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An alleged stalker who asserted to be the abducted child was ruled out after a covert DNA test definitively confirmed she was not the missing girl, police have revealed in court.

Stalking Allegations Targeting McCann Family

Julia Wandelt, 24, is accused of a campaign of harassment against the family of Madeleine, who disappeared from a holiday destination in Portugal in 2007 at the age of three.

The woman from Poland bombarded Kate and Gerry McCann and their older offspring, Sean and Amelie, with hundreds of calls, messages, voicemails and letters between 2022 and earlier this year, and turned up at their home demanding a DNA test, Leicester crown court previously heard.

Police Testimony

Giving evidence on Tuesday, the lead detective on the missing person’s case, stated he had acted outside normal guidelines to test Wandelt “intending she may stop her actions towards the McCann family”.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Cramwell said 13 people had earlier asserted to be the abducted child but that: “We would not take DNA without strong belief that person was Madeleine because I did not want setting a precedent.

“If it became known in the media I had taken DNA from a person most likely not to be Madeleine, I was anxious I would have had numerous individuals coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.

“I genuinely have major concerns about reaching out to the family to say I aim to take DNA from an individual – that could have raised their hopes. It could have been quite emotionally damaging and difficult for the family.”

Genetic Testing

He said the police had earlier determined Wandelt not to be Madeleine on account of a lack of resemblance and that she was older by two years than the child. But, he said, after discovering Leicester police planned to arrest Wandelt on stalking charges, he “decided that the DNA would be taken during detention”.

He stated: “Testing was conducted. It absolutely confirmed that Julia Wandelt cannot be Madeleine McCann.”

Jury Hearings

Proceedings revealed that in April this year, Cranwell visited Wandelt under arrest and told her that her DNA had been compared to Madeleine’s and that the samples did not match. The jury heard he told Wandelt at that meeting: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”

Evidence showed that while they spoke, Wandelt inquired: “Do you really want to find Madeleine?”, and Cranwell told the jury he answered: “Yes.”

He said despite the test, he believed Wandelt “might claim we have interfered with the sample”, remarking: “There existed a chance she would not believe she isn't Madeleine even when provided with scientific proof.”

Emotional Distress

In prior court sessions, testimony revealed how the McCanns were left frightened and upset by their “disturbing” and “deeply disturbing” interactions with Wandelt and her alleged accomplice Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as the pair attempted to insist on a DNA test.

The court learned how the defendants made “increasingly bizarre plans” to acquire Kate McCann’s DNA, which included rummaging in the McCanns’ bins and removing cutlery from restaurants that the McCanns dined at.

The accused women both refute one count of stalking. Proceedings are ongoing.