Lawyer targets Maddie’s parents

THE lawyer of the only suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann yesterday criticised her parents’ “strange” behaviour in leaving her alone on the night she vanished.

Francisco Pagarete also claimed people in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz, where the young British girl went missing on May 3, wanted “these bloody McCanns” to return home.

Kate and Gerry McCann have come under increasing pressure from the Portuguese media in recent days.

This week, Portuguese newspapers reported that detectives believe the child was not abducted but died in the family’s holiday apartment on the night she disappeared.

The couple yesterday ended their daily routine of taking their two-year-old twins, Seán and Amelie, to the créche at the Ocean Club resort in Praia da Luz.

The move followed concerns about photographers taking pictures of their children and disturbing holidaymakers using the child-minding facility.

Mr Pagarete, who has known the sole suspect, Robert Murat since childhood, said he thought it “strange” that parents would leave their children alone in a foreign country.

Mr and Ms McCann left their three children asleep in their holiday flat on May 3 while they ate with friends at a nearby tapas restaurant.

The couple have strongly defended their judgment, saying it was safe to leave their children alone.

Ms McCann said they were “at worst” naive.

Mr Pagarete said: “I think it’s not normal for someone to leave their kids alone.

“When I was small and always running around, my parents had me on a leash so I could not run away.”

He added: “It’s not attacking the McCanns in any way, but it’s not the normal thing to do.”

The lawyer stressed that this was his “private opinion” and had nothing to do with his involvement in the case.

He also told London’s Evening Standard: “People in Praia da Luz say, ‘These bloody McCanns should just go away and leave this town. They are giving it a bad name.’”

Explaining his comments, Mr Pagarete said he was simply reporting the words of local residents who were suffering financially because of the dip in tourism after Madeleine’s disappearance.

He said: “There were a lot of people who lost a lot of money since all this happened.

“It has nothing to do with the way I feel or Robert Murat feels.”

Mr Pagarete, 32, added: “The main issue should be trying to find the little girl — not trying to make stories around this unfortunate situation.”

Mr and Ms McCann are said to have found recent suggestions in the Portuguese press that Madeleine was murdered on the night she vanished “very hurtful”.

Family friends said they were disgusted at what they said was a smear campaign against them.

Police are awaiting the results of tests on traces of blood recovered from the wall of the family’s holiday apartment.

Samples arrived at a British forensic laboratory on Wednesday to establish whether the evidence matched the DNA of the missing girl.

Tomorrow will mark the 100th day since Madeleine’s disappearance.

The family are expected to mark the grim milestone with a series of events, including a prayer service in Praia da Luz.