Interpol ofered help days after madeleine was taken/Portuguese Resident

MADELEINE FILES: Interpol offered help within days

Gonçalo Amaral, the lead investigator in the early months, sought permission from the Public
prosecutor to release information to the media. Photo: CHRIS GRAEME, THE RESIDENT

INTERPOL offered Portuguese police their assistance as early as May 4, documents released on Monday have revealed.

Interpol told the police that they were available to help the Madeleine investigation by using their access to international databases.

Relevant information about possible suspects, including DNA information and finger prints, were made available to the police in Portugal as Interpol considered it to be critical that information was available to investigators 24 hours a day.

Interpol were contacted by Portuguese police on May 5 when a request was made for documentation regarding criminal records of foreign suspects in the case.

Documents show that Interpol were used in the first days of the investigation to obtain information about a possible suspect who had used a German airline and requested information about the passengers.

ALSO REVEALED is the fact that Gonçalo Amaral, the lead investigator in the first months, sought permission from the Public prosecutor to release information about the case to the press to aid the investigation.

On May 4 last year, a formal request was made to divulge information in the hope that the public would respond. The request was granted and a first press release was issued on May 5.

The first official release, which included a photograph of Madeleine, said she was three years old and had a mark in her right eye.

THE MAN described by the first witness resulting in the creation of a photo fit picture was ruled out of the investigation by police when they identified him on May 8 as a man living in his van in the Praia da Luz area.

The pictures created by possible witnesses were not issued to the public and it was two days after the first witness statement that the suspect was identified by police.

There are discrepancies between the description given of the man and the actual characteristics of the suspect interviewed by police.

Although the man was in the area at the time and had visited the Ocean Club, where friends of his had been staying while on holiday, he was considerably older than the original suspect that was described and had white hair not dark hair as described by witnesses to the police.

There is no mention of this being the same man described by two other witnesses who reported to have seen a suspicious man in the area.

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Odd about the guy in the van aint it.Funny to that a witness as stated he saw a guy acting on near a white van the night madeleine went missing.This guy in question also admitted going into the Ocean club as he had friends on holidays???Oh right...so I guess there friends are aware he is living in a van????Some friends they are !!And i find the german airline connection here a little interesting to.I have heared and read loads about gemany being of interest to this case....I know that both brian and merlin also have said there is a strong german link here.Does anyone know what e-fit gonc is talking about here...only the only one i was aware of in the early days was off egg man????Did this fit the guys description in the van then????

heres the link to this report

http://www.portugalresident.com/portugalresident/showstory.asp?ID=28549