MADDIE MCCANN SUSPECT WALKS FREE

Summary

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Crime Stories with Nancy Grace

Episode: MADDIE MCCANN SUSPECT WALKS FREE
Date: November 1, 2025

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Overview

This episode confronts the shocking development that Christian Bruckner, the primary and long-standing suspect in the disappearance (and presumed murder) of three-year-old Madeleine McCann, has been released from custody. Nancy Grace, joined by a panel of legal, law enforcement, and mental health experts, analyzes the failures of the investigation, the evidence against Bruckner, and the complications that have allowed him to evade justice thus far.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Breaking News: The Lead Suspect Walks Free

(02:28, 17:34, 41:19)

• Bruckner, long considered the main suspect in Madeleine's case, has been released.
• Nancy is aghast at the systemic failures:
  “What is wrong with the system? The sole, the chief suspect… has walked free. Oh, the words just stuck in my throat like a lump of coal.” (02:30, Nancy Grace)
• Bruckner was seen celebrating his release at a McDonald's, evading media attention and leaving with apparent police cooperation (41:19).

2. The Maddie McCann Case: Errors and Lost Time

(04:51, 08:36, 21:41)

• The initial police response in Portugal was heavily criticized for delays and mishandling.
  “This whole case has just been filled with error after error… the police failed to take action immediately, which we now believe allowed this suspect… to get out of Portugal.” (08:36, Charlie Langston)
• Critical investigative missteps allowed Bruckner to flee. Police did not secure borders or lock down the scene quickly.

3. The Case Against Christian Bruckner

Evidence & Circumstances (05:51, 06:45, 18:19, 27:27)

• Bruckner is a convicted child sex abuser with a long history of offenses, including rape and child molestation.
• Circumstantial evidence includes:
  • Bruckner’s cell phone pinging near the McCann apartment on the night Maddie vanished.
  • He was living in the area at the time of Maddie’s disappearance.
  • Alleged confession to a friend.
  • Re-registration of his car the day following Maddie’s disappearance.
  • Multiple other sex offenses and disappearances of young girls in the same region and time frame. “His cell phone pinged just outside Maddie McCann’s apartment the night she disappeared.” (06:45)
• Despite “hundreds of hints,” prosecutors confess to lacking forensic evidence or a body (11:56).

4. Failures of Law Enforcement and Prosecution

(09:27, 23:06, 24:01)

• Repeated criticism of Portuguese and (at times) British law enforcement’s focus on the McCann parents, delaying the investigation into outside suspects.
  • Nancy: “They focused so much on the parents at the get go really delayed the search for Maddie’s abductor.” (24:01)
• The sex offender registry, standard in places like the US, was apparently not checked or not available in Portugal.

5. The Role of Circumstantial Evidence and Witnesses

(27:27, 28:02, 28:50)

• Prosecutors say it’s “not necessary to have forensic evidence to charge” but still require more—especially witnesses.
  • A new witness might link Bruckner to the crime, but a supposedly upcoming TV special may bring forth four alibi witnesses for the defense (28:02).
  • Nancy cautions not to rely on “eyewitnesses” without thorough cross-examination (28:50).

6. Statute of Limitations and Legal Pressure

(25:18, 26:14, 26:29, 30:17)

• Portugal’s 15-year statute of limitations on serious crimes (unless new steps taken) created urgency for authorities.
  • “The timing is very, very purposeful because Portuguese authorities know if they don’t do something… it may well be too late to ever punish whoever perpetrated this horrific crime.” (25:35, Charlie Langston)
• Naming Bruckner as an official suspect was seen as a legal move to stop the clock on limitations, not necessarily because of “breakthrough” evidence.

7. Patterns and Behavior of Sexual Predators

(35:42, 36:12)

• Dr. Angela Arnold: Sexual predators are rarely rehabilitated and often target victims with similar physical traits—an aspect seen repeatedly with Bruckner’s alleged victims.
  • “They’re playing out their fantasy through another person that looks just like that person… They are incapable of being rehabilitated.” (36:12, Dr. Angela Arnold)

8. The Parents’ Ordeal: From Suspects to Victims

(05:21, 23:06, 49:11, 49:15)

• The McCann parents, Kate and Gerry, faced public suspicion and police scrutiny in the early days despite no evidence against them.
  • “There was a lot of public outrage that the parents left her… it was a real witch burning.” (23:06, Nancy Grace)
• They were officially cleared in 2008 and never named official suspects again until Bruckner’s recent designation.

