The parents of missing Madeleine McCann have said they welcome news of a formal suspect in her disappearance being named, adding they still remain hopeful that they will see their daughter again.
The couple issued a statement after Portuguese officials confirmed that German paedophile Christian Brueckner had been identified as a "arguido" (defendant) in the case, which remains unsolved 15 years after the then three-year-old vanished. Madeleine has not been seen since May 3, 2007, while her family were on holiday in Portugal.
Brueckner's lawyer Friedrich Fuelscher said that officials in Portugal had taken the measures against his client and that they should not be "overrated". He added: "Without knowing the Portuguese legal situation in detail, I assume that this measure is a procedural artifice to stop the statute of limitations threatening in a few days."
