Watch the moment ITV News approached Christian Brueckner in northern Germany.
ITV News has traced the whereabouts of Christian Brueckner, the man German police suspect of abducting three-year-old Madeleine McCann in Portugal in 2007.
He lives in a tent in woodland in northern Germany, after being moved out of government accommodation, hotels and hostels due to protests from angry locals.
ITV News discovered his living situation and witnessed him making calls in dense woodland next to a tent with a tarpaulin covering, a bicycle, a sleeping bag, water, and half-eaten jars of food.
When Brueckner was asked about Madeleine McCann, he lashed out, knocking out the camera’s microphone.
Christian Brueckner, 47, was released from prison in Germany earlier this year after serving a seven-year sentence for the rape of a 72-year-old woman in Portugal in 2005. He also has previous convictions for child sex abuse and drug trafficking.
Brueckner is monitored and surveilled by German police constantly – in six-hour shifts, a team of eight undercover officers a day follow his every movement.
He wears an ankle tag that sends the authorities his location through GPS, and he has two mobile phones – one given to him by the police so they can have constant contact, and one private.
Since his release, he has moved from town to town trying to evade questions about his suspected involvement in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance.
In his latest location, ITV News discovered he has a team of helpers who bring him supplies, allowing him to remain undetected by the public.
At the bottom of a lane that leads to the woodland where Brueckner is living, an unmarked police car is the tell-tale sign that he is in the woods.
On one occasion, the police car accelerated away from the location, indicating that Brueckner had left.
He had left the location on his bicycle, using a woodland track that the police car couldn’t get to.
On his return to the area of woodland, ITV News saw Brueckner and asked him about Madeleine McCann.
ITV News discovered Brueckner’s living situation and witnessed him making calls in dense woodland next to a tent with a tarpaulin covering, a bicycle, a sleeping bag, water, and half-eaten jars of food.
ITV News has repeatedly asked Brueckner for an interview through his representatives.
His lawyer Philipp Marquort told us Brueckner would not “answer any questions regarding any pending case. This includes any question regarding the disappearance of Maddie McCann.”
He added that Breuckner does not “have to report to the police at all”.
The undercover police were aware of our presence and allowed us to enter the woodland, and Brueckner was aware that journalists were at his location.
ITV News has also approached the German Prosecutor for comment.
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
