Madeleine McCann: Robert Murat And More Questions
MADELEINE McCann is missing. Still missing.
But today there is news. The daily front-page shots of Madeleine’s traumatised parents are moved further within the papers to make space for the head of Robert Murat.
“MADELEINE BRITISH MAN IS QUIZZED!” says the Mirror’s front-page headline.
Robert Murat
After the speculation the paper delivers a welter of facts. Robert Murat lives with his mum. Robert Murat is in his 30s. Robert Murat lives with his mother in a villa 150 yards from the apartment where Madeleine McCann was snatched.
The Sun (“MADDIE: BRIT QUIZZED”) says Murat lives 100 yards from that McCann apartment. Like the Mirror, the Sun produces a front-page picture of “one-eyed Murat”. The Mail hears that Murat lost his eye in a BMX accident when he was a boy. The Mail says Murat lives 80 yards from Madeleine’s holiday apartment.
Murat is “stocky”. He offered to help the police hunt as a “translator”. He lives in Casa Liliana, with his mum Jenny.
The Suspect
The Sun’s Julie Moult considers the evidence. And delivers a piece entitled “stories of a fantasist”. “He always seemed so eager to get involved in the police investigation,” says the Sun’s woman–on-the-scene. “Robert claimed he had a daughter just like Madeleine and said he felt compelled to do anything he could. But to me he seemed like classic fantasist.”
The Sun introduces Martin Brunt, the crime news correspondent from its sister organ, TV’s Sky news.
He says Murat told him he’d been taken inside the McCanns’ apartment by police.
Sky news correspondent Ian Woods says he asked Murat to help him speak with locals.
“I met him and had a conversation with him. I tried to find out as much as I could about him,” says Woods, who checked out Murat’s details. “They did check out, and I left it at that for the time.”
The Mail’s Neil Sears also spots Murat. In “My encounters with a man ‘who just wanted to help’”, Sears tells Mail readers, “There was something more to the friendly expat who called himself ‘Rob’ than met the eye.”
Murat made Sears “feel slightly uncomfortable”.
But it was the Sunday Mirror’s Lori Cambell who alerted police to Murat’s behaviour, she saw as “creepy”.
Writing Wrongs
So much for investigative journalism. Questions were asked but nothing more was done. Murat is with police because he made a show of himself, because he acted as if working in an official capacity. Even though the Times says Murat was acting as “an official translator”.
So now the man in the chinos, with the glass eye, who lives with him mum and whose estranged wife, from Hockering, near Norwich, tells a neighbour “How could someone do something so terrible to little girl like that?’ is all over the papers.
Is Murat guilty? The papers produce nothing to indicate that he is. But if Murat is involved, look out for the stories of how British journalism cracked the case.
And look out for Madeleine McCann. Still missing…
May 15th, 2007 at 10:51 am
Personally, I think Madeleine is still alive. I just hope the sadistic person who took her gives her back to her parents. How can anybody be so sick?
May 15th, 2007 at 11:00 am
I think that the detedtives that have gone out to Portugal are highly trained and specialists in such things as criminal profiling, and are working on the case from the perspective of the possible kidnappers profile.
I seem to remember that many criminals return to the scene of a crime, or like to remain closely involved in many aspects of the subsequent investigations, even where possibel from the inside as well as the outside.
Sound like that’s the way it’s breaking, I only hope that they do get to the bottom of this and that little Maddy is safely returned to her family.
May 15th, 2007 at 11:20 am
i too hope madeleine is safe after all this.
i hope that the portugese police are also searching the market as this is where the scent of madeleine stopped-also the man who is the suspect knew the manager of the market as he(the suspect) phoned him to open the market when the police where needing water.
i know this is speculation but everything needs looking into.
i hope to god she returns to her family safe.
May 15th, 2007 at 11:26 am
Murat? what a name!!! screams guilt all overt the place if you ask me!
May 15th, 2007 at 11:31 am
You work for the Mirror, Alex?
May 15th, 2007 at 11:35 am
No, it’s just the sort of name I’d give a villan if I were writing a book… LOL
May 15th, 2007 at 11:45 am
They keep saying they have 3 people for questioning, obviously Murat and his mother but who else - does anyone know?
