Madeleine McCann: Hunt on for Christian Brueckner's Russian friends who may have helped him kidnap toddler
Madeleine McCann detectives have launched a manhunt for Christian Brueckner's Russian friends who may have assisted him in kidnapping the child.
The German police revealed that they are searching for associates of Brueckner who he had been in close contact with at the time of McCann's abduction. The search is being led by prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters who confirmed the latest development in the case to The Sun Online.
The police are continuing to treat McCann's disappearance as a murder probe. The three-year-old mysteriously disappeared from her parents' vacation apartment at The Ocean Club Resort in Praia da Luz, Portugal on the night of May 3, 2007. Brueckner, a 43-year-old pedophile from Germany, was named by authorities in June as the prime suspect in Madeleine's missing case.
Wolters told the publication, "We know that Christian B had contacts with Russian-speaking people in the spring of 2007. Because we want to interview all people who had any kind of contact with Christian B at the time, we are also interested in these men."
He did not provide any more details about the men. It is reported that the Russians are two brothers who have links to Spain and that Brueckner's former girlfriend who was a babysitter and would often talk about working for Russians. Portuguese TV channel RTP reported that she worked for Russian clients who were involved in the sale of yachts.
Wolters did not say whether the Russian men were being looked at as suspects or witnesses. Sources revealed that the probe is currently at a "make or break" stage as Brueckner's lawyers demand they hand over evidence that McCann is dead.
"Detectives know the case is hanging by a thread and that the next 10 weeks between now and the end of the year are absolutely vital if they are going to be able to solve the case and find answers," an insider shared. Sources also shared that the cops need a breakthrough within the next weeks or the case against Brueckner could "evaporate."
The revelations regarding the Russians came after Brueckner's friend Manfred Seyferth revealed that he was quizzed about them. Seyferth said, "Police visited me in 2019 and asked about a murder and asked about two Russians in Spain and if I knew them."
"They picked me up in Frankfurt and said it was a homicide case and then asked if I knew two Russians in Spain, two Russian brothers. I told them I don't know any Russians in Spain," he added.
We had earlier reported that Seyferth revealed that Brueckner had been nicknamed 'The Climber' as he was very good at breaking into holiday apartments. Seyferth also described Brueckner as an "evil psychopath" and said that he is "capable of taking a small child," The Sun reported.
Seyferth believes that convicted pedophile Brueckner is indeed guilty of kidnapping McCann in Portugal. Seyferth revealed that he knew that Brueckner had been robbing holidaymakers in the Portuguese resort the same year as Madeleine's disappearance. The 64-year-old recalled some of their crime runs together and shared, "We called him 'The Climber' because of his skills.