Madeleine McCann suspect reveals he was 150 yards away from resort on night of disappearance
Christian Brueckner was living in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in 2007. In 2022, German authorities identified him as the prime suspect in Madeleine McCann's disappearance
Christian Brueckner, the police prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, has revealed he was “150 yards” from the resort where the family were staying on the night she went missing.
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Brueckner, a convicted paedophile and rapist, has admitted he was “selling drugs” near the Praia da Luz resort in Portugal’s Algarve, but denies any connection to Madeleine’s disappearance.
German authorities identified the him as the prime suspect in Madeleine’s case in 2022.
He was living in Praia da Luz at the time and was said to have received a phone call near the area on the night Madeleine disappeared in 2007.
Madeleine, who was three years old, disappeared while her parents were having dinner with friends at a restaurant around 100 yards from their daughter’s room.
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In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Brueckner said he had tried to leave Praia da Luz because he had a “van full of drugs” on the night Madeleine went missing, but was stopped by police.
“I was on the beach, not far from Maddie's hotel, selling drugs,” he said. “I'd been in Spain and smuggled the weed into Portugal. I was even stopped by police three times on the street [in Praia da Luz] while they were looking for Maddie. Luckily, they didn't find the drugs. My van was full of them.
He added: “I was making a quick getaway; there were flashing blue lights and checkpoints everywhere. I just thought, 'Get me out of here'.'
Brueckner was released from prison in September 2025 after serving a sentence for the rape of a US tourist. He has previously been convicted of drug trafficking, assault and sexual abuse of children.
This is the first time Brueckner has publicly revealed information about his whereabouts on the night of Madeleine’s disappearance.
The Metropolitan Police are seeking a UK trial for Brueckner, with Scotland Yard reportedly wanting him to stand trial at the Old Bailey before the 20th anniversary of Madeleine’s disappearance next year according to the Telegraph.
A Scotland Yard insider said: “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,”
“Clearly, there are numerous hurdles but our priority at the moment is to amass the strongest evidence we can against that prime suspect,” they added.
A small team of detectives is reportedly gathering a file of evidence for the Crown Prosecution Service to consider bringing charges on suspicion of abduction and murder.
The Met's investigation remains a missing persons case rather than a murder inquiry.
Metropolitan Police detectives are attempting to extradite Brueckner to the UK over the case, with a dedicated team continuing to work closely with police colleagues in Germany and Portugal.