Madeleine McCann: New Suspects Identified

Police have identified a number of suspects in the case of missing Madeleine McCann, Scotland Yard has disclosed.

Officers investigating the case as part of a review have drawn up a list of "people of interest" they wish to speak to in connection with the disappearance of Madeleine in May 2007.

The review was launched in 2011 in an attempt to find out what happened to the toddler who vanished from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on the Algarve.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell said: "The purpose of the review was to look at the case with fresh eyes and there is always real benefit in doing so. The review has further identified both investigative and forensic opportunities to support the Portuguese.

"There is more than a handful of people of interest which could be explored further if only to be eliminated.

"The key things are to investigate the case and our work is happening to support the Portuguese."

A spokesman for the McCann family, Clarence Mitchell, said: "Kate and Gerry continue to be encouraged by Operation Grange and are very pleased by the work the police are doing. Beyond that they won't be commenting on any operational matters."

The Portuguese authorities' handling of the original investigation was widely criticised.

The police named Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry, as suspects but they were cleared in July 2008 when the attorney general ruled there was nothing to link them to their daughter's disappearance.

Madeleine disappeared from the bedroom of the ground floor apartment that she was sharing with her brother and sister Sean and Amelie, who are twins, on the evening of May 3, 2007, just days before her fourth birthday.

Her parents had been enjoying a holiday meal with friends at a tapas restaurant just 130 yards away.

Mr and Mrs McCann, who have campaigned endlessly to find out what happened to their daughter, recently quietly celebrated her 10th birthday.

Speaking at that time, Mrs McCann, a GP, said: "We still celebrate her and her being part of our lives. I go into Madeleine's room and I don't even have to talk - I can just think. It's as it was really and I'm not ready to change it.

"We always include Madeleine in everything. She is in my head and my heart every minute of every day."