Prime 'Maddie' suspect charged for unrelated offences
German prosecutors said on Tuesday they had charged the prime suspect in the disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann with three unrelated counts of rape and two sexual offences against children. The prosecutors in Brunswick said they have "today filed charges against a 45-year-old German... for multiple sexual offences that he allegedly committed between December 28, 2000 and June 11, 2017 in Portugal". "The accused is the same person who is being investigated in connection with the disappearance of the then three-year-old British girl Madeleine McCann from an apartment complex in Praia da Luz in Portugal on May 3, 2007," they said. Madeleine McCann went missing from her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz a few days before her fourth birthday, as her parents dined with friends at a nearby tapas bar. Despite a huge international manhunt, no trace of her has been found, nor has anyone been charged over her disappearance. But in June 2020, German prosecutors made the stunning announcement that they were investigating a man named as Christian B. in connection with the case, saying they had "concrete evidence" he killed Maddie. However, no charges have yet been brought against the suspect, and no body has been found. Christian B. already had a string of previous convictions for different crimes, including sexual offences and drug trafficking. He is currently serving a seven-year sentence in Oldenburg, northern Germany, for raping a 72-year-old American tourist in Praia da Luz in 2005. The new charges against Christian B. include the rape of an Irish woman aged 20 and another woman aged between 70 and 80, in both cases after gaining access to their apartments. He is also accused of forcing a 14-year-old girl to engage in sexual activity and of two other offences related to girls aged 10 and 11. (AFP)