The CCTV camera which Amaral claimed captured the image of the man carrying Madeleine.

[Sherlock Holmes]

Any police officer worth his salt must have examined the range and coverage of that CCTV camera as part of the investigation after the event, even if it was too late, for him to say that he was angry (whether at himself or subordinates).

CCTV Camera screen shot from video (arrowed)

Thanks so much for the clarification, Myster.

[John]

A reminder of the Sky News interview with Paul Luckman of The Portugal News.

[Brietta]

Sorry, Anna.  I meant I had posted the details of CCTV around Estrela on my blog (true).

However, it is basically non-news.

In brief Estrela has 9 entrances, each with 1 CCTV, apart from 1 which has 2.  Basically, 8 of these are looking inside, with 2 that are irrelevant to Smithman seeing a bit of the outside.

Forget the 'missing' CCTV.  It would have added nothing.

It may have added nothing to information on Smithman ... but would it not have confirmed the exact time of the Smith family's return home?

[ShiningInLuz]

It may have added nothing to information on Smithman ... but would it not have confirmed the exact time of the Smith family's return home?

The 3 Smith's are neatly co-ordinated into 10 PM or a few minutes before for the sighting.  Interesting thought, Brietta, but no, I very much doubt the missing tape would.

Mind you, there's a 9 out of 10 chance that the time of the Smith sighting could be corroborated from the CCTV that was recovered.

[DCI]

The 3 Smith's are neatly co-ordinated into 10 PM or a few minutes before for the sighting.  Interesting thought, Brietta, but no, I very much doubt the missing tape would.

Mind you, there's a 9 out of 10 chance that the time of the Smith sighting could be corroborated from the CCTV that was recovered.

Amaral said the CCTV had been erased. If I remember correctly he said the It hadn't been collected till too late.

[Brietta]

Amaral said the CCTV had been erased. If I remember correctly he said the It hadn't been collected till too late.

Exactly so DCI.

** snip

‘I believe that the person carrying a child in his arms was captured on film from that very camera,’ he said.

‘I asked my officers to gather all the CCTV footage in Luz but, by the time they got to this hotel, the film from this camera had been wiped over.
http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/19/madeleine-mccann-cctv-footage-of-suspect-was-deleted-says-goncalo-amaral-4152295/

[Carana]

Exactly so DCI.

** snip

‘I believe that the person carrying a child in his arms was captured on film from that very camera,’ he said.

‘I asked my officers to gather all the CCTV footage in Luz but, by the time they got to this hotel, the film from this camera had been wiped over.
http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/19/madeleine-mccann-cctv-footage-of-suspect-was-deleted-says-goncalo-amaral-4152295/

PdL wasn't exactly a sprawling metropolis, was it? How long did it take them to work out which buildings had security cameras?

[DCI]

Exactly so DCI.

** snip

‘I believe that the person carrying a child in his arms was captured on film from that very camera,’ he said.

‘I asked my officers to gather all the CCTV footage in Luz but, by the time they got to this hotel, the film from this camera had been wiped over.
http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/19/madeleine-mccann-cctv-footage-of-suspect-was-deleted-says-goncalo-amaral-4152295/

There was also a camera on Estrela da Luz, which could have picked up the Smith family coming up the road.  Amaral only showed one, when with James Murray.

[DCI]

PdL wasn't exactly a sprawling metropolis, was it? How long did it take them to work out which buildings had security cameras?

Well it took Amaral 3 years to mention this one. He doesn't say when they realised they had been erased. No mention of this camera till 2010, as I can find.

[ShiningInLuz]

PdL wasn't exactly a sprawling metropolis, was it? How long did it take them to work out which buildings had security cameras?

Have a guess.  Luz is roughly the same size as the square mile in London (20 minutes across on foot in one direction, a little over 10 minutes on foot on the other).  This is not what you survey in one day and take everything in.

I have no doubt the square mile has more security cameras.

So let's have a guess at where they might be in Luz, as that would be a good game.

Bank ATMS.  Useless for anything other than the ATM.  How many banks were there?

Restaurants fitted with CCTV.  Clearly the Paraíso had one, otherwise we wouldn't have the Paraíso footage.  How about other restaurants and pubs?  I am led to believe that the Bull has one, and since the same chap owns the Luz Tavern, I would venture that the Luz Tavern has one.  Possibly quite a few others too.  It seems to be fitted mainly to stop staff fiddling the till (but I am a cynic).

So, how many pubs, restaurants and ATMs?  I think I am up to about 20 to 25 on a map in ShiningInLuz even as we speak, and I would guess I've got around the same to go again.  But my map will not highlight Estrela da Luz, because if I did not know of the missing CCTV tape, I wouldn't realise that Estrela is 'significant'.

Madeleine disappeared on 3 May, the Smiths gave statements about their sighting on 26 May.  The only thing that surprises me is that the PJ got any CCTV from Estrela in that time.  I wonder if anything proves that they did?

[misty]

I've always been vaguely surprised that there was no CCTV outside LuzDoc.

[pathfinder73]

[DCI]

Madeleine McCann: Did the camera hold vital clue?

