Christian Brueckner, the prime suspect in the 2007 disappearance of Madeleine McCann, is under investigation after an alleged physical altercation with law enforcement officers in Kiel, Germany, on June 6. The incident reportedly occurred outside a supermarket after Brueckner took photos of the officers with his mobile phone.
According to reports, the officers objected to being photographed, and Brueckner, who has a criminal record including convictions for sexual offenses, theft, drug trafficking, assault, and child abuse, refused to hand over his phone. A Kiel police spokeswoman confirmed that an officer sustained injuries during the incident but declined to provide further details due to the ongoing investigation. Brueckner was also previously investigated by Kiel police in April for a brawl with another man.
German prosecutors named Brueckner as the prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case in 2020, stating they had "concrete evidence" but not enough for a conviction. Madeleine, then three years old, vanished from her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007. At the time of her disappearance, Brueckner was living in the area, and a mobile phone registered in his name reportedly pinged near the McCanns' accommodation on the night she went missing. An informant also told authorities in 2008 that Brueckner had claimed Madeleine "didn't scream" when she was taken.
Brueckner was released from a German prison in September after serving a seven-year sentence for rape in the Algarve, a region near Praia da Luz. He had been acquitted in late 2024 of other rape and child sex abuse charges covering alleged crimes between 2000 and 2017 that were unrelated to the McCann case.
Scotland Yard investigators received a dossier of police files last month, reportedly containing significant evidence related to Brueckner. Metropolitan Police have reportedly intensified their inquiries, including re-interviewing witnesses in Portugal. Despite attempts by Scotland Yard to have Brueckner stand trial in the UK, he has reportedly refused to cooperate. A representative of the German government has stated that extraditing suspects to non-EU countries is restricted by post-World War II regulations.
Since his release, Brueckner has reportedly been living in hiding and has faced local opposition in various locations. He has previously denied any involvement in Madeleine McCann's disappearance, asserting in letters to the Daily Mail that German authorities were making him a scapegoat.