Madeleine McCann: Melissa Fiering Sees, An Algerian And Waldo
MADDYWATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann
THE SUN (front page): “MADDIE SEEN IN FRANCE”
“Eye-defect girl in cafe” – Why do they stare, daddy?
DAILY MIRROR: “I SPOTTED MADDY AT CAFE IN FRANCE”
A picture of Melissa.
“’This is so significant because the girl noticed the blemish in the eye and it’s on CCTV for first time’ - McCANN FAMILY SPOKESMAN CLARENCE MITCHELL LAST NIGHT”
This is the Mirror’s “EXCLUSIVE THE HUNT FOR MADELEINE”
To France:
“The little girl was spotted in a motorway service station cafe by student Melissa Fiering, 18, who insists she clearly saw the distinctive flaw in her right iris”
Says Melissa: “My friend and I had music playing loudly out of our mobile phones and this little girl was dancing to it. It was only when I looked closely at her I realised it was Madeleine. She had a very thin face and her blonde hair had been cut much shorter, down to her jaw. But it was her”
Why so certain?
“I looked in her eye because I’d seen on TV that Madeleine’s got a defect in her right iris and I saw this girl had it. I could hardly believe my eyes but I knew for sure it was Madeleine. I called out her name and she looked up at me - she obviously recognised it”
Obviously. Dancing with a small child and then you shout out a name and she looks at you…
“But when I called out ‘Madeleine’ the man she was with got worried and started dragging her away from the queue”
The man with Madeleine is described as a “dark-skinned man, who was possibly Algerian”. Blonde girl with dark-skinned man. Like her?
What did Melissa do when he was spotted, this swarthy man?
“As he dragged the girl away he threw a white coat over her and pulled a woollen hat from his pocket and jammed it on her head. Melissa adds: ‘He didn’t say a word but as they got to the door he prodded the girl in the back. I tried to take pictures on my phone but I only got one and it was all blurred. I ran outside after them but they’d vanished”
Vanished?
“WE HAVE THE GUN THAT KILLED RHYS”
Rhys Jones was killed in Liverpool, shot by a youth on a bike
“Rhys’s mum Melanie, 42, and dad Stephen, 45, who have received a message of sympathy from Madeleine McCann’s family, issued a statement for tomorrow’s six-month anniversary of the shooting”
Why do we know this?
The message says: “We are still struggling to come to terms with the loss of our beautiful son Rhys. The pain we have had to face every day has been magnified by the poignancy of occasions like Christmas and Rhys’s 12th birthday. The last six months have been a living nightmare. All we want is justice for our son”
Rhys Jones is murdered in Liverpool. Rhys Jones was 11 years old. His parents are not suspects
DAILY EXPRESS: “MADELEINE IN NEW ‘SIGHTING’ AT RESTAURANT”
Dutch woman. A restaurant? Not a therapist. A student
The Dutch student is “100 per cent certain” she saw Madeleine McCann in a roadside restaurant in southern France
Says Melissa: “I called out ‘Madeleine’ and she looked up. The man with her was about six feet tall, with black hair, a black leather jacket and several days growth of stubble. He put on her coat and hat and bundled her away”
She adds: “I can’t stop thinking about it. I wish I had stopped that man. I wanted to pick her up, I am sorry I didn’t do that”
LIVERPOOL DAILY POST: “Madeleine McCann ’spotted’ in Southern France”
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS: “Student claims to have sighted Madeleine McCann in France”
A reader comments: “Is this kid going to replace Waldo?”
ASSOCIATED PRESS: “French police investigating an alleged sighting of Madeleine McCann in southern France have determined it was not the missing British girl.
A police official says a Dutch tourist reported that she may have seen McCann at a roadside restaurant. Examining closed-circuit video footage, the investigators spotted a man and a young girl who resembled McCann, but determined it was not her.
Posted: 21st, February 2008 | In: Madeleine McCann Comments (1,234) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments
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February 21st, 2008 at 2:32 pm
147
jo Says:
*********
sorry jo i didnt mean to rub it in…….
February 21st, 2008 at 2:27 pm
Fair,
it would be good! If trolls are discovered, the abuse will simply stop, and replies to abuse will stop, because people will stop feeling attacked.
A multiple names are all right, as long as a poster is prepared to have them disclosed on request, but what is the point of debating with someone who changes persona secretly? he is definitely not after a debate here.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:23 pm
I don’t think the French Police is going to like the way Clarrie “wants” them do do this, and “wants” them to do that. (If they care).
He will have to learn that, with French police, things have to be asked in a courteous way, and not via the media.
