Manner of abduction

[Angelo222]

So we would be assuming here that Kate returned to apartment at 10pm to find Madeleine missing,  but with the window and shutter properly secured  ? 

Fearing that that they would be deemed negligent for leaving the patio door unlocked she opens the window and raises the shutter from the inside in order to lessen their culpability. The abductor having determindly made his own way into the apartment by breaking in through the window  ,  the fact that they left  the patio door open,  thereby,   being nothing to do with subsequent events  ? 

OK,  that's a rational  explanation 

except

Almost as soon as she down at the table that night,   before Madeleine went missing,  Kate had spoken about her doubts regarding leaving the patio door unlocked.  She pondered with her friend Fiona whether it would be better to leave the door unlocked so that if Madeleine  woke up  again   she would be able to come and find them

So then,  in accordance with your theory,   on returning to the apartment at 10pm,  and finding Madeline missing  (  but the window and shutter secure  )  would she not immediately assume that the very thing she had predictedmight   happen,  less than two hours before,  actually  had  happened   (  that Madeleine had left the apaertment to look for them  )  ?

In those circumstances she would expect Madeleine to be found quite quickly 

Why stage an abduction that would be disproven when her daughter was found ?

How,  for instance,  could she  have  explained the open window/shutter  in the event of Madeleine being found at the main reception,  where some kindly people had taken her after finding her distressed in the street  ...  that is what probably  would  have happened,  afterall,

A couple of really good points icabodcrane.  Could it be that Madeleine woke up and not wanting to leave the apartment opened the window and raised the shutter?  That would certainly explain why there is no evidence of anyone climbing in but still account for the way Kate found them.

Seeing nobody in the car park she then exits via the unlocked patio door, goes down the steps to the street where she is lifted.

[AnneGuedes]

when clearly he was an innocent parent returning home

[Angelo222]

Has anyone seen a reference in the official files to forensics undertaken on that child safety gate?

[Angelo222]

Why do you mock Anne?  Did the colour and description of the clothing not match perfectly??

[AnneGuedes]

Could it be that Madeleine woke up and not wanting to leave the apartment opened the window and raised the shutter?

No.

[Wonderfulspam]

A couple of really good points icabodcrane.  Could it be that Madeleine woke up and not wanting to leave the apartment opened the window and raised the shutter?  That would certainly explain why there is no evidence of anyone climbing in but still account for the way Kate found them.

Seeing nobody in the car park she then exits via the unlocked patio door, goes down the steps to the street where she is lifted.

I just find it difficult to believe that an abductor type happened to be around at exactly the same time she might have left flat,
Or that a driver knocked her over then picked her up & took her in the car. In that situation a hit & run seems more likely.
And then add to that Smithman just happens to be a Gerry McCann 60-80% lookalike & his child just so happens to look similar to Madeleine aswell. It's like Kate's book...I won't buy it.

[AnneGuedes]

Why do you mock Anne?  Did the colour and description of the clothing not match perfectly??

Everything (colour, type, state, direction) matched perfectly with the "almost certain" of DCI RW.

[AnneGuedes]

I just find it difficult to believe that an abductor type happened to be around at exactly the same time she might have left flat,
Or that a driver knocked her over then picked her up & took her in the car. In that situation a hit & run seems more likely.
And then add to that Smithman just happens to be a Gerry McCann 60-80% lookalike & his child just so happens to look similar to Madeleine aswell. It's like Kate's book...I won't buy it.

It wasn't necessarily an abductor she fatally met  so no coincidence here.
Imagine a car in the private car park. The driver going backwards without seeing her... (This kind of accident is more frequent than people imagine). He doesn't even notice or doesn't want to face. The parents find the body. How could they not feel atrociously guilty ? solution to "guilt", not to sorrow : blame an abductor.

[icabodcrane]

A couple of really good points icabodcrane.  Could it be that Madeleine woke up and not wanting to leave the apartment opened the window and raised the shutter?  That would certainly explain why there is no evidence of anyone climbing in but still account for the way Kate found them.

Seeing nobody in the car park she then exits via the unlocked patio door, goes down the steps to the street where she is lifted.

I don't know enough about those shutters or window to say whether a three year old could open them  (  or even fathom  how  to open them   )

Perhaps members who know more about the mechanisms involved could answer

[Angelo222]

I don't know enough about those shutters or window to say whether a three year old could open them  (  or even fathom  how  to open them   )

Perhaps members who know more about the mechanisms involved could answer

A nearly 4 year old could easily slide open the window and pull the shutter strap.  A precocious child like Madeleine certainly.

[Angelo222]

It wasn't necessarily an abductor she fatally met  so no coincidence here.
Imagine a car in the private car park. The driver going backwards without seeing her... (This kind of accident is more frequent than people imagine). He doesn't even notice or doesn't want to face. The parents find the body. How could they not feel atrociously guilty ? solution to "guilt", not to sorrow : blame an abductor.

The parents had no time to do any concealing, that myth has well and truly been debunked.

Someone mentioned the coincidence and chances of an abductor being around at the same time as Madeleine decided to go walkies.  A slim chance but these things happen. 

Lady Luck did not shine on Madeleine that night.

[AnneGuedes]

It's easy for a 3/4 to pull the latch and open the door.
An adult might have preferred a complex way he was not familiar to instead of a simple way he was familiar to.
I don't think that children would. They are more pragmatic.
I do have those shutters, at that age my kids couldn't open them, but they pulled the latch (same locker) easily. The sliding window is easy to slide as long as it isn't blocked (the mecanism is high, only climbing on the bed).

[AnneGuedes]

The parents had no time to do any concealing, that myth has well and truly been debunked.

By Debunker ?
In less than the time needed to go to the main reception and come back it was possible to dispose of the body.

[AnneGuedes]

A nearly 4 year old could easily slide open the window and pull the shutter strap.  A precocious child like Madeleine certainly.

Have you any idea of the weight of those shutters, Angelo ?

[Angelo222]

Have you any idea of the weight of those shutters, Angelo ?

She only had to pull a little at a time as you know.  There is a self locking mechanism which prevents the shutter slipping down again unless the strap is pulled out at a sharp angle (something a 4 year old couldn't do).