Madeleine McCann: Face To Face With Robert Murat
“MADELEINE SHOWDOWN,” says the Mirror’s front page. “McCann pals tell suspect: You were there night she vanished.”
Over in Portugal, Fiona Payne, Russell O’Brien and Rachel Oldfield, friends of the McCanns, say they saw Robert Murat, suspect No.1., the only suspect, on the night Madeleine McCann went missing.
The three are questioned together. Murat joins them. They are sat in a small room. A police source tells us: “Because there was a disagreement it is normal in Portugal for the two sides to be brought together to find the truth.”
This seems entirely sensible. Get all parties talking and see what occurs. Don’t demonise Murat but make him answer his accusers in camera.
In the course of this exchange, the Mirror says it is “believed” the trio saw Murat close to the Ocean Club resort’s pool minutes after Madeleine went missing.
The Mirror says the sighting contradicts Murat’s claim that he was at his mother’s villa all night.
“Madeleine,” says the Express’s front page. “Family friends: We saw chief suspect at apartment.”
The “face-to-face showdown” could “shatter” Murat’s alibi. So the police are talking to him. They talk to him for six hours after the McCanns’ dining companions have left.
And then Murat is allowed to leave the police station. He is not arrested. Madeleine McCann disappeared 71 days ago and her whereabouts are unknown.
We know about Robert Murat. But we know nothing of Madeleine McCann…
July 13th, 2007 at 8:58 am
Well they have had 70 days to get their stories straight havent they, of course they will say its him. Odd that only the McCanns and the friends are the only people to have seen him? YET I thought lots of guests and staff were out looking for her so why didnt any of them see him?
July 13th, 2007 at 9:02 am
brings back to the fore the “sol” report and the secrecy pack, agree they have had 71 days to formulate their stories, If it is Murat, he must come clean and get this case zipped up and get madeleine home, he knows something that is for sure
July 13th, 2007 at 9:23 am
oh shut up about the secrecy pact. these witness’s have sworn to a court and are prohibited from discussing any aspects of the investigation. this is portugese law. and we dont know if other people saw murat because the police cannot tell us. use a little bit of intelect here. this sol report knows nothing more than the rest of us does. just use some common sense here. madeleine is still missing and of course her parents and their friends want her to be found. its funny, the way people go against people who are suffering in the most horrific way possible. show some compassion if you have it. this sol report is a biased piece of journalism and it not based on facts
July 13th, 2007 at 9:34 am
I just hope that somebody happens to find the body soon. This has dragged on long enough for us all now.
July 13th, 2007 at 9:37 am
People who have been on these forums for any time will know of frances Wicks and will know that she has made hundreds of posts to the various Anorak Madeleine forums.
All her posts are now being deleted by somebody at Anorak. The busiest forum used to be Watching the Parents, at one time it had approaching two thousand posts.
Not any more!! None of Wicks’s posts are left on there!
There are many other posters on the forums who have been just as vicious and controversial as frances Wicks, but their posts remain.
One rule for one, and another rule for everybody else?
Somebody at Anorak really does not like you frances!
July 13th, 2007 at 9:39 am
Louisa what a stupid thing to say? Because someone doesnt agree with you they dont have a job? NOW that actually says a lot about your Intelligence doesnt it?
July 13th, 2007 at 9:49 am
observer, re frances wickes, as we cannot check on her posts, was she pro or anti Maccann, just curious as to why someone is deleting her comments
July 13th, 2007 at 9:57 am
She was VERY MUCH pro. Nobody stuck up for the McCanns like frances. At times she was battling against the antis almost single-handedly - and usually getting the better of them! Even if she did indulge in some foul language at times. But then so do a lot of other people on here, right?
I never agreed with a lot of her opinions, but it’s wrong to rub her out isn’t it? This is supposed to be free speech.
July 13th, 2007 at 10:14 am
She was pro McCann at times, but she was also using other user’s names to post under in order to stir up irrelevant rows.
Putting words into other peoples mouths is NOT free speech.
She was asked by the people whose names she used not to do it, and then she was told by them, and then she was told by Anorak not to do it, and she replied in Anoraks name that she would do as she effing liked.
Anarchy is just that , and not democratic free speech at all, so those posts were deleted, and will continue to be deleted
July 13th, 2007 at 10:15 am
Observer
on that subject, what is your take on the situation?? again just curious
July 13th, 2007 at 10:17 am
truthman, you are evil!!!! dont read arcticles talking about Madeleine if you cannot stand it anymore. Hope you dont have children
July 13th, 2007 at 10:22 am
Here is another Sol article - published the day before yesterday.
