Both McCanns have now been charged

[silvrlvr]

Does anyone have a clue why they really have been charged, after all this time? It's one thing to blame the Portuguese police for trying to frame them, but the British police are involved in the investigation, too. Any theories?

 

[JCOSTER]

I don't think there was a slice of evidence except for blood stains that linking the parents.

My theory is the mother did in a post pardom depression. They have younger than the 4 year old that went missing.

And I think the father is standing by her.

 

[silvrlvr]

There is a theory that they gave the kids sleeping pills or something like Nyquil to keep them down while they went to dinner. But they gave Madeleine too much, and she OD'd.

That would help explain their obvious grief at keeping such a horrible secret. Would parents actually do that, though? In America, at least, you would never leave children that age alone at night without a sitter. My brother and his wife don't leave their 12 year old son home alone.

 

[Angela Harlem]

strange case. be interesting to see what unfolds next.

 

[mama cass]

they haven't been charged - they've been made formal suspects, but no charges have, as yet, been made

 

[LJT]

The biggest mystery is how Madeleine's blood got into a car which was hired 25 days after Madeleine went missing.

I can't really see either why the Portuguese police would want to frame the parents, which the McCann family now believe...especially since the increased involvement of the British police......it was British sniffer dogs that found the blood and it was a British lab that did the DNA testing...the British police would almost have to be compliant with any setup.

Silvrlvr...it is not normal here to leave your kids alone, they received a lot of criticism for leaving the kids from the press and the public in general.

 

[Vincent Vega]

Their lawyer said, as a formal suspect you don't have to answer all questions, and you can have your lawyer by your side, but police can also ask different questions.

As a witness you have to cooperate with police which means you have to answer all questions.

It's really uncommon to leave a four year old on her own, but with twelve it's rather uncommon.

 

[silvrlvr]

Their lawyer said, as a formal suspect you don't have to answer all questions, and you can have your lawyer by your side, but police can also ask different questions.

As a witness you have to cooperate with police which means you have to answer all questions.

It's really uncommon to leave a four year old on her own, but with twelve it's rather uncommon.

When I was growing up, 12 was fine to leave kids by themselves (I was a babysitter at that age myself.) But I think my brother's main concern is the Web, as much as an intruder. Yes, there are parental controls, but kids know how to get around them, and even sites that are supposedly "safe" have content they don't want the kids to see.

 

[silvrlvr]

they haven't been charged - they've been made formal suspects, but no charges have, as yet, been made

You're right, and thanks for pointing that out.

 

[U2Fanatic4ever]

I sensed/knew this from the beginning that something wasn't right with this case and that the parents were involved in this somehow (I know they are formal suspects now and charges haven't been filed yet).. I mean come on leaving your kids all under the age of 4 alone while you go out to dinner.. No person/parent in their right mind would attempt this.. They both are physicans and have money.. certainly to afford a nanny or sitter for the night..

You just don't leave kids alone especially at this age and not even older.. I have a 9 yr old son and there would never ever be any situation where I would leave him alone at home or else where..

i could certainly see some post partum depression thing with this. I definitely think it was accidental.

 

[corianderstem]

The biggest mystery is how Madeleine's blood got into a car which was hired 25 days after Madeleine went missing.

Yes. This.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

LONDON, England (CNN) -- Authorities are examining a photo taken in Morocco showing a child who appears to resemble missing British toddler Madeleine McCann, a spokesman for the girl's family told CNN Wednesday.

"It appears to look very like Madeleine on first glance," spokesman Clarence Mitchell said.

The digital picture was taken by a Spanish couple who vacationed in Morocco in late August, he said. The picture, taken out of a moving car, seems to show a Moroccan woman carrying a child on her back while walking along the side of a road.

"Along this route we started to take photos of everything we saw -- mosques, villages, everything. We saw this group of people we took some photos but as soon as we took them, we saw a blonde, blonde girl who caught our eye," said Clara Torres. "We thought of Madeleine but we didn't think any more about it as we thought it would be impossible."

Torres said she was traveling from the town of Chefchaouen to Tetouan when the pictures were taken.

"The picture stayed in the camera as we thought it was so strange," Torres said. "The truth is, I've been kicking myself, because these 25 days have been lost, but I couldn't do anything else. The moment I realised, I handed over the photo to the authorities," who forwarded it to Interpol.

Mitchell said attorneys for Kate and Gerry McCann -- the girl's parents -- had just received the photo. The family has made a policy of not commenting on potential sightings of the child, he said, as none have turned out to be verified.

"If indeed this is her in a picture, and if it is proof she was alive just a few weeks ago, clearly this could be a major breakthrough," he said. However, "technical assessment is underway ... until we know a lot more about the picture and its authenticity, we simply can't comment any further."

The couple, both doctors, were vacationing in Portugal's Algarve region with their children -- including then-3-year-old Madeleine -- in May. The couple said they were having dinner at a restaurant while their children slept at their hotel May 3, and discovered Madeleine was gone when they checked in on them.

The McCanns were named "arguidos," or suspects, earlier this month by Portuguese authorities, but have vehemently denied any involvement in their daughter's disappearance.

