Detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have identified a German prisoner as a suspect.
In a bombshell revelation, the 43-year-old, who is not being named by the Metropolitan Police, is known to have been in and around Praia da Luz on the Algarve coast at the time she vanished on May 3, 2007.
Madeleine was on holiday with her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, and her twin siblings Sean and Amelie when she went missing.
A half-hour phone call was made to the German national's Portuguese mobile phone around an hour before Madeleine is believed to have gone missing.
The suspect, who is in prison in Germany for an unrelated matter, has been linked to an early 1980s camper van - with a white upper body and yellow skirting, registered in Portugal - which was pictured in the Algarve in 2007.
It had a Portuguese registration plate.
Scotland Yard said he was driving the vehicle in the Praia da Luz area in the days before Madeleine's disappearance and is believed to have been living in it for days or weeks before and after May 3.
He has also been linked to a 1993 Jaguar XJR6 with a German number plate seen in Praia da Luz and surrounding areas in 2006 and 2007.
The day after Madeleine went missing, the suspect got the car re-registered in Germany under someone else's name, although it is believed the vehicle was still in Portugal.
Both vehicles have been seized by German police.
Scotland Yard is launching a joint appeal with the Federal Criminal Police Office of Germany (BKA) and the Portuguese Policia Judiciaria (PJ).
Detectives are also appealing for information about two mobile phone numbers, one of which is believed to have been used by the suspect on the day of Madeleine’s disappearance.
The first number is +351 912 730 680. Extensive enquiries have led investigators to believe the suspect was using this number and received a call, starting at 7.32pm and finishing at 8.02pm on 3 May 2007. This call was received in the area of Praia da Luz.
The second mobile number is +351 916 510 683. This number is the phone number that made this call. The person was not in the area of Praia da Luz.
Investigators believe the person who made this call is a highly significant witness and are appealing for them to get in touch.Madeleine's parents have since released a statement saying they will "never give up hope" of finding their daughter who vanished 13 years ago.
Kate and Gerry McCann said: "All we have ever wanted is to find her, uncover the truth and bring those responsible to justice.
"We will never give up hope of finding Madeleine alive, but whatever the outcome may be, we need to know as we need to find peace."