7/11/2007) SOL
http://sol.sapo.pt/PaginaInicial/Sociedade/Interior.aspx?content_id=44677
Written by : margarida.davim@sol.pt felicia.cabrita@sol.pt
Murat and three McCann Friends Confronted
The police will confront three elements of the group that holidayed with Madeleine’s parents in PDL with their testimony against the lone arguido’s in this case regarding the disappearance of the little British girl.
—
Robert Murat and three friends of Kate and Gerry McCann will be heard by the PJ of Portimão, still this Wednesday.
The four questioned will be confronted with their original testimony, in order to glean the truth regarding what happened the night of the abduction, seeing as their original accounts contradict each other.
Between the Brits who holidayed with Madeleine’s parents in the Ocean Club and that will be heard today, from what SOL has learnt, is the couple Russell O’Brien and Jane Tanner.
Remember that in an investigation SOL revealed that Russell was the element of the group of friends that was absent the most from dinner the night Madeleine McCann disappeared.
The testimony of a worker in the resort confirms that days before Russell was also absent during the group’s dinner.
Jane Tanner is one of the key witnesses of the process that has already affirmed to have seen – in a trip made to the apartments to check that the children were okay – a man carrying a child in his lap (colo in Portuguese=lap).
The Briton affirmed having seen a man between the ages of 35 and 40, dark-skinned or tanned, wearing beige slacks, a dark coat and classical black shoes, with a girl in his lap (colo) wearing pajamas and barefoot.
With everything, this picture does not match completely the profile of Murat, in that he – contrary to the man Jane described –never had long hair in the back.
In spite of the detailed description provided by Jane, Jeremy Wilkins – another witness who found himself at the exact moment on the street where Jane says to have seen the man with the child – told the SUN that he did not see anything, adding that if there was someone there, it would have been practically impossible to not have seen anything.
Other points the police will be clarifying is the presence of Robert Murat in the OC on the night of Maddie’s disappearance.
The friends of the McCann’s confirm having seen the arguido in the resort in PDL, but officials and elements of the GNR counter this version of events.
********************************
saoirse Says:
July 13th, 2007 at 9:23 am
[...] “this sol report is a biased piece of journalism and it not based on facts”
ROFL …. and everything printed in the Sun (UK) is gospel truth, completely unbiased and based only on provable facts.
I honestly cannot believe that someone posted that with a straight face !!!
Molly
July 13th, 2007 at 10:34 am
liz - my take on the situation? Re the McCanns? I am suspicious. I think there are a lot of unexplained things that have gone on.
I started off just being very angry and disbelieving that they left three tots alone, but then my feelings started to harden more against them. The fact that they appear to have initially lied to the police about the locked or unlocked door, etc., their jet-setting, the fund and its potential for mis-use, and their general attitude of “we are guilty, at worst, of naivety” (!)
As someone said above, we don’t really know many facts, all we have are theories, due to the secrecy which surrounds the whole thing.
July 13th, 2007 at 11:02 am
obs, interesting, deep down I have a feeling that there is something very fishy about the whole situation, my intuition tells me that is either, Murat and his cronies or it is a scam - both observations have plenty of theories to back them up, I feel the mccanns are not acting as a distraut family would, the last thing on my mind 24 hrs after the “abduction” would be to set up and register a money making campaign, and where are the grand parents, I as a mother would want to have my mum around me now and again, Kate hasnt seen her mum for over 6 weeks now. jigsaw definately has some missing pieces.
Murat, If she was snatched then he has something to do with it, too many loop holes in his stories, too many red herrings and loose ends, the more the think about this little girl being away from her family the more ….frustrated, angry, saddend, disillusioned I become, just dont know what to think anymore, thats why I like to see what other folk are thinking
thanks
July 13th, 2007 at 11:32 am
Louisa - what are you on about??? I haven’t said anything against you. You’ve got the wrong poster mate. I think you meant Slater?
July 13th, 2007 at 11:49 am
saoirse,
Have you read “the pact of silence” ? Contains some real facts like the reporter couldn’t see the apartment from the Resturant when sitting at the same table as the McCann party. Which doesn’t quite tie up with the story they’ve been tell.
July 13th, 2007 at 11:58 am
So many stupid posters on here!
Who would have thought there were so many idiots in the world eh?
:rolleyes:
I’ve been very sheltered from the great unwashed, clearly.
