MISSING LINK?
Madeleine McCann cops link chief suspect to disappearance of schoolboy, 6, who vanished from beach in Algarve
MADELEINE McCann cops have linked her suspected snatcher to the disappearance of a blonde schoolboy - 11 years earlier.
German detectives investigating Christian B, 43, have contacted the family of René Hasee to say they were looking into his 1996 abduction again.
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Youngster René, from Elsdorf, Germany, vanished on June 21, 1996 while on holiday with his family in Aljezur - just 25 miles from Praia da Luz, in the Algarve.
He ran ahead during a family walk on the beach to go in the sea. After losing sight of him they never saw him again and were left with just his clothes lying on the beach.
Detectives believe the suspect was regularly living in the Algarve from 1995. He was already convicted of sex offences against children and would have been 19 at the time René disappeared.
Of course you start thinking, yes. I don't imagine that René is still alive.
Andreas Hasee
René’s dad Andreas Hasee said he heard from police for the first time in 20 years when an investigator from the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) contacted him today.
The dad admitted: "There could be a connection."
Mr Hasee, who had accepted his son had drowned, added: "René went to Portugal with my ex-wife and her new partner."
"He was actually also a very careful child, he would not have easily climbed into the Atlantic alone."
"Of course you start thinking, yes. I don't imagine that René is still alive," he added.
An expert at the found tide and current conditions in the sea at the time of the disappearance made a swimming accident unlikely.
BKA cops in Germany have maintained other victims could be linked to the Maddie investigation. The force declined to comment on René Hasee.
Christian B was reported to be in the same area as five-year-old German girl Inga Gehricke when she vanished in May 2015.
The little girl had been enjoying a family BBQ in woodland in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, around 50 miles from Berlin, when she vanished without a trace in chilling echoes of Madeleine's disappearance.
Police today confirmed they are re-investigating the case for "new clues in connection with a suspect in Braunschweig", reports.
There are now fears from her family Christian B might be involved in the case after a sick stash of child abuse images were found at his German farmhouse lair near where she vanished.
They also fear his involvement amid claims he booked a parking space in a rest area less than 60 miles from the spot where Inga disappeared, reports.
Nine months after Inga vanished, Christian B's ramshackle farmhouse 55 miles away from the spot in Neuwegersleben was raided in connection with the little girl's disappearance.
Photos from the grim lair show tangled weeds creeping over rusted machinery and battered old caravans.
Officers raiding the home at the time discovered child abuse images on a USB stick and young girl's clothing - despite Christian B having no family.
But like Madeleine, police were unable to find any trace of missing Inga on the site of the old box factory.
The indecent images were sent away for inspection but the case against Christian B went cold and no line of inquiry was pursued - despite the convicted paedo having no alibi on the day the little girl vanished.
MADDIE SUSPECT
Christian B was first thrust into the frame in connection with Madeleine's disappearance in 2017 after allegedly confessing to abducting the girl while in a bar with a pal in Germany.
He was reportedly chatting to the friend when a TV report came on about the tenth anniversary of the girl's disappearance and he suggested he knew what had happened to her.
German sources claim he boasted he had "snatched her" but didn’t say he had killed her.
Prosecutors in Germany are investigating Christian B "on suspicion of murder" and believe Madeleine is dead and know how she was killed - despite no body being found.
We are now able to show his picture in full in the UK after it was published in a major German newspaper - as cops in both countries appeal for anyone who knows him to come forward.
The convicted paedo, who is currently behind bars, has spent his life in and out of prison since his first crime aged 17.
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He was known to have been carrying out burglaries on holiday villas and apartments at the time and had been living at a run-down shack nearby.
Police fear he may have targeted the McCann's apartment when he saw Madeleine and snatched her.
He had expressed a fantasy to "capture something small and use it for days" in a chatroom exchange in 2013, according to reports.
Christian B is currently in prison and was last year sentenced to seven years for the rape of an American woman in Praia da Luz in August 2005, and has a number of previous convictions including one for sexually abusing a child.
Meanwhile, it has been claimed German authorities ignored warnings seven years ago that Christian B could have been involved in Madeleine's disappearance.
German news outlet Der Spiegel claimed detectives had identified him as a key suspect in the case but was ignored by Germany's Federal Criminal Office in 2013.
Der Spiegel reported: "One person did submit a tip about Christian B, but the resulting report from police in Braunschweig to the Federal Office of Criminal Investigation was apparently not acted upon, much to the consternation of the local investigators."
He was living in a campervan in Praia da Luz in Portugal around the time the three-year-old vanished on May 3, 2007.
The suspect had previously been in a relationship with an unnamed British woman while living in Praia da Luz in 2004.
As well as the campervan, the drug dealer and burglar 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.
Agony for Madeleine's family
Clarence Mitchell, a spokesman for Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry, said today: "They are trying to maintain as normal a life as possible under the circumstances, continuing their medical work where necessary and bringing the twins up as best they can, while shielding them from all the attention.
"They wait to hear any developments from police.
";They certainly will be encouraged to know the appeal is yielding results already and hopefully within that there will be crucial bits of information the police can act upon."
- You can help by calling Operation Grange with information on 0207 321 9251 or email [email protected]
On May 4, 2007 - the day after Madeleine vanished - he got the Jaguar re-registered in Germany under someone else's name although it is believed the vehicle remained in Portugal.
German police believe one of the two vehicles were used in the disappearance of Madeleine.
He also took a mysterious 30-minute phonecall just one hour before the disappearance and had also rented two homes in Portugal just miles from the Ocean Club where Madeleine was staying.
MOST READ IN NEWS
Police are now hunting a man called Diogo Silva, who the phone that made the call to Christian B was registered to.
The suspect's extensive rap sheet includes sex attacks on kids, indecent images, sexual coercion, theft and breaking and entering, reports Bild.
He was first convicted aged just 17 in Bavaria in 1994 for “abusing a child” and “performing sex acts in front of a child”.
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German prosecutor announces they assume Madeleine McCann is dead, as new prime suspect is revealed
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