[West Ender]

The campaign launched by the family has blown up in their faces. From the start it angered a lot of people because it was manipulated to elicit sympathy and donations to a cause that was not unique. It worked in that it became quite the In Thing to show support, the yellow ribbons etc., and it brought in a lot of money but there were always those who remembered that many children go missing without constant media hype surrounding their cases.

I do not know the McCanns but, from what I've seen of them, I don't like them. He appears to be an arrogant and manipulative man and she seems to go from one extreme to the other in her displays, or not, of emotion. That doesn't mean, however, that I believe they harmed the child. I am no more privvy to any real evidence than anyone else on this site and it's not for me to judge.

The police case against the mother seems implausible to say the least. She is alleged to have killed the child and concealed the body before going for a meal and behaving perfectly normally then faking devastation at finding her "missing". She is then alleged to have kept the corpse hidden for 3 weeks, despite the police asserting that they have made a thorough search of the area, then removed it in a hired car, unseen by the possé of Press who have been in constant attendance. The dead body of the child is said to have deposited blood stains in the car which seems unlikely as, after 3 weeks, I would expect severe decomposition rather than bleeding, particularly in a hot climate.

The Portugese police seem to be following the sentiments of the population and the media. When "sightings" of the child were being reported on a daily basis they were certain the child had been abducted. Next they assumed that Robert Murat had abducted/murdered the child, because a reporter said he was "behaving just like Ian Huntley", and made him the prime suspect. Now that the locals have tired of the McCann circus and hinted that the child has been killed by her parents the police have decided that must be the solution.

I have no idea what the outcome of this case will be. I have thought from the start that the little girl was probably dead and I have found the "Find Madeleine" campaign hysterical and over-hyped but I can only wait to see what further evidence is produced. That's all any of us can do.