Not according to Amaral's Book.. He had The McCanns in the frame from Day One, he said.
Yes - because their behaviour was suspicious. He was using his powers of deduction from day one. That's what detectives do. The behaviour of their friends was suspicious too.
As to Murat, a journalist from the Sunday Mirror contacted Leicestershire police suggesting that Murat's behaviour was suspicious (a bit like Huntley's behaviour after the disappearance of the two girls in Soham). This was on the 6th May - two days after Madeleine's alleged abduction.
Jane Tanner, on the evening of the alleged abduction, claimed that she saw a man carrying a child going in the direction of Murat's house. Tanner's suggestion was that she had seen Madeleine's abductor carrying Madeleine.
Did Tanner and others directly identify Murat as the man who she thought had abducted Madeleine?
This was all supposed evidence for the abduction theory. See how many people are sowing the seeds for that theory from the very beginning, despite (allegedly) not being there to witness the abduction, therefore not theoretically having any knowledge as to what had happened to Madeleine?
Did Jane Tanner positively identify Murat as the man she saw carrying a child (the inference being that the child was Madeleine)? In any event, it is on record that the Portugese police did not believe the sighting was important and did not find Tanner a reliable witness.
Aren't doctors supposed to keep an open mind when faced with the challenge of making a diagnosis? Statistically speaking, abduction of a child by a random unknown person is rare. The McCanns themselves openly acknowledged this and in fact cited it as a justification for leaving the children alone in the apartment - they simply did not believe that abduction by a stranger was a possibility.
Statistically speaking, when a child disappears, it often has something to do with parents/carers/someone who knows the child.
While I can understand why, if you were wishing to cover up a crime, you might want to frame someone, what is less easy to understand is Gerry's answer when asked if he knew Murat. 'No comment'.
In actual fact, Murat offered to help the McCanns, by translating for instance.
I wonder what Murat has to say about the McCanns and their friends?
