CCTV of Maddie abductor deleted

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/cctv-madeleine-mccann-snatcher-deleted-2467839

Can someone perhaps copy/paste.........Thank you:grin: 

Here you go, Karen


CCTV of Madeleine McCann 'snatcher' was deleted before officers could get to it
19 Oct 2013 00:00

By the time Portuguese detectives spoke to the owners of the CCTV at the hotel Estrela da Luz, the film had been wiped






Leads: Missing Madeleine McCann Leads: Missing Madeleine McCann
PA


The new prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann was probably caught on CCTV - but the film was wiped.

A man seen carrying a child around the time Madeleine vanished would have walked directly through a section of road that was covered by a camera.

But by the time Portuguese detectives spoke to the owners of the CCTV at the hotel Estrela da Luz, the film had been wiped.

The spot is a few hundred yards from the apartment where Madeleine vanished in Praia da Luz, Portugal, and is on the route that the suspect would have taken before being spotted by Irishman Martin Smith.

Goncalo Amaral, the controversial Portuguese detective who led the original investigation, said he is convinced the suspect was captured on the camera.

Mr Amaral said: “I believe that the person carrying a child in his arms was captured on film from that very camera.

“I asked my officers to gather all the CCTV footage in Luz but, by the time they got to this hotel, the film from this camera had been wiped over.

"It was a mistake and I will always regret it. I do feel Madeleine was let down.”

Recorded CCTV footage is only retained for a limited time period normally ranging between 48 hours and 30 days.

It is unclear how long it took Amaral’s team to get to the hotel after Madeleine went missing.



The route of the potential abductor begins at apartment 5A of the Ocean Club, from where the three-year-old disappeared on May 3, 2007.

The man would have crossed a road leading to a poorly lit route alongside waste ground.

After a few steps he would have passed the CCTV camera belonging to the hotel.

Walking alongside the waste ground, the suspect would have entered a narrow street called Rua da Escola Primaria where he was spotted by Mr Smith, a retired business executive.

The man with the child continued down the hill and would have come to a crossroads. Opposite the junction was an empty villa with a large garden with a door giving access from the street.

Mr Amaral said his team spent a lot of time examining the villa for traces of Madeleine or her abductor but none was found.

He said three years ago that any new investigation should fully consider the statement of Mr Smith. Speaking in November 2010 Mr Amaral said: “I hope this is seriously examined because it is an important aspect of the case.”

Scotland Yard detectives released an image of the suspect this week as part of their new probe into the case.

A team of British officers are expected to return to Portugal next week to continue the hunt.

They are working with six Portuguese detectives as they use the data to work out who was in the village at the time Madeleine vanished.

The new Portuguese team have been working in Praia da Luz since August as they build up the most detailed picture ever created of the movements of individuals in the town around the time she vanished.

Though great emphasis has been placed on the new suspect and the 10pm sighting detectives continue to analyse phone records.

Scotland Yard officers are analysing data from phones belonging to people in the village at the time - 41 people of interest have been identified.

In fairness though the Smith's sighting was not known about immediately which added to the delay, but, yes I agree with Mr Amaral, ALL CCTV should have been routinely checked as a priority, all hotels, bars, shops, banks or any other business with CCTV outside should have been urgently contacted without delay and told not to wipe their film until the Police had viewed it. Its basic policing at the end of the day I'm afraid. Mr Amaral puts his hands up this mistake being made in fairness, so it would be wrong to defend such a mistake just to appear that we are not bashing the PJ as well, because it was a biggy and could have put all this speculation at an end before it started.

CCTV is rare in Portugal. Where I live they only exist in banks, shopping centres and very few supermarkets. No street cctv. In fact, if the mayor wants to install them they need permission and strong reasons. The right to privacy is safeguarded by our Constitution and the low crime rates explain why cctv is rare here.

Claudia79 wrote:CCTV is rare in Portugal. Where I live they only exist in banks, shopping centres and very few supermarkets. No street cctv. In fact, if the mayor wants to install them they need permission and strong reasons. The right to privacy is safeguarded by our Constitution and the low crime rates explain why cctv is rare here.

I'm sure that is true Claudia79; however the police, as a priority, maybe should have gone 'door to door' if necessary to each business to ascertain those that did and those that didn't and tell them to hold fire on deleting them. Like you say, rare in Portugal but the one spot someone was seen was the one spot there was CCTV. Still, hindsight and all that! I agree crime is rare in Portugal; over here in UK the first thing that is routinely done is all CCTV is checked, hence so much of it goes onto Crimewatch as a result.