Madeleine McCann Suspect Christian Brueckner Cleared on Unrelated Rape and Sexual Abuse Charges, Prosecutor Plans to Appeal

On Tuesday, October 8, Christian Brueckner — the man who has been the main suspect in the 2007 disappearance of Madeleine McCann — was acquitted of several s--crimes not related to the McCann case.

Brueckner was cleared of three rape charges and two counts of sexual abuse of children in incidents that were said to have occurred in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.

According to a report, there wasn't enough evidence to charge him with the crimes, and judge Uta Engemann believes witnesses were influenced by the media's portrayal of Brueckner "as a s-- monster and child murderer."

Brueckner has denied any involvement in the McCann case, and the judge believes he was targeted as the culprit in this most recent trial due to his infamy.

"Even a Christian Brueckner has the right to have a constitutional (fair) trial," Judge Engemann stated. "The court’s ruling might be disappointing for those involved, but that’s how it works in a constitutional system."

Brueckner will still be behind bars until September 2025, as he was found guilty of raping an elderly woman and sentenced to seven years in a German prison.

Prosecutor Christian Wolters is frustrated with the outcome, prompting him to launch an appeal.

"We will make an appeal to the highest court in Germany, the supreme court. They have the power to order a retrial with new judges," he explained to the public. "We believe we have enough evidence Christian B is guilty and we believe the court will see the judges here have misinterpreted the evidence."

"We believe one of the judges was not open to the possibility of Brueckner being guilty — and they had made their minds up before the case even started. As soon as we had an indication of this we applied for that judge to be removed, but the request was declined," he continued. "We think there is a case to show bias among the judges and we believe we can show that."

As OK! reported, McCann and her family were vacationing in Portugal when Madeleine, then 3, vanished without a trace. On the 17th anniversary of her disappearance, her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, sent a message to the public.

"It’s 17 years since Madeleine was taken from us," they wrote on their Find Madeleine website this past March. "Whilst we are fortunate in many ways and able to live a relatively normal and enjoyable life now, the ‘living in limbo’ is still very unsettling. And the absence still aches."

"Your support continues to encourage us and bolsters our strength to keep going," they noted. "We know the love and hope for Madeleine and the will to find her, even after so many years, remains, and we are truly thankful for that. Thank you again for remembering Madeleine and all missing children."

The Sun and The New York Post reported on Brueckner being cleared of the charges.