Press Association
Madeleine detective convicted of perjury
A convicted paedophile should "see sense" and co-operate with private investigators searching for Madeleine McCann, a spokesman for the child's family said today. The McCanns' investigation team wants to interview 64-year-old Raymond Hewlett in the next few days in the hope he can shed some light on the little girl's disappearance.
Hewlett is alleged to have been staying near the McCanns' holiday flat in Praia da Luz, Portugal, when she went missing in May 2007. UK-born Hewlett, who previously lived in Blackpool and Telford, is reportedly being treated for throat cancer in hospital in the German city Aachen, He was jailed several times for sexually assaulting young girls and is now wanted for questioning by British detectives in connection with a separate indecent assault.
The McCanns hope that once officers from West Yorkshire Police have questioned the former soldier, their investigators will speak to him, despite reports he is seriously ill in intensive care. Clarence Mitchell, Kate and Gerry McCann's spokesman, said: "Mr Hewlett has denied any involvement in Madeleine's abduction.
"Our investigators hope he will see sense and co-operate by giving them whatever information needed so they can eliminate him from the investigation. "It's clear the man is ill and it is clear he has information that our investigators need. It is also clear that our investigators will be speaking to him in the near future."
It is understood that before the McCanns' team can speak to Hewlett, British officers will interview him in connection with an indecent assault in 1975. Sources close to the investigation say they think both interviews will take place in "a matter of days, not weeks".
The McCanns currently have two retired detectives who they hired to search for their daughter. They hope British police will help facilitate an interview with Hewlett. But a source with knowledge of the investigation admitted Hewlett was a "private individual" who could "in theory say no" to an interview with the McCanns' detectives.
Yesterday, a spokeswoman for West Yorkshire Police said the force could not go in to details about why British officers wanted to speak to the convicted paedophile. The spokeswoman added: "We have made contact with the German authorities. We are just waiting for clearance so we can actually go and speak to him regarding that incident."
Earlier, the Daily Mirror reported questions were raised about Hewlett's time in Portugal by a couple who met him on holiday. Alan and Cindy Thompson said the sex offender was living with his wife and six children in a converted Dodge truck travelling from campsite to campsite in the Algarve and southern Spain. Hewlett allegedly told the Thompsons he was approached by some "Gipsy tourists" offering to buy his daughter just before Madeleine went missing. They also recalled him mentioning a "business" trip to Morocco, where there were several alleged sightings of the little girl in the months after her disappearance. Hewlett told the Thompsons he was at a market in the Portuguese town of Fuseta, 30 miles from Praia da Luz, when Madeleine vanished, according to the Mirror.
He reportedly told the couple he had done nothing wrong and they were judging him based on what they knew of his past. He said: "If you've chosen to believe anything I can't do anything about it anyway, so there you go. Catch 22. "You're basing it on someone's past, rather. That means the person's past is important. Doesn't make him guilty. You shouldn't be talking to me about it. I've done nothing wrong, nothing, nothing."
It is believed the Thompsons attempted to contact British police with their concerns about Hewlett some time ago but were not successful. Leicestershire Police, which handled the British end of the inquiry into what happened to Madeleine, refused to comment. A spokeswoman for the force said: "The disappearance of Madeleine McCann remains a Portuguese investigation. We would pass any relevant information we receive to the Portuguese police."
However, the paper said Leicestershire Police had arranged to speak to the couple today to discuss their dealings with Hewlett, who is also reportedly under investigation in Germany over the death of his son David. The boy was killed after he fell from the back of a van that Hewlett was driving from Portugal to Germany, the paper said.
Another son of Hewlett's said he had severed all ties with his father, whom he branded "a monster".
Wayne Hewlett, 40, told the Mirror: "The crimes he has committed are despicable. He is a major embarrassment as a father and I'm ashamed of the things he has done.
"I know he has cancer but I don't care whether he lives or dies. I despise the man."
The McCanns' private investigators yesterday flew back to the UK from Portugal, where they have been chasing up information received from the public since a blaze of publicity around the second anniversary of Madeleine's disappearance.
Mr Mitchell added: "Our investigators have been following up a number of leads.
"Since the publicity surrounding the second anniversary, the Oprah appearance, the age progression picture, the Channel 4 documentary, there have been hundreds of calls.
"Within those there have been a handful of encouraging calls that the private detectives are very pleased with.
"They contain solid new information that needs to be verified, and that's what they have been doing."
It is understood the leads include the names of a number of suspects.
Madeleine was nearly four when she went missing from her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007 while her parents dined with friends nearby.
Despite a massive police investigation and huge publicity worldwide she has not been found.
Previous Article
Post a Comment