McCanns 'fear worst' ahead of DNA results

Madeleine McCann’s parents were hoping for the best but fearing the worst tonight as they awaited DNA test results that could support detectives’ theory that their daughter was killed.

Relations between Portuguese police and the McCanns are under strain after a senior officer went on TV to reveal four-year-old Madeleine could be dead - without telling her family first.

A family friend of Kate and Gerry McCann, from Rothley, Leicestershire, said it was “extraordinary” that police had “not had the decency” to contact the couple before giving the interview.

It is understood the McCanns were particularly distressed that Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa chose to make his comments yesterday, the 100th day since Madeleine went missing.

But a family spokeswoman said it was “heartening” that he officially confirmed they were not considered as suspects after a painful week of “hurtful” allegations in Portuguese papers suggesting they were now under suspicion.

British sniffer dogs have discovered a second blood speck on a curtain in the McCanns’ holiday apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz, an unconfirmed report claimed today.

The sample has been sent along with another trace of blood found elsewhere in the flat to a British laboratory to undergo DNA testing, the Portuguese newspaper Jornal de Noticias said.

The test results, expected this week, could lend weight to the theory that Madeleine is dead – although equally they may boost her parents’ belief she was abducted alive, or simply be inconclusive.

Mr McCann appeared to be considering the possibility that she was dead when he told the BBC’s Heaven and Earth programme today if “the worst possible thing happens”, he would be comforted by his faith that Madeleine was “in a better place”.

As he and his wife spoke yesterday of their continued hope their daughter would be found alive, Mr Sousa said new evidence suggesting she was killed was being investigated with “intensity”.

The policeman told the BBC: “In these past few days, there have been some developments, and some clues have been found, that could point in a possible death of the little child.

“But till the moment, and we are waiting for the lab results of the evidence that has been collected, all the lines are open.”

His interview came just hours after Mr McCann wrote on his internet blog of how police had “encouraged” his and his wife’s hope that Madeleine would be found alive.

The huge effort the McCanns have poured into the Find Madeleine campaign - which has seen them travel all over Europe to publicise her disappearance – has been driven by their belief that she was still alive, he said.

He and his wife should be the first to know if last week’s flurry of police activity reveals new evidence that Madeleine has been seriously harmed, Mr McCann added.

Another senior Portuguese police officer indicated this weekend that there were “new elements” in the investigation.

Alipio Riberio, national director of the Policia Judiciaria (PJ), which is leading the hunt for Madeleine, told the Correio da Manha: “We have new elements in the investigation but so far we do not know where they are going to lead us.”

He added that detectives were “far from throwing light on the case”.

The McCanns appealed today for new European laws to speed up the response to a child abduction.

In a video recorded for the popular YouTube website, the couple spoke of their fears that their strenuous efforts to trace Madeleine might be counter-productive.

Mrs McCann said: “A few people have said to us, too much publicity might not be good because whoever’s got her might keep her hidden.

“Obviously everything we’re doing at the moment has a slight risk to it, which is a horrible situation to be in when you’re dealing with your daughter.

“But overall we felt rather than sit back and not do anything this was the way to go.”

She added: “The laws in the States are very different to here, and well ahead of the game.

“They’ve got their Amber Alert, so within two hours of a child getting taken a police report has to be filed. Obviously the response time in Europe has to be quicker.”

The couple spent the day with their family, although they left their apartment in the morning to attend mass at Praia da Luz’s church.

Looking tired and under strain as they arrived at the church, they clutched bags full of yellow and green Find Madeleine campaign wristbands to hand out to worshippers.