Who is the woman claiming to be Madeleine McCann?

Julia's social media channels, @iammadeleinemccan, have over 1.1 million followers combined while her videos viewed over 27 million times on TikTok alone

Three-year-old Madeleine vanished during a family holiday to Praia da Luz, Portugal, on May 3 2007.

A Polish woman has gone viral on social media after claiming that she is Madeleine McCann.

Julia Wendell, 21, took to Instagram and TikTok last week to share her belief that she might be the young English girl at the centre of one of the most famous missing persons cases in recent times.

Julia's social media channels, @iammadeleinemccan, have over 1.1 million followers combined while her videos have been viewed over 27 million times on TikTok alone.

Three-year-old Madeleine vanished during a family holiday to Praia da Luz, Portugal, on May 3 2007. At present, there is no evidence to support Julia's claim.

So, what makes Julia think she is actually Madeleine McCann and what evidence has she put forth to support this claim?

Suspicion 

Julia has gone viral on social media as she claims she may be missing British girl, Madeleine McCann. Picture: iammadeleinemccan/Instagram

It was a comment made by her grandmother that led Julia to delve into her childhood which she says is rarely spoken of.

Julia says that she has no real memories from her childhood but does have a hazy recollection of being on holiday "in a hot place where there was a beach".

She says that she has never seen a photograph of her mother while she was pregnant with Julia and has never seen her birth certificate despite asking her parents for it.

Julia says her parents rarely discuss anything about her childhood and is dismissed when she tries to ask them questions. She also claims there are inaccuracies in what they have told her.

An example she provides is a conversation she recently had with her kindergarten teacher who said she only joined the school in September 2007 but her parents say she was enrolled in the school earlier than that.

Resemblance 

One of the details focused on during the search for Madeleine was a distinctive defect in the iris of her right eye.

Known as coloboma, it occurs when there are missing pieces of tissue in the eye.

It can appear, as it does in Madeleine's case, as a black notch at the edge of the pupil giving it an irregular shape. The condition affects around one in every 10,000 births.

In photos shared by Julia, she does appear to have a shadowy mark in the same spot in her right eye.

She admits that it is not as pronounced as in pictures of Madeleine but claims she could have undergone a procedure as a child in an attempt to rid her of the distinguishing feature to avoid suspicion.

The social media accounts are filled with side-by-side comparisons with real pictures of Madeleine as well as artist impressions of what Madeleine may have grown up to look like over the years since her disappearance.

Julia draws attention to their similar face shapes, gaps in their baby teeth, and freckles on their face and legs.

There are also a number of photos and videos in which Julia identifies physical traits that she says resemble Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann.

Past trauma 

Julia has stated that she was "a victim of a German paedophile" as a child.

She said her abuser looks similar to a picture shared on the Find Madeleine website.

Julia says she has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression as a result of the abuse.

What does not add up?

Julia is 21 years old but Madeleine would be 19 today — due to turn 20 in three months' time.

In a bid to explain this discrepancy, Julia says that she could have been lied to about her age in yet another bid to avoid suspicion.

What next?

Julia has been calling for a DNA test to be carried out on Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry, and herself.

Julia has been calling for British authorities to conduct a DNA test on herself and Madeleine's parents to see if they match.

She said the Met Police have not engaged with her although she has been trying to contact them. When contacted by the Irish Examiner, the Met said: "We don’t provide a running commentary on any investigation and therefore don’t have a comment on this."

Julia's family is not willing to do a DNA test to confirm that they are her blood relatives. She told her followers that they will not entertain her ideas that she is Madeleine.

On Tuesday, Julia claimed that the McCanns agreed to undergo a DNA test to determine whether or not she is, in fact, Madeleine.

There has been no word from the McCanns to back up this claim.

Where does the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance stand now?

Convicted sex offender Christian Brueckner is currently the prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine.

The 45-year-old has denied any involvement but investigators believe he abducted and murdered Madeleine in 2007.

While he denies any involvement, Brueckner was identified as a murder suspect in the case by Portuguese officials in June 2020.