Paul Thompson

Mail Online

Madeleine McCann was three years old when she disappeared while on holiday with her family in Portugal.

Her unsolved missing persons case became a worldwide sensation and for 13 years has shown no sign of fading away.

The usually quiet beach town of Praia da Luz was once again the focus of attention following a new appeal by Met Police officers from Operation Grange tasked with solving the enduring mystery.

With a convicted German sex offender named as the prime suspect, the British media once again descended on the resort to discover all they could about Christian Brueckner and if the missing person's case was about to be solved.

Little has changed in the charming resort. Apartment 5A on Rua Dr Agostinho da Silva where Maddie was last seen on May 3rd 2007 is still clearly visible from the street

The only noticeable change is the old balcony door has been replaced by an iron one and the hedge outside is neatly trimmed.

It was also deserted, but that was due to the lockdown imposed in Portugal over coronavirus rather than tourists staying away.

Normally the town that sits atop a crescent shaped beach would be buzzing with visitors with the summer season starting in June.

Instead, the beach was near deserted and those who chose to sunbathe were socially distanced on loungers placed 2m apart – something all tourists will have to get used to venturing abroad.

Local residents and ex-pats alike greeted the sudden influx of reporters and TV crews from the UK, Germany and even the US with a weary resignation.

They had been here before 13 years ago when the story of Madeleine's disappearance dominated the news. Even the Pope and First Lady Michelle Obama became involved as the McCann's attempted to keep their daughter's name alive and people looking out for her.

Back then there was hope the youngster would be found. German prosecutors seemingly extinguished this by claiming she was dead and Brueckner responsible. Without a body British police are still treating it as a missing person's case.

Simply mentioning the name McCann in the Praia da Luz attracted a shrug of the shoulders and dismissive wave of the hand.

'Why are you bringing this up again,' said a middle aged lady standing outside a pharmacy.

'We did all we can, but there is not more we can give. This had an effect on us all.'

She was referring to drop in visitors in the years that followed the worldwide publicity over Madeleine's disappearance.

Who would want to holiday in a place where young children are at risk from being abducted, reasoned the argument?

For a town dependent on overseas visitors the McCann story had a devastating effect leaving many of those dependent on tourist euros bitter and angry as booking dried up.

With the lockdown imposed to stop the spread of coronavirus slowly being lifted and restaurants allowed to open the last thing residents wanted was their town's name to be dragged back into the McCann mystery.

'We want people to come here and enjoy their holiday,' said the British owner of a beachfront restaurant.

'I understand the fascination with the missing girl, but for many Portuguese they are not so involved.

'To be honest many partly blame the McCann's as they cannot understand why the children were left alone in their room.

'That is why they are bitter towards them and time has not been a great healer.'

Talking to store owners and residents it is painfully obvious that while there is great sympathy for Kate and Gerry McCann, and the unimaginable nightmare of losing a child and not knowing their fate, they are also held responsible for what took place.

This time around reporters wanted to find out all they could about the German named as the prime suspect.

Remarkably for a man who has lived on the Algarve for almost 20 years he kept a low profile, mostly remembered him as a drug dealer who frequented rave parties.

Flitting between living a rented farmhouse on the outskirts of Praia da Luz and a VW camper van, he does not seem to have stood out.

Few people in Praia, or the neigbouring town of Lagos where he occasionally worked as waiter, admitted to knowing him well.

That didn't come as a surprise after it was revealed by the German authorities that he had a total of 17 convictions, including the rape of a 72-year-old American woman and assault on a minor.

With the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance at a seemingly pivotal point many in Praia da Luz hope they will have finally have some closure and can move on.