'Very upset' Julia Wendell struggling to understand results of DNA test which show she's not Madeleine McCann
5 April 2023, 15:24 | Updated: 6 April 2023, 12:23
The woman who believed she was Madeleine McCann was "very upset" when DNA results proved she was not the missing girl.
Julia Wendell has now left California to go back to her dad in Poland but is having difficulty accepting results of the tests that '100 per cent' prove she is not Madeleine.
Dr Fia Johansson who has been looking into the case said the global fascination with Julia's case had shone a light on Madeleine's disappearance and claimed her updates had prompted 10,000 people to come forward to her with "fresh" information which she will look into.
The psychic detective and private investigator, who was granted power of attorney over the 21-year-old, told how Julia's strained relationship with her mother and a difficult childhood where she was abused by a male who was jailed for his crimes made it difficult for her to accept the result.
Read More: Madeleine McCann's parents hit back after DNA tests prove Polish woman isn't their missing daughter
She told The Sun: "Julia has had a difficult childhood, we know she has been sexually abused, she has been very open about this, and my investigation uncovered legal records proving that this was true.
"Then on top of that she felt she was being ignored by her mother, who refused to take the DNA test which could have stopped all this from the beginning and given her the closure she needs.
"At first she didn't want to believe the DNA results, she was saying 'What if someone changed the results?' but I told her, 'Stop this now'.
"I can understand as a psychologist why she didn't want to believe her mother is her real mother."But I told her - she must stop this fixation now that she is Madeleine McCann and accept the result of the DNA test and start to move on with her life.
"The DNA test has proven she is from a small village in Poland where her mother and many cousins are from. These tests don't lie.
"She accepts this now but she has been struggling to come to terms with it.
"I made sure that it was safe for her to return to Poland and I've spoken to her father who has said he will make sure she is supported and looked after and receives the health treatment she needs.
"I will continue looking into the case."
Earlier Madeleine's parents spoke out after the DNA results showed Julia was not their daughter.
in a question on the official Find Madeleine Facebook page, a woman asked: "Is there any chance of giving us an update? There has been a lot of media about a girl claiming to be Maddie and DNA being done? Is it possible to let your followers know what is going on [...]?"
The woman added: “Our thoughts and prayers are always with the McCann family and a safe return of their precious daughter.”
In response the Official Find Madeleine campaign wrote: “There isn’t anything to report at this time. If and when there is, it will come from The Metropolitan Police.”
Read more: Girl claiming to be Madeleine McCann: What have Julia Wendell's Polish parents said?
Julia tried to prove her case by pointing out physical similarities between herself and Madeleine — including a brown smudge that appears on each girl’s right eye.
Dr Johansson took up her case and whisked Julia to America after she received death threats.
They both appeared on top US tv talk show Dr Phil where Julia reiterated her claim that she was Madeleine and said she wouldn’t want any contact with her Polish family.
Madeleine vanished on a family holiday to Portugal in 2007 aged three.
Scotland Yard cops investigating what happened are set to be given another £300,000 to keep the case going.
