Madeleine McCann Probe Opened By Scotland Yard

After Portuguese police failed to yield results, the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is being investigated by Scotland Yard, six years after she vanished abroad.

The Madeleine McCann case has been a continually developing investigation, one marked by an unusually high level of hope that the girl, who would now be nine, will eventually be safely returned to parents Kate and Gerry McCann.

Madeleine McCann was not yet four when, in 2007, she was abducted from a room at a resort, Praia da Luz. Efforts to get a bead on the preschooler’s fate have proven thus far fruitless, but police have been ever vigilant in examining leads when it comes to tracking the girl.

In light of the new investigation in the UK into McCann’s kidnapping, the Home Office said in a statement:

“The Home Office remains committed to supporting the search for Madeleine McCann and we have always said that we would provide the Metropolitan Police with the resources they need to investigate her disappearance.”

Previous sightings of Madeleine McCann have not borne out as leads in the case. Scotland Yard declined comment but said:

“We are reviewing a significant number of documents and continue to identify potential lines of inquiry … We are in regular contact with Kate and Gerry McCann and they are kept fully updated.”

Last month, expected review of Madeleine McCann’s disappearance was commented upon by Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, who explained that one aim was to approach the frustrating case from new angles:

“The purpose of the review was to look at the case with fresh eyes and there is always real benefit in doing so … The review has further identified both investigative and forensic opportunities to support the Portuguese. There is more than a handful of people of interest which could be explored further if only to be eliminated.”

Campbell added:

“The key things are to investigate the case and our work is happening to support the Portuguese.”

The UK’s Sky News reports that Scotland Yard “believes it has unearthed enough evidence to justify the Portuguese authorities reopening the case but so far they have refused to do so” in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance.