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Police reveal 'credible' new information that sparked Madeleine McCann lake search

Respected Portuguese media has said an informant gave detectives "details" they took "very seriously" which prompted the first search for Madeleine McCann in nine years

Image: PA)

The landmark search for missing Madeleine McCann at a remote Algarve reservoir is taking place following a tip from a "very credible" German police informer, it was claimed today.

Respected Portuguese media outlet Expresso said an informant gave detectives "details" they took "very seriously."

While German prosecutor Christian Walters confirmed to the press that the search is based on "indicators" from a source that they could find evidence in the area.

At the request of German investigators, Portuguese police have been carrying out a search for the first time in nine years.

The surrounding area of the Arade dam, about 30 miles from Praia da Luz — where Maddie was last seen alive just before her fourth birthday in 2007 — has been a hive of activity since yesterday.

The reservoir is said to be a favourite spot of convicted German rapist Christian Brückner, who is the number one suspect in her murder.

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Local reports said German police had obtained pictures and video footage showing the German paedophile at the reservoir.

Expresso, a flagship weekly publication of Portuguese media group Impresa, claimed today it "knows that these searches have their origin in a tip from a BKA informant who the police force considers very credible and that the German police took very seriously.”

It said that German police requested the searches after receiving this information.

The media outlet said it had obtained its information from a “source close to the investigation.”

It offered no information on what information German police had been given by its informant, who has not been identified for operational reasons.

Walters also said: "What we hope to find there should remain our secret for the moment."

He continued: "If we should find something then we will certainly tell you about it... but the action itself will also take a little bit of time, it can't be completed within two hours or so."

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The operation was described as a two to three-day operation before it started and it was not clear around midday today whether it will continue beyond today.

Heavy rain forced police and other officials including Civil Protection workers to suspend the searches slightly earlier today.

This morning police appeared to be focusing on a valley slightly north of a secluded clearing behind trees near where three tents were put up on Monday.

The Mirror was on site and noted that shortly before midday a green remote-controlled excavator was brought onto the search site.

Officers used chainsaws to remove large trees and undergrowth, placing them on the shoreline.

German officers with sniffers dogs could also be seen searching for evidence in a wooded area close to the shoreline.

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German prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters has consistently said he is convinced Madeleine is dead and caged paedophile Brueckner, 45, is their main suspect in her alleged death.

The man, currently serving time for the September 2005 rape of an American in the resort where Madeleine vanished, has yet to face any formal accusation over the youngster’s disappearance.

Last April he was made an official suspect in Portugal over Madeleine’s disappearance, although his defence lawyer Friedrich Fulscher labelled it a "procedural trick."

Last autumn Bruecker was charged in Germany with several sex crimes on the Algarve against women and children including the rape of an Irish holiday rep in 2004 and the sexual abuse of a 10-year-old girl on a beach near Praia da Luz in 2007.

A well-placed Portuguese police source said they were focusing on trying to find any evidence linking Brueckner to Madeleine McCann’s disappearance and the German police focus was on finding proof of his involvement in the other cases he was accused of as well.