Your support helps us to tell the story Read more Support Now From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more

The Metropolitan Police are seeking to extradite a man to stand trial in Britain in connection with the abduction and murder of Madeleine McCann, according to a report.

German prisoner and convicted rapist Christian Brueckner was first named in relation to the unsolved mystery of the missing three-year-old in 2020 and officially named as a suspect in 2022.

His yellow and white VW T3 Westfalia campervan was reportedly identified as having been near the Praia da Luz resort in Portugal where the young girl went missing on May 3, 2007.

A senior Scotland Yard official is now seeking to bring Brueckner to Britain to stand trial for the abduction and disappearance, according to The Telegraph.

“Next year marks 20 years since Madeleine McCann went missing. If the evidence is strong enough to extradite the prime suspect and try him here, that is what we would seek to do,” a source at the force told the publication.

“Clearly, there are numerous hurdles but our priority at the moment is to amass the strongest evidence we can against that prime suspect.”

open image in gallery Christian Brueckner is serving seven years behind bars in Germany ( Reuters )

Madeleine disappeared from the bed of her holiday apartment while her parents and family friends dined 180 feet away. Her two-year-old twin siblings were also in the apartment she went missing from. Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry McCann have been searching for answers ever since.

The Metropolitan Police took over the investigation, Operation Grange, in 2011 but they hit dead ends. There has not been another significant suspect in the case since 2007 until Brueckner.

At the time of revealing him as a suspect, the prosecutor leading the investigation into Brueckner Hans Christian Wolters said he was “very confident” the inmate is responsible for kidnapping her.

But last year, a German judge acquitted Brueckner of separate rape and sexual abuse charges, and he was released from prison in September last year. Brueckner has maintained he had nothing to do with Madeleine’s disappearance.

Who is Christian Brueckner?

German prisoner Christian Brueckner is a prolific burglar and has been previously convicted for sex crimes against young girls.

He was born in Germany in 1976 and moved to Portugal in his late teens.

It is believed he lived there between 1995 and 2007 working in the food industry.

Brueckner is described as being about 6ft tall, slim and white with short blond hair.

open image in gallery Brueckner had reportedly been using a yellow and white VW T3 Westfalia campervan in and around Praia da Luz ( PA Archive )

What are the accusations against him?

Brueckner was declared a prime suspect in the case of the disappearance of Madeleine by Portuguese police in April 2022.

Already in prison in Germany for the rape of a 72-year-old woman, he was also charged with multiple sex offences which had allegedly taken place between 2000 and 2007. After an eight month trial, he was acquitted of all charges by a German judge in Brunswich, due to “insufficient” evidence.

Police in Germany had claimed to have “concrete evidence” that the British girl is dead though this has not been proven.

But in January last year year Wolters admitted there was no imminent prospect of charging Brueckner over Madeleine’s disappearance, as police still needed to secure forensic evidence linking Brueckner to the case.

open image in gallery Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry McCann have been searching for answers ever since her disappearance ( PA Wire )

How was he identified as a suspect?

Brueckner had reportedly been using a yellow and white VW T3 Westfalia campervan in and around Praia da Luz – the Algarve resort where the McCanns were holidaying at the time Madeleine vanished.

German prosecutors said telecomms data shows Brueckner received a phone call on 3 May 2007 near the Praia da Luz holiday apartment from which the three-year-old went missing, but he reportedly claims to have been miles from the scene with a young German woman.

Brueckner, who has always denied any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance, insists he drove the woman, who was on holiday with her parents, to the airport in Faro for her return flight home the following day. They were stopped and photographed at a police roadblock, according to Sky News.

When Portuguese police named Brueckner an arguido – a formal suspect – on 21 April last in 2022, it was the first time they had identified an official suspect since 2007.

Back then, they named Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann as suspects but both were later cleared.

open image in gallery Brueckner is the first significant suspect in the case since 2007 ( PA Media )

Why was he in prison in Germany?

In April 2022, Brueckner was jailed in Germany for the rape of a 72-year-old woman in the same resort - Praia da Luz - as where Madeleine went missing.

Police in Germany, who are treating the case as a murder enquiry, believe Brueckner planned to rob the holiday apartment but “moved on to a sexual motive”.

It is believed he has a total of 17 convictions including burglary.

After his release, he was placed under close monitoring including being tagged and being subject to travel restrictions. He lashed out at camera crew when he was tracked down by ITV to a forest in northern Germany in September 2025. He was reportedly moved from his woodland tent to a new town in February 2026 after anger from local residents, according to ITV.

The Met’s ‘plan’ to extradite Brueckner

The proposal to extradite Brueckner could trigger a diplomatic row as Germany does not allow extradition of its citizens to non-European states.

Sir Mark Rowley, commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, had previously said that the force were looking into the possibility of extraditing the suspect.

“One of the reasons we are involved is that murder is in many situations extraterritorial and potentially a murder of a British subject can in certain circumstances be charged in the UK,” he said. “There’s lots of maybes, so at the moment we are taking stock with the Germans and Portuguese.”

According to The Telegraph, Scotland Yard believes it can gather strong enough evidence to enable the Crown Prosecution Service to press charges.