Confidential DNA Test Verified Suspected Stalker Was Not Madeleine McCann, Says Detective
An accused stalker who claimed to be Madeleine McCann was eliminated after a covert DNA test proved conclusively she was not the missing girl, investigators stated in court.
Targeted Behavior Against McCann Family
Julia Wandelt, twenty-four, faces charges for a stalking campaign against the family of Madeleine, who went missing from a holiday destination in Portugal in 2007 as a three-year-old.
The woman from Poland bombarded Kate and Gerry McCann and their adult children, Sean and Amelie, with numerous phone calls, messages, voicemails and letters from 2022 until recently, and turned up at their home requesting a DNA test, the court was earlier informed.
Investigation Details
Testifying on Tuesday, the lead detective on Operation Grange, explained he had deviated from protocol to test Wandelt “in the hope she may stop her behavior towards the McCann family”.
DCI Mark Cramwell said thirteen individuals had earlier asserted to be Madeleine McCann but that: “We would not take DNA without strong belief that person was Madeleine because I wished to avoid setting a precedent.
“If it got out in the media I had taken DNA from a person probably not to be Madeleine, I was concerned I would have had many persons coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.
“I genuinely have major concerns about reaching out to the family to say I aim to take DNA from an individual – that could have raised their hopes. It could have been quite emotionally damaging and challenging for the family.”
Genetic Testing
He said authorities had already judged Wandelt not to be Madeleine because of no physical similarity and that she was not the same age than the child. But, he said, after learning Leicester police were going to take into custody Wandelt on harassment allegations, he “decided that the DNA would be taken upon arrest”.
He said: “Testing was conducted. It definitively established that Julia Wandelt cannot be Madeleine McCann.”
Legal Testimony
The court heard that in April this year, the officer met with Wandelt under arrest and stated to her that her DNA had been compared to Madeleine’s and that the samples did not match. The jury heard he told Wandelt during the visit: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”
Testimony indicated that while they spoke, Wandelt said: “Do you truly desire to find Madeleine?”, and the detective told the jury he responded: “Yes.”
He said notwithstanding the evidence, he believed Wandelt “would suggest we have manipulated the sample”, remarking: “It was possible she would refuse to acknowledge she isn't Madeleine despite being given scientific proof.”
Family Impact
Earlier in the trial, testimony revealed how the relatives were left frightened and traumatized by their “creepy” and “deeply disturbing” interactions with Wandelt and the other accused Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as both defendants attempted to push for a DNA test.
The jury were told how the pair made ever more strange plans” to acquire Kate McCann’s DNA, which included searching the McCanns’ bins and taking forks from restaurants that the McCanns dined at.
Wandelt and Spragg both contest one count of stalking. Proceedings are ongoing.
