British girl remains missing after 10-year search

Gerry and Kate McCann, who were living in Lancaster, the U.K., were completely alarmed upon arriving at their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, a resort town in southern Portugal on May 3, 2007. Four-year-old Madeleine who was supposed to be sleeping with her twin brothers had gone missing. It happened during the time when the couple went to a hotel swimming pool and had dinner with a friend before returning. The smile of Madeleine, who was blond and had big eyes, sent shockwaves to the entire European continent, and the case was dubbed “the most high profile incident of a child who is gone missing in modern history” by the U.K. media.

Exactly 10 years have passed but the British government still continues the efforts to find Madeleine’s whereabouts. So far, the British government alone has spent about 11 million British pounds (14.2 million U.S. dollars) in state budget on the case so far. London set aside an extra 85,000 pounds (109,700 dollars) in March this year, extending the investigation of the case through September this year. The investigation team, which started with 30 members, has decreased to four members, but many suspects are still being investigated. The U.K. police have examined more than 40,000 pieces of materials and grilled 600 people since 2011 as part of their far-reaching investigation into the mystery.

The British police expressed their commitment to continue investigation, saying, “There is no evidence that Madeleine has died.” In the meantime, countless suspects have been interrogated. A Scottish police officer who participated in the investigation claimed that the kidnapper is believed to have intentionally kidnapped Madeleine to substitute for his or her deceased child, while the Daily Mail reported on Sunday that the police are currently chasing a woman as a strong suspect. Portuguese former detective Goncalo Amaral, who wrote a book about their daughter's disappearance, is arguing that Madeleine was already criminated, and the claim was all fake and made up by her parents”

Kate McCann says she still buys birthday and Christmas gifts for Madeleine every year. “It's devastating and we really threw ourselves into trying to do everything we could to help find her. There is still hope that we can find Madeleine,” she told a recent interview with The BBC. “the main thing they had experienced "is the goodness of people and the support that we have had over 10 years, which hasn't wavered in all that time." Critics say that the case is a special favor given to her family, given that more budget and manpower has been mobilized when compared with other cases of missing people.

Jung-Min Dong ditto@donga.com