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Notable Quotes and Moments

• On investigation failure:
  “Where the police were, where their eyes were, where their head was… well, obviously I know where their heads were—up their rear ends.” (09:47, Nancy Grace)
• On circumstantial evidence:
  “His cell phone pinged just outside Maddie’s apartment the night she disappeared. That doesn’t bother you?” (09:55, Nancy Grace)
  “I absolutely admit it is not a coincidence because I don’t believe in coincidences.” (10:55, Daryl Cohen)
• On legal limits:
  “Sometimes you have to get even more than getting him the way you really want to.” (30:46, Daryl Cohen)
• On the impact of media and error:
  “While I understand how important it was to her parents to call attention to this case, I think the enormous public interest in it may well have sealed Maddie’s death.” (45:09, Charlie Langston)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:28 – Main theme introduced: shock and anger at Bruckner’s release.
• 04:51 – Case synopsis; the enduring public interest and initial police focus on parents.
• 05:51 – 06:45 – Details on Bruckner, circumstantial evidence, and lack of forensic proof.
• 08:36 – Dissection of investigative failures and Bruckner’s escape from Portugal.
• 09:27 – 10:55 – Bruckner’s criminal history and failures to monitor him.
• 11:56 – Prosecutor on evidence and rumors of Maddie’s clothing.
• 17:34 – Recap and reiteration of Bruckner’s release and its ramifications.
• 21:41 – 23:06 – Detailed discussion of the night Maddie disappeared.
• 25:18 – 26:29 – Urgency compelled by statute of limitations.
• 28:02 – 28:50 – Impact and credibility of supposed defense witnesses set to surface.
• 30:17 – Legal strategy regarding prosecution and utilization of new evidence.
• 31:59 – 33:54 – Review of Bruckner’s broader history and ties to similar cases.
• 36:12 – Dr. Arnold on patterns in sexual predator behavior.
• 41:19 – 43:51 – Bruckner’s post-release actions and ongoing circumstantial case.
• 45:09 – 46:40 – Panel weighs in on media attention versus victim survival odds.
• 49:11 – 49:53 – The legal import of being named an official suspect in Portugal.
• 50:51 – end – Use of prior convictions as evidence and wrapping analysis.

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Conclusion

Nancy Grace and her panel underscore the travesty of Maddie McCann’s case: missed opportunities, poor policing, and legal loopholes haunt the investigation, with their prime suspect—Christian Bruckner—walking free despite a mountain of circumstantial evidence. The episode balances a review of Bruckner’s heinous criminal background with somber analysis of the legal and procedural failures that allowed this injustice, closing with the uncertainty of whether justice for Maddie and her family will ever be achieved.

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Transcript

[Nancy Grace]

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[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

Crime stories with Nancy Grace I cannot believe this. What is wrong with the system? The primary, the sole, the chief suspect in the kidnap and I believe murder of three year old Maddie McCann has walked free. Oh, the words just stuck in my throat like a lump of coal. Walk free. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. I want to thank you for being with us. UK police say the 49 year old suspect remains the primary suspect and this in the disappearance of little Maddie McCain. But for reasons I don't understand, the suspect, Christian Bruckner has walked free. I can't believe it. This guy has been the chief suspect since 2020. Dear Lord in heaven, please make this not so. Okay, why do I think Christian Bruckner murdered 3 year old Maddie McCann? This is why.

[Nancy Grace]

What happened to Maddie? Joining me, an all star panel to make sense of what we know right now. High profile lawyer joining me out of the Atlanta jurisdiction. Former prosecutor of felony crimes just like this one now, defense attorney Daryl Cohen. Dr. Angela Arnold, renowned psychiatrist joining us also from the Atlanta jurisdiction. And you can find her at her website. Dr. Angela Arnold, maryland.com Special Deputy Sheriff Johnson County Sheriff's Office, Executive Director of the Kelsey Smith Foundation. Greg Smith joining us. But first to Charlie Langston, Editor, DailyMail.com Charlie thank you for being with us, Charlie. What a long time we've waited for justice in the Matty McCann disappearance. Or should I just call it like it is, Charlie? The Maddie McCann murder. This little girl, just three years old when she was abducted.

[Charlie Langston]

I mean, the incredible interest that remains in this case and in all of its developments just go to show how much of a sensational crime this was. It was devastating to the entire country, to the entire world to see this three year old girl disappear without a trace and to see her parents year after year begging the authorities, begging the public to help them try and find out what has happened to their child.

