June 14, 2007

The parents of 4-year-old Madeleine McCann, who was abducted from her hotel room May 3rd while taking a nap, rebuked the media for publishing details about an anonymous tip regarding their daughters whereabouts.

A Dutch newspaper received the anonymous tip and published it
in their June 13,2007 paper, while also forwarding the letter to
authorities. The tip was then widely reported on throughout other
media outlets. The anonymous tip contained a map showing a
remote location in Southern Portugal where the child might be
buried.

Madeleine’s father, Gerry McCann, said that the family was
“extremely disappointed” by the revelation in a blog on his
website, FindMadeleine.com. “Although all information will be
taken seriously, we were very upset that the credibility of this
letter had not been examined and, more importantly, published
before the Portuguese police had an opportunity to investigate
the claim, and search the area if appropriate without massive
media attention,” he wrote.

Authorities have followed up dozens of leads on the little girls
abduction, including reported sightings of Madeleine, but none
have yielded results. This latest tip claimed that Madeleine had
been buried in remote scrub land, about 9 miles from the spot she vanished — a hotel in the resort town of Praia da Luz. Madeleine’s 2-year-old twin siblings were also in the hotel room with Madeleine, but were not abducted. The children were alone as their parents dined out at a nearby restaurant.