Police investigate Madeleine McCann disappearance ‘will raise hundreds of thousands of pounds in new funding’
- The search for Maddie, who disappeared in 2007, has cost £13 million since 2011
- The Ministry of the Interior confirmed that it had received a new application for funding
Police investigating Madeleine McCann’s disappearance will receive hundreds of thousands of pounds in new funding in a bid to finally discover what happened to the three-year-old.
A significant sum has been requested by the Met Police and is likely to be approved by the Home Office, The Sun reports.
Madeleine went missing while vacationing with her family in Praia da Luz, Portugalin May 2007, disappeared without a trace from their shelter.
Hundreds of thousands of pounds are spent each year trying to find her, with a total of £13 million since 2011.
A source close to the ongoing investigation said last night that her parents would be “delighted” with the news.
Madeleine McCann, three, from Leicester, disappeared in Portugal in May 2007
Madeleine went missing while on holiday with her family in Praia da Luz at the Ocean Club apartments (pictured)
The source said: ‘This is excellent news. Maddie’s parents Kate and Gerry will be delighted. It gives new hope.’
There were fears that the investigation into the toddler’s case would be scaled back amid budget cuts.
Maddie’s siblings, Sean and Amelie McCann, were in the same room as their sister when she disappeared.
Born February 1, 2005, the twins – who were just two and a quarter at the time – recently turned 18 and reached adulthood.
Maddie disappeared from her bed in a holiday villa while her parents Gerry and Kate, from Rothley in Leicestershire, were having dinner with friends at a tapas restaurant just 55 meters away.
Kate checked on the kids at 10pm and found Maddie had disappeared, but the twins were still sleeping soundly in their cribs.
Kate and Gerry McCann are expected to be “delighted” with news of the new funding
This year approaches the sixteenth anniversary of Maddie’s disappearance. She would be 19 and turn 20 in May, if she were still alive
Former Metropolitan Police Detective Peter Bleksley told the paper: “As long as there are unanswered questions I can see why there is a case.
“But in these times of tight budgets, I also see why eyebrows would be raised.
“I understand the frustrations of missing children who don’t have the luxury of such ongoing funding.”
An interior ministry spokesperson confirmed last night that it had received an application for further funding, but the exact amount being discussed is not known.
This year approaches the 16th anniversary of Maddie’s disappearance. She would be 19 and turn 20 in May, if she were still alive.