May 15th, 2007 at 11:47 am
i think she is still alive however i doubt very much that she is even still in the country, i hope the twisted person who has took her will give her back to her family soon but if they were that twisted to take her in the first place whos to say they will
May 15th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
Remember how Ian Huntley was so keen to help police and reporters in the hunt for the the Soham girls, Holly Wells & Jessica Chapman ?
There are similarities here that cannot have escaped the attention of forensic phsycologists and the police dealing with this case. I pray to God that Murat can lead them to the girl in time.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
i think this murat dude is odd… the person who mentioned criminals returning to the scene of the crime etc… is spot on!
classic signs…
but if it his him, then surely she is dead…beacause he certanly isnt feeding her or anything, if hes out & about playing ‘official translator’
someone said to me that as his mum is possibly invlovled, maddie is probably still alive, because women are far more compassionate than men…pffffffft… if you ask me, if the mum is involved, its to protect her son. shes found out what hes done, & wants to protect him, so shes trying to look as helpful as possible
my lilttle girl is 3 … & this breaks my heart!
we all know that no one comes home alive these days…
May 15th, 2007 at 12:15 pm
this makes the man from the market the third suspect in my eyes.
also murat says he was starting up a internet company-sounds suspect.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
ah yes, the man from the market…
also, how weird & freaked out was murats ex when people tried to ask her Q’s about him?
if that was me, & i thought he was def’ innocent, id tell them, coz i wouldnt want my lil girls daddy to be thought of in that way…
unless i was glad he was far far away from us…for some reason…
=(
May 15th, 2007 at 12:22 pm
I agree with Julian we must keep searching until we have found Maddie.Mccann’s are a nice couple the’re always hand in hand and they don’t deserve this…be strong.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:25 pm
We hope madeleine is safe and they return her back to her parents safely!! Her parents do not deserve this, the person who has done this is Sick Minded she is an innocent little girl!
May 15th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
yeah
i seem to have a black cloud over me at the moment because of this.
my daughter is 1 next week and i cant imagine what they are going through.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
It feels almost like a National tragedy now - so sad.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:47 pm
im going to ask my teacher if im allowed to say a prayer in assembly, for maddy.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:54 pm
Why are they draining the swimming pool? I’d hate to speculate why they want to do that….
May 15th, 2007 at 1:13 pm
So trial by journalism is alive and well. Wonder if they will all publish ‘how silly and alarmist we all were!’ articles in the event of poor old Murat being found innocent. Probably not. Remember the supermarket employee tarred as obviously guilty at the time of the Norwich prostitute murders? Front page stuff, until of course he was found not to be the one, then….nothing.
Agree entirely with the sentiments expressed for Madeleine’s parents, they must be sick with worry and my prayers go with them, and I am sure with hindsight they would want the press to hammer home the danger of leaving kids alone while popping out to the pub. Never a good idea, here or in Portugal.
May 15th, 2007 at 1:22 pm
We are all praying that this poor baby is safe.Does this man not seem to be like that wretched Ian Huntley that so cruelly slay the little girls in Soham- Did he not seek theattention of the police, media and public- I do hope this is not a mirror of that time
May 15th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
you are right-but if he a suspect-meaning he is under suspicion,
then he needs to be arrested.
its the only way they will find her wether guilty or not.
Also there parents have been punished enough without bringing up their mistakes.
May 15th, 2007 at 1:32 pm
thanks for some sense tom - lets look at the evidence then -
1 - this man was helpful because he was asked for help when a sky news journalist asked for help - i heard the jouranlist on sky news last night and he sounded terribly guilty for having dragged murat into it cos murat had been bringhing him and others water - but is that not the portuguese way? so this guy helped.
2. a tabloid journalist then found murat ‘creepy’ and was reminded of soham - oh right he must be guilty then.
3. people keep going on about his glass eye and living with his mother - uhuh? and? the future prime minister of this country has a glass etye too - doesnt meen hes a child abductor does it?
4. murat said he had a daughter same age and felt terrible - oh right - half this country or more feels the exact same - so we must all be implicated then?
5. the mother set up a stall outside the media to filed enquiries- well maybe shes guilty too - forget the fact that she actually lives there.
