusive, or they failed to add to the investigation.

Direction of the case maintained

The exit of Gonçalo Amaral didn't change the direction of the investigation. The new coordinator of PJ in Portimao, who will probably be known next week, will maintain the direction that has been followed, after all possibilities to verify the abduction thesis had been emptied.

The searches for the body of Madeleine McCann (...) will also be intensified, as the authorities believe that until her cadaver is recovered, it will be very difficult to close the inquiry. "A process is, by its nature, a reconstitution of past history. It takes an autopsy to understand what really happened", a judicial source explained to CM.

 

[Barnaby]

DNA evidence points back to parents:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/liv...n_page_id=1770

 

[hcc2007]

Some kind of PR machine at work:

There's a spate of articles today with headlines that suggest a famous "body locator" has been just recently been brought in to search for Madeleine. But read far down into the article and you learn he was contacted within weeks of Madeleine's disappearance and did his work in July.

Is it McCanns trying to stay on the good side of the public, or the media cashing in on Madeleine?

http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/science_technology/missing+people+machine+in+hunt/889752

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,2185418,00.html

 

[april4sky]

Tavares Almeida is the deputy head of the inquiry into the four-year-old’s disappearance but recently asked to be taken off the case on unpaid leave.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.../nmaddy308.xml

Today it emerged that he is facing trial for inflicting a severe beating on innocent man along with two other police officers.

The Chief Inspector is the second officer involved in the case to be implicated in the violent treatment of police suspects.
************
A law unto themselves?

 

[colomom]

in Correio da Manha this morning:

http://www.correiodamanha.pt/noticia.asp?id=260893&idselect=9&idCanal=9&p=200

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=36 post #529

Madeleine McCann case
I know where the body is

Daniel Krugel, the South-African detective who looked for the trail of Maddie in Praia da Luz in July - at the request of the parents and with authorization from the police - says he knows where the body is buried. "I am convinced that Madeleine's body is in Praia da Luz", he told British newspaper 'Sunday Mirror'. "The chances that she is alive are very small", he added.

A source close to the investigation refers that the referenced location is within the area where the 4-year-old English girl's father, Gerry McCann, jogged. As CM could discover, the Portuguese authorities believe that the body could have been buried at the beach, a few hours after the death.

Daniel Krugel confirmed (as CM had reported on August 23) that he arrived in Portugal with his team on July 17, and during four days he used a machine that was created by himself to detect people based on their DNA. The targeted areas were the Ocean Club apartment, from where Maddie disappeared, as well as terrain close to the sea, and all main exits from Praia da Luz. Krugel told the 'Sunday Mirror' that he is getting ready to return to Portugal on the McCanns' request.

In a report that was delivered to Portuguese police, Krugel pointed to a terrain of 500 square meters that is difficult to reach, as the area where Maddie was likely to be buried. But authorities didn't dig the area up. Newspaper 'News of the World' adds that a source with the investigation said that "no trace of Maddie was found".

The detective informed that his work started with one hair that was removed from one of Maddie's jackets, which was delivered to him by Gerry. "The purpose was to know the DNA", he said. The scientist then used a piece of equipment created by himself (called matter orientation system) which, based on quantum physics and on satellite geographical localization technique (GPS) reveals the positioning of the cadaver. Using a simple language, Krugel clarifies that his "equipment works like a metal detector but detects DNA traces and puts the trail on the map".

Fromhis work in the Algarve, he remembered: "I went there with some colleagues and I conducted an extensive search at Praia da Luz, using the machine. We spent 16 hours per day. No location went unsearched."

According to Portuguese law, Krugel is prohibited from declaring the area he mentioned in his statement to the police.

To the newspaper 'News of the World', he said he doesn't do it "to avoid the interest of curious people that could destroy evidence". Krugel stressed that "every day the trace became stronger in the location". "The machine showed always the same coordinate and made me return to the location all of the time. This convinced me that Madeleine was there."

Daniel Krugel clarified that as soon as the case of Maddie's disappearance was known, his team contacted the parents in order to search the terrain. "Unfortunately, they only called us a few months after the disappearance, a time that makes our work more difficult", he said.

The McCann couple accepted the South-African detective's work after receiving several mails that focused on the work he has done in Africa.

(...)

 

[colomom]

in 24Horas this morning (tabloid alert):

http://www.24horasnewspaper.com/mostranews.php?id=7721

Copied from http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=36 post #530

Madeleine's parents already have two million euros to spend

McCann savings plan

Madeleine's parents haven't worked since May. Gerry and Kate McCann are on unpaid leave from the Hospitals of Glenfield and Lathan House, where they work. The forecasts pointed to a return in September. But after being made arguidos, things changed radically. But in spite of it having been mentioned that they had spent all of their savings, the fact is they are not short of money.

24Horas did their math and the parents of the English girl that vanished from a resort in Praia da Luz, Algarve, have almost 2 million euros at their disposal. If one adds the amounts of both funds - the Legal Fund for the defense of Kate and Gerry, and the Find Madeleine - the McCanns have 1.730.755,23 euros to spend. A real euromillions (although they can only freely use the fund that was created for their defense).

The Find Madeleine Fund has 1.503.265,03 euros that have to be added to the 83 thousand euros that local newspaper "Leicester Mercury" helped gather by selling yellow and green ribbons. This amount was offered to the parents on Wednesday.

