Madeleine McCann main suspect Christian Brueckner PHOTOGRAPHED as he is dragged to court in the back of a police van
MADELEINE McCann's main suspect Christian Brueckner has been pictured in a police van as he is taken to court on a series of rape charges.
The convicted pedophile, 47, did accused of three rapes and two assaults.
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The charges are being heard today in the Braunschweig region Court have no connection with it Maddyfrom whom he is kidnapped seventeen years ago.
In the photo, Brueckner looked dejected, wearing a dark green hooded jacket and striped shirt as he arrived in a van with bars on the window.
It is the first time he has been photographed since 2020, when he staggered out of a hospital in handcuffs after being attacked in prison.
Prosecutors allege Brueckner raped three women and abused children twice Portugal.
More about Christian Brückner
His alleged victims include Irish mother Hazel Behan, who says he raped her when she was 20 and working as a holiday worker in Portugal in 2004.
He is also accused of raping and abusing a teenage girl and a 70- to 80-year-old woman at his home in Praia da Luz between December 2000 and June 2006.
Other sickening allegations the court heard included that he masturbated in front of a girl at a playground in Mesen in June 2017.
He is also facing claims that he did the same in front of another girl, on the beach of Salema, Portugal, in April 2007.
German Drifter Bruckner is already in prison, already serving a seven-year sentence for rape.
Another conviction will keep him behind bars; as fears grow, he may never be charged in Madeleine's disappearance.
Brueckner was identified four years ago as the main suspect in the kidnapping of Madeleine from her family's holiday flat in Portugal in 2007.
German investigators believe Brueckner kidnapped and murdered her, although no charges have been filed against him.
Ahead of his court appearance today, his lawyer vowed to have him acquitted.
Friedrich Fülscher said he was confident he could defend him against the accusations
He claimed the accusations were part of a witch hunt against Brueckner.
Dr. Fülscher revealed that he had hired a powerful and expensive defense team and stressed: “I am convinced that an acquittal can only take place at the end of the trial.”
In the meantime, Brueckner shamelessly mocked the police in a sickening tirade from behind bars.
In his first comments on the case, Brueckner described his trial as “ridiculous.”
Key dates in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann
MADELEINE McCann disappeared on May 3, 2007 – and police believe Brueckner was behind her disappearance.
Nearly 17 years later, no one has been linked. These are the most important dates:
May 3, 2007 – Kate McCann finds Madeleine missing at 10 p.m
May 14, 2007 – Real estate developer Robert Murat is called an “arguido” or formal suspect
August 31th, 2007 – The McCanns launch a defamation action against Tal e Qual, a newspaper that claims the couple murdered Madeleine
September 7, 2007 – Kate and Gerry McCann are made “arguidos”.
September 9, 2007– Madeleine's parents return to England with their two-year-old twins
October 2, 2007– Lead detective Goncalo Amaral is removed from the case after criticizing the British police in a newspaper interview
July 21, 2009 – The Portuguese police lift the “arguido” status of both Robert Murat and the McCanns
May 12, 2011 – On Madeleine's eighth birthday, Scotland Yard launches an investigation into the case
April 25, 2012 – Scotland Yard officers say they believe Madeleine McCann is still alive
July 4, 2013 – Two years after the case was reviewed, Scotland Yard launched its own investigation into Madeleine's disappearance
October 24, 2013– The Portuguese police reopen their case after new lines of investigation were found
November 27, 2013 – With Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe called on the British and Portuguese police to work together
October 28, 2015 – Scotland Yard is reducing the number of officers working on Madeleine's disappearance
March 11, 2017 – The Home Office awards Operation Grange an additional £85,000 will continue from April to September
September 28, 2017 – British police will receive £154,000 to continue investigation runs until March 2018
November 2017 – The police moved the search to Bulgaria
May 2018 – A new round of financing, probably in the region of £150,000 will be awarded
September 2018 – A The Ministry of the Interior is requesting six months of additional funding
November 2018 – More financing, probably in hand the region of £150,000 is awarded
November 2018 – British police re-examine a theory. Madeleine left the apartment to look for her parents
June 2019 – Another round of financing, believed to be £300,000 in public money has been awarded
June 2019 – The Portuguese police are here investigating a “new lead and suspect” after discussions with British officers
June 2020 – New prime suspect revealed as a German pedo Christian Brückner
April 2022 – Brueckner formally made an “arguido”
May 2023 – Police search for the remote reservoir of the Algarve Brueckner called his “little paradise”
The German drifter also mercilessly ridiculed the police, saying: “I hope (they) will soon find answers to (their) questions.”
Brueckner has moved from Oldenburg jail in the north Germany to Schnedebruch near Hannover, according to MailOnline.
He said: “My situation hasn't changed at all. I just moved to the prison. I am still totally isolated. Since (sic) more than two years now.
“I'm still not allowed to talk to anyone other than my lawyers and my punishment (guards).”
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