Madeleine McCann's parents may pay £750,000 for private search if police hunt is axed

Madeleine McCann's parents may pay £750,000 for private search if police hunt is axed

The cash is in the Find Madeleine fund, made up mainly of donations and profits from mum Kate’s bestselling book on the disappearance

By
Tom Pettifor &

Tracey Kandohla,
21:54, 8 FEB 2018
Updated22:48, 8 FEB 2018


Madeleine McCann’s parents have nearly £750,000 to pay for a private search for their daughter if the police hunt is axed.

The cash is in the Find Madeleine Fund, made up mainly of donations and profits from mum Kate’s bestselling book on the disappearance.


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It is showing a profit of £793,516, but nearly £65,000 has been set aside to pay for expenses and a failed libel battle against a Portuguese ex-detective who accused the parents of accidentally killing Madeleine and hiding her body.

Kate and dad Gerry, both 49, have seven weeks left of guaranteed funding for Scotland Yard’s Operation Grange, due to end after a £11.3million hunt.

Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: “The Madeleine Fund gives Kate and Gerry the option to pick up their own inquiries again, if they choose, with private investigators.”

Madeleine, three, vanished from an apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007 while her parents were eating tapas with pals at a restaurant nearby.

She would now be nearly 15.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/madeleine-mccanns-parents-pay-750000-11995167

I hope they pay Mr. Amaral what they owe him before they fork out any of that money on another useless search. My understanding is he has not yet been paid and, not only that, his assets are still frozen and will be until the latest appeal is heard. Outrageous!!!

"May" being the important word.  The McCanns have paid out nothing from their own pockets up until now and I can't see that changing in a hurry

Not only have they not spent a cent of their own money, I read they "may", as a not so subtle way of appealing for more from the public. What about the relatives who said they would sell their homes to fund the search; I'm certain if that ever happened we'd have heard about it, but so far zilch.

The Mirror is reporting cops have asked the Home Office for more cash to continue the "search". The McCanns likely knew about this when last week's report of what they "may" do came out.

intrested is that correct that Dr G Amarals funds are still frozen its my understanding that the court verdict stands as the McCs cannot take him as an individual to the EHCR They have to take the country Portugal to EHCR. of course I could have misunderstood.

tanszi wrote:intrested  is that correct that Dr G Amarals funds are still frozen  its my understanding that the court verdict stands as the McCs cannot take him as an individual to the EHCR  They have to take the country Portugal to EHCR.  of course I could have misunderstood.

Hi "tanszi" - I'm really not 100% sure, but I seem to remember reading in the Portugal press that Mr. Amaral's "assets" were still frozen, subsequent to the last verdict to allow for an appeal by the McCanns. It's also quite possible that I too have misunderstood; I'm in Canada and just trying to keep up to date.

Hi interested, I'm not sure either wish I could remember where I saw it. Ludicrous if the assets are still frozen how is the man and his family (I know he is now divorced) supposed to live.