The rest of the money, which is kept in the so-called Legal Fund amounts to, for now and in cash, 144.490 euros. This money was offered by the entrepreneur and Virgin chain owner, Richard Branson.

Besides this fund, the defense of Kate and Gerry also counts on the help of Brian Kennedy, a British millionaire. Kennedy didn't mention an amount. He only said he would help with whatever was necessary. This means that money will certainly not be a problem for the McCann couple.

The two benefactors, that share the fact that they are extremely wealthy, said they were helping the McCanns because they believedin their innocence and because they think the accusations pending over Kate and Gerry are unbelievable.

In order to help collecting more money, there is also a store on the internet. In Madeleine McCann online store, one can buy several products. There are T-shirts with the McCanns' daughter's picture in several sizes. Prices range from 9,99 for the smaller, and 14,44 euros for adults. One can also choose yellow wristbands for 2,88 euros. And posters and background images for cellphones can also be downloaded.

As 24Horas reported yesterday, there are very few doubts for the Judiciaria that Maddie died in the Ocean Club apartment. The sending, from the Birmingham lab, of the final results on the tests that were performed on residues collected by the PJ in the rental car and in the apartment that was rented by the McCanns, is vital to conclude the investigations.

 

[colomom]

in SIC today:

http://sic.sapo.pt/online/noticias/pais/20071008-Tese+de+rapto+pouco+consistente.htm

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=36 post #531

Kidnapping theory is "not very consistent"

Criminal psychologist presents academical study about Madeleine's disappearance

One of the specialists that have been studying the Maddie case says the abduction theory is not very consistent. Criminal psychologist Paulo Sargento made a study with Lusofona University, where he reconstitutes a few steps before the girl's disappearance. The study is based on a virtual scenario and intends to test all the possibilities that were advanced by the authorities.

Criminal psychologist Paulo Sargento tried to recreate in a virtual scenario the events that took place on the night that Madeleine McCann disappeared. He took the chronology of events made by newspapers Publico, Sol, English 'Times', and by the BBC.

He verified the matching of times and events since the McCann couple picked up their children at the creche at 4 p.m. [sic] on May 3, until the moment that Kate notices her daughter's disappearance, at 10 p.m.

Since the McCanns arrived at the restaurant, at 8 p.m., seven persons of the group left the table 14 times within 2 hours. Paulo Sargento's opinion is that the abduction theory gains little consistency.

"Practically every five minutes someone is passing by. The question is how, within this period of time when there are always people coming and going, how would it be possible, what are the chances that someone entered a window and was went unseen", Paulo Sargento says.

"We concluded that it's very difficult", the criminal psychologist says.


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note: this article basically reflects the contents of the video

 

[Morag]

http://timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk...cle2621809.ece

According to witness(es) at OC, only the McCanns apartment was visited by the various Tapas diners.
And according to one witness, Jane Tanner was not where she said she was when she saw bundleman.

 

[colomom]

in Jornal de Noticias this morning:

http://jn.sapo.pt/2007/10/09/policia_e_tribunais/paulo_rebelo_nomeado_coordenador_por.html

Copied from: http://helpmadeleine.proboards79.com/index.cgi?board=latest&action=display&thread=1182386581&page=36 post #532

Paulo Rebelo was nominated coordinator in Portimao

The senior coordinator of Policia Judiciaria, Paulo Rebelo, is going to lead the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Portimao, substituting Gonçalo Amaral, whose service commission was terminated last week by national director, Alipio Ribeiro. The name of Paulo Rebelo, who was presently in functions at the PJ's National Direction, was released yesterday, during a meeting in Lisbon, which gathered some senior officers of Judiciaria.

The superior coordinator, who has a law degree and made his career in the PJ, will assume, among other issues, the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, at a time when the Judiciaria awaits the results of tests that were performed on residues that were collected from the apartment where the girl disappeared from, on May 3, at the Ocean Club resort, in Lagos.

The name of Paulo Rebelo didn't susrprise some of the investigators, who over the last few days pointed at him as being a "man of trust" of Alipio Ribeiro, who "can liven up the inspectors and the investigation". "He is an operational and a good policeman", some colleagues that were pleased with the choice guaranteed to JN, stressing the fact that Paulo Rebelo "is available" to take over the coordination of PJ in Portimao.

The new coordinator - who will work on the case with Guilhermino Encarnação, Faro's assistant national director - is facing some complicated tasks. On one hand, to direct the investigation into the girl's disappearance, and on the other hand to solve some of the Department's internal problems.

Soon it should also be known who will substitute chief inspector Tavares de Almeida, who asked for an unpaid leave, alleging personal problems.

Meanwhile, in England, the use of non-official means to locate Madeleine was confirmed yesterday by the family's spokesman. Clarence Mitchell admitted that the couple "considers all offers of help", including that of Daniel Kruger, a South-African who alleges to have invented a machine that is capable of tracking missing persons. Kruger has apparently contacted the family on several occasions, and Kate and Gerry accepted the offer before they became arguidos.

"All information that is collected by means that are external to the Policia Judiciaria is shared with the PJ and all means used to search for Madeleine are within the law, which means there are no private detectives operating for the McCanns in Portugal", he guaranteed.

Several British newspapers alleged yesterday that the new DNA results have already arrived at the hands of Portuguese police, but a source at the Forensic Lab in Birmingham refused to confirm to JN whether the results have already been sent to Portugal.

The English and Portuguese lawyers met in Lisbon last week. The McCann couple considers the possibility of returning to Portugal, but for religious reasons.