6. murat doesnt want media attention - well yes who would - guilty or not? its not pop idol after all.
the fact remains the portoguese police for better or worse are keeping silent on this so rumour is breeding rumour and the media r running around pouncing on anything - and in that heat who knows what mirage they will dream up.
the most disgusting thing i found so far of the way this guy was planted at the centre of the crime was that a childhood schoolfriend who now works as a schoolfriend eagerly spilt the beans about his glass eye, his party trick etc and the whole being ’shocked’ that he was implkicated tone of her whiny voice made me think oh my god i dont want you as a friend if im standing alone. she went on dishing gossip about this guy - and on what gorunds? she doesnt know, the world doesnt know if this guy is guilty and everything including his glass eye and having a daughter the same age is a reason to convict him? noone said they saw him with the little girl or anything like that - but from the coverage i heard on sky news last night, i dont think that man should be preseumed to be guilty on such flimsy, biased, tabloid accounts.
May 15th, 2007 at 1:36 pm
QUOTE
“Cathy Says:
May 15th, 2007 at 1:22 pm
We are all praying that this poor baby is safe.Does this man not seem to be like that wretched Ian Huntley that so cruelly slay the little girls in Soham- Did he not seek theattention of the police, media and public- I do hope this is not a mirror of that time”
Yea thats what i was referring to earlier, its classic signs of that kinda personality isnt it O_o
May 15th, 2007 at 1:40 pm
What would happen to the Mirror journalist if Murat turns out to be innocent?
May 15th, 2007 at 1:41 pm
Saoirse - “im going to ask my teacher if im allowed to say a prayer in assembly, for maddy” - It’s a nice gesture. Shows you care, and that you want to do something. But should children be exposed to such things? And what does it teach them aside from anxiety, not to trust and fear?
For more on how the British media has presented the story so far:
The Sun Shines On Madeleine McCann http://www.anorak.co.uk/news/tabloids/173328.html
Madeleine McCann: When Will It End?
http://www.anorak.co.uk/news/tabloids/173297.html
Madeleine McCann: Increasing The Fear
http://www.anorak.co.uk/news/tabloids/173285.html
Clueless In Portugal: Madeleine McCann
http://www.anorak.co.uk/news/tabloids/173262.html
Madeleine McCann: Watching The Parents
http://www.anorak.co.uk/news/tabloids/173233.html
Show’s Over: Madeleine McCann And Entertainment
http://www.anorak.co.uk/news/tabloids/173199.html
Having An E-fit Over Madeleine McCann
http://www.anorak.co.uk/news/tabloids/173197.html
May 15th, 2007 at 1:46 pm
Interesting points re the supermarket. It does seem to me that the police should be focusing on that point as a potential crime scene. It makes me feel sick to my stomach. We’re taking our 2 very pretty daughters aged 5 and 6 to the Algarve in August and I don’t feel as if I’ll be able to let them out of my sight. That’s not an attack on the McCann’s, it’s just me. Please God don’t let it turn out like another Soham
May 15th, 2007 at 1:49 pm
It is looking increasingly like what happened in soham, I hope am wrong. I feel for the parents but at the same time cant imagine how maddy must have felt when she was taken, punishing the parents isnt going to achieve anything but who was there to protect that innocent child, I just hope she is safe and well because I would hate to think how her parents are and would feel if she isnt returned.
May 15th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
jo, i think you be missing a point here
madeleine is still mising and so things like this needs to be done.
its a part of life now that the media chews up and spits people out. guilty or not.
forget the media and hope for the girl to be found.
May 15th, 2007 at 2:00 pm
i have a 3 year old, i wouldnt leave her on her own in bed in this country, let alone a different one, infact my next door neighbour once asked me to go round for a coffee, my fiance was at work on nights, she suggested that i bring the baby monitor with me, we lived in terraced houses, so in a way, it would have been no different to just being in a different room,
but i didnt go because it felt wrong to do that!
im not saying that everyone has to be like me or anything, im just expressing my thoughts on how disgusted i am at what they did, although it wont change anything & although i know they must be feeling so much pain, i still feel that if shes dead, they caused it!
i know they didnt make the person who did the killing a murderer…but they still will have caused her death be putting her in that situation & i think their other 2 kids should be closely monitored!
May 15th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
I hope maddy is alive.