Actually, I believe he isn’t going to use that tone with them, he only does it for the benefit of the media consumers, for them to think he can pass his orders to foreign polices.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Dr Watson
Whilst I agree with you I also think that there has been a lot worse said here.
I think if M&A were to ban any poster with more than one user name, all so called trolls & all the rude/abusive ones then we would probably have around half the posters??
What do you think?
February 21st, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Ian,
Reporter=soothsayer=gandolf=dave s, and if he is allowed to abuse others, we will have to stop being so polite withy him. I hope the moderators will look into it. Anyway, we also have the option of suddenly becoming 100 new posters to attack him - his method.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:17 pm
205 Jolie
I was going to answer you, Jolie!
But I don’t keep any files about the case, as my main reasons for doubting the MC’s version, are : 1) the PJ naming them arguidos, 2) the British sniffer dogs, and, last, but not least) the bizarre way Clarrie sort of took the investigation into his own hands, supported by biased and xenophobic press.
My memory tells me there were also people from other European nationalities who thought they saw the little girl in various places. It doesn’t mean anything. Europe is very small, and Met3 could pay people from all over Europe if they are doing that sort of things.
Jolie, you know how I support you when you ask us to be accurate, whatever we say, if we want to be taken seriously. I was really glad about you posts yesterday. I also want the truth, and don’t want to be mean to any one.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:15 pm
Clarence Mitchell said the family was aware of reports that French police concluded the girl was not Madeleine, but he said the family wanted to hear directly from French investigators before discounting the report.
“We want to see the video of this girl,” Mitchell told CNN.
“We want to hear from the French police about what they have investigated and what they have decided. This line that French police have discounted that it is Madeleine is not official so we’re still waiting to hear whether French police believe this to be the case.”
__________-
Sounds like Clarrie wanted a longer shelf life to this sighting.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:13 pm
Gandolf stop abusing people if you do not want a le.gal case in real life.
Mods and Admin,
please look at post 159. It is a personal attack, would you please consider taking measures to stop him . For example, telling s all posters what other names he has, or banning abusive posts.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:13 pm
Hi, May
I don’t know where everyone’s gone, but I have to leave now, too, to help get my daughter ready for school. Hope to talk with you later.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:05 pm
So it’s not Madeleine who was seen in France recently, according to ITV3.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:03 pm
164
I am wondering about the legal advisers the McCanns are using.
These are big boys and they play a big game.
Do you think they are starting to ask for money upfront.
Of course they must be aware that the fund is dwindling, perhaps a few of them might have actually become unconvinced about their innocence.
Are they willing to lose their reputations and perhaps not get re-imbursed.
I just have a gut feeling that these boys are starting to ask for things upfront.
I mean would you rate Brian Kennedy as an honorable being that you would want to be in business with?
I also feel that the European diplomatic circle must be watching with absolute fascination and for some absolute horror. I can only imagine that Alexander Ellis in Lisbon is squirming at the lack of transparency his country is displaying. It is astounding that they are willing to risk a major diplomatic incident (very important to this day) for what - for a couple of doctors from Rothley?
Don’t think so.
Okay so that has covered fear and now for some hope.
When I read that several different police forces (not sure what you call them) are involved on this case, including Scotland Yard I got very excited.
Perhaps the PJ cannot bring forth enough evidence to trial but that is just for what happened on the Portugeuse side.
Imagine if they do have proof that Madeleine is dead. And has been since. Then it becomes a British Trial. And all the links and leads will be up to the British police, who I am sure want to get to the bottom of this evil pile.
I often wonder in a situation like this whether the connection between policemen is greater than nationality.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:02 pm
Hello? I feel invisible today. No one is responding to me.
February 21st, 2008 at 2:00 pm
re my post 199 and val’s post 68
Can anyone here confirm that the other forum’s poster’s assertions are correct? Did, in fact, each of the sightings reported come from someone who resides in Spain?
I’m trying to be more careful about automatically accepting as truth information that is given to us that supports my own perspective on the case. I found myself just nodding and accepting the poster’s statements without attempting to verify the truth of them. It’s so easy to do, imo.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:53 pm
WHY NOT !!!???
February 21st, 2008 at 1:53 pm
195
brandon flours Says:
February 21st, 2008 at 1:33 pm
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ve0NKEq9D3Q
WATCH THIS WERE ON YOUTUBE!
____________________________
Phew!!!!!!!!!!
Anoraks not been used!