THE detective who led the initial investigation into Madeleine McCann’s disappearance believes her abductor was caught on camera – but revealed that the film was wiped before detectives saw it.

By JAMES MURRAY
PUBLISHED: 00:00, Sun, Nov 7, 2010

Yesterday controversial figure Goncalo Amaral backed Kate and Gerry McCann’s demand for a review and reopening of the investigation.

The Sunday Express took Mr Amaral, whose book Maddy: The Truth Of The Lie was banned briefly from bookstores, to Praia da Luz to ask him to reveal where mistakes were made.

The detective believes Madeleine McCann s abductor was caught on camera

He walked the route he believes the person who snatched Madeleine took. It begins at apartment 5A of the Ocean Club, from where the three-year-old disappeared on May 3, 2007.

Mr Amaral believes the person would have crossed a road leading to a poorly lit road alongside waste ground.

Standing at an entrance to the waste ground, Mr Amaral said: “This area was thoroughly searched.”

He walked a few steps and looked up at a CCTV camera and sighed loudly. The camera belongs to the Estrela da Luz resort hotel. “I believe that the person carrying a child in his arms was captured on film from that very camera,” he said.

“I asked my officers to gather all the CCTV footage in Luz but, by the time they got to this hotel, the film from this camera had been wiped over. It was a mistake and I will always regret it. I do feel Madeleine was let down.”

Walking alongside the waste ground, he enters a narrow street called Rua da Escola Primaria. “This is where there was a significant sighting of a man carrying a child in his arms,” he said. “He was seen by a witness, Martin Smith from Ireland.”

The man with the child continued down the hill and would have come to a crossroads. Opposite the junction is an empty villa with a large garden. The wooden door leading to the garden is open.

“It was open at the time and the villa is still empty,” Mr Amaral said. “My officers spent a lot of time here.”

Mr Amaral concludes that any new investigation should fully consider the statement of Mr Smith. “I hope this is seriously examined because it is an important aspect of the case,” he said.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/210032/Madeleine-McCann-Did-the-camera-hold-vital-clue

[misty]

Madeleine McCann: Did the camera hold vital clue?

THE detective who led the initial investigation into Madeleine McCann’s disappearance believes her abductor was caught on camera – but revealed that the film was wiped before detectives saw it.

By JAMES MURRAY
PUBLISHED: 00:00, Sun, Nov 7, 2010

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/210032/Madeleine-McCann-Did-the-camera-hold-vital-clue

*sigh*
Perhaps he'd have been better explaining why the Smiths' statements were sat on from the end of May until October 2007 and then disregarded again. But, just like any bad workman, he blamed his tools.

[ShiningInLuz]

There's a lot of discussion on this in the "Irish teenager smoking" thread, and it is clearly getting into Smithman sighting territory.  My attempt to say the missing Estrela da Luz CCTV was not significant produced a flurry of responses, so I'm splitting the topic out.  Thanks to those who posted in the "Irish teenager smoking" thread as that has improved my understanding of the missing Estrela da Luz CCTV. (Oh, and the route Amaral thinks Smithman took.)

The graphic attached is the closest one gets to Estrela whilst staying on the Smithman route of Primary School Street.  It's at the SE corner of EdL. And I do mean the very closest. Smithman should have been further away, on the other side of Primary School Street.

So have a look at this pic and what do you see?

The CCTV is on the elevated pole beside the gate.  Please note the pole is nearer to the point of view than the gate it is monitoring.  That is important.

Now have a look at what is between the gate and the viewing point.

I make it a pedestrian crossing.  Then 4 of the underground waste bins.  Then a street sign.  Then a small gap before there is a lamp pole.  Then the pedestrian walkway that goes up the East side of EdL (and that has two more entrances and 3 more CCTV cameras).

Google Streetview is not great for working what is going on here.  The CCTV pole has 2 objects on it.  One is the cylinder that is the CCTV.  The other is a ball shaped object that does whatever.  I don't know and I don't care.

Back to the CCTV.  It is closer to the viewpoint (and thus Smithman) than the entrance.  Since the CCTV is pointing at the area inside of the gate, it is pointing away from the viewer (aka Smithman).

So, it is pointing in completely the wrong direction, and it is so far away that it would be useless if for some strange reason it was pointing towards Primary School Street.

The 'missing' EdL CCTV is a red herring. 

I can only speculate as to why such a red herring exists, so here goes.  Pop out of apartment 5A (with Madeleine), exit the car park and turn left.  Head to the end of the road and hit Primeiro de Maio.  Cross PdM and into Primary School Street.  Go along it then down it until you hit Smithman sighting.

This fits Amaral's vague theory that the one doing this is (allegedly) Gerry.

Now things get interesting.  The time to walk this route is about 4 minutes.  Of course, if it was Gerry, he had to do something with Madeleine, however long that took, and return.  A further 4 minutes plus.

So is Amaral doing a bit of finger-pointing?  Was the vital evidence that was never collected actually vital?  Or is it the case that. since the CCTV does not cover the alleged Smithman route at all, it is simply another allegation without substance?