Madeleine McCann: Parents say finding truth is essential 15 years on

Kate and Gerry McCann pictured in 2017 during an interview with the BBC, 10 years after their daughter disappeared

Madeleine McCann's parents say it is "essential" they find out what happened to their daughter, ahead of the 15th anniversary of her disappearance.

In a Facebook post, Kate and Gerry McCann said this year "feels no harder than any other but no easier either".

"Madeleine will always be our daughter and a truly horrific crime has been committed," they wrote.

Three-year-old Madeleine disappeared during a family holiday in Portugal on 3 May 2007. She has never been found.

Last month, Portuguese prosecutors made German man Christian Brueckner a formal suspect, although they did not formally reveal his name.

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On the eve of the anniversary, the McCanns said: "This year we mark fifteen years since we last saw Madeleine... It's a very long time.

"Many people talk about the need for 'closure'. It's always felt a strange term. Regardless of outcome, Madeleine will always be our daughter and a truly horrific crime has been committed. These things will remain.

"It is true though that uncertainty creates weakness; knowledge and certainty give strength, and for this reason our need for answers, for the truth, is essential."

They also expressed gratitude to the UK, Portuguese and German authorities for their ongoing work, and their supporters "for their continued good wishes".

"It is a huge comfort to know that regardless of time passed, Madeleine is still in people's hearts and minds. Thank you," they said.

Madeleine McCann was three when she went missing in 2007

Alongside the post, they included a quote from Winnie the Pooh author AA Milne which read: "But the most important thing is, even if we're apart, I'll always be with you."

Tuesday marks exactly 15 years since Madeleine was reported missing, meaning under Portuguese law it will no longer be possible to declare someone a person of interest. Doing so is a necessary step to any criminal charges.

However, a Portuguese official previously said the move to declare Brueckner an "arguido" was not driven by timing, but by "strong indications" of the practice of a crime.

A picture of Christian Brueckner was released to the media

Brueckner is currently serving a prison sentence for drug offences in Germany and was also given a seven-year term for raping a 72-year-old woman.

The 45-year-old has not been charged and strongly denies any involvement in Madeleine's disappearance.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police said it remained "committed to doing what we can to find answers".

The force launched its own investigation, Operation Grange, into Madeleine's disappearance in 2013.

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Detective Chief Inspector Mark Cranwell, who leads Operation Grange, said: "Fifteen years on from Madeleine's disappearance in Praia Da Luz our thoughts, as always, are with her family.

"Officers continue to investigate the case and our dedicated team are still working closely with law enforcement colleagues from the Portuguese Policia Judiciaria as well as the German Bundeskriminalamt [federal police].

"At this time, the case remains a missing person's inquiry."

Madeleine, from Rothley, Leicestershire, went missing from a holiday apartment block in Praia da Luz, sparking a heavily-chronicled missing person case.

She would be due to turn 19 later in May.

The Madeleine McCann case: a timeline

• 3 May 2007: Alarm is raised after Madeleine is found to be missing at a holiday complex in Portugal

• September 2007: Kate and Gerry McCann are made "arguidos" - formal suspects - in their daughter's disappearance

• July 2008: Portuguese police halt their investigation and lift the "arguido" status of the McCanns

• July 2013: Scotland Yard says it has "new evidence and new witnesses" in the case and opens a formal investigation

• October 2013: Detectives in Portugal reopen the investigation, citing "new lines of inquiry"

• April 2017: The only four official suspects investigated by police are ruled out of the investigation but senior officers say they are pursuing a "significant line of inquiry"

• March 2019: Netflix screens an eight-part documentary about Madeleine's disappearance. Her parents, who did not participate in the film, feel it could "potentially hinder" the police investigation

• June 2020: Police reveal that a 43-year-old German prisoner - named as Christian Brueckner - has been identified as a suspect in Madeleine's disappearance

• April 2022: Christian Brueckner is declared an official suspect in the case

Read more here.

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