McCann claims book damaged Madeleine search

The mother of missing Madeleine McCann has said she is in Portugal to “stop the damage” she believes is being caused to the search for her daughter by a former local police chief.

Kate McCann was speaking after the first hearing of the family’s libel action against Goncalo Amaral who published a book making allegations about the three-year-old’s disappearance.

The McCanns have strongly denied the accusations and say the former detective’s claims have damaged the hunt for Madeleine and exacerbated the anguish suffered by her relatives.

Speaking to the press, Mrs McCann said: “I’m here today for Madeleine and obviously I strongly hope for justice. I’m here to stop the damage that has been caused and is still being caused, both directly and indirectly, to the search for our daughter.”

Mrs McCann said she wants to stop the suffering the theories in the book have caused to her family.

The first witness in the case was Susan Hubbard, a friend of the McCanns and the wife of the family’s priest.

Mrs Hubbard said the couple were forced to use all their energy to defend themselves, instead of searching for their daughter.

Mrs McCann attended the hearing yesterday morning without her husband. She was accompanied by her mother Susan Healy.

It is understood Mr McCann is staying at the family home in Rothley, Leicestershire, to look after the couple’s children.

Mrs McCann, who travelled to Portugal for the hearing, is not expected to give evidence.

Instead, a number of relatives will appear in the witness box. They will give evidence relating to the “damage” caused by Mr Amaral’s book which, they claim, poisoned public opinion in Portugal against the family and allegedly deterred people from hunting for Madeleine.

The family stands to gain around £1m in damages if their legal action succeeds.

Mr Amaral, the detective who initially led the inquiry into Madeleine’s disappearance, is expected to argue that, under Portuguese law, he is entitled to make the claims published in The Truth of the Lie.

The former officer was removed from the Portuguese investigation in Oct 2007 after criticising the British police.

Madeleine, who was then nearly four, disappeared from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, on May 3, 2007, as her parents dined at a nearby tapas restaurant with friends.

The libel case will be heard again today. It will then be adjourned until next Thursday when the court will sit again for two days. A final hearing is expected on Sept 27.