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An accused stalker who insisted to be the missing girl was ruled out after a secret DNA test definitively confirmed she was not the missing girl, police have revealed in court.

Stalking Allegations Targeting McCann Family

Julia Wandelt, aged 24, is accused of a campaign of harassment against the relatives of Madeleine, who vanished from Praia da Luz in Portugal in 2007 at the age of three.

The woman from Poland bombarded Kate and Gerry McCann and their adult children, Sean and Amelie, with countless communications, messages, voicemails and letters over a period spanning 2022 to this year, and appeared at their home demanding a DNA test, Leicester crown court previously heard.

Police Testimony

Providing testimony on Tuesday, the senior investigating officer on Operation Grange, said he had deviated from protocol to test Wandelt “intending she may stop her behavior towards the McCann family”.

DCI Mark Cramwell said over a dozen persons had earlier asserted to be the abducted child but that: “We would not take DNA without strong belief that person was Madeleine because I aimed to prevent setting a precedent.

“If it got out in the media I had taken DNA from someone most likely not to be Madeleine, I was concerned I would have had many persons coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.

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

DNA Comparison

He said authorities had already judged Wandelt not to be Madeleine due to dissimilar appearance and that she was two years older than the child. But, he said, after finding out Leicester police intended to detain Wandelt on stalking charges, he “determined that the DNA would be taken during detention”.

He said: “A comparison took place. It definitively established that Julia Wandelt cannot be Madeleine McCann.”

Legal Testimony

Jurors learned that in April this year, Cranwell met with Wandelt under arrest and stated to her that her DNA had been compared to Madeleine’s and that the profiles did not match. The jury heard he told Wandelt while speaking with her: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”

Testimony indicated that throughout their discussion, Wandelt inquired: “Do you really want to find Madeleine?”, and the detective told the jury he responded: “Yes.”

He said despite the test, he believed Wandelt “would suggest we have manipulated the sample”, adding: “There existed a chance she would not believe she isn't Madeleine despite being given scientific proof.”

Psychological Toll

Earlier in the trial, testimony revealed how the family were left terrified and traumatized by their “creepy” and “deeply disturbing” interactions with Wandelt and her alleged accomplice Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as both defendants attempted to push for a DNA test.

The court learned how the pair made ever more strange plans” to acquire Kate McCann’s DNA, which included going through the McCanns’ bins and stealing utensils from restaurants that the family visited.

Both defendants both contest one count of stalking. The case remains active.