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An alleged stalker who claimed to be Madeleine McCann was ruled out after a confidential DNA test established beyond doubt she was not Madeleine McCann, police have revealed in court.

Stalking Allegations Targeting McCann Family

Julia Wandelt, aged 24, faces charges for a campaign of harassment against the family of Madeleine, who disappeared from a Portuguese resort in Portugal in 2007 when she was three.

The Polish national bombarded Kate and Gerry McCann and their older offspring, Sean and Amelie, with hundreds of calls, messages, voicemails and letters from 2022 until recently, and turned up at their home demanding a DNA test, the court was earlier informed.

Investigation Details

Giving evidence on Tuesday, the senior investigating officer on Madeleine's disappearance, stated he had acted outside normal guidelines to test Wandelt “in the hope she may stop her actions towards the McCann family”.

The senior officer said thirteen individuals had in the past insisted to be the abducted child but that: “We would not take DNA unless we believed that person was Madeleine because I aimed to prevent setting a precedent.

“If it got out in the media I had taken DNA from someone most likely not to be Madeleine, I was worried I would have had a lot of people coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.

“I truly possess major concerns about reaching out to the family to say I intend to take DNA from an individual – that could have raised their hopes. It could have been very traumatic and difficult for the family.”

DNA Comparison

He said investigators had already judged Wandelt not to be Madeleine due to dissimilar appearance and that she was older by two years than Madeleine. But, he said, after discovering Leicester police planned to arrest Wandelt on criminal accusations, he “determined that the DNA would be taken during detention”.

He said: “Testing was conducted. It conclusively proved that Julia Wandelt is not Madeleine McCann.”

Legal Testimony

Jurors learned that in April this year, the officer met with 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 during the visit: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”

The court heard that while they spoke, Wandelt inquired: “Do you sincerely wish to find Madeleine?”, and Cranwell told the jury he responded: “Yes.”

He said notwithstanding the evidence, he believed Wandelt “might claim we have manipulated the sample”, stating: “It was possible she would not believe she cannot be Madeleine despite being given scientific proof.”

Family Impact

During previous hearings, testimony revealed how the McCanns were left frightened and upset by their “unnerving” and “profoundly unsettling” interactions with Wandelt and her co-defendant Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as both defendants attempted to insist on a DNA test.

The jury were told how the defendants made ever more strange plans” to acquire Kate McCann’s DNA, which included rummaging in the McCanns’ bins and stealing utensils from restaurants that the family visited.

The accused women both refute one count of stalking. The case remains active.