Freed Madeleine McCann prime suspect Christian Brueckner is cleared to leave Germany amid fears rapist will offend again

The convict, 48, was freed from jail in September after serving a seven-year prison sentence for the rape of an elderly woman at her home in Praia da Luz, Portugal in 2005.

He remains the prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCannCredit: Dan Charity
Maddie suspect Christian Brueckner will be allowed to leave GermanyCredit: Dan Charity

The convicted paedophile was previously ordered to wear an electronic tag, surrender his passport and establish a permanent residence.

But a German court on Monday overturned one of the conditions that meant he had to live in his home country.

Authorities acknowledged this could mean he would no longer be under the supervision of police.

Brueckner has never been charged over the 2007 disappearance of Madeleine.

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The prime suspect refused to speak to Brit investigators after they sent an international letter asking to speak to him following his release.

Local media reported Brueckner had refused to undergo therapy while in custody.

It also comes after the suspect received a psychiatric report which concluded he was likely to commit further crimes.

Three-year-old Madeleine, of Rothley, Leics., vanished from the Ocean Club, in Praia da Luz, Portugal on May 3 2007 while on holiday with her family.

Brueckner was named as the prime suspect in the disappearance and murder of the tot in 2020 by German cops who said his mobile phone had been pinged in the area on the night Maddie disappeared.

Investigators say they have “physical” evidence Madeleine is dead but no forensic proof tying Brueckner to the case.

Police have been able to confirm his phone was near Ocean Club, where the McCanns were staying, around the time Madeleine disappeared on May 3, 2007.

A number of searches have been carried out by German, Portuguese and British authorities since Madeleine’s disappearance – with the latest taking place near the Portuguese municipality of Lagos in June.

In 2023, investigators carried out searches near the Barragem do Arade reservoir, about 30 miles from Praia da Luz.

Brueckner spent time in the area between 2000 and 2017 and had photographs and videos of himself near the reservoir.

In October last year, the suspect was cleared by a German court of unrelated sexual offences, alleged to have taken place in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.

The total funding given to the Met’s investigation, titled Operation Grange, has totalled more than £13.2million since 2011.

A further £108,000 was secured from the Government in April.

Last month, bombshell images showed the freed rapist being moved around hotels wearing a Panama hat.

Maddie disappeared in 2007Credit: AFP
Brueckner seen waiting for a legal meeting hiding under a Panama hat

It also comes after a woman accused of stalking Madeleine’s parents told a court she might have been abducted as a child.

Julia Wandelt, 24, who claimed she was the missing Brit, is said to have bombarded Kate and Gerry McCann with calls and letters.

She confronted the couple at their home in Rothley, Leics, to demand a DNA test.

The accused said she had been abused as a child and her dad said her abuser was “involved in kidnapping”, which made her suspect she had been snatched.

Wandelt added that he didn’t say who the man was alleged to have kidnapped, but it led to her thinking “maybe I was abducted, not adopted”.

As a result, she started researching online databases to see if any matched her details and appearance.