2 weeks ago
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A British police officer involved in the search for Madeleine McCann has revealed his dealings with a major witness in the continuing rape trial of Christian Brueckner.
Brueckner is currently on trial in the German city of Braunschweig charged with unrelated sex crimes allegedly committed in the same area of Portugal where Madeleine went missing 17 years ago on May 3, 2007.
Met Police officer DC Mark Draycott is the officer who dealt with Helge Busching - a key witness in the disappearance of Madeleine.
He took a statement in 2017 from Busching who told police of his fears that Brueckner was involved in Madeleine's case - three years before Brueckner was named by German officials as the chief suspect in Madeleine disappearance in 2020.
DC Draycott's appearance comes one day before the anniversary of the night she vanished from an apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in 2007, while on holiday with her parents - sparking a worldwide search.
A British police officer involved in the search for Madeleine McCann has revealed his dealings with a major witness in the continuing rape trial of Christian Brueckner (pictured in court)
Madeleine McCann (pictured) went missing on May 3, 2007 at the age of just three. She has never been found. Criminal Christian Brueckner has been named by German prosecutors as their chief suspect in her disappearance, but is currently on trial for separate charges
DC Draycott, 49, told the court how he had met Mr Busching after he had called an incident hotline with information.
'One of my jobs was to check the answerphone on a daily basis, and on May 18 I checked the answer phone and there was a message,' he said.
'It was from a male by the sound of his voice, he spoke good English, and he asked to speak to Dave Edgar, he said he had information, and he left a Greek mobile number.
'I then rang this Greek mobile number, and spoke to a male I now know to be Helge Lars Busching, within that conversation he referred to himself as Lars, and he gave information in relation to the McCann investigation.
'As a result of that information we conducted other inquiries and searches and this became a line of enquiry, and we worked with the BKA in Germany, and the police in Portugal,' DC Draycott explained.
'The line of enquiry continued which led us to go to Athens in Greece, where we spoke to him, this trip had all been authorised through the official channels.
'We spoke to him over two days and he gave us information in relation to the McCann case.
'At that stage he did not want to give a statement to the police, however as the line of enquiry continued, he was happy to give a statement to the British police.'
DC Draycott said Mr Busching travelled to London on February 8 2018 to give a statement to the British investigators.
'That statement as had already been prepared to a certain degree based on the statement he had already given, which is the norm in UK,' he said.
'This was done in English, and he had the opportunity to go over the statement, and we looked over it, and he signed a declaration.'
DC Draycott was asked by the judge if the Met had ever made any 'promises' in relation to Busching's help with their investigation.
He replied: 'So, we don't make promises to witnesses.'
Christian Brueckner was named chief suspect in Madeleine's disappearance in 2020
When asked if any money or incentives had been offered to Busching who had been jailed for people smuggling in Greece, DC Draycott denied the suggestion.
He said: 'His incarceration had nothing to do with it. He had already been released on 12 April 2017 and he was on parole in Greece, he only contacted us on 18 May.
'If at all then we might be able to pay expenses, and we did pay some expenses, 35 Euros for him to get the coach in Athens and he provided a receipt for that.
'And likewise we gave him expenses to get back to where he lived and we booked a cheap hotel for him to stay in in the evening in Athens.'
At the time he gave the statement Busching, 50, had just been released from a people smuggling conviction and contacted Met Police officers from Operation Grange - who were in charge of the Madeleine investigation - to tip them off about his suspicions.
Busching told the Met’s Operation Grange that he had seen Brueckner at a festival in Orgiva, Spain, in 2008 - the year after Madeleine had vanished.
He told DC Draycott, Brueckner had said “it was strange she didn’t scream when she was taken” and which has become a key piece of evidence.
When pressed further he said:’That conversation was in relation to Operation Grange. I can’t talk about that.’
Officers from Operation Grange contacted counterparts in Germany and Brueckner's background convictions for rape and paedophilia emerged, and as a result he became the prime suspect.
In 2011 under the then Home Secretary, Theresa May, Scotland Yard was asked to take over the investigation following a request from her boss, then-Prime Minister David Cameron, and Operation Grange was formed.
Brueckner is not currently on trial as a suspect in the McCann case and is instead facing charges in Braunschweig Regional Court for three rapes and two cases of sexual abuse of children in the Algarve.
Brueckner was part of the Algarve's drifter community, and spent 12 years pursuing a bohemian lifestyle in and around Praia da Luz
Busching has previously claimed he had also called Dave Edgar, who was hired by Kate and Gerry McCann from 2008 to 2011 to investigate their daughter's disappearance.
Busching said he had called Mr Edgar in 2008 and tipped him off about Brueckner. However, Mr Edgar says he has no recollection of taking the call and told MailOnline that if he had 'known the details he would have acted'.
In his evidence Busching also told the court he had seen videos of Brueckner raping two women – one elderly and one younger – but they have never been recovered and defence lawyers have expressed doubt that they exist.
He claimed he found the footage in 2006 and the following year Madeleine vanished from the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz and her parents from Rothley, Leicestershire, have since led a worldwide campaign to find her.
It has since emerged that Busching is suffering from intestinal cancer and his prognosis by one witness was described as 'bad' meaning he may not live to give evidence at any future trial.
Brueckner is currently serving seven years for the rape of a elderly American woman on the Algarve and was jailed in 2019.
He will be eligible for parole in 2025.
DC Draycott's court appearance comes after it was announced that Scotland Yard's investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine has been given another £192,000 by the Home Office.
It brings the total spent on the hunt to find the missing girl to £13.2million since she disappeared 17 years ago as a three year old.
This month would have also been Madeleine's 21st birthday.
Home Office minister Lord Sharpe of Epsom revealed the latest round of funding in response to a written parliamentary question by Conservative peer Lord Black of Brentwood.
Lord Sharpe said: 'For the year 2024-25 the Home Office has agreed to provide up to £192,000 to the Metropolitan Police Service through special grant funding for Operation Grange, the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.
On November 18 last year, prosecutors confirmed Brueckner would stand trial for various charges of sexual abuse against women and girls in the Algarve
Pictured: The holiday complex where the McCanns were staying in Portugal's Algarve region in May 2007, when their three-year-old daughter vanished without a trace
'At March 31 2024, the total cost of the investigation was £13.2 million.'
He added: 'Operation Grange's special grant budget currently funds a team of three police officers and one member of police staff, all of whom operate on a part-time basis.
'Special grant funding is reviewed annually by the Home Office.
'The department also liaises regularly with the Operation Grange investigation team to assess progress and challenge the use of funds as necessary.'
