Detective fails to overturn ban on Madeleine book

FORMER Portuguese detective Goncalo Amaral yesterday lost an attempt to overturn a ban on his book claiming that Madeleine McCann is dead.

Kate and Gerry McCann welcomed the ruling by a judge at Lisbon’s main civil court, saying they were “very pleased and relieved”.

Amaral was the first head of the police investigation into the girl’s disappearance from Praia da Luz in Portugal in May 2007, shortly before her fourth birthday.