The Metropolitan Police have had a request to interview its primary suspect in its investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann rejected.
It comes after Madeleine disappeared at the age of three from her bed in a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in Lagos, Portugal on the evening of May 3, 2007.
Senior Investigating Officer into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, DCI Mark Cranwell, said the Met Police had “worked closely with our policing colleagues in Germany and Portugal” for a number of years and “support Madeleine’s family to understand what happened on the evening of 3 May, 2007”.
“We are aware of the pending release from prison of a 49-year-old German man,” Mr Cranwell added.
He said Christian Brueckner has “been the primary suspect in the German federal investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance”.
“We can confirm that this individual remains a suspect in the Metropolitan Police’s own investigation,” Mr Cranwell said.
“We have requested an interview with this German suspect but, for legal reasons, this can only be done via an International Letter of Request which has been submitted.”
However, Mr Cranwell said that Brueckner had rejected the request.
The primary suspect in Madeleine McCann’s investigation has rejected an interview with the Metropolitan Police
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PA“It was subsequently refused by the suspect,” he said.
“In the absence of an interview, we will nevertheless continue to pursue any viable lines of enquiry.”
Mr Cranwell said no further information could be provided while the investigation continues.
“Any questions about the conditions around his release should be directed to the German authorities,” he added.
The update from the Met Police comes after it confirmed its investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance remained active in June.
A police spokesman said the force continued to receive Home Office funding for the operation.
The clarification came after a video circulated online in early June which falsely claimed the Met had ceased investigating the case 18 years after the three-year-old British girl vanished.
The video incorrectly suggested the force had received £100,000 without conducting any investigation.
A Scotland Yard spokesman confirmed it had secured Home Office funding for Operation Grange for the 2025/2026 financial year, maintaining its commitment to the high-profile case.
The Home Office allocated up to £192,000 for Operation Grange in the 2024/25 financial year, according to Lord Hanson of Flint, minister of state at the Home Office. He told Parliament in February that funding is reviewed annually.
The department maintains regular contact with the Operation Grange investigation team to monitor progress and expenditure. Since the operation began in 2011, total costs have reached £13.2million through the 2023/24 financial year.
Lord Hanson noted that “in-year costs will not be available until after the conclusion of the current financial year.” The Home Office declined to provide additional comment on the funding arrangements.
Mr Cranwell previously emphasised the operation’s longstanding commitment to the case.
He said the Met’s investigation remained active since 2011.
“A dedicated team has always been assigned to the case, to try to understand what happened on the night,” Mr Cranwell added.