Madeleine McCann: Met Police 'to ask for more money' to extend investigation into missing girl

The Metropolitan Police will reportedly ask for more money for its investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

In April the force said it was investigating "significant" leads that Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley described as "very worthwhile".

But the force is now seeking more funds to pursue one final line of enquiry in the £11m Operation Grange, according to Sky News.

"It is complicated and not as straightforward as we had hoped, but it is worth doing," a source told the broadcaster.

A Met spokesman said: "Funding is in place until the end of September, and any details about future funding will be released when appropriate."

A Home Office spokesman said: "The Home Office has provided the Metropolitan Police with the funding required to continue Operation Grange until the end of September 2017.

"The level of funding provided is a reflection of the wide-ranging and complex nature of the investigation which the police have deemed necessary to undertake.

"The Home Office has not received any further application for funding, but any future request will be considered carefully.”

Three-year-old Madeleine vanished from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in Portugal on 3 May, 2007.

Her disappearance sparked one of the most high-profile, and costly, police investigations of recent times.

Scotland Yard's investigation has been active since 2011, but the number of detectives working on the case was cut from 29 to four in 2015.