Seven bombshells from Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner's rape trial (original) (raw)

The trial of Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner rumbled on in Germany for eight months.

Teams of lawyers and a string of colourful witnesses all played their part in Braunschweig regional court. The case was not linked to Madeleine’s disappearance from her parents’ Algarve holiday apartment in 2007. But with the prime suspect on trial over unconnected allegations, fireworks were always to be expected.

The 47-year-old was on trial accused of raping women and exposing himself to children in the Algarve, and was cleared of all charges in Germany this morning.

• Cops found Christian Brueckner 'murder' email account linked to Maddie McCann, court told
• Madeleine McCann's family now - grown-up twins, fresh struggles and new jobs

Here are seven bombshell moments from the long-running case that gripped the world.

Christian Brueckner’s first court appearance

Brueckner being driven to Braunschweig regional court (

Image:

Daily Mirror)

It was a freezing February day when Brueckner was brought to court for the opening day of his trial.

A pack of photographers and TV crews captured the moment he was driven to Braunschweig regional court. Around 30 minutes later, the man police suspect of abducting and killing Madeleine McCann walked into courtroom 141. Looking frail and gaunt, he was led in handcuffs by three security guards to a desk alongside his lawyer Friedrich Fuelscher.

Mr Fuelscher admitted Brueckner was in “poor health”, which he blamed on being held in solitary confinement for two years. He also revealed the German was “stressed” at appearing in front of the media after being linked to the Madeleine case. Brueckner sat at a table alongside his legal team for the duration of the hearing, which lasted less than an hour.

He declined to cover his face and instead brazenly stared straight ahead as camera shutters clicked in court. The German did not glance over at the estimated 100 journalists and members of the public packed into court 141. Brueckner was wearing a grey linen jacket, purple shirt, black trousers and brown suede shoes.

Opening speeches by prosecutor and Brueckner’s lawyer Fried rich Fuelscher

Brueckner in court with his Defence lawyer Dr Friedrich Fulscher (

Image:

Phil Harris)

A week after Brueckner’s first appearance, prosecutor Ute Lindemann finally revealed the evidence against him.

She told the court that he raped an Irish holiday rep, a teenage schoolgirl and a pensioner in Portugal between 2000 and 2006. Ms Lindemann also claimed he exposed himself to a German girl on a Portuguese beach and again to an 11-year-old in a playground in 2017.

Brueckner showed no emotion as the veteran prosecutor revealed sickening details of the five alleged crimes. In his opening statement the same day, Friedrich Fuelscher moaned his client was being persecuted by the media. His speech was notable because it was the first time Madeleine’s name was mentioned in court.

He said Brueckner was under “worldwide media fire” over claims he “allegedly abducted and murdered Madeleine Beth McCann”.

Helge Busching evidence

In April the man who sparked the Madeleine McCann investigation gave evidence in court.

Helge Busching, 53, told British detectives in 2020 that Brueckner said “she didn’t scream” when they discussed the case in a Spanish bar. His information led to Brueckner being named as the prime suspect by German and British police. In his evidence in the unconnected trial, Busching told the court that his former friend “must be brought to justice”.

He claimed to have found a video camera in Brueckner’s house showing him raping and sexually assaulting two women. Busching, who was pals with the paedophile in Praia da Luz in the early 2000s, branded him “really dangerous”. He said: “He must be brought to justice and he must be punished. We were not good friends back then and we will certainly never be good friends in the future.”

He gave evidence alongside his lawyer and repeatedly argued with the judge and Brueckner’s legal team.

Scotland Yard detective reveals previously unknown details on Madeleine case

Draycott shared a tip with German police, sparking the probe into Brueckner (

Image:

The Daily Mirror)

In May, Det Con Mark Draycott became the first police officer to answer questions in court about Madeleine’s 2007 disappearance.

He told the court how the case was blown open by a voicemail left on a Scotland Yard answer machine. He has worked on Operation Grange, the £13 million probe into the Madeleine case, since it was launched in 2011. DC Draycott, 49, revealed how Brueckner’s former friend Helge Busching tipped off Scotland Yard in 2017. DC Draycott told the court in Braunschweig that the original tip was left on a Scotland Yard answer machine in May 2017.

