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McCanns 'Delighted' With £433k Libel Victory

A former Portuguese detective has been ordered to pay 606,000 euros (£433,000) to the parents of missing Madeleine McCann as their two-year libel trial comes to an end.

Goncalo Amaral, who led the search for the little girl, was accused of making defamatory statements about Kate and Gerry McCann in a book he wrote.

His 2008 book The Truth Of The Lie claimed the McCanns hid her body and faked an abduction after she died in an accident.

The two doctors said the book, which was a bestseller in Portugal, damaged the search for their daughter and added to their anguish.

A civil court in Lisbon ruled against Mr Amaral, and ordered him to pay 500,000 euros (£357,000) in damages and 106,000 euros (£76,000) in interest to the McCanns.

The McCanns had asked for £1m compensation when the trial began in 2012.

The court also prohibited any more sales of the book, and gave the publisher 60 days to return all existing copies.

It also ordered Valentim de Carvalho, who produced a TV documentary based on the book, not to sell any more copies of the film.

The McCanns, from Rothley, Leicestershire, said they are "delighted" with the judge's verdict.

"We want to emphasise that the action was never about money. It has always been focused on the effects of the libels on our other children and the damage that was done to the search for Madeleine," they said in a statement.

"A lot has changed in the last six years since we started the action and we are pleased that there is an active investigation in both Portugal and the UK.

"We would like to remind people that there is still an innocent little girl who is missing and that those responsible for her abduction remain at large."

Madeleine went missing from the couple's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in the Algarve, Portugal, on 3 May 2007, as her parents dined at a nearby restaurant with friends.

Despite a worldwide hunt, the little girl has never been found.

Last year, British and Portuguese police examined patches of ground in the resort, but had no success.

In October 2013, Mr McCann's sister Trish Cameron told the libel trial the couple's pain was "multiplied 100 times" by the book.

The McCanns said they launched the libel action to stop the suffering the theories in the book have caused them.

Mr Amaral can appeal the court's ruling.