Emily Nash
4 February 2008
Scottish Daily Record
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| Marcos Aragão Correia |
Marcos Correia / Barragem do Arade Reservoir
- Barragem do Arade search
- followed tip off to Correia from underworld source
- 40 miles from Praia da Luz
- Marcos Correia funded search - up to £1200 a day
- Marcos Correia believes search could clear McCanns
- six frogmen
- Alan Wilson - dive team leader
- recovered 15ft length of nylon cord
- Clarence Mitchell
"We are grateful to anyone who feels they have important information. "If his search produces significant results he must, of course, share that information with both the police and our investigators."
Hunt in Algarve reservoir after tip-off
British divers were searching a murky reservoir yesterday for the body of missing Madeleine McCann.
The fingertip hunt of the reservoir 40 miles from Praia da Luz in Portugal followed a tip-off from an underworld source to a lawyer.
The search at Barragem do Arade is being funded by Madeira lawyer Marcos Correia, who claims he was told that the little girl was murdered and thrown into a lake last May.
Yesterday, six frogmen took turns to plunge up to 55 feet into the murky water where they were forced to search by touch alone.
The hunt, which began last Thursday, is focused around the base of a tower about 15 feet offshore. It's connected to land by a walkway.
Correia, who would not reveal his source, said: "They told me Maddie had been thrown into a deserted lake with murky waters.
"I was able to identify the site on December 10 and immediately informed police, who did nothing. I believe this would have been the best place for someone to have dumped the body, based on my investigations.
"It's not overlooked, it has easy access by car and if you threw the body from the tower, the water is 17 metres deep there.
"I don't have enough money to pay for the entire lake to be searched but because of the clues I have, I decided to pay for searches in this area.
"I am convinced this is the place."
Correia, who first informed police of the underworld tip-off in May last year, said: "I got tired of waiting for police to act on my information, so I decided to act."
Divers have already recovered a suspicious 15ft length of nylon cord used on window blinds, knotted together in several places.
The lawyer is estimated to be spending up to £1200 a day - and believes the search could clear Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry.
He said: "I don't believe Kate and Gerry did it. It could have been a single madman or a gang, I don't know.
"But I will stay here as long as necessary to try to solve this mystery.
"I don't care how much the divers will cost. What matters is that my conscience will be clear."
Dive team leader Alan Wilson said: "You can't see anything down there. The divers are searching entirely by touch, feeling in the silt for anything suspicious. It's a long, slow process."
Last night, Clarence Mitchell, the spokesman for Madeleine's parents, said: "We are grateful to anyone who feels they have important information.
"If his search produces significant results he must, of course, share that information with both the police and our investigators."
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