Madeleine McCann
The clue to finding missing Maddie is out there
By Judi McLeod
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Even in all of its heartbreak, the search for missing Madeleine McCann, has a positive side: It is teaching parents everywhere how a child can be abducted in a heartbeat, often under the very noses of those who love them best.
Kate McCann, Maddie's mother warns today that abductions are more common than many parents realized. Britain's child protection measures, such as the sex offenders' register and system of Criminal Record Bureau checks, should be enforced across the continent, she said
(Mrs. McCann) "called for a Europe-wide 'quick response' system to react to reports of child abductions, as she revealed she was "horrified" to learn the scale of the problem." (Timesonline, August 8, 2007).
Citing statistics from the Protect American's (sic) Children organization, Mrs. McCann said that during 2002-03 there were 1,000 attempted child abductions in England and Wales. She said 100 children were successfully kidnapped by strangers.
"It's really important that parents know these things and take extra care," she said. "Systems need to be in place across Europe for a quick-response for children that have gone missing. All countries in Europe should have a sex offender's register and Criminal Bureau Checks in place.
"It is important that the general public are informed about the scale of the problem. I was horrified of things that I have learned about since this happened."
According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS) and U.S. State Department, 700,000 to 2 million people--the majority of them women and children--are trafficked each year across international borders.
Thirty-five percent are under the age of 18…According to CRS, trafficking in people represents the third largest source of profits for organized crime after drugs and guns, generating billions of dollars each year. (Source: Human Trafficking Exposed, Population Today V.30, No 1, (Jan. 2002), p 1, 4).
It is now Day 97 since Maddie, then 3, disappeared without trace from her parents' holiday apartment in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz.
Through it all, the McCanns have suffered criticism for having left their daughter in bed for the night along with her two-year-old twin siblings as they dined with friends at a tapas restaurant--within the same complex.
Children abducted by strangers have been snatched away from parents in shopping malls.
All parents of abducted children can tell you they went missing without a trace within mere minutes.
A Canadian research study found that among five stranger abduction cases involving girls between the ages of five and 10, two victims were abducted from inside the home. One was abducted from the yard of a family home, one from the parking lot near the family home, and one was taken while en route to school. (Gazette: Childhood victimization: stranger abductions in Canada).
Raining recriminations upon the heads of the parents of missing children adds to parental pain in the darkest hours of their lives.
Police investigations are held back by reported sightings of missing children, and it is a well-known fact of life that some of the so-called sightings originate with people of malicious intent.
There was a media frenzy when police found blood specks in Madeleine's holiday home. The suspected traces of blood were due to arrive in Britain today for tests at a UK forensic science laboratory.
But authorities have already admitted that the blood could have come from hundreds of other people who have rented the same unit over a period of years. They have no guarantees either that the blood collected is big enough for testing.
Writing for the National Ledger Tim Morgan correctly points out "There have been many developments in the case. According to the Daily Mail, Portuguese police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have uncovered a potential link to a Swiss child abductor who was in the Praia de Luz area when Madeleine went missing.
"Urs Hans Von Aesch, 67, who killed himself last week, is the prime suspect in the disappearance of five-year-old Ylenia Lenhard. Now police are desperately trying to see if there is any link. A source close to the investigation said those leading the manhunt had been told of "certain similarities" between the two abductions. The links between Ylenia and Madeleine are striking--they are only a year apart in age, both are blonde and both are of a similar build and height.
"Hans Peter Eugster, a Swiss police spokesman, said: "Because of the similarities in both cases and because Von Aesch lived in Spain we have informed Interpol. They in turn have passed on the details to both colleagues in Spain and Portugal and are looking into reports that Von Aesch was on holiday in the Algarve.
"In our case he is the prime suspect in the disappearance of Ylenia and his body was found hear to where some of her belongings were found."
Evidence collected by police indicates that on 9:30 p.m., Jane Tanner saw a many carrying a child close to the McCann's apartment, but did not think it suspicious.
From South African comes the news that cleansing sunshine may have warmed the cold case file involving the whereabouts of a group of girls allegedly kidnapped by paedophile Gert van Rooyed and his mistress Joey Haaroff.
"The girls are believed to have been brutally murdered by the sex offender, but their graves have never been found. (Reporter.co.za, Aug. 7, 2007).
"Now after 16 years, Susan Purin and her team from the M-Net investigative programmed Carte Blanche, may have traced the remains to a site in Capitol Park. The location is only a few blocks from Gert van Rooyed's demolished house at 227 Malherbe Street, Capitol Park, Pretoria.
"Susan Purin and her team were assisted by an ex-policeman Danie Krugel of Bloemfontein, who has devised a technical device which functions through a GP, using DNA of the victims.
A voice mail message on a telephone number for Purin sent to CFP by Krugel, via South African mother Vicki Langton, indicates she is away until mid-August. CFP will try to reach Purin upon her return.
Even with police sources reported by the media to have abandoned the "theory" that Madeleine has been abducted and may still be alive, Maddie's parents believe that she is still alive.
If Madeleine is still alive, someone out there (out there meaning the global village in this case) knows something. If the entire history of missing children could be unearthed, it would show that sometimes the tiniest of clues--ones their possessors thought too small to matter--provided the key in successfully tracing the whereabouts of a missing child.
Has someone in your neighbourhood lately returned from abroad with a four-year-old child, explained away as a relative or daughter of a close friend?
Have you heard an eerie anecdote lately that you haven't been able to shake?
Don't let another day pass. www.findmadeleine.com
Calling all Internet Angels: Looking into Madeleine's eyes
Calling Danie Krugel to the Madeleine McCann search
Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com
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