Woman who claimed to be Madeleine McCann arrested

Julia Wandelt has been arrested at Bristol Airport

A Polish woman who claimed to be Madeleine McCann has been arrested at Bristol Airport.

Julia Wandelt, 23, was detained alongside a 60-year-old woman from Wales on suspicion of stalking involving serious alarm and distress.

Surjit Singh Clair, Ms Wandelt's PR representative, confirmed she was arrested after arriving in Bristol on the evening of 19 February.

Officers from Leicestershire Police are investigating the allegations and they travelled to Bristol to make the arrests. The force confirmed both women remain in custody and enquiries are continuing.

Ms Wandelt claimed to be the missing Madeline McCann in an Instagram post in 2023.

Months later she took a DNA test that showed she was from Poland, with some Lithuanian and Romanian heritage. In other words, she is not Madeleine McCann.

Mr Clair said the 23-year-old and her companion had travelled to the UK for a few weeks to stay with a friend.

He said his client denies the stalking allegations.

Madeleine McCann's disappearance at the age of three in Portugal in 2007 - which remains unsolved - is one of the most widely reported in history.