Covert DNA Examination Verified Alleged Stalker Is Not Madeleine McCann, Reports Officer

A suspected stalker who claimed to be Madeleine McCann was ruled out after a confidential DNA test proved conclusively she was not Madeleine McCann, police have revealed in court.

Harassment Campaign Towards McCann Family

Julia Wandelt, twenty-four, is alleged to have conducted a pattern of threatening behavior against the family of Madeleine, who disappeared from Praia da Luz in Portugal in 2007 at the age of three.

The Polish national bombarded Kate and Gerry McCann and their grown-up kids, Sean and Amelie, with numerous phone calls, messages, voicemails and letters over a period spanning 2022 to this year, and turned up at their home demanding a DNA test, Leicester crown court previously heard.

Official Statements

Testifying on Tuesday, the chief investigator on Madeleine's disappearance, explained he had gone against procedure to test Wandelt “in the hope she may stop her behavior towards the McCann family”.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Cramwell said over a dozen persons had previously claimed to be the abducted child but that: “We would not take DNA without strong belief that person was Madeleine because I wished to avoid setting a precedent.

“If it was revealed in the media I had taken DNA from a person quite likely not to be Madeleine, I was worried I would have had a lot of people coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.

“I genuinely have major concerns about reaching out to the family to say I aim to take DNA from an individual – that could have given them false hope. It could have been quite emotionally damaging and difficult for the family.”

DNA Comparison

He said authorities had previously assessed Wandelt not to be Madeleine on account of no physical similarity and that she was older by two years than the missing girl. But, he said, after learning Leicester police were going to take into custody Wandelt on stalking charges, he “made the decision that the DNA would be taken during detention”.

He declared: “A comparison took place. It absolutely confirmed that Julia Wandelt is definitely not Madeleine McCann.”

Court Proceedings

Jurors learned that in April this year, the officer saw Wandelt in custody and informed her that her DNA had been matched against Madeleine’s and that the genetic markers did not match. Jurors were told he told Wandelt during the visit: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”

Testimony indicated that while they spoke, Wandelt said: “Do you sincerely wish to find Madeleine?”, and the officer told the jury he answered: “Yes.”

He said even with the results, he believed Wandelt “would suggest we have interfered with the sample”, stating: “There was a possibility she would not believe she is not Madeleine even when provided with scientific proof.”

Emotional Distress

In prior court sessions, testimony revealed how the relatives were left frightened and distressed by their “creepy” and “extremely troubling” interactions with Wandelt and the other accused Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as the pair attempted to demand a DNA test.

The court learned how the pair made “increasingly bizarre plans” to obtain Kate McCann’s DNA, which included rummaging in the McCanns’ bins and taking forks from restaurants that the McCanns dined at.

The accused women both refute one count of stalking. The case remains active.