Metropolitan Police: Wednesday 25 April
2012
Detectives from the Metropolitan Police
Service conducting the investigative review into the disappearance of
Madeleine McCann are releasing an age progression image of her as we
approach her ninth birthday on 12 May.
The image has been created in close
collaboration with the family and is being released ahead of the
fifth anniversary of her disappearance on 3 May. It shows how we
believe Madeleine would look today.
The release comes as detectives
announce that as a result of evidence uncovered during the review
they now believe there is a possibility Madeleine is still alive and
are appealing for anyone who is able to provide direct information as
to her whereabouts to contact the team.
"we are releasing the age
progression image today with a specific appeal"
The investigative review commenced in
May 2011 under the leadership of the then commissioner, Sir Paul
Stephenson. A murder team within the Homicide and Serious Crime
Command was tasked to conduct the review and is led by Detective
Chief Inspector Andy Redwood acting to Detective Chief Superintendent
Hamish Campbell and Commander Simon Foy.
Work of the team involves close
collaboration with a senior investigating officer from the Policia
Judaria and detectives have been to Portugal several times.
Throughout the course of the review
officers have been in close contact with the McCann family who have
been assigned a Family Liaison Officer as is standard in accordance
with national family liaison policy.
The review team are in a unique
position in that their task is to compile and review material from
three separate strands - the Portuguese investigation, inquiries by
UK law enforcement agencies, and the work of private
investigators/agencies.
Officers are now methodically going
through that material which they believe amounts to around 40,000
pieces of information equating to approximately 100,000 pages.
The intention is to identify from that
material investigative opportunities which we will then present to
the Portuguese authorities who retain primacy for the investigation.
Officers have so far identified around 195 such opportunities within
the historic material, and are also developing what they believe to
be genuinely new material.
The objective of the review team is to
work with the Portuguese authorities with a view to having the case,
which has remained closed since 2008, re-opened in due course.
DCI Andy Redwood said: “From the
outset we have approached this review with a completely open mind,
placing Madeleine McCann at the heart of everything we do. We are
working on the basis of two possibilities here. One is that Madeleine
is still alive; and the second that she is sadly dead.
“Based on the former we are releasing
the age progression image today with a specific appeal.
“If you know where Madeleine McCann
is now or you have new direct information/evidence about what has
happened to her then please contact us.
“The second point of appeal today is
in relation to those who were at the resort of Praia da Luz between
28 April and 3 May 2007. If you were either on holiday or in
residence in the resort during this period, particularly in the
vicinity of the Ocean Club, and you have not been spoken to by police
either here or in Portugal then please call us on 0800 0961011 if you
are within the UK. The number for non-UK residents is +44 2071580
126. Alternatively if you do not want to speak to us directly you can
contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”
