Axed detective was controversial figure in Madeleine inquiry

Axed detective was controversial figure in Madeleine inquiry
3 October 2007
02:07 AM
Press Association National Newswire

Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral, who has been removed from the Madeleine McCann inquiry, was a controversial figure at the centre of the investigation.

There was concern when it emerged in June that he had been charged over an alleged attack on the mother of another missing girl.

The coordinator of the Policia Judiciara (PJ) in Portimao, Algarve, is one of five men accused of 'scenes of aggression'' against Leonor Cipriano, whose nine-year-old daughter, Joana, vanished in September 2004.  The little girl's body was never found but Cipriano and her brother, Joao, were charged and convicted of her murder.  She went missing from her home in Figueira, not far from where four-year-old Madeleine was abducted in Praia da Luz on May 3.

It is claimed the attack on Cipriano happened when she was questioned over Joana's apparent abduction.

The Ministerio Publico (MP), or District Attorney, charged three PJ officers with torture, a fourth with omission of evidence and a fifth with falsification of documents.

The MP did not reveal who had been charged with what offence.

Mr Amaral was 'very angry'' about the allegations and was considering taking action against the MP, according to a police source.

'He is very professional and has a lot of success in solving cases,'' the source said.  'He is very upset because reporters never speak of these successes.''

A Portuguese newspaper reported claims that the beating took place as Cipriano was questioned without a lawyer.

She lodged a formal complaint about her treatment which was followed up by the MP.

Despite the charges, Mr Amaral, who is in his late 40s, was not suspended from work.

Mr Amaral was also forced to defend taking a two-hour lunch break.

He was spotted with PJ spokesman Olegario Sousa at a fish restaurant in Portimao as the McCanns travelled to Berlin and Amsterdam to appeal for more information about their missing daughter.

A diner said he spotted them drinking what looked like white wine and whisky.

Asked if it was acceptable for police to drink alcohol in their lunch time, Mr Sousa said: 'I don't know, it is very, very sad but a person's free time is for lunch. That is normal to do.

'The persons are in charge in the day, they are working in the day but they must eat and drink - it is normal. I drink what I want to drink when I can drink.''

Continue Reading... Labels: Carvi Scandal, Cipriano case, Clarence Mitchell, Goncalo Amaral, Gonçalo Amaral, Joao Cipriano, Leonor Cipriano, Olegario Sousa, Policia Judiciaria, Press Association

New head of investigation should refocus inquiry

By PA Reporters
3 October 2007
01:29 AM
Press Association National Newswire

The new head of the Portuguese police investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann should 'refocus'' the inquiry on finding the youngster, the family's spokesman said today.

Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral was taken off the case following his comments that Kate and Gerry McCann had been calling the shots by identifying lines of inquiry for Leicestershire officers.

The family's spokesman Clarence Mitchell told GMTV the claims were 'ludicrous''.

He added:

'What they want now is whoever takes over to refocus the inquiry on to finding Madeleine.''

Mr Mitchell said the decision to remove Mr Amaral was 'a decision for the Portuguese authorities.
''  'Kate and Gerry have always said they were more than happy to cooperate with the Portuguese authorities whoever that might be.  'So in other words, whoever takes over from Mr Amaral as head of the investigation, they will continue that cooperation and do anything that is required - including going back to Portugal for more interviews if necessary.''

Asked if it was true the McCann's were identifying lines of inquiry for Leicestershire Police, he replied: 'Of course not, it's an absolutely ridiculous suggestion.''  'It is a Portuguese-led inquiry and will remain so. And of course from time to time there is communication with Gerry and Kate as there would be in any police investigation.  'It is ludicrous to suggest that they have done anything like that.'

He called for an end to the printing of 'unsubstantiated allegations'' in newspapers in Portugal and Britain.