“Back then we still had a public phone number which was publicised around the world,” he said. “Members of the public could ring in information in relation to Operation Grange, the Madeleine McCann investigation. One of my jobs was to check answer phone messages. On May 18th I checked the answer phone and there was a message.

“It was from a male by the sound of his voice, he spoke good English and he asked to speak to David Edgar (private investigator). He said he had information and he left a Greek mobile number. I then rang this Greek mobile number and spoke to a male I now know to be Helge Lars Busching. He referred to himself as Lars and he gave information in relation to the Madeleine McCann investigation.”

DC Draycott shared the information with German and Portuguese authorities, sparking the probe into Brueckner. He was part of a Scotland Yard team which flew to Athens three months later to question Busching in top secrecy. The interview took place in August 2017 in a hotel - after bugging equipment was brought in to check for listening devices.

Busching had been released from a Greek jail weeks earlier and was on parole at the time. “We spoke to him over two days and he gave us information in relation to the Madeleine McCann case,” DC Draycott revealed. “He was scared, he had a distrust in the police. He was scared of giving a statement in such a high-profile case. He said he had a conversation with Christian at the Orgiva Festival in 2008. That conversation was in relation to Operation Grange. I can’t talk about that.

DC Draycott said Busching flew to London in February 2018 to give a formal statement at Scotland Yard. The detective was asked repeatedly by Brueckner’s lawyers about the Madeleine McCann case. But DC Draycott said he had been ordered by his Scotland Yard superiors not to discuss the ongoing case.

He said he was given approval by the Home Office and Met Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy to appear in court.

Hazel Behan evidence

Hazel Behan speaking to RTE in the past about her experience (

Image:

Internet Unknown)

Irish tour rep Hazel Behan moved many in court to tears as she described in harrowing detail how she was raped in her Algarve apartment.

She dramatically looked at Brueckner in court in May and told the judges: “This man is the attacker.” Hazel, from Mullingar, Ireland, described how the attacker’s distinctive blue eyes “bored into my skull” as he brutally raped her at knifepoint.

The 40-year-old was working in an Algarve resort when she was sexually assaulted by a intruder inside her apartment in June 2004. Her rapist was dressed in a pair of black tights, black leotard and mask with only his eyes exposed, she said.

Hazel told the court she will never forget his blues eyes - and said she was certain Brueckner was the rapist. At the end of her evidence, and with him sitting just feet away from her, she said: “I believe this man is the attacker.” Hazel described Brueckner as “very aggressive and hateful” - and said the attack left her with lifelong injuries and PTSD. She told the court how she recognised Brueckner when she saw a photo of him years later.

The mum-of-three alerted Scotland Yard in 2020 after he was named as the prime suspect in Madeleine’s 2007 disappearance. She noticed chilling similarities between the attack on her in Praia da Rocha and a rape he carried out in nearby Praia da Luz in 2005.

Laurentiu Codin evidence

Perhaps the most dramatic day in court came last month, when Brueckner’s former prison pal Laurentiu Codin gave evidence.

The Romanian ex-con sensationally claimed Brueckner confessed to snatching a girl from her Algarve holiday apartment. He said the German confessed to a near-identical crime to Madeleine’s abduction when they were on remand together in 2019. “He told me that in Portugal, he had stolen there,” Codin said. “He said there was somewhere with an open window. He was looking for money.

“He said he didn’t find any money but found a kid and took the child. He said that two hours later, there were police and dogs all over the place, so he then went away, out of the area. I am just saying what he told me. He told me that a person was with him, who he had had an argument with, allegedly it was his woman.

“He said he took the child in Portugal in his car, and in the time when the police and dogs were at the house, he drove away and he was gone. He asked me if the DNA from a child can be taken from bones under the ground. I took it seriously.”

Later in his evidence he added: “He asked if the dogs could track down and could smell where human remains could be found.” Codin, a locksmith, said Brueckner also confessed to abducting and raping young girls in the city of Hannover. Brueckner’s lawyer Friedrich Fuelscher dismissed him as a “fantasist”.

Brueckner speaks in court for the first time

On the penultimate day of the trial, Brueckner uttered his first words in court. The German had remained silent throughout his eight-month trial at Braunschweig regional court. But he finally spoke, albeit briefly, when given one last chance to defend himself.

Asked by Judge Ute Engemann if there was anything he wanted to say, Brueckner replied softly: “No, I would not like to.”