February 21st, 2008 at 1:42 pm
68 val
It is very interesting that so many of the reported sightings of Madeleine come from people who reside in Spain. Very telling. Thank you for reprinting that post from another forum.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:38 pm
178 Bâtman
I don’t think the French are aware of any bashing from the English. Maybe they would care if they knew.
We are so pleased (conceited) with ourselves that we can’t believe some people don’t love France !
February 21st, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Gandy,
Have to admit Barcelona completely outplayed us - they were on a different planet!
But it was a great game, and personally, I’m happy we played the way we did, even though we lost, rather than adopt “anti-football” tactics and scrape a boring 0-0. Last night was football played in the Celtic way!
I’m sure you’ll agree.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:35 pm
99 val
I don’t understand why Eurojust would interfere at this point. Weren’t they removed from the case at the UK Home Office’s request when the rogatory letters were sent back for correction and the PJ were instructed to resubmit them for approval through regular diplomatic channels and not through Eurojust?
February 21st, 2008 at 1:33 pm
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ve0NKEq9D3Q
WATCH THIS WERE ON YOUTUBE!
February 21st, 2008 at 1:30 pm
171 Brandon
Not much. If you google the French news, nothing about it.
People don’t talk much about it. They will only if it really is little M.
I talked with a friend about it last month. She roughly knows that it is a controversial case, and what both sides say. She hasn’t formed an opinion herself, though she thinks the parents are strange, because making so much money and attracting so much media interest over their case. But mostly because of leaving the very young children alone and allegedly drinking too much, which here doesn’t speak in their favour, and deprives them of credibility. Alcoholism, as we call it, is either considered a habit of non-educated, poor people, or what we call “mondain” (”mundane”. Coktail-parties), but usually hidden.
I’ll get “Le Monde” later today, and will keep you informed. I don’t watch TV, maybe there was a very short line about it at the end of the news, but I doubt it. When he is back, I’ll ask my husband as he watches the news on TV.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:30 pm
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=9-T9AGl2sv8
Heres Clarence on about it
February 21st, 2008 at 1:29 pm
190 brandon
Perhaps the reason for the meeting of the Tapas/McCann group with their advisors face-to-face was precisely to avoid any e-mails and phone recordings of their communications–no traces left behind to incriminate them, other than the fact that they did indeed have the meeting.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:23 pm
Lone Pigeon, it’s possible, Dundee United done them on their own midden, but for us the signs don’t look good, but as Shanks said ” fitba is a simple game complicated by fitba players”.
On a deeper note this case looks as if it is ready to go into freefall.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:20 pm
I know this is old stuff but……
Clarence Mitchell, spokesman for the McCanns, denied that the meeting was held for the friends to compare their accounts of events at the Ocean Club resort. “It is the first time the nine have sat down face to face. It was really just a get-together to discuss where they are at,” he said.
“This was in no way to get their stories straight. This is the age of e-mail and phone. They could have done that a long time ago.” The couple’s advisers were present at the meeting, in a hotel in Rothley.
and this……………
Meanwhile, a former Portuguese police chief said that the McCanns should have been arrested as soon as their daughter disappeared for abandoning their children.
Paulo Pereira Cristóvão, who left the PolÍcia Judiciária this year to head the Portuguese Association for Missing Children, told the 24 Horas newspaper: “When the parents told police that they went to dinner and left the children at home alone, they confessed to the crime of abandonment. The penalty of abandonment is at least three years’ imprisonment.”
—————————————————-
“This was in no way to get their stories straight. This is the age of e-mail and phone. They could have done that a long time ago.”
Yes they could and maybe the police have it all
“When the parents told police that they went to dinner and left the children at home alone, they confessed to the crime of abandonment. The penalty of abandonment is at least three years’ imprisonment.”
Who says they are not going to be done for this too ?
February 21st, 2008 at 1:16 pm
187
brandon flours
It could well be but remember to put things in perspective which is not easy because the world is more and more spinning around the mccanns.
No way to stop it.The use of the media is tremendous.
The mcTeam has been “quiet” over the last 2 weks more or less….preparing the next spins….
Must be off now.
See you later
February 21st, 2008 at 1:08 pm
Jo
I wonder if he was tricked into this?
It sounds like he thought he was talking about his case and the reporters squeezed in this question, and made it the headline to me!
February 21st, 2008 at 1:07 pm
170
brandon flours
“When I shouted out, he put on her coat and hat and bundled her away.
Very caring for an abductor methink
February 21st, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Lone soz gotta pop out, will see what I can do later
February 21st, 2008 at 1:05 pm
ahhh yes that’s right i knew it was someone..
wasn’t it Barcelona that beat you guys all those years ago at home in a european comp?
just get over there and do em!