[Nancy Grace]

You're right, Charlie. Just seeing the McCanns crying and begging. And of course, under the circumstances where little baby Maddie went missing, they were first suspected, which tore them up all the more. Guys, who is this guy that is now the suspect? Finally. He's been in their crosshairs for a long time. I don't know what has taken them so long to name him an official suspect. Take a listen our cut three our friends at Sky.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

But Meline McCann's parents, there's still hope she's alive. But prosecutor Hans Christian Volters says he's leading a murder investigation. Madeleine's parents still believe she could be alive. Why do you call it a murder investigation? There's so many facts that. That she's dead so that there's no replicate. Opportunity. Yeah, opportunity. That she's still living. The case against the new suspect, Christian B. Is circumstantial. He's a convicted child sex abuser. He lived along Portugal's Algarve coast for 12 years. His last home was in Praia deluge where Madeleine vanished. His phone was used outside the McCann apartment the night she disappeared. We don't have Madeleine McCann's body, but we expect that she's dead.

[Daryl Cohen]

We have some evidence that the suspect has done the deed, but we need.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

More information from people, places he has.

[Daryl Cohen]

Lived, so we can target these places specially and search there for Madeline.

[Nancy Grace]

You know, I find it really interesting. Out to Greg Smith, special Deputy Sheriff joining us, Johnson County. You of all people know the power of the ping. Okay? The power of a cell phone ping. Did I just hear Greg Smith, that this guy cell phone pinged just outside Maddie McCann's apartment. The it was like an Airbnb where they were staying at this plush resort. They didn't know that before now?

[Daryl Cohen]

Well, Nancy, depends on how they did it. I mean, there is a way to get live location data, you know, at the time of the crime, that type of thing, the stuff that I work on all the time. There's also a way to get that data though, from historical data from what's known as CDRs or call detail records. You can go back and get the information on which towers a phone contacted and their software, you can put that into and it'll map that out and you can actually see where that phone has traveled. So it would be interesting to know when they got that information, how, how long ago did they get it? Is it something they just recently said, hey, we can do this? I mean, you know, there's a lot of questions here.

[Nancy Grace]

A long time, you know, Charlie Langston. I don't understand that. Charlie Langston joining us, reporter with DailyMail.com she's the editor of Female F E M A I L I don't understand it. If he is linked outside where her parents were staying at the time, why has it taken them so long?

[Charlie Langston]

You know, this whole case has just been filled with error after Erro. After error starting right from the jump when Maddy disappeared. The Portuguese police came under huge criticism at the time because they failed to take any action immediately, which we now believe allowed this suspect, this man to get out of Portugal. As soon as the media for all began around the Maddie McCann case, this guy slipped out of Portugal and we believe went back to Germany. None of the borders were locked down. None of that stuff was put into place and that allowed him to out of the country. So to even know that he was there at the time, we would have had to have identified him as being in Portugal. Nobody knew at the time because he was allowed to flee before anyone could even raise him as a suspect.

[Nancy Grace]

And at that time, Daryl Cohen, he was already a sex offender. He had been molesting little girls, ogling them. Just a long, long history. How he was moving so freely from one country to the next.

[Daryl Cohen]

Nancy, you have to wonder where the police were, where their eyes were, where their head was and their hands weren't moving the way they should have.

[Nancy Grace]

Well, obviously I know where their heads were up their rear ends. Because this guy was allowed to wander around right there where this child was staying. And there are now other cases. A rape of a US citizen in the area and a sex attack on another elderly lady. Another young girl who goes missing not too, too far away, around the age and very physically similar to Matty McCann. And he's connected to all these things. And I know, I know, Daryl Cohen, that you would scream bloody murder at trial if I did this. But don't you think it's quite the coincidence that where the elderly woman is raped, where the US citizen is raped, where the other little girl goes missing, that looks like Maddie McCann, where Maddie goes missing, he's always in the area. He's always right there a couple of blocks away. That doesn't bother you?

[Daryl Cohen]

I absolutely admit it is not a coincidence because I don't believe in coincidences. But I am very concerned about the lack of appropriate police work. And their investigation went dead end until finally, and maybe now we'll have justice. Just maybe.

[Nancy Grace]

Guys, I want you to take a listen now to Arrowcut 18, our friends at Sky News. And this is about the possibility that some of Madeline Baby Madam can clothes were found at an area. I don't know if you guys have this, but in a lot of areas, especially densely populated areas, there are patches of ground where people can plant a garden. They can have a structure there. That is what this guy had, this Christian Bruckner. And it is there that we believe there's a possibility that some of Maddie's clothes were buried. Take a listen.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

Do you still have the same suspect you had three months ago? Yes. We have only one suspect. Only Krishna. How much information have you been sent? We got hundreds of hints. Of course there are some hints which are only rubbish, but there are some hints we are hopeful that can make our investigation more successful. Three months ago you said you needed good evidence, forensic evidence. Have you found that yet? We have no forensic evidence. But it's not necessary to have forensic evidence to charge our suspect. But we need some more evidence. Maybe a witness, maybe a photo or a video. I asked the prosecutor what evidence he has that makes him certain that Madeleine is dead. He won't say, but he is aware of rumors. Someone told me that we have found the clothes of Maddie. Yes, the pajamas, yeah, but it's not true. If we found something like that, it would be great.

