Madeleine McCann (Image: Getty)
The prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann could face jail time after allegedly being caught in a street fight with a British man. Prime suspect Christian Brueckner could face up to five years in jail after being accused of assaulting a man during a fight, the Mirror reported.
The convicted paedophile and rapist, 49, and the unnamed man, were both arrested on suspicion of “mutual assault” after the altercation in Kiel, northern Germany. Under the country’s law the offence is brought where the suspect is both a perpetrator and a victim.
A source close to Brueckner told the Mirror: “He got attacked by a British person. The guy appeared in front of him together with two other people and a big dog. He yelled at Brueckner and hit him in the face twice and that’s it and then the police came and arrested him. Brueckner called the police. He was injured.”
Read more: Germany blames Brexit for blocking Madeleine suspect Brueckner from UK justice
Read more: Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner ‘disappears in Germany’
Kate and Gerry McCann. (Image: Getty)
Contacted by the Mirror on Tuesday, Brueckner, who is living in the Schleswig-Holstein region of Germany, said he was aware of the reports but did not know what would happen next. When asked how he was feeling, he replied: “No comment – I have good lawyers.”
Quoted by the Mirror, German prosecutor Hans Wolters said: “I suspect this is just hot air again. Extradition would require an arrest warrant. But there certainly isn’t one.
“It’s out of the question there is an arrest warrant against CB in the Maddie case. I am not in a position to say whether the British police can obtain one from a British court.”
Since Brexit, Germany and Britain have negotiated a reciprocal extradition agreement. But the German constitution prevents the extradition of its citizens to non-EU countries.
The Mirror understands Scotland Yard detectives have been working on a case against Brueckner for six months and have requested evidence from the German police since Brueckner, who denies any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance, was released from prison last September.
Brueckner is German prosecutors’ prime suspect in the disappearance of then three-year-old Madeleine, in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007. He was jailed for seven years for raping a US pensioner in the same Algarve resort where the youngster went missing before being released from jail last September. Since his release, he has been under 24-hour police surveillance.
Brueckner is living on benefits and has to wear a monitoring tag for five years. At the weekend, Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry and their other children Sean and Amelie joined a vigil on the 19th anniversary of the three-year-old girl’s disappearance in Praia da Luz, Portugal. In a statement, Kate and Gerry said: “The search goes on… to find our Madeleine, to achieve some justice, to make the world that bit safer.
“We remain very grateful for all our support from friends and family, people we know and those we don’t, and from the police and authorities for their continued determination and effort. For Madeleine, who we love and miss every day, we will never give up. Kate, Gerry and family.”
Last year, Brueckner was tried in Braunschweig on three further rape charges and two counts of child abuse, but was acquitted. During that trial, a psychological expert described him as belonging to the “absolute top league of dangerous offenders.”