00:01:26
ITN
Madeleine apartment 'contaminated'
Madeleine apartment 'contaminated'
Kate and Gerry McCann's holiday apartment was opened up to other holidaymakers almost two months before sniffer dogs were sent in. In August last year, sniffer dogs trained to detect corpses identified blood samples in the Algarve apartment. These were key in the Portuguese police's decision to name Mr and Mrs McCann as "arguidos", or formal suspects, on September 7. However, other holidaymakers were allowed to stay in the apartment just over a month after Madeleine disappeared on May 3, raising the possibility that any forensic evidence found could have been contaminated. Despite the apartment being a crime scene, 11 people stayed at flat 5A in Praia da Luz's Ocean Club resort between June 12 and July 26 last year. On July 21, Portuguese prosecutors announced they were shelving the case, although it can be reopened if credible new evidence comes to light. At the same time the McCanns and Algarve resident Robert Murat were told they were no longer "arguidos" in the investigation. Another possible sighting of Madeleine in Belgium was recorded on June 8 last year, the case files showed. A little girl with a "strong resemblance" to her was seen in a snack bar in Gooik, near Brussels, with a known 33-year-old Portuguese man who lives in Amsterdam. The man, who spoke English, Portuguese and a little Dutch, left in a hurry when the bar's owner started discussing Madeleine's disappearance with other customers. Police information-sharing agency Sirene in Belgium wrote to the Portuguese and Dutch authorities requesting that they check their databases for any details about the man and his family status. A handwritten note in Portuguese on the document reads "Neg", suggesting that the sighting was discounted."
ITN | August 8, 2008