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[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

Crime stories with Nancy Grace. The primary suspect in the kidnap and murder of little Maddie McCann. Her disappearance, sparking a worldwide search, walks free. What in the world? Why would he be allowed to walk free? As you know, little Maddie goes missing on vacation with her family in Priet de Luz. It sparked a frantic search across the world. She's never been found.

[Nancy Grace]

Take a listen. Our cut 19. Our friends at Inside Edition, Peter Van.

[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

Sant questioned prosecutor Hans Christian Walters about the investigation.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

We have strong evidence that Christian B. Killed Maddie McCann.

[Nancy Grace]

But you don't have a body, correct?

[Daryl Cohen]

There's no body.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

No, we have no forensic evidence.

[Ali Egan]

Then how can you be so certain?

[Hans Christian Wolters]

We have other evidence.

[Nancy Grace]

And may I speculate that that evidence.

[Daryl Cohen]

May include photographs or video of Matty McCann?

[Hans Christian Wolters]

You may speculate.

[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

48 Hours reports that a search of an abandoned warehouse that once belonged to the suspect turned up un USB drives that contain pictures and videos of child abuse. The prosecutor wouldn't confirm if images of Madeline were on the drives.

[Nancy Grace]

Let me go out to Dr. Angela Arnold, renowned psychiatrist. Joining us, Dr. Angie it's one thing to molest a child. It's another thing to Video it. Because if in fact Bruckner had video or photos of Maddie McCann, he would have to have made them himself because at that time Maddie was not public, there were not pictures and video of her online. He would have to have made it, which means it would have been most likely video of him raping or torturing this three year old little girl.

[Dr. Angela Arnold]

Well, and the horrific thing is if you, if you video something so that you can watch it over and over again because you get some sort of thrill out of doing it and watching it over again, it also means that this was, this had some planning on his part, doesn't it? The thing that just gets me is that asking if they're still alive, if she's still alive. Maybe if they had have done their work in the beginning, if she was still alive, they could have found her then. I don't know why they think that all of a sudden she's going to be still alive 15 years later. How are they ever going to find her?

[Nancy Grace]

Well, I don't know that anyone has said that she is still alive.

[Charlie Langston]

And that's not, and that's not his M.O.

[Dr. Angela Arnold]

Apparently he's, you know, he, he, if he did it, he raped her, he abused her, he filmed it and because of all the bumbling around in this, in this, in the police in this country, he's gotten away with it for this long.

[Nancy Grace]

It's horrible what happened the night that this little girl seemingly vanishes into thin air while on vacation with her family. Take a listen to our friends at Sky.

[Charlie Langston]

A three year old British girl has gone missing in the Algarve in Portugal. Of course we can speak now to Dan Mason who's a journalist who works in that area. Dan, thanks for joining us on Sky News Sunrise this morning. What are the details that you've gleaned so far?

[Daryl Cohen]

All I basically know is that the child was obviously staying at a Mark Warner establishment and was reported missing around km last night. She's 3 years old and this is to the name of Madeline or Maddie Fair Hair and the most of the people within the area were searching through.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

To about 4 o' clock in the morning yesterday and obviously through hedges and.

[Daryl Cohen]

Down the beach etc. To no avail. And I've just been down this morning to the club again to see if there's any more news and the situation is basically the same.

[Nancy Grace]

Straight out to Charlie Langston Joining us from DailyMail.com, charlie, again thank you for being with us. Exactly what happened surrounding her disappearance.

[Charlie Langston]

So the disappearance happened while Maddie's parents and their friends were out at a restaurant in Portugal. They were dining at a place about 180ft away from where they were staying. Throughout the night. The parents went back, checked on the children, and at 10pm Kate went back. Maddie's mom. That Maddie had disappeared from her bed. Obviously, as any mother would, she flew into a blind panic, alerted as many people as she possibly could. They then spent the entire night hunting for Maddie but couldn't find her anywhere. Now, Portuguese authorities did not issue, they didn't even issue a description of Maddie until around 24 hours after she had disappeared. They didn't lock down any kind of incident, entrance or exit from the town where the family was staying. And it really was just a horrific comedy of errors that continued right up until the point when Maddie's parents, Kate and Gerry, were named as official suspects because Portuguese police accused them of killing their daughter in some tragic accident in the apartment and then trying to cover it up. So years later, we have a man being named as an official suspect for the very first time since Maddie's own parents were accused of killing their child.

