Secret DNA Analysis Proved Accused Stalker Could Not Be Madeleine McCann, Says Detective
A suspected stalker who asserted to be the missing girl was ruled out after a confidential DNA test proved conclusively she was not Madeleine McCann, police have revealed in court.
Stalking Allegations Targeting McCann Family
Julia Wandelt, twenty-four, faces charges for a pattern of threatening behavior against the family of Madeleine, who vanished from a holiday destination in Portugal in 2007 at the age of three.
The Polish citizen overwhelmed Kate and Gerry McCann and their older offspring, Sean and Amelie, with numerous phone calls, messages, voicemails and letters between 2022 and earlier this year, and appeared at their home requesting a DNA test, Leicester crown court previously heard.
Investigation Details
Giving evidence on Tuesday, the lead detective on the missing person’s case, said he had gone against procedure to test Wandelt “in the hope she may stop her conduct towards the McCann family”.
The senior officer said 13 people had in the past insisted to be the missing girl but that: “We would not take DNA unless we believed that person was Madeleine because I wished to avoid setting a precedent.
“If it got out in the media I had taken DNA off an individual most likely not to be Madeleine, I was concerned I would have had numerous individuals coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.
“I genuinely have major concerns about reaching out to the family to say I plan to take DNA from an individual – that could have raised their hopes. It could have been highly distressing and challenging for the family.”
DNA Comparison
He said the police had earlier determined Wandelt not to be Madeleine due to a lack of resemblance and that she was two years older than the missing girl. But, he said, after learning Leicester police planned to arrest Wandelt on criminal accusations, he “determined that the DNA would be taken during detention”.
He declared: “Analysis occurred. It absolutely confirmed that Julia Wandelt cannot be Madeleine McCann.”
Legal Testimony
The court heard that in April this year, the officer saw Wandelt in custody and stated to her that her DNA had been matched against Madeleine’s and that the profiles did not match. The jury heard he told Wandelt while speaking with her: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”
The court heard that throughout their discussion, Wandelt inquired: “Do you truly desire to find Madeleine?”, and Cranwell told the jury he responded: “Yes.”
He said even with the results, he believed Wandelt “might claim we have tampered with the sample”, adding: “There existed a chance she would not believe she cannot be Madeleine notwithstanding scientific proof.”
Emotional Distress
During previous hearings, testimony revealed how the family were left frightened and traumatized by their “unnerving” and “deeply disturbing” interactions with Wandelt and her alleged accomplice Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as the two women attempted to insist on a DNA test.
The jury were told how both women made ever more strange plans” to acquire Kate McCann’s DNA, which included rummaging in the McCanns’ bins and removing cutlery from restaurants that the McCanns dined at.
The accused women both refute one count of stalking. The trial continues.