News of the missing wide-eyed girl has grabbed headlines across the globe and moved celebrities such as soccer star David Beckham to make public pleas for the girl's safe return.

Mitchell said Wednesday the McCanns are being kept apprised of the situation regarding the photo. Earlier, the McCanns visited Morocco during the search for their daughter, and authorities in Rabat, Morocco, assured them of their cooperation.

 

[LostAtMoon]

LONDON, England (CNN) -- A young girl photographed in Morocco is not the missing British toddler Madeleine McCann, according to British media reports on Wednesday.

The Evening Standard newspaper featured a new photo of the child, said to be the daughter of a local olive farmer, under the headline "It's not her."

Reporters descended on the remote hillside village of Zinat in the north of the country after the image of the young girl being carried on a Moroccan woman's back was flashed around the world as a possible sighting of four-year-old Madeleine.

But it quickly emerged that the girl in the photograph was believed by villagers to be five-year-old Bushra Binhisa, the daughter of an olive farmer.

Evening Standard journalist Rashid Razaq, who flew to Morocco from London, said he had seen the youngster on Wednesday, the UK's Press Association said.

He said: "She has got a resemblance to Madeleine but when you see her properly, it is obvious it isn't her."

Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman, said: "Clearly, if these reports that the girl in the photograph isn't Madeleine are true, it is disappointing news.

"This is why Gerry and Kate refused to comment on individual sightings and why I was advising caution overnight.

"Clearly, the search for Madeleine will continue and I would appeal for everyone to refocus their efforts to achieve her safe return."

The digital picture was taken by a Spanish couple who vacationed in Morocco in late August, Mitchell told CNN. The picture, taken out of a moving car, seems to show a Moroccan woman carrying a child on her back while walking along the side of a road.

"Along this route we started to take photos of everything we saw -- mosques, villages, everything. We saw this group of people we took some photos but as soon as we took them, we saw a blonde, blonde girl who caught our eye," said Clara Torres.

The McCanns, both doctors, were vacationing in Portugal's Algarve region with their children -- including then-three-year-old Madeleine -- in May.

The couple said they were having dinner at a restaurant while their children slept at their hotel May 3, and discovered Madeleine was gone when they checked in on them.

The McCanns were named "arguidos," or suspects, earlier this month by Portuguese authorities, but have vehemently denied any involvement in their daughter's disappearance.

News of the missing wide-eyed girl has grabbed headlines across the globe and moved celebrities such as soccer star David Beckham to make public pleas for the girl's safe return.

Mitchell said Wednesday the McCanns are being kept apprised of the situation regarding the photo. Earlier, the McCanns visited Morocco during the search for their daughter, and authorities in Rabat, Morocco, assured them of their cooperation.

 

[LostAtMoon]

I wish Madeleine was still alive, but I never believed in that theory ever since this whole thing started.

 

[Butterscotch]

I wish Madeleine was still alive, but I never believed in that theory ever since this whole thing started.

Neither have I. I think they did kill her accidently and covered it up. Some people say they wouldn't draw all this attention to themselves in a worldwide 'search' if they knew she was dead, but Susan Smith did it, so it can happen.

If she did die of an OD it's a disgrace since they are both doctors. I also agree with you who say there is no excuse for leaving them alone. 12 is the legal age to be left alone in the US. Why not get a nanny or a sitter? Look at Bono and Ali, they go on vacation and take the nanny along for when they want to go out on the town. Or they could have left the kids at home with a relative if they wanted to party.

The biggest mystery is how Madeleine's blood got into a car which was hired 25 days after Madeleine went missing.

The theory was that they had dumped her body somewhere and the searchers were getting close, so they retrieved it in the rental car and hid it again somewhere else. If this is what happened, they deserve harsh punishment, much more than if they had just reported the initial incident (if there was one) All those celebrities who gave all that money, all the people feeling pity for them, if they turn out guilty, they should suffer for that. You may say they'd be suffering enough they lost Madeline, but obviously they aren't letting it ruin their lives.

 

[CTU2fan]

^ To me the blood is the damning evidence. Clearly they're involved, one or both of them...shameful & disgusting.

 

[meegannie]

It was reported a couple of weeks ago that no blood was found in the car. The DNA was from "other body fluids" and was possibly from the twins' diapers. A Portuguese judge ruled that there was not enough evidence to require the McCanns to return to Portugal for further questioning, so it sounds like a lot of the "leaks" from the police reports were false or misconstrued.

 

[CTU2fan]

It was reported a couple of weeks ago that no blood was found in the car. The DNA was from "other body fluids" and was possibly from the twins' diapers. A Portuguese judge ruled that there was not enough evidence to require the McCanns to return to Portugal for further questioning, so it sounds like a lot of the "leaks" from the police reports were false or misconstrued.

I hope that's true...sadly, when I child disappears or is hurt/murdered generally the most likely suspect is the parent(s).

 

[snowbunny00774]

Would parents actually do that, though? In America, at least, you would never leave children that age alone at night without a sitter.

Really? This never happens in America?

It typically does not happen in Europe either. There is always an exception. Don't say never.