[Nancy Grace]

I think that there was a lot of public outrage that the parents left her and her siblings in the hotel room while they went to have dinner. True, it was only 100ft away. True, they had nothing to do with her disappearance, but still it was a real witch burning. Daryl Cohen.

[Daryl Cohen]

Go after the people who were closest to what appears to be a victim. Easier than going after the real investigation. Easier than saying, don't have a suspect, suspects yet. We're looking carefully. Easier than looking at dragging this net and finding this guy who was a convicted child molester who. Finding this guy who went after a girl that looked like Betty. I mean, this is outrageous.

[Nancy Grace]

You know, another thing about it to you, Greg Smith, I agree with Daryl Cohen. The fact that they focused so much on the parents at the get go really delayed the search for Maddie's abductor. And another thing, Greg Smith. Greg, the very first thing, when a woman or a child goes missing, you look for sex predators in the area. And who is in the area unmonitored. Christian Bruckner. They did nothing.

[Daryl Cohen]

Yeah, that's standard procedure, Nancy. You, you immediately check. I mean, here in Kansas we have the sex offender registry. So that was done in Kelsey's case. That was one of the first things that was done was see who's in the area, who could have been in the area, interview them, talk to them. And while in a lot of these cases it turns out that there's a family member involved. And there's a tendency for police to focus on that. You've got to be aware of the big picture and be open minded and figure out that they may not be the suspect. And you can't just hone in with a preconceived notion that this is what got. So, yeah, that's, that's problematic.

[Nancy Grace]

And not only that to you, Charlie Langston, it's my understanding that this announcement comes nearly 15 years to the day that Maddie goes missing. Do you find that odd at all? 15 years to the day?

[Charlie Langston]

It's actually not odd because Portugal has a 15 year statute of limitation on crimes that would call for a 10 plus. So I think the timing is actually in no way coincidental or strange. I think the timing is very, very purposeful because Portuguese authorities know that if they don't do something right here, right now, then it may well be too late to ever punish whoever perpetrated this horrific crime and to ever find any kind of justice or at least answers for Kate and Gerry McCann.

[Nancy Grace]

Well, you're right. What Charlie Langston is telling you is absolutely correct. I think that this is just the authorities trying to save their own skin in this case. Take a listen to our cut 27. Our friend, Simon Jones.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

Madeleine went missing from a holiday apartment on 3 May 2007, while her parents were having dinner at a Nearby restaurant. In July 2013, the Met Police opened its own investigation, saying it had new evidence and new witnesses. And it was in June 2020 that German police first revealed they had a suspect. There have been searches in Portugal, but no breakthrough. In less than two weeks, a statute of limitations would take effect, meaning under Portuguese law, it would no longer be possible to make someone a person of interest. But it's understood this latest development is driven not by timing, but by, but by strong indications that a crime has taken place. There have been many false dawns in the investigations into what happened. The police in Germany had previously warned their inquiry, like the others, could end without a charge. But Madeleine's parents have always said they need to know what happened so they can find peace.

[Nancy Grace]

So, bottom line, it's now or never. And the Portuguese authorities are still, in my opinion, sitting on their thumb. They botched the case at the get go and now the only way they may be able to prosecute this three year old little girl's killer is if they somehow produce a witness. They've blurted out publicly that they don't have any forensic evidence that hurt the case. But now I'm understanding Charlie Langston joining us from dailymail.com that they are claiming they've got a witness now.

[Charlie Langston]

Supposedly, yes, they are saying that they have a witness who may be able to come forward and link Christian B. Christian Bruckner to the crime. But I should also point out that a TV special is due to air in which four witnesses are understood to be coming forward to corroborate an alibi for Christian Be, which would once again potentially you know, completely ruin this whole case before it's even really got off the ground. So it will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow when these four people who are named, who supposedly have no connection to Christian B. Whatsoever, no reason to defend him, come forward and corroborate whatever alibi it is that he plans to offer.

