The investigation into Madeleine McCann's disappearance appears to be in disarray after it emerged that the police chief sacked as head of the inquiry may not be replaced for a week.
Chief Inspector Goncalo Amaral was summoned back to the regional Policia Judiciaria (PJ) headquarters in Faro and removed from the Madeleine case after launching a furious tirade against British police and the four-year-old's parents.
Colleagues said he had been made a "scapegoat" because of the British media attacks on his "honour as a policeman". "What they want now is whoever takes over to refocus the inquiry on to finding Madeleine," he said. "There have been so many distractions, so many unsubstantiated allegations swirling around all of this out there and repeated here in Britain. "Surely it is now time to for all of that nonsense to end and for the search for Madeleine to be re-energised." The outgoing chief tried to downplay his remarks, the Correio da Manha newspaper reported, saying they were directed not at British police but private investigators hired by the McCanns, both 39-year-old doctors from Rothley in Leicestershire. The row was sparked when Diario de Noticias reported Amaral as saying: "British police have only investigated tips and information developed and worked on for the McCanns, forgetting that the couple are suspects in the death of their daughter." Some colleagues believe he broke strict police secrecy rules and may have been behind stories criticising Gerry and Kate, the local papers reported. Others told Portuguese television reporters that the sacking had been inevitable for some time and came as no surprise. Amaral, who turned 48 on the day of his sacking, shrugged off his removal from the inquiry – apparently done by fax by PJ national director Alipio Ribeiro reading: "Transferred to Faro for convenience of the service". He told a reporter from newspaper Jornal de Noticias: "A policeman does not limit himself to one case. There is plenty of work still to be done." Carlos Anjos, president of the Judicial Police Inspectors Union who has also repeatedly criticised the McCanns' actions, said: "He was the victim of personal attacks by the British media which not only questioned his honour as a policeman, but also attacked him as a human being." The corpulent Amaral refused to speak to reporters as he arrived at work in Faro. He left the office at lunchtime in a black Mercedes, accompanied by the overall head of the investigation, Guilhermino Encarnacao, 59, chief of the Algarve Policia Judiciaria and deputy national director. The new head will be handpicked by the national leadership of the force in the capital Lisbon but a police spokesman said the issue remained "unresolved". "We hope the decision-making process will be brief. There is no interview process, it is a case of the national directors choosing a candidate," she said. "But Friday is a national holiday in Portugal, so it is most likely to be next week before the decision is taken." from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/10/03/nmaddy203.xml |
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