Byrner
03-31-2008, 07:51 AM
Friends of missing Madeleine McCann's parents Kate and Gerry are to be reinterviewed by police in the UK next week, the BBC has learned.
The group of seven will be questioned by officers from Leicestershire Police, with Portuguese detectives present.
Four-year-old Madeleine disappeared from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve last May.
Her parents, who deny any wrongdoing, remain arguidos or formal suspects. They will not face questioning.
Small team
Madeleine disappeared days before her fourth birthday, during a family holiday in the resort of Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, on 3 May last year.
The seven friends dined with Kate and Gerry McCann on the night of Madeleine's disappearance.
One of the group, Jane Tanner, has already told the police she saw a man that evening carrying a child, close to the family's apartment.
The BBC's Steve Kingston in Madrid said he understood that a small team of Portuguese detectives will arrive in Britain next Monday.
He added: "The Portuguese detectives will not conduct the interviews - but instead watch as officers from Leicestershire Police put a list of questions agreed in advance through the Home Office."
The questioning of the McCanns' friends will begin on Tuesday and should be completed by the end of the week.
Police interviews are also planned with relatives and advisers who were with the McCanns during the early days of the investigation.
Separately, lawyers for the couple have requested that two dozen other witnesses be interviewed, including staff from the Ocean Club complex and several British holidaymakers.
News Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7321963.stm
The group of seven will be questioned by officers from Leicestershire Police, with Portuguese detectives present.
Four-year-old Madeleine disappeared from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve last May.
Her parents, who deny any wrongdoing, remain arguidos or formal suspects. They will not face questioning.
Small team
Madeleine disappeared days before her fourth birthday, during a family holiday in the resort of Praia da Luz, in the Algarve, on 3 May last year.
The seven friends dined with Kate and Gerry McCann on the night of Madeleine's disappearance.
One of the group, Jane Tanner, has already told the police she saw a man that evening carrying a child, close to the family's apartment.
The BBC's Steve Kingston in Madrid said he understood that a small team of Portuguese detectives will arrive in Britain next Monday.
He added: "The Portuguese detectives will not conduct the interviews - but instead watch as officers from Leicestershire Police put a list of questions agreed in advance through the Home Office."
The questioning of the McCanns' friends will begin on Tuesday and should be completed by the end of the week.
Police interviews are also planned with relatives and advisers who were with the McCanns during the early days of the investigation.
Separately, lawyers for the couple have requested that two dozen other witnesses be interviewed, including staff from the Ocean Club complex and several British holidaymakers.
News Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7321963.stm