[Nancy Grace]

Well, you know what, Charlie Langston, I'll just burn that bridge when I get there because I've had a lot of cases where the defense claims I've got an eyewitness to say fill in the blank. And you know what I said to that bs? I'll stand on my own witnesses because very often I've had witnesses come on for the defense. I remember one very notably Darrell Cohen. They came on trying to tell me he saw what he saw the night of a murder. I guess the defense did not count on me going to the scene and pointing out that that point of view was absolutely impossible because there's a thick hedge of bushes about 6ft tall between the eyewitness and the murder. Impossible unless he flew over the hedge and looked down to see the murder. So I don't believe any eyewitness until they're tested by cross examination. And as a matter of fact, Darrell Cohen, in the black and white letter of the law, eyewitnesses can be tested as to their vision, the lighting, the distance at which they saw what they claimed to have seen. I mean, it's laid out in black and white how a so called eyewitness can be cross examined. So I'd like to get a hold of those eyewitnesses myself and see what's left of them after I finish.

[Daryl Cohen]

I'd like to know what these eyewitnesses have to say. I would like to be able to cross examine them. I'm with you. But let's assume their testimony is impeccable. It doesn't stop the police, it doesn't stop the prosecutor, the courts from trying this guy. And if the statute of limitations is running out, I would rather have some prosecutorial time incarceration than nothing at all. And if somehow he does this Again, we'll get him.

[Nancy Grace]

Explain what you're talking about.

[Daryl Cohen]

Him and I both know there are times. We know a person is guilty as a prosecutor, but we don't have enough evidence. And the statute of limitations is running. And in our country, we didn't have to worry about a murder. Statute of limitations, it doesn't exist. But there in Portugal, it apparently does. So they can arrest him, they can try him and keep him incarcerated and keep the case running as long as possible. And if he is acquitted, so be it. But he's got, he's spent time in jail, in prison. And also his name, his likeness, his face is all over the media, all over the press. And that's all he has to do is breathe again and they've got him for something else. Sometimes you have to get even more than getting him the way you really want to.

[Nancy Grace]

Let me just say, officially, I don't know what you're talking about. Charlie Langston joining us from dailymail.com this guy is a child sex predator. What is his record? Why has he been labeled already a child sex predator? At the time he was skulking around Maddie McCann's Airbnb.

[Charlie Langston]

I mean, this man is not just a child sex predator. He, I mean, he was described by a woman he used to be in a relationship with as a human being.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

Pig.

[Charlie Langston]

He has perpetrated so many sex crimes against children, against women ranging in ages from, as you said, a 72 year old American citizen who he is understood to have raped in Portugal in 2005. Now he was not convicted of that crime until 2019.

[Nancy Grace]

Seven year jail sentinel. Hold on. You know what, Charlie? You know the facts so well. Listen to us, like drinking from the fire hydrant, it's too much too fast. Did you hear what Charlie Langston just said? This guy, Christian Brickner, serving a seven year sentence on a 2005 rape of an elderly woman in Portugal, same place as where Maddie was stolen. That's a seven year sentence. And it started the event happened in 2005. So you've got that. Then you've got him being connected to the rape of an Irish Tour represented in 2004, exposing himself to children on a playground. But there's another little girl where he was near her at the time. She goes missing. And she looks so much like Maddie. What about that case?

[Charlie Langston]

So much so that she was actually nicknamed German Maddie in the media. This was in 2016 and this is actually the first case that made people connect Christian Bruckner to the Maddie McCann case. Because the similarities between the two were so astounding that it didn't seem plausible that he couldn't have been connected to the Madeleine McCann case. But it's not until six years later that we're actually hearing for the very first time that he's been named a suspect.

[Nancy Grace]

Dr. Angie. Wait, wait, wait. Hold the thought. Hold the thought, because I want to hear it, but I want to analyze what you just said. Dr. Angie. With me is renowned psychiatrist Dr. Angela Arnold. Dr. Angie, I remember a case. You might remember it, too. Darryl Cohen. It's a case I tried. This guy's serial killer. I got him on one. And his victim will forever be a Jane Doe. She has never been identified. That's really hard to prove, that kind of case, because you can't if you don't know the victim. You don't know who they hung out with, where they're from, who was their last boyfriend. Anyway, she's found strangled, raped out in a field. Long story short, I got a bead on the perp, So I started looking for people that knew the perp. I found his girlfriend, the mother of his child, who had kicked him out for trying to strangle her. I found another woman he tried to strangle in the Fulton Nose. She was in the Gwinnett County Jail. Darrell. I had a reconstructionist draw the picture of what the dead victim would have looked like in life. Guess who she looked like? Almost identical. They looked like twins. His girlfriend that had rejected him and thrown him out of the house. And I put those two pictures, those two sketches up in front of the jury and argued who would have killed this woman other than the man who was rejected by this woman. Did you hear what Charlie Langston just said? The German Maddie looks just like Matty McCann. Dr. Angie.

