Kate McCann admits in her book that private criminal investigations in Portugal were illegal.

[xtina]

They must have had something that appealed to the McCanns and their backers.

i remember from years ago ....that metedo were more intersted in racking up any dirt on G. A.....than looking for maddie ....that could have been why they were employed...remembering ...all there underhanded ways ..that could have been the attraction

[ferryman]

i remember from years ago ....that metedo were more intersted in racking up any dirt on G. A.....than looking for maddie ....that could have been why they were employed...remembering ...all there underhanded ways ..that could have been the attraction

Don't know about that.

But you're bound to concede.

There's plenty of dirt to dig.

[Admin]

I haven't found anything illegal, per se, in attempting to find your missing child, although perhaps you don't agree.

http://miscarriageofjustice.co/index.php?topic=4676.msg303324#msg303324

You are entitled to your opinion however learned and qualified Portuguese opinion was to the contrary.  You will find that Portuguese laws have developed much since the days of the rightwing dictatorships.  What has become crystal over the last eight years is that the police and judiciary do not like outsiders meddling in their internal affairs.  The regime might have gone from power but the undercurrents remain.

[G-Unit]

I have never seen the point in employing Oakley or Metodo since neither had any jurisdiction in Portugal.

That applies to Scotland Yard too. Whatever they have will have to be approved and accepted by the Portuguese authorities to be progressed, I imagine.

[ferryman]

You are entitled to your opinion however learned and qualified Portuguese opinion was to the contrary.  You will find that Portuguese laws have developed much since the days of the rightwing dictatorships.  What has become crystal over the last eight years is that the police and judiciary do not like outsiders meddling in their internal affairs.

We've been through all this, too.

Portuguese law allows private investigation, in parallel with official Portuguese investigation, provided the private investigators don't encroach onto Portuguese territory.

It's all plainly stated in Kate's book.

[Carana]

You are entitled to your opinion however learned and qualified Portuguese opinion was to the contrary.

According to which statutes?

If any of our native Portuguese speakers feel inclined to provide an accurate translation of the potential infringements that I have taken the time to find above...

[ferryman]

By Portuguese Registered Private Investigators.

More specifically, investigation on Portuguese soil, no matter who by, in conjunction with an official PJ investigation into the same matter, is prohibited by Portuguese law.

That's why the McCanns kept their investigators off Portuguese soil.

[Carana]

We've been through all this, too.

Portuguese law allows private investigation, in parallel with official Portuguese investigation, provided the private investigators don't encroach onto Portuguese territory.

It's all plainly stated in Kate's book.

The primary  issue is to avoid obstructing the course of justice.

I have no problem with that, on the contrary.

[ferryman]

The primary  issue is to avoid obstructing the course of justice.

I have no problem with that, on the contrary.

Agreed.

[Carana]

You are entitled to your opinion however learned and qualified Portuguese opinion was to the contrary.  You will find that Portuguese laws have developed much since the days of the rightwing dictatorships.  What has become crystal over the last eight years is that the police and judiciary do not like outsiders meddling in their internal affairs.  The regime might have gone from power but the undercurrents remain.

I have looked through the 2007 Penal Code.

Which statutes back in 2007 do you find incompatible with private attempts to find your missing child?

[Carana]

I have also dug out potential areas in which a private investigation could stray into illegal territory.

Perhaps someone could help provide an accurate translation.

[Angelo222]

We've been through all this, too.

Portuguese law allows private investigation, in parallel with official Portuguese investigation, provided the private investigators don't encroach onto Portuguese territory.

It's all plainly stated in Kate's book.

In that case both you and Kate are mistaken. What do you call intimidating witnesses and making up wild claims about sightings etc ??

I would just love to see the Metropolitan Police reaction if some cowboy outfit from Barcelona came into one of their high profile crime investigations.  Your claim is absurd ferryman but then so many are.

ps good to see you back from the naughty chair.

[Angelo222]

More specifically, investigation on Portuguese soil, no matter who by, in conjunction with an official PJ investigation into the same matter, is prohibited by Portuguese law.

That's why the McCanns kept their investigators off Portuguese soil.

Was Correia and the Arade Dam fiasco on Portuguese soil?

[ShiningInLuz]

I have also dug out potential areas in which a private investigation could stray into illegal territory.

Perhaps someone could help provide an accurate translation.

I have read the sections you posted earlier, and I can see nothing that explicitly states that one cannot investigate, whether there is an active Portuguese police investigation or not.

However, most of the stuff does mean that someone HIRED to investigate, would, by virtue of their profession, be opening themselves up to multiple risks of prosecution.

The first sanity check on this is - do private investigators actually exist within Portugal?  The second is - if PI's do exist, precisely what services do they advertise?

I cannot for the life of me see why one would employ PIs in Spain re an investigation in Portugal if one could employ Portuguese-based PIs.

[ferryman]

Was Correia and the Arade Dam fiasco on Portuguese soil?

Correia was never employed by the McCanns.

http://portugalresident.com/divers-restart-search-for-madeleine-in-arade-dam

(sic)
.The divers’ search of the waters at the Arade Dam started on Monday in a private operation commissioned by the Madeira-based lawyer Marcos Aragão Correia and sponsored by a Portimão-based company named SPEC.