Christian Brueckner, the convicted pedophile and prime suspect in Madeleine McCann's disappearance, is making new claims that he possesses evidence capable of solving what he called "the scandal of the century," just days after his release from a German prison.
Brueckner, 48, served a seven-year sentence for the 2005 rape of an American woman in Praia da Luz, the same Portuguese resort where three-year-old Madeleine vanished in 2007. He reportedly told a phone shop manager that he had information that could "end all the accusations" against him and hinted at evidence stored on USB sticks. "He said he had evidence that could bring the scandal of the century to an end," shop owner Farouk Salah-Brahmin told RadarOnline.com.
The exchange occurred as Brueckner purchased an untraceable Xiaomi smartphone and SIM card, fueling fears that he may be preparing to flee. Salah-Brahmin said the suspect appeared eager to set up a new WhatsApp account and spent over 90 minutes in the store. "It sounded to me like he was part of something wider," Salah-Brahmin said, suggesting Brueckner might know others connected to the case.
Brueckner's release has triggered renewed scrutiny from police and prosecutors in Germany, the U.K. and Portugal. Earlier this month, he traveled to Braunschweig in an attempt to confront prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters, who publicly accused him of Madeleine's murder in a 2022 television interview. "The prosecutor refused to meet me, but I told his representative I wanted his help to get my life back," Brueckner told Sky News. "I'm being hounded by the media, and it's his fault."
His lawyer, Friedrich Fulscher, said Wolters' accusation has made rehabilitation "impossible" for his client. Brueckner continues to deny involvement in Madeleine's disappearance. German investigators maintain they have evidence she is dead but lack forensic proof tying him directly to the case.
Authorities across Europe have repeatedly searched areas linked to Brueckner, most recently near the Barragem do Arade reservoir in Portugal in 2023, where he was known to spend time between 2000 and 2017. British police have kept Operation Grange, their £13.2 million investigation, classified as a missing-persons case rather than a murder inquiry.
