LAST UPDATE | 8 Oct

THE MAIN SUSPECT in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has been found not guilty after he was accused of five sex crimes, including the rape a young Irish woman in Portugal.

The case has been closely watched as the German convicted pedophile Christian Brueckner (47) could be set free as early as next year.

Brueckner is currently behind bars, serving a sentence for raping a 72-year-old US tourist in 2005 in Praia da Luz – the same seaside resort where Madeleine went missing two years later.

Prosecutors in his latest trial had called for him to be jailed for a further 15 years, describing him as a “dangerous psychopathic sadist”.

Brueckner was accused of five separate sex crimes including rape and child sex abuse allegedly committed in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.

He has this morning been cleared of all charges.

The man was accused of raping an Irish woman a number of times after breaking into her apartment and threatening her with a knife. The Irish woman testified at the trial but there is no concrete evidence other than her account of the incident.

He was also accused of exposing himself in front of a 10-year-old German girl on a beach and to an 11-year-old Portuguese girl at a playground.

Brueckner was also facing charges where it is alleged he entered the holiday apartment of a woman aged between 70 and 80, tied her up and beat and sexually assaulted her.

One of the key witnesses is Helge Busching, a former acquaintance of Brueckner who claims to have seen video footage of the incident but he claimed the video is no longer available.

The defence team has said, due to Busching’s long criminal history, he cannot be considered a reliable witness.

In 2020 it was revealed he is also the lead suspect in the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann – who went missing from Portugal in 2007.

- © AFP 2024, additional reporting by Muiris O’Cearbhaill