Inspector says McCanns swayed British officers
Family lawyer attacks 'absurd' comments
Paul Hamilos, Madrid and Brendan de Beer, Portimao
3 October 2007
The Guardian
The Portuguese detective heading the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann was yesterday removed from the case and demoted from his post as chief of the police in the Algarve town of Portimao, following an outspoken attack on his British counterparts.
Inspector Goncalo Amaral has been transferred to the nearby Algarve city of Faro after criticising the British police in a leading Portuguese newspaper.
Mr Amaral, 47, has been a controversial figure from the outset of the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine on May 3 from an apartment in Praia da Luz, where she was on holiday with her parents. Mr Amaral had become a target for criticism in the British press; he has reportedly investigated only two child murders in his 26-year police career. He also faces a criminal hearing for allegedly concealing evidence, after a woman jailed for the murder of her daughter claimed his officers beat her into making a confession.
Yesterday, in an interview with the respected Diario de Noticias, Mr Amaral accused British detectives of only investigating those leads that Madeleine's parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, wanted following up. "[The British police] have only investigated tips and information developed and worked on for the McCanns, forgetting that the couple are suspects in the death of their daughter Madeleine."
Mr Amaral criticised the British police decision to investigate an anonymous tip-off emailed to Prince Charles's website claiming Madeleine was abducted by a former employee of the Ocean Club in Praia da Luz, where the McCanns were staying when she disappeared. Mr Amaral said the lead "has no credibility for the Portuguese police".
National police director Alipio Ribeiro last night confirmed that Mr Amaral had been removed from the case and demoted, saying it was a "decision I took myself".
Carlos Pinto de Abreu, the McCanns' Portuguese lawyer, told news website Portugal Diario yesterday: "The McCanns cannot confess to something they did not do and cannot and should not lie only to please the police." He said the comments by Mr Amaral were "false and absurd" and that Kate and Gerry had answered all the questions put to them by the police. Mr Abreu advised the police "to talk less and work more to find the girl".
The Portuguese minister of justice, Alberto Costa, described the cooperation between the Portuguese and British police as "beneficial", saying "we need to focus on the job in hand and not on commentary".
Mr Amaral still faces scrutiny over the case of eight-year-old Joana Cipriano, who disappeared from Figueira, not far from Praia da Luz, three years ago. Joana's mother, Leonor, was jailed for 16 years, even though the body of her daughter has never been found and she has since retracted her confession. Mr Amaral was not present at the time of her alleged beating but is accused of covering up for his colleagues, which he strenuously denies.
At the weekend Mr Amaral was criticised in the British press for allegedly working 4 1/2 -hour days, enjoying "boozy lunches" and failing to investigate most of the 252 tip-offs his officers have received.
British authorities have been working with the Portuguese from the start of the investigation. Forensic tests were conducted on behalf of the Portuguese police at a government laboratory in Birmingham. Portuguese police leaked to the local press that the evidence indicated DNA from Madeleine was in the boot of a rental car the McCanns used after her disappearance, and led to them becoming formal suspects. However, Mr Ribeiro said the forensic tests were inconclusive.
Portuguese police were yesterday in Huelva, south-west Spain, 30 miles from the border. Despite rumours that they were there to investigate a journey the McCanns made to Huelva in August, the Spanish police said that they had invited their Portuguese counterparts to celebrate the patron saint of police, Angel Custodio.
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