OXY MORAN: Madeleine McCann born May 12 2003: Many Happy Returns

Monday, May 12, 2008

Madeleine McCann born May 12 2003: Many Happy Returns

This beautiful little girl, missing Madeleine McCann is...or would have been...five years old, Monday 12 May in the UK,

McCanns 'won't mark' Madeleine's fifth birthday

By Nicholas Christian

THE parents of missing girl Madeleine McCann have said they will not be marking their daughter's fifth birthday tomorrow. Kate and Gerry McCann said they still believe their daughter is alive, despite her having been missing for more than a year.

The little girl vanished from her bed in her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, southern Portugal, at around 9.

The disappearance sparked an international search which has led to claimed sightings all over Europe as well as in north Africa and even Latin America.

Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said of the birthday: "Gerry will be at work and Kate will be at or around home. Sadly, for them it is just another day without Madeleine."

Police have named the McCanns and a local man, Robert Murat, as formal suspects in the case.

They all deny involvement in her disappearance and police have not yet decided whether to file charges or drop the case.

The McCanns, who have launched an online campaign to find their daughter, returned to the UK last September, a few days after they were named as suspects. They have been at the European Parliament as part of a campaign to create a dedicated alert system for abducted children.

The couple said that the system had worked well in the US, where hundreds of children had been recovered, and in France where it had been used five times and all five children had been found.

Last weekend special church services were held for the missing girl. (Source The Scotsman)

The disappearance of Madeleine McCann

05/12/2008

Madeleine McCann disappeared in Portugal on May 3, 2007, sparking a massive search.

Here is a timeline of the case:

2007 May 3 - Madeleine McCann goes missing from her bedroom in the Algarve holiday resort of Praia da Luz while her parents Kate and Gerry are dining just 100 yards away.
May 5 - Police say they believe she is still alive and being held within three miles of the crime scene.
May 14 - A British man, Robert Murat, is taken to a police station for questioning. He is later released.
May 30 - The McCanns meet Pope Benedict during a general audience at the Vatican.
June 1 - The couple embark on a tour to publicise their campaign. Countries visited include Spain, Germany, Morocco and the United States.
August 7 - Traces of blood have been found on the wall of the apartment where the girl went missing, local newspaper Diario de Noticias says.
August 11 - Portuguese police Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa tells the BBC that she may be dead.
September 7 - Police name Kate and Gerry McCann as suspects, but bring no charges.
September 9 - The couple fly back to Britain with their twins.
October 2 - Goncalo Amaral, the detective leading the investigation, is removed from the case.
October 9 - His replacement is named as senior officer Paulo Rebelo.
October 24 - Spanish TV broadcasts an interview with Gerry and Kate McCann. They describe claims they drugged their daughter as "outrageous".
December 22 - Gerry and Kate McCann issue a Christmas message urging their daughter to "be brave".

2008 Jan. 9 - The parents deny reports that they plan to turn their story into a film.
Jan. 20 - They release new pictures of a possible suspect based on a tourist's account.
Feb. 3 - The head of Portugal's police says authorities were hasty in naming the parents as suspects in her disappearance.
Feb. 13 - Portuguese Justice Minister Alberto Costa says the investigation is close to an end.
Feb. 21 - French police dismiss a possible sighting of the girl near the Mediterranean port city of Sete.
March 19 - The Daily Express and Daily Star apologise to Kate and Gerry McCann and agree to pay them substantial damages.
April 30 - The McCanns reveal in a TV interview that they have boxes full of messages from the public, including hate-mail and a death threat.
May 1 - Gerry and Kate McCann say they believe their daughter is still alive.
May 3 - Madeleine has been missing for one year.
May 12 - Her fifth birthday.