Madeleine McCann murder suspect Christian Brückner told friend about selling kids in Morocco: 'I know he did it'
A close friend of Christian Brückner, the prime suspect in three-year-old Madeleine McCann's disappearance, in a statement on Sunday, June 21, stated that he knows Brückner "did it." German authorities earlier this month, on June 3, had revealed a new suspect in Madeleine's disappearance. The police had announced that Madeliene could be dead, adding that the pedophile suspect, 43-year-old Brückner, could be behind her possible murder.
Brückner's friend, Michael Tatschl, who lived with the suspect in a ramshackle farmhouse near the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz, said that the 43-year-old was a pervert who was "more than capable of snatching a child." Tatschl, a carpenter from Australia, said that Brückner bragged about making money through drug trafficking and burgling apartments. He reportedly once talked about "selling children to Morocco." Tastchl said that according to him Brückner probably sold Madeleine to another person, possibly for a sex ring.
The German police, in assistance with Scotland Yard, is now probing Brückner, a convicted rapist, in Maddie's case. The detectives, last week, had revealed that they were convinced that Maddie was dead and knew how she was killed. They, however, do not know where her body is. Madeleine mysteriously disappeared from her parents' vacation apartment at The Ocean Club Resort in Portugal on the night of May 3, 2007. At the time, her parents were just 50 meters away from the apartment, dining at a tapas restaurant with several close friends while Madeleine and her twin siblings slept in the house. Thirteen years later, the child is still missing. Madeleine's disappearance is the most widely-reported missing person's case in modern history.
Brueckner and Tatschl reportedly spent eight months in the same prison after they were caught stealing 320 liters of diesel from lorries in Portugal, according to the Daily Mail. Both were released from prison nearly five months before Maddie disappeared. Tatschl said that he became convinced that his friend was involved in Maddie's case after watching an eight-part Netflix documentary on the child's case.
A tourist, in one of the episodes, describes how a man — who matched Brueckner's description — began behaving strangely around her child in Praia da Luz in the days before Madeleine went missing. Tatschl, speaking for the first time about the case, told the outlet, that he was questioned for two days about Brueckner last year by authorities who were probing Maddie's disappearance.
Tatschl, father of one, was interviewed for nearly 14 hours by four detectives at a police station in Graz, Austria. The 46-year-old said: "The detectives were very clear with me from the first minute. They said, 'We are investigating Maddie McCann and Christian Brückner', and I told them I knew why they were here. I was convinced it was him. I know he did it. I was living with him at the time. He was my best friend and he was definitely a pervert and more than capable of snatching a child, for sexual kicks or money."
The carpenter said he thought Brückner would be arrested shortly after his interview with the police, and said he "cannot believe" Portuguese detectives have not searched the farmhouse they once shared in Portugal, adding that Brückner used to hide his loot there. "When I saw the Netflix documentary I knew immediately that he was guilty," he said. 'It was when the female tourist talked about the man turning up at her door where her child was playing, that I knew it was Christian for sure. She described him as a creepy guy with acne and blond hair, which fits his description."
Tatschl added that he did not call the authorities after watching the Netflix documentary because of his criminal past and dislike of the police in general. While talking about his friend, he added that the 43-year-old was "definitely quite a strange character" who "liked to brag about the crimes he had done and planned to do." Tatschl said that Brückner's goal was to steal as much money as he could to reach his dream of having a million euros.
"It was rich pickings in Praia da Luz," he said. "He was always breaking into apartments in the area and bragging about it to me. He was a very good burglar and would easily climb up to first-floor apartments when tourists were out. He would steal lots of money, valuables and so many passports. In fact hundreds of passports and lots of Rolexes and other expensive watches."