[Charlie Langston]

What about it, Nancy?

[Dr. Angela Arnold]

The fact of the matter is, I don't understand why all of this information is being ignored. Because we have known for a very long time that, unfortunately, sexual predators do not change their stripes, and they will continue and continue their behavior until they are stopped. Which is why in the United States, we have sexual predator lists that we put them on. Nancy. They are. They are incapable of being rehabilitated.

[Nancy Grace]

Dr. Angie, everything you just said is correct, but that is not responsive to the question I asked. I asked you about the physical similarities in victims. Why do perpetrators do that?

[Dr. Angela Arnold]

Because they're. They're playing out their fantasy. Whatever it is, they're playing it out through another person that looks just like that person. It's simple. It's. It's right out there. Nancy. It's, it's simple. We're not looking for a zebra. They are acting it out on someone who looks just like the other person. They're acting out that that violent fantasy that they have.

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[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

Crime Stories with Nancy Grace I'm in shock. I am in shock. The Maddie McCann chief suspect, Christian Bruckner, celebrates his release from prison with a burger and a cigarette. It's not known where he was headed after he went to McDonald's, but I would hide my children under the bed if I lived in that jurisdiction. Yes, Bruckner celebrated with a fast food breakfast of chicken nuggets and a McDonald's burger. After being smuggled out of jail near Hanover and hidden in the back of his lawyer's car, he somehow managed me to avoid being filmed or even photographed by the paparazzi who had been waiting for several days. But a photog did catch him as he went into a McDonald's. Now catch this Many of the outlets are calling him Christian B B as in brother, as in Bruckner. There he cannot be fully identified under German privacy laws. Really? Maddie got no privacy? Maddie's dead. He stood outside of McDonald's and smoked a cigarette before eating his food and dressed sportingly in a lilac shirt, beige pants, and tennis shoes. He didn't seem to have a care in the world. He left the restaurant and police blocked the street for him to allow him to leave without interference. He was driven off in a black Audi.

[Annabe (Washable Sofas Advertiser)]

Wow.

[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

According to prosecutors, they claim to have, quote, almost enough evidence to charge him in Maddie's disappearance, but not quite enough. Really? After all this time? According to the prosecutor, evidence against Bruckner in the case is circumstantial. His cell phone nearby her apartment at the time she vanished. He's a convicted child sex abuser. He allegedly confessed to a friend and had re registered his car the day after. Hmm, that sounds pretty good to me.

[Nancy Grace]

The fingerprint crime. Like another little girl, the same age, with strikingly similar physical attributes, stolen in the same way, raped and murdered that way. At least in this country, that evidence can come in. Normally, under the constitution, a defendant cannot have past crimes or bad acts come before a jury because they are to be judged not on their reputation or their past, but on that particular case. But when the cases are so similar, they are allowed explain.

[Daryl Cohen]

When there are similar transactions, the girls look alike, the crime is probably similar. If not the same, then you can. In this country, at least, you can enter that into evidence, can have the triers of fact, the judge, the jury listen to it and pay attention to it, because it is exactly the same. You just transpose one person for another, but the circumstances are the same. So that is absolutely admissible here. I cannot speak for Portugal. I am sorry.

[Nancy Grace]

Charlie Langston. It has been reported that Prosecutors are, quote, 100% sure that Christian Bruckner is the perp that took Maddie. Why now? And what do you think the evidence is?

[Charlie Langston]

I mean, I think the evidence is all circumstantial in terms of he is just a truly horrendous man who has perpetrated crime after crime after crime against women, and he has a history of perpetrating crimes exactly like that one in the Matty McCann case. Now, we said earlier it wasn't his M.O. typically to murder one of his victims. However, I think it's important to remember the media for all around. This case was so extraordinary that there would have been no way for someone to perpetrate this crime and not be charged with it had she returned to her parents, had she been found, had the police managed to, you know, track her down in one way or another. There's no way that the person who committed this crime wouldn't have been found. So I think, tragically, while I understand how important it was to her parents to call attention to this case, I think the enormous public interest in it may well have sealed Maddie's death. And that, to me, is the most horrendous thing about this. It took the police so long to begin properly investigating this case that Maddie could have survived had they actually pulled their socks up and gotten on with things in the, you know, from the get go.

[Nancy Grace]

I understand what you're saying if she has still been alive, but. Greg Smith joining us, Special Deputy Sheriff. The reality is when children are taken at this age, typically they are killed within the first 76 hours.

