News & Current Events

Madeleine McCann Prime Suspect Christian Brueckner Boasts About Plans To Disappear Upon Release

Published on June 4, 2025

In the midst of a fresh search, the main suspect in the Madeleine McCann case has conducted his first interview.

As authorities begin a new search for Madeleine McCann, German-born Christian Brueckner, a suspect in the case, has spoken out.

It has been unclear what happened to the British three-year-old when she disappeared from her bed while on vacation with her family in Portugal in 2007.

If no further charges are filed, Brueckner, who is already incarcerated for the 2005 rape of a 72-year-old woman in Praia da Luz—which he denies—will be released this September.

For the first time, the 48-year-old inmate has spoken out from his cell in Sehnde Prison as authorities look for the missing baby in a new region of Portugal.

When journalist Ulrich Oppold of the German broadcaster RTL visited Brueckner in Germany, they discussed his potential impending release. The prisoner stated that he is most excited about a steak and beer.

According to reports, he also stated that if he were released from prison, he would go into hiding and leave Germany for a nation without an extradition treaty, claiming that he is “as well-known as a colourful dog.”

The man who was convicted of sex crimes added: “The fact that I have been in prison for many years for something that I cannot have committed and that therefore, through the participation of the media, half the world considers me a cruel rapist.”

Earlier this year, his lawyer, Philipp Marquort, said his client would think about moving overseas and possibly getting plastic surgery.

Brueckner also told the reporter that one inmate had “assaulted” him, breaking “at least one rib.”

“I now stay in my cell 24 hours a day. I don’t go out. Not even for food,” he added.

Oppold also commented after the interview how the prisoner seemed ‘intelligent’, if not ‘a little distant.’

“I think he had prepared himself very well for our conversation. He knew exactly what he wanted to say and, above all, what he didn’t want to say,” he added.

Investigators may file more charges and imprison Brueckner if they are able to connect him in any way to Maddie’s disappearance.

German police have asked for a four-day search of the area around the home where Brueckner had lived, which is close to the vacation spot of Praia da Luz, where Maddie disappeared eighteen years ago.

Even though Brueckner was identified as the case’s main suspect in 2020, he has yet to face charges.

After speaking with his lawyers, Brueckner also declined to answer any questions about Maddie when the journalist visited.

His participation in her disappearance has been denied.

This Monday, while Portuguese officers blocked off dirt roads to begin the new search, about 30 police agents from Germany’s FBI, the BKA, arrived in the Algarve resort.

According to The Daily Mail, it’s the first significant search in the area in over two years, with a fresh emphasis on wells, water storage tanks, and ruins spread across 21 private property plots totalling about 120 acres.

Additionally, it has been stated that investigators intend to use radar technology to conduct an underground search.