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A suspected stalker who asserted to be Madeleine McCann was eliminated after a secret DNA test proved conclusively she was not the missing girl, authorities disclosed in court.

Targeted Behavior Targeting McCann Family

Julia Wandelt, aged 24, is alleged to have conducted a campaign of harassment against the relatives of Madeleine, who disappeared from a holiday destination in Portugal in 2007 at the age of three.

The Polish national flooded Kate and Gerry McCann and their grown-up kids, Sean and Amelie, with countless communications, messages, voicemails and letters from 2022 until recently, and visited their home requesting a DNA test, Leicester crown court previously heard.

Police Testimony

Giving evidence on Tuesday, the lead detective on the missing person’s case, said he had gone against procedure to test Wandelt “in the hope she may stop her conduct towards the McCann family”.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Cramwell said over a dozen persons had previously claimed to be the abducted child but that: “We would not take DNA only if convinced that person was Madeleine because I aimed to prevent setting a precedent.

“If it became known in the media I had taken DNA off an individual most likely not to be Madeleine, I was concerned I would have had a lot of people coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.

“I genuinely have major concerns about contacting the family to say I intend to take DNA from an individual – that could have given them false hope. It could have been very traumatic and challenging for the family.”

Forensic Analysis

He said the police had earlier determined Wandelt not to be Madeleine on account of dissimilar appearance and that she was older by two years than the child. But, he said, after finding out Leicester police intended to detain Wandelt on harassment allegations, he “determined that the DNA would be taken when she was apprehended”.

He stated: “Analysis occurred. It definitively established that Julia Wandelt is definitely not Madeleine McCann.”

Court Proceedings

The court heard that in April this year, the officer saw Wandelt under arrest and told her that her DNA had been matched against Madeleine’s and that the profiles did not match. The jury heard he told Wandelt during the visit: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”

The court heard that during their conversation, Wandelt asked: “Do you sincerely wish to find Madeleine?”, and Cranwell told the jury he replied: “Yes.”

He said despite the test, he believed Wandelt “would suggest we have tampered with the sample”, stating: “There was a possibility she would not believe she cannot be Madeleine even when provided with scientific proof.”

Family Impact

Earlier in the trial, jurors learned how the relatives were left frightened and traumatized by their “creepy” and “extremely troubling” interactions with Wandelt and her co-defendant Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as the pair attempted to demand a DNA test.

Jurors heard how both women made progressively odd plans” to obtain Kate McCann’s DNA, which included going through the McCanns’ bins and removing cutlery from restaurants that the McCanns dined at.

Wandelt and Spragg both refute one count of stalking. The case remains active.