'What they want now is whoever takes over to refocus the inquiry on to finding Madeleine.''  'There have been so many distractions, so many unsubstantiated allegations swirling around all of this out there and repeated here in Britain.  'Surely it is now time to for all of that nonsense to end and for the search for Madeleine to be re-energised.''

Mr Amaral, who heads the regional Policia Judiciaria in Portimao, was quoted yesterday suggesting that British police had overlooked the fact that the couple remain suspects.  And he accused the McCanns of releasing new information each day in a bid to distract and confuse the 152-day-old inquiry.

The authorities in Portugal refused to discuss the decision to take him off the case.

But Portuguese Justice Minister Alberto Costa said:

'We have to concentrate on the work, not on making comments.''

Mr Amaral has been a controversial figure during the search for Madeleine, who went missing in May during a family holiday in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz.

He is one of five men charged over an alleged attack on the mother of another missing girl.  The men are accused of 'scenes of aggression'' against Leonor Cipriano, who was convicted of the murder of her nine-year-old daughter, Joana, in September 2004.

The detective was also forced to defend a two-hour lunch break with police spokesman Olegario Sousa at a fish restaurant in Portimao during the search for Madeleine. The men were spotted drinking what looked like white wine and whisky as the McCanns flew to Berlin to publicise the case.

Mr Amaral's comments yesterday were the latest salvo from the Portuguese authorities in an increasingly bitter war of words over the case.

Mr Amaral broke his silence after it was reported that an anonymous email sent to the Prince of Wales's website was being investigated by British police.

The message suggested a disgruntled employee working at the Ocean Club complex in Praia da Luz may have kidnapped the young girl.

Mr Amaral told Portuguese newspaper Diario de Noticias all current and former employees at the resort have been investigated.

He said:

'The British police have only worked on what the McCann couple want them to work on and what suits them.''

Speaking about the email lead, he added:

'This situation has no credibility whatsoever for the Portuguese police.  '(British police) have investigated tips and information worked on by the McCanns, forgetting that the couple are suspected of causing the death of their daughter Madeleine.  'This story about kidnapping for revenge is another fact worked on by the McCanns.''

Earlier, Carlos Anjos, head of Portugal's police federation, accused Mr McCann of being negligent.  His comments came after Mr McCann said he believed someone was hiding in Madeleine's room when he went back to check on the children on May 3.

Mr Anjos said:

'If he was suspicious that there was a man in the apartment, and then he calmly went to dinner, then words cannot describe how negligent he is as a father.''

He also criticised what he claimed was a steady stream of information from the McCann camp. He said:

'Since their daughter disappeared, Gerry and Kate have followed a strategy of almost daily announcements of new facts.''

 

Continue Reading... Labels: Carvi Scandal, Cipriano case, Clarence Mitchell, Goncalo Amaral, Gonçalo Amaral, Joao Cipriano, Leonor Cipriano, Olegario Sousa, Policia Judiciaria, Press Association

Maddie case official walks out

More controversy as Maddie case official walks out
Nidha Narrandes
17 September 2007
The Star

The official police spokesperson in the Madeleine case has quit over the way the McCanns were treated, it emerged last night.  Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa resigned in disgust at the way fellow officers were briefing “friendly” Portuguese journalists behind his back.  His departure on Friday came at an awkward moment for the police team investigating Madeleine’s disappearance.

Another senior detective, Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral, is still working on the case despite facing trial himself.  He has been charged after another woman accused of killing her daughter allegedly had her confession beaten out of her by police.

Leanor Cipriano, who like the McCanns made emotional public appeals when her daughter Joana (8) went missing, was later photographed with her face black and blue after her police interviews.  She has since been convicted and is now serving 16 years for killing Joana, whose body has not been found.

Amaral strenuously denies covering up the alleged abuse said to have been carried out by three of his colleagues.

