Cop who made McCanns Suspects now Head of Portugal's Crime Squad

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/6295328/police-chief-who-made-madeleine-mccanns-parents-suspects-now-heads-portugals-crime-squad/



MADDIE COP TOP JOB Police chief who made Madeleine McCann’s parents suspects now heads Portugal’s crime squad


Kate McCann, 50, once called him 'humanitarian and sensitive' — but he was a driving force in making her and Gerry suspects



By Gerard Couzens


15th May 2018, 7:30 pm
Updated: 15th May 2018, 7:30 pm

A POLICE chief involved in making Madeleine McCann’s parents suspects after her disappearance has been named the new head of Portugal’s serious crime squad.

Luis Neves, current chief of Portugal’s counter-terror unit, replaces outgoing Policia Judiciaria director Almeida Rodrigues next month.

Neves was called a “breath of fresh air” when he joined the inquiry three weeks after Madeleine disappeared from a Praia da Luz apartment in May 2007.

Kate McCann, 50, once called Neves “humanitarian and sensitive”.



But he was a driving force, with colleague Goncalo Amaral, in making Kate and husband Gerry “arguidos” from September 2007 to July 2008.

Like how Mark gets in a plug for Truth of the Lie


https://www.9news.com.au/world/2018/05/16/15/36/police-chief-with-madeleine-mccann-case-history-new-top-cop-in-portugal

Police chief with McCann case history new top cop in Portugal

By Mark Saunokonoko
3:36pm May 16, 2018


A senior detective who investigated the 2007 disappearance of Madeleine McCann has been named Portugal's new chief of police.

Luis Neves, who previously headed up Portugal's counter-terrorism unit, will become the director of the Policia Judiciaria in June.

In the days after Maddie vanished, Neves assisted the massive police search for Madeleine because of his counter-terror background and experience in hostage taking and abduction situations.


When three-year-old Madeleine disappeared from a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on Portugal's Algarve on May 3, 2007, abduction was the first police line of inquiry.

However, as the investigation deepened, detectives also explored other possibilities - including declaring Maddie's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, formal suspects.

The McCanns have always denied playing any part in the disappearance of Madeleine, who was just days away from her fourth birthday. Both had their status of formal suspect lifted when the 14-month case was shelved in 2008, with police citing a lack of evidence to move the investigation forward. The McCanns have maintained from the outset that Madeleine was abducted.

Neves is known to be friends with Goncalo Amaral, the Portuguese detective who led the McCann investigation before he was abruptly removed from the case in October, 2007.

In 2008, Amaral wrote an explosive book about the Madeleine case.

The release of the book, a best-seller in Portugal, triggered a bitter legal battle with the McCanns. Kate and Gerry tried to sue Amaral for £1 million and have the book banned. Initially they succeeded, but Amaral appealed that decision in Portugal and won.

Giving testimony during the 2013 libel trial, Neves confirmed he and Amaral were friends as well as colleagues.

Last year, in what is a final throw of the dice, the McCanns lodged an appeal at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), trying to overturn the 2017 decision by Portugal's Supreme Court.

Nine.com.au can confirm the McCanns filed their case with the ECHR on July 28, 2017.

Their claim is still being processed by the court.

If alive, Madeleine would have turned 15 on May 13 this week.

That "final throw of the dice" appeal is sure taking a long time to be heard.