[Daryl Cohen]

Yeah, absolutely, Nancy, that's, I mean, that's the modus operandi for young children, you know, and, and I don't know that media attention is a bad thing maybe, maybe a double edged sword. But Kelsey's case had a heck of a lot of media attention. We were on every news outlet in the United States and even international. And while Kelsey didn't come home alive, she came home. We found her.

[Nancy Grace]

Take a listen to our cut 28. Our friend Allison Roberts.

[Charlie Langston]

Yesterday they issued a statement saying that on Wednesday an individual had been named as an official suspect. That was an international request from Portugal to the German authorities to inform that person of interest that they had been made an official. As your previous interviewee said, this is always a significant step because it means effectively that someone is being or will soon be questioned under caution. That's to say, questions may be put that could incriminate them, which gives them the right not to answer, of course. So it's actually a status to protect that individual. But it is always significant as it's a necessary prelude to charges at some point. Although there is no sign of that just yet.

[Nancy Grace]

No sign of official charges after he has been named a suspect. What does that mean, Charlie? He's been named an official suspect, so why won't charges naturally follow?

[Charlie Langston]

Well, what I think is the next most obvious step is that he will be extradited from Germany to Portugal, and that is when charges may well be brought against him. But right now, I think what is going on behind the scenes is that Portuguese authorities, in conjunction with German authorities, are scrambling to try and get as much evidence as humanly possible to try and get some witnesses who will come forward and at least say, I saw him at this place, I saw him here. I know that he is a sex offender, whatever it may be. And right now I think the most important thing is that he has been named as a suspect again, the first official suspect in 15 years, which marks that's at least a step forward in a case that has been dragging on for more than a decade now.

[Nancy Grace]

Charlie, were Maddie's parents ever named official suspects?

[Charlie Langston]

Yes, they were named as official persons of interest way back in 2007. And interestingly, at the time, they had a huge amount of public criticism aimed at them. They were accused of neglect. Portuguese authorities suspected that Madeleine had died in a tragic accident in the apartment that her parents then tried to cover up. Now they stopped being official suspects in 2008 when Portuguese authorities dropped the case completely because there was a lack of evidence. Ever since then, not a single official suspect has been named. Until now.

[Nancy Grace]

Take a listen to our cut 29. Our friend, Martin Brunt.

[Hans Christian Wolters]

It's hardly been a secret. The German drifter has been the main suspect in the Madeleine McCann case for three years or more. But now it's official. Christian B. Is suspected of abducting and killing Madeleine. German prosecutors are leading the investigation, but haven't charged him. The British girl was three when she vanished from the family's holiday apartment in Portugal in 2007. Fifteen years ago this week, the suspect had visitors to the German prison where he's serving a rape sentence. He was told that Portuguese prosecutors had made him an arguedo, a formal suspect. He was questioned for the first time, but refused to answer.

[Nancy Grace]

So Charlie Langston being named a formal suspect there in that jurisdiction, that's the first time cops could question him?

[Charlie Langston]

Yes, the first time. And he remained entirely silent throughout. He refused to answer a single question. But interestingly, a woman that he was in a relationship with previously, she came forward last week and she said that he told her in 2013, I know what happened to little Maddie. She also suggested that he may have been the abductor, the abuser, and that he may have passed Maddy off to someone else. So there are still an extraordinary number of questions surrounding this case. However, the mere fact that he's been named as an official suspect, I really can't overstate what key step forward that is in this case. Especially given that he's only the third person when you look at Kate and Jerry McCann, only the third official suspect to ever be named by Portuguese authorities.

[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

Let me remind everyone that Bruckner has multiple convictions for sex offenses, including against children, and a really long record of petty crimes. He's just completed a seven year prison sentence for raping a 72 year old American woman who was in Portugal. While prosecutors in the Matty McCann disappearance case claim they did not have quite enough evidence to win a trial, many disagree. This taking the forefront as Christian Bruckner walks free. He could be gone, out of the jurisdiction, living in hiding for the rest of his life. In no time will there ever be a prosecution in the kidnap and murder of 3 year old Maddie McCann? We wait as justice unfolds. Nancy Grace signing off Good night friend. With diabetes, everyday decisions feel like a mystery without a solution. But with Dexcom G7, the most accurate CGM system, you can quickly and easily see your glucose in real time on your phone, helping you make confident decisions that keep your glucose levels in range and lower your A1C, which can help protect your long term health. Dexcom G7 gives you the knowledge to better control diabetes today for healthier tomorrows. Start your healthier [e-mail] knowledge data on file. For full prescribing information on risks, benefits and compatible smart devices, visit dexcom.com Everyone.

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[Podcast Narrator/Announcer]

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[Daryl Cohen]

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