Roles and Responsibilities of the Investigation Team - Expert Team

Key individuals in the Madeleine McCann Case

Five British criminal investigation experts travelled over to Prai da Luz, Portugal, to detail how the investigation would have and should have been handled regarding Madeleine’s disappearance.

This team consisted of Christ Stevenson. He is a retired detective chief superintendent who led this inquiry. He also headed the Soham murder investigation of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman back in 2002. During the Soham investigation he was joined my media specialist Matt Tapp who is also working along side Christ Stevenson in the Madeleine inquiry. The third member of the expert team was Professor David Canter. He is the director of investigative psychology at City of Liverpool University and is one of Britain’s leading behavioural profilers. Gary Lig was involved in this expert team who previously worked for West Yorkshire Police who has advised on over 100 murder cases and disappearances. The last expert was Professor Dave Barclay. Barclay is a leading forensic scientist who has worked on over 200 ‘cold case’ murders.

This well experienced team of experts analysed three theories. Was Madeleine abducted or kidnapped? Did Madeleine wonder off by herself? Or could have the parents of Madeleine have something to do with it?

Theory of Wondering Madeleine

The team looked at the possibility of Madeleine wondering off by herself. They looked at the holiday complex where she was staying at the possible routes Madeleine could have took to leave the apartment, they came up with a theory of a direction route Madeleine would have took if she left the apartment herself, this route was by the pool heading toward the tapas bar of where her parents where dining. Professor David Canter immediately dismissed this theory down to the fact that the lighting of this route was clearly lit and Madeleine would have been drawn to the welcoming reception area of the complex. This would have resulted her being spotted and rescued by an adult.

Theory of the parent’s involvement

This theory was based on the suspected involvement the parents have in her disappearance. The police had suggested this theory that Kate and Gerry McCann had some kind of involvement, since this it has become a popular theory on the 3year olds disappearance. ‘Three out of four deaths are at the hands of the family,’ says retired Detective Chief Superintendent, Chris Stevenson.

The team of experts felt that the Portuguese police have gone wrong in dismissing and neglecting interviews with the parents around the time of the crime and cornering off the apartment for forensic evidence. The forensic evidence that was found in the apartment and the hire car of Kate and Gerry McCann fuelled suspicion of their involvement. Professor Dave Barclay was sceptical of this; Madeleine was known to have cut her knee during the family holiday which it would be usual to find blood traces of her DNA in the apartment and on her clothing. What the experts have yet to figure out is how Madeleine’s blood traces were found in a hire car Kate and Gerry hired out weeks later after her disappearance.