A key witness in the Madeleine McCann disappearance has spoken out for the first time since alerting police to main suspect Christian Brueckner.
Helge Busching spoke publicly about his claims that Brueckner told him he had abducted the British youngster while on holiday in Portugal in 2007 and killed her. He alleged Brueckner told him the three-year-old "didn't scream".
The German national says before Madeleine's disappearance, he stole videotapes and a firearm from Brueckner's Portugal home which revealed his "true nature".
The Express reports that Mr Busching even claimed to have been ignored by Scotland Yard in 2008 when he phoned a dedicated hotline to report Brueckner.
Recounting witnessing the highly disturbing footage he stole, Mr Busching said the video footage showed Brueckner allegedly sexually abusing an elderly woman and a teenage girl in Portugal.
He said: “[The victim] said: ‘This borders on rape!’ And he just said: ‘Shut up.’ That's when I knew what kind of guy Brueckner was.”
Mr Busching added: “I called Scotland Yard back in 2008. At the Maddie hotline. I said I knew someone who might have something to do with it and gave them the name. But nothing happened there. Nothing! I was never called back.
“In 2017 I had just served a prison sentence in Greece. When I heard about the 10th anniversary of the disappearance, I remembered. Apparently the call didn't help at all.
“So I contacted Scotland Yard again. Then they listened to me.”
It comes as police in Portugal discovered a number of items during a three-day search of a reservoir known to be visited by Brueckner last month.
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