Exploring the reasons and motivation behind Portuguese re-opening of the case.

[Sherlock Holmes]

Portugal's Attorney General cited in October 2013  'new elements of evidence'  as 'justification for the continuation of the investigation' officially shelved in 2008.

According to Portuguese authorities, police have had been reviewing the case since March of 2011 - two months before Scotland Yard began their official review in May of that year.

There are now two teams of officers in Portugal dedicated to the McCann investigation, including a small team in Faro, Algarve, working 'on behalf' of Scotland Yard (SY's words).

It does appear on the face of it that there is considerable co-operation between the two sets of authorities, international protocols and bureaucracies notwithstanding.

But what is the main motivation for Portuguese re-opening of the case? Was it, as Redblossom suggests, for the sake of backing up Scotland Yard?

Was it because of 'Tractorman', as reported in the press?

Or is it for good and genuine legal and investigative reasons, as far as Portuguese authorities are concerned, that the investigation there was reopened - as per the official position  of the AG?

[Sherlock Holmes]

Well, there has been a crime (as in 'type of crime unknown').

What I'm saying is that perhaps watching the PJ at this point is a better guide as to the rate of progress in the investigation. They are not beholden to the international and other protocols that inhibit SY in this context.

They also have an incentive to 'crack' this case rather than suffer the embarrassment of SY doing it for them, so would want to get in there and make arrests if sufficient evidence was there.

[stephen25000]

Well, there has been a crime (as in 'type of crime unknown').

What I'm saying is that perhaps watching the PJ at this point is a better guide as to the rate of progress in the investigation. They are not beholden to the international and other protocols that inhibit SY in this context.

They also have an incentive to 'crack' this case rather than suffer the embarrassment of SY doing it for them, so would want to get in there and make arrests if sufficient evidence was there.

Is that why the PJ were asked to find 'new evidence'  ?

[Redblossom]

Well, there has been a crime (as in 'type of crime unknown').

What I'm saying is that perhaps watching the PJ at this point is a better guide as to the rate of progress in the investigation. They are not beholden to the international and other protocols that inhibit SY in this context.

They also have an incentive to 'crack' this case rather than suffer the embarrassment of SY doing it for them, so would want to get in there and make arrests if sufficient evidence was there.

I didn't mean there was no crime. Sorry, missed out the words "being committed" by the person to be arrested.

 

I don't know what the PJ have done with their own review over the last couple years and their reopening of the investigation....but they have been working together with SY, SY have not gone out 20 times just for a cup of tea. I also think all this talk of embarrassment is a bit silly and premature

[Estuarine]

Well this is what the MPS think according their website. I have made a precis of what I considered to be salient points.
Anyone who thinks I am biased don't tell me follow the link and read it all yourself.
April 2012 Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Service conducting the investigative review into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann are releasing an age progression image of her as we approach her ninth birthday on 12 May. DCI Andy Redwood said: “From the outset we have approached this review with a completely open mind, placing Madeleine McCann at the heart of everything we do. We are working on the basis of two possibilities here. One is that Madeleine is still alive; and the second that she is sadly dead ……… If you know where Madeleine McCann is now or you have new direct information/evidence about what has happened to her then please contact us”.
Oct 4th 2013
DCI Andy Redwood said: "……………….. Our investigation in the UK remains ongoing.
Oct 14th 2013 Reward The Metropolitan Police Service is offering a reward of up to £20,000 for information leading to the identification, arrest and prosecution of the person(s) responsible for the abduction of Madeleine McCann from Praia da Luz Portugal on the 3rd May 2003.
Oct 24th 2013 The Portuguese Judicial Authorities have today, 24 October, announced that they have reopened their investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. This development follows the discovery of new lines of enquiry as a result of an internal review of their original investigation by the Portuguese Policia Judiciaria.
The Portuguese investigation will run in parallel with the Operation Grange investigation, and a team of Portuguese colleagues continue to follow up enquiries on behalf of the MPS under the terms of the International Letter of Request (ILOR).
Quote from A/C Mark Rowley: "Last week was a significant point in the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance………. today's development is good news. Combined with the formal re-opening of the Portuguese investigation today, and our ever closer working relationship, I believe that we have the best opportunity yet to finally understand what happened to Madeleine."

http://www.met.police.uk

[Sherlock Holmes]

I didn't mean there was no crime. Sorry, missed out the words "being committed" by the person to be arrested.

 

I don't know what the PJ have done with their own review over the last couple years and their reopening of the investigation....but they have been working together with SY, SY have not gone out 20 times just for a cup of tea. I also think all this talk of embarrassment is a bit silly and premature

Possibly.

But as a driving force for the PJ, I mean. Wouldn't they want to be the ones to solve the case?

For SY to come in and solve a cold case on foreign turf when the PJ had failed to crack it on the ground at the time would make the PJ look bad. Not corrupt or inefficient, necessarily. Just inferior to SY.

Won't they want to do everything they can at the moment to avoid that eventuality?

[Lyall]

Possibly.

But as a driving force for the PJ, I mean. Wouldn't they want to be the ones to solve the case?