July 13th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
liz, i differ with you. i feel that the mccanns are distraught. but they have to try and hold it together and keep going, they cannot give up and must have hope. in the early days they really seemed shattered. and they must have thought the worst, but with trauma counselling they emerged strong and determined. it is hard to assess the information coming from the media, as most is specualtion and based on little fact.
i am sure you have seen kate mccanns parents on tv and her father does not appear to be a well man. i read that kate does not want her parents to travel to the algarve because of her fathers ill health. i understand this.
i agree with you with respect to murat, he seems like a man with something to hide. i think perhaps he was party to this somehow. maybe he was the one watching the mccanns and gave a go ahead call to the abductor.
this has upset me so much, poor innocent child .
as for the campaign money. i really do not believe that the mccanns will use this to facilitate a lavish lifestyle. the objectives are clear. it is to find madeleine and any surplus will go directly to to help find other missing children.
no matter what the outcome is - in this search for madeleine, and i do hope she is found safe and well, i believe that the mccanns will do extradionary things in campaigning to prohibit the unlawful abduction of children worldwide. i hope they can make governments listen and act internationally against child trafficing.
July 13th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Quote:
“Peter S Says:
July 13th, 2007 at 12:33 pm
Manon
You haven’t been sheltered from the dillusionally superior and anally retentive, though….Have you?
‘The great unwashed’…….I’d sooner join their gang than yours, you snotty loser.”
Haha! Thanks for giving me a mis-spelt laugh.
July 13th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
er, that’s MISSPELLED Manon!
July 13th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
I wish there was y’know more that me and y’know Victoria could do to y’know help and raise y’know our, I mean the profile of this y’know case further y’know.
July 13th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
Dave Beckam - (WTF - BECKAM??? - you need spelling lessons from Manon mate) - just sod off.
Thought we’d offloaded you to the Yanks. Better run quick, Victoria wants her knickers back!
July 13th, 2007 at 4:05 pm
No, Observer - you can spell it either spelt or spelled.
Look it up in the dictionary.
No-one noticed what Observer said wasn’t right!
*rolls eyes again*
July 13th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
I did check it to make sure - and you’re using a different dictionary to me mate.
Not that it matters, and it wouldn’t have mattered, if you hadn’t felt the need in your first post to tell us what stupid idiots we all are, and then in your second post tried to poke fun in a nasty way at another poster because of his spelling error.
You’ve now posted three times, and not once mentioned Madeleine, or the McCanns, or the fund, or the PJ, or Murat, or in fact anything to do with the topic at all.
Got an opinion?
July 13th, 2007 at 4:31 pm
This is interesting…
Mom pleads guily for leaving children home alone for 3 hours:
http://centralflorida.cox.net/cci/newslocal/local?_mode=view&view=LocalNewsArticleView&articleId=2564600&_action=validatearticle
Oh…this may not be relevant…she was poor and without many child care options.
…Sorry for the sarcasm, but children definitely died in her situation and I do not see any public out-pouring of concern for her feelings. It probably would not have happened if she did not leave them alone. Is her pain enough? Do you feel for her?
What is the real difference here?
July 13th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
Everyone (the poster, not every poster):
I’d already returned that compliment in my first post.
Observer: I was using the OED, which one were you using?
As to the Madeleine & the McCanns: I have already posted much on this topic on this forum. I’m interested to hear & contribute to any developments in this case.
What I am not interested in is ignorant, un-educated posters’ fatuous obsession with:
a) the children being left alone
b) conspiracy theories surrounding the parents’ involvement in the crime.
c) the fund (set up as a limited company for the search)
d) ridiculous belief that the McCann’s are now living some kind of ‘celebrity’/'jet-set lifestyle.
It’s tedious to come back to this website & see the same old nonsense going round & round.
Moronic does not begin to cover it.
Note to Louisa: Well said & I agree with you.
July 13th, 2007 at 5:58 pm
The fact that the children were left alone is seminal. (Erin’s Florida mum was probably poor and not “a doctor”.) If the children had not been left alone this sorry tale would not be unfolding. Madeleine McCann would not be missing and we would never have heard of her or her pathetic parents.
I am reminded of a case that happened in the 1970s in a council flat in Bexleyheath. A young single mother left her three little children alone while she went to a pub with her friends. The youngest, a baby of about 18 months, pulled over an electric fire onto herself and suffered severe burns. She died in hospital as a result. There was a lengthy enquiry by Social Services, the mother was prosecuted and her other two children were taken into care. (She was not “a doctor”.)
July 13th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Fowler’s Modern English Usage, bible of pedants everywhere, also gives -t and -ed as alternative endings for “spell.”
I’m glad I’ve learned/learnt (both acceptable) that, but sorry that I haven’t learned much about Madeleine today. Erin’s post is interesting but I need to think about it for a while before I form or post an opinion.
July 13th, 2007 at 6:09 pm
There is also the probability that we would never have heard of Robert Murat either, so that he and his family could have dealt with their various issues in peace.
I am sure they could do without his being demonised by the tabloid press, with ignorant people assuming he is guilty on the basis of “gut reactions” and hearsay.
July 13th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Pmihc, there’s nothing more to learn, is there? Madeleine has been missing for 70 days and remains missing. Whoever knows where she is or what has happened to her is keeping that information to themselves.