Yesterday it also emerged that the examining magistrate, Pedro Miguel dos Anjos Frias, has made an unprecedented appeal to be allowed to speak publicly about the Madeleine investigation.  Normally, judges and police are bound by Portugal’s strict “secrecy of justice” laws but Frias has requested authorisation from the Superior Magistrates’ Council to be allowed to brief the public.  But it is thought he will simply use the opportunity to defend the police action and explain why he is unable to make any more details public.

In recent weeks Sousa has been deeply frustrated because he – and the press – have been misled as part of a strategy to put pressure on the McCanns.  Two weeks ago he issued firm denials when journalists asked him to confirm that the results of DNA tests had come back from a British laboratory.  But two days later, Sousa was forced to admit on Portuguese TV that he had given out false information.

Sousa felt undermined by his superiors, who briefed Portuguese journalists personally on developments and then either told Sousa nothing or instructed him to deny them.  The tactic was understood to have been designed to unnerve the McCanns by letting them know the police were “on to them” in the hope the couple could be panicked into making a mistake.  Sousa has felt several times that his position was being undermined.

On August 15, Sousa told reporters that police were now “sure” Madeleine died the night she vanished.  When that appeared in newspapers the next day, Sousa was told by his superiors he had “misinterpreted” the information they gave him.  Yet now, a month later, it is clear that this death theory has long been the central plank of their investigation.

Meanwhile, a witness who could blow the police case apart was identified for the first time yesterday.

TV producer Jeremy Wilkins, on holiday in Praia da Luz with his partner and baby son, spoke to Gerry McCann during the hour when Madeleine went missing. The cardiologist was on his way back to the resort’s tapas restaurant after checking on his three children.

Wilkins said he found Gerry McCann calm and unflustered during a 15-minute conversation – which would be remarkable for a man supposedly involved in the death of his daughter.  Wilkins (36), from north west London, has repeatedly told police he is convinced of the McCanns’ innocence. – Daily Mail

Continue Reading... Labels: Cipriano case, Goncalo Amaral, Gonçalo Amaral, Joao Cipriano, Leonor Cipriano, Olegario Sousa, Policia Judiciaria

Portuguese police in turmoil

Portuguese police in turmoil
17 September 2007
Daily Mail

THE official police spokesman in the Madeleine case has quit over the way the McCanns were treated, it emerged last night.  Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa resigned in disgust at the way fellow officers were briefing 'friendly' Portuguese journalists behind his back.

Mr Sousa will be familiar to anyone who has followed the case as the sole officer who gave press conferences, his good looks and decent grasp of English making him a natural choice for televised events.  His departure on Friday came at a particularly awkward moment for the police team investigating Madeleine's disappearance.

Another senior detective, Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral, is still working on the case despite facing trial himself.  He has been charged after another woman accused of killing her daughter allegedly had her confession beaten out of her by police.

Leanor Cipriano, who like the McCanns made emotional public appeals when her daughter Joana, eight, went missing, was later photographed with her face black and blue after her police interviews.  She has since been convicted and is now serving 16 years for killing Joana whose body has never been found.

Mr Amaral strenuously denies covering up the alleged abuse said to have been carried out by three of his colleagues.

Yesterday it also emerged that the examining magistrate, Pedro Miguel dos Anjos Frias, has made an unprecedented appeal to be allowed to speak publicly about the Madeleine investigation.

Normally, judges and police are bound by Portugal's strict 'secrecy of justice' laws but Mr Frias has requested authorisation from the Superior Magistrates' Council to be allowed to brief the public.  But it is thought he will simply use the opportunity to defend the police action and explain why he is unable to make any more details public.

Chief inspector Sousa, chose to walk away from the investigation in protest at the way it was being handled.  In recent weeks he has been deeply frustrated because he - and the Press - have been misled as part of a strategy to put pressure on the McCanns.

Two weeks ago he issued firm denials when journalists asked him to confirm that the results of DNA tests had come back from a British laboratory. But two days later, after the story had been established beyond doubt from other sources, Mr Sousa was forced to admit on Portuguese television that he had given out false information. Widely regarded as an honourable man, Mr Sousa found the experience deeply humiliating.

