McCann file expected to go to prosecutor

Papers outlining the case against the parents of missing Madeleine McCann are expected to be passed to the public prosecutor, Portuguese police said.

The Portimao-based prosecutor, Jose Cunha de Magalhaes e Meneses, will then decide whether to bring charges against Kate and Gerry McCann.

Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa, spokesman for the Portuguese police inquiry, said: "At the moment the inquiry is being prepared to be handed to the prosecutor in charge of the case. He will analyse it and after this he will make his decision."

Asked when the papers would be handed over, he said: "Probably during today."

Portuguese newspapers reported that police were preparing fresh searches in Praia da Luz. These will take place to the south of the Ocean Club resort where Madeleine went missing, according to Correio da Manha.

Mr Sousa refused to confirm or deny the reports, but said they did not come from the Policia Judiciaria.

It was also reported that "biological fluids" with an 80% match of Madeleine's DNA were found underneath the upholstery in the boot of the McCanns' rented Renault Scenic.

The sample was too badly deteriorated to make a 100% match possible, according to the Diario de Noticias newspaper.

Meanwhile, police and social services representatives in the home county of missing Madeleine McCann were holding talks about Madeleine's case.

It is understood the Leicestershire authorities were meeting to discuss how they should now respond to the Rothley youngster's disappearance and the naming of her parents, Kate and Gerry, as formal suspects.