For SY to come in and solve a cold case on foreign turf when the PJ had failed to crack it on the ground at the time would make the PJ look bad. Not corrupt or inefficient, necessarily. Just inferior to SY.

Won't they want to do everything they can at the moment to avoid that eventuality?

You are perhaps answering your own questions, SH.

They can't do what's not possible can they.

[Redblossom]

Possibly.

But as a driving force for the PJ, I mean. Wouldn't they want to be the ones to solve the case?

For SY to come in and solve a cold case on foreign turf when the PJ had failed to crack it on the ground at the time would make the PJ look bad. Not corrupt or inefficient, necessarily. Just inferior to SY.

Won't they want to do everything they can at the moment to avoid that eventuality?

Well I'm sure they're quite happy actually  that the UK are funding a new investigation, what with being in financial dire straits for a few years, as some other european countries,  they did their investigation in 2007/8, their biggest manhunt, huge resources spent, forced to shelve the case despite, so  they may actually be on the back burner as it were, following the lead

 >@@(*&)

No, I don't think it's a matter of police pride myself

[Sherlock Holmes]

Well this is what the MPS think according their website. I have made a precis of what I considered to be salient points.
Anyone who thinks I am biased don't tell me follow the link and read it all yourself.
April 2012 Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Service conducting the investigative review into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann are releasing an age progression image of her as we approach her ninth birthday on 12 May. DCI Andy Redwood said: “From the outset we have approached this review with a completely open mind, placing Madeleine McCann at the heart of everything we do. We are working on the basis of two possibilities here. One is that Madeleine is still alive; and the second that she is sadly dead ……… If you know where Madeleine McCann is now or you have new direct information/evidence about what has happened to her then please contact us”.
Oct 4th 2013
DCI Andy Redwood said: "……………….. Our investigation in the UK remains ongoing.
Oct 14th 2013 Reward The Metropolitan Police Service is offering a reward of up to £20,000 for information leading to the identification, arrest and prosecution of the person(s) responsible for the abduction of Madeleine McCann from Praia da Luz Portugal on the 3rd May 2003.
Oct 24th 2013 The Portuguese Judicial Authorities have today, 24 October, announced that they have reopened their investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. This development follows the discovery of new lines of enquiry as a result of an internal review of their original investigation by the Portuguese Policia Judiciaria.
The Portuguese investigation will run in parallel with the Operation Grange investigation, and a team of Portuguese colleagues continue to follow up enquiries on behalf of the MPS under the terms of the International Letter of Request (ILOR).
Quote from A/C Mark Rowley: "Last week was a significant point in the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance………. today's development is good news. Combined with the formal re-opening of the Portuguese investigation today, and our ever closer working relationship, I believe that we have the best opportunity yet to finally understand what happened to Madeleine."

http://www.met.police.uk

Thanks for that precis, Estuarine.

It is crystal clear that they are looking for an abductor  despite repeated statements that they are 'keeping an open mind'. (No contradiction, actually; the 'open mind' will have led them down avenues that they must have ruled out, before focusing in on the abduction scenario).

[Sherlock Holmes]

Well I'm sure they're quite happy actually  that the UK are funding a new investigation, what with being in financial dire straits for a few years, as some other european countries,  they did their investigation in 2007/8, their biggest manhunt, huge resources spent, forced to shelve the case despite, so  they may actually be on the back burner as it were, following the lead

 >@@(*&)

No, I don't think it's a matter of police pride myself

Nonetheless Portugal has two teams (one in Faro) operating on this at the moment. If they are stretching themselves greatly to do this in difficult economic circumstances, they must have good reason.

It was their choice to open the case, and if they didn't want to spend money on it, they didn't have to go looking for new evidence.

[Sherlock Holmes]

You are perhaps answering your own questions, SH.

They can't do what's not possible can they.

No but the fact that they are trying is significant.

[Redblossom]

Nonetheless Portugal has two teams (one in Faro) operating on this at the moment. If they are stretching themselves greatly to do this in difficult economic circumstances, they must have good reason.

It was their choice to open the case, and if they didn't want to spend money on it, they didn't have to go looking for new evidence.

But you have no idea what and how much they are doing, it doesn't cost a penny to reopen a case, and I didn't say they don't want to spend any money, that's a distortion of what I wrote

Reopening the case could have also been a technicality to aid working with SY, who knows? Certainly Tractorman wasn't the real reason, what a joke that was

[Estuarine]

If you trawl through the MPS website you will find a comment to the effect that the primacy for the investigation remains with the PJ. I feel that if one wants to find comment to back any thesis it can be found in the MPS briefings (a bit like Nostradamus and Old Mother Shipton!). My view remains not a lot is being given away; the MPS aren't saying much and the PJ are saying even less.The MPS A/C was very circumspect in his last publicised comment.

[Estuarine]

Well they must already have found some new evidence, because they have officially reopened the case.

(They story was that that evidence was tractorman, but that's pretty hard to believe).

Or maybe something that was already there assumed a new importance during the review?

[Eleanor]

Difficult to say.  First of all I believe The PJ saw a reason for why the handling of the original investigation needed looking into.  And then in the process of doing that they found things that were neglected and needed a closer look at.
What will have followed is obvious.