He was appointed official spokesman a week after Madeleine disappeared, when the Policia Judiciaria was being bombarded with questions from more than 200 journalists who descended on the resort of Praia da Luz. But he was undermined by his superiors, who briefed Portuguese journalists personally on developments in the case and then either told Mr Sousa nothing or instructed him to deny them. The tactic was understood to have been designed to unnerve the McCanns by letting them know the police were 'on to them' in the hope the couple could be panicked into making a mistake.

Mr Sousa, who is based in Lisbon, has not been answering his telephone since standing down. He has felt several times that his position was being undermined.

On August 15, Mr Sousa told reporters that police were now 'sure' Madeleine died the night she vanished. When that appeared in newspapers the next day, Mr Sousa was told by his superiors he had 'misinterpreted' the information they gave him.  Yet now, a month later, it is clear that this death theory has long been the central plank of their investigation.

Continue Reading... Labels: Cipriano case, Clarence Mitchell, Forensic Science Services, Goncalo Amaral, Gonçalo Amaral, Joao Cipriano, Leandro Silva, Leonor Cipriano, Olegario Sousa, Policia Judiciaria

The detectives working as the world watches

The detectives working as the world watches
Daily Telegraph
26 May 2007
Fiona Govan

The Portuguese police have been widely criticised for their handling of the investigation into the abduction.

But although officers insist they are doing everything possible, the leading figures in the inquiry remain steadfastly behind the scenes.

At the forefront of one of the most intensively scrutinised investigations in recent history is Guilhermino Encarnação, 59, the director of the Judicial Police for the Algarve.

Described as a "desk strategist" in the Portuguese media, a police spokesman admitted early in the case that Mr Encarnação's experience of abduction cases was limited, saying: "He has a background in detective work but this case is unique, so he has only a bit of experience in this area."

He is said to be working closely with Goncalo Amaral, the head of the regional Judicial Police in Portimão. Both officers were involved in a controversy over a previous inquiry into a missing child.

Joana Cipriano disappeared in the village of Figueira on September 12, 2004, only seven miles from Praia da Luz.

In echoes of the McCann case, the hunt for Joana got off to a false start when the Republican National Guard, another police body, failed to seal off the house where she was last seen. It was only five days later - after hundreds of police and friends of the family had trampled over the scene and after relatives had cleaned the house with bleach - that the Judicial Police took over.

Joana's body was never found, but the case was solved. Leonor and Joao Cipriano, her mother and uncle, were convicted of killing her and sentenced to 16 years in jail, but they never confessed.

A third detective forms the trio leading the search for Madeleine and he has impressed the McCanns.

Luis Neves, 41, the national director of the DCCB, the Portuguese equivalent of the Serious Organised Crime Agency, was sent from Lisbon and met the McCanns on Thursday.

A source close to the family said:

"He is young and the McCanns were impressed not only with his grasp of the investigation but his efforts to inform them of its progress."

The public face of the investigation has been Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa. Adept at press conferences in which he often fails to answer questions with clarity, he admits that his experience lies in investigating "crimes against the freedom of press".

Rarely observed at the scene of Madeleine's abduction or available for comment, those leading the investigation have frequently been spotted lunching at the Carvi seafood restaurant in Portimão.

SOURCE:

Govan, Fiona. The detectives working as the world watches. Daily Telegraph. 2010-12-08. URL:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1552718/The-detectives-working-as-the-world-watches.html. Accessed: 2010-12-08. (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/5up8jzHIH)

MCF Archive: The detectives working as the world watches.

Continue Reading... Labels: Carvi Scandal, Cipriano case, Daily Telegraph, Goncalo Amaral, Gonçalo Amaral, Guilhermino Encarnação, Joao Cipriano, Leonor Cipriano, Luis Neves, Olegario Sousa, Policia Judiciaria