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Madeleine McCann police resume search of Hanover allotment with metal detectors and radar equipment

German police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have resumed their search of an allotment near Hanover with metal detectors and ground-penetrating radar equipment.

The site is around 40 miles from the city of Braunschweig, where main suspect Christian B was last registered as living.

Footage from the scene shows officers combing the ground with a range of equipment including rakes, shovels and heavy machinery to investigate the area. Sniffer dogs have also been brought to the site.

Parts of the foundations of a former cabin that once stood in the area have been removed, German news agency dpa reported.

A man on a neighbouring plot told the news agency that the garden, where blackberry bushes and a cherry tree grow, has not been used for the last two years.

It is unclear exactly what police are looking for, whether it is potential evidence directly linked to the disappearance of Madeleine or whether it is something connected to Christian B.

German prosecutors have given no details about what the intelligence is that has led to a search of the area.

They have said in the past that they have concrete evidence Christian B was involved in Madeleine's disappearance.

The prosecutors also believe Madeleine is dead.

Sky's crime correspondent Martin Brunt, who is at the scene, said the search was a "dramatic development", adding that an area of trees has been cleared and a mini excavator has been used to dig the land.

"The prosecutor who is leading the investigation into suspicions around the German drifter Christian B, and his potential role in Madeleine's disappearance, has said only that this is connected with that investigation," Brunt said.

"The local paper here this morning is reporting a neighbour who says that Christian B did live here in a camper van with two dogs around 2007, some time after Madeleine disappeared in Portugal.

"It is a 26 or 27-hour road journey from Portugal to here. So make of that what you will."

He added: "It is a scene of some activity. It is difficult to see precisely what is going on.

"They have dug a big hole here, around 15 metres long and 3-4ft deep. They are sifting and raking through the piles of soil that have been tipped around the edge of that hole and the excavator is now filling the hole.

"There is no indication yet that they have found what they might be looking for."

Sky's Dan Whitehead, also at the scene, said officers are using metal detectors and ground-penetrating radar equipment as they continue to search for clues.

"We have seen around three skips being taken away. A few items being looked at specifically.

"At one point, a female officer picks up a piece of cloth and takes it to a blue pop-up tent to be looked at more closely," he said.

"All the time, a small orange digger continues to turn over land."

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Whitehead said the search, now in its third day, is expected to continue.

"There are around 30 officers working on this plot beside a busy road, four miles west of Hanover," he said.

"The work is not forensic, but it is meticulous. Officers pace backwards and forwards, picking up items, mostly broken tiles, plastic, to see if anything is of interest."

He added: "This is clearly a significant operation under way here, which is likely to continue into tomorrow and possibly Friday."

Madeleine disappeared from an apartment while her family was on holiday in the seaside town of Praia da Luz in Portugal's Algarve region in May 2007.

A German citizen, who can be named only as Christian B, was identified as a suspect in the case last month and is being investigated.

The 43-year-old, who is currently in prison in Germany, spent many years living in Portugal.

He also lived in Praia da Luz around the time of Madeleine's disappearance, and has two previous convictions for "sexual contact with girls".