The parents of a British toddler who has gone missing while on holiday in Portugal say they fear she has been abducted.

Three-year-old Madeline McCann disappeared last night from her parent’s rented apartment in the Western Algarve, while they dined nearby.

Sniffer dogs have been brought in by Portuguese detectives to comb the Mark Warner resort where the girl was staying and the nearby seaside village of Praia da Luz.

A family friend said the child’s parents, Gerald and Kate McCann, were certain she had been kidnapped.

Jill Renwick, told GMTV: “They were just watching the hotel room and going back every half-hour and the shutters had been broken open and they had gone into the room and taken Madeleine. They went out about eight, went back in at nine, they were fine, went back in at 10 and she was gone.”

She described the missing girl as a “very pretty, very blonde three-year-old” and said the couple, from Leicester, also had twins.

Ms Renwick said of the holiday: “This is the first time they have done this. They are very, very anxious parents and very careful and they chose Mark Warner because it is a family-friendly resort.”

The manager of the resort, John Hill said around 60 staff and guests at the complex had searched until 4.30am while local police notified border police, Spanish police and airports.

“It was a very emotional and very frantic night and everyone did a fantastic job of getting involved and trying to search the area,” he said. “As you can imagine, Madeleine’s parents are distraught and not doing very well at all.”

He said there was no physical evidence that the girl had been abducted from the apartment while they ate at the tapas restaurant 200 yards away.

“It’s still questionable as to whether it’s an abduction,” he said. “We are hoping that Madeleine is found as soon as possible and safe and well. Everybody here is just wishing that she is found as soon as possible.”

A Mark Warner spokesman said counsellors are being flown out to the resort, which the firm has run for two years, to support the McCanns.

Members of their family would also be flown out if required.

He said: “Our priority is to find the girl and to make sure that the parents are OK and there are masses of people working on that.

“Our staff are looking after them at the moment in whatever way they can but we can only imagine how awful it is for them.

“We are all hoping that she is asleep under a bush somewhere and we will find her soon.”

He said the apartment the family were staying in was surrounded by other apartments, all of which have “quite sophisticated” locks on the doors.

Guests are being asked if they saw anyone acting suspiciously in the area, he said, adding that Mark Warner has never had cases of missing or abducted children before.

“We are hoping it’s not that, though,” he said. “It’s the last thing we want but we have to investigate all avenues.”

He said Mark Warner offers families a baby-sitting service where they can drop off their children for the night.

“Those facilities were available but for whatever reason they were not being used,” he said.

Madeleine lives with her parents, Gerald, a doctor, and Kate McCann, and younger sibling twins in Rothley, Leicestershire.

Neighbour Penny Noble said: “We are absolutely devastated. They are a really nice family and good neighbours.

“They are delightful. We see them take their bikes up and down and going for walks.

“Madeleine is a very happy-go-lucky little girl”.

It is understood Madeleine is due to start at school in September

Telegraph.co.uk

Portugese Police have arrested a man in connection with the Maddie --- child abduction incident in The Algarve in Portugal.

The arrest was made at 06:00am local time at an address only minutes away from where Maddie was taken.

It is not clear at this stage whether the little girl Madeleine McCann has been found but Police say they are confident that she will be returned safe and sound.

The man is thought to be a local unemployed person with previous convictions for child molestation and false imprisonment.

Reports suggest that a tip off from a local shop owner who said she saw the little girl with a man on the day that Maddie was taken, led them to a block of flats nearby.

Gerry McCann, the father of the missing girl made a fresh appeal for the safe return of her daughter at a press conference yesterday and it is said that a new lead came forward following that conference.

Julio Barrosos the local mayor in Praia De Luz “It’s a very sad situation and no one deserves this, Praia De Luz was originally discovered as a holiday resort by the British and we don’t deserve this – Praia De Luz has been a holiday location since the 1960’s”

Police, who have interviewed more than 30 people, said they had a photo-fit image of the suspect, but declined to release it for now to avoid endangering the girl, who investigators believe is still in Portugal.

British experts also joined Portuguese police yesterday in the search for the girl, and her parents had earlier appealed for her safe return.

Many of yesterday’s Portuguese newspapers carried pictures of the little girl on their front pages, along with a message from her distraught parents Gerry and Kate McCann.
“We cannot describe the anguish and despair we are feeling,” they said in a statement read to reporters late Friday.
They urged anyone with information about her disappearance to contact Portuguese authorities.
Police were joined Friday by fire-fighters and maritime police, backed up by a helicopter, as well as locals and tourists, in the search for the missing child.

Her parents, both doctors aged 38 from near Leicester in the English Midlands, said they had left her asleep with her two-year-old twin sister and bother at the resort near the village of Praia da Luz in the Algarve on Thursday evening.

They had checked back regularly from the nearby restaurant, and when they returned at around 10pm, they discovered their daughter missing and the door of the room and a window open.

Gill Renwick, a family friend, told British television channel GMTV Friday that her parents were certain she had been abducted. “They were just watching the hotel room and going back every half-hour.”
“She’s obviously been taken as she couldn’t have gone out on her own and the shutters had been forced open,” she said.

Britain’s ambassador to Portugal John Buck has gone to the area to help the girls’ parents, the embassy said. – AFP

This whole episode is very, very sad and traumatic for the parents of course. But, has anyone stopped to ask why THIS happened........?

Quote:Three-year-old Madeline McCann disappeared last night from her parent’s rented apartment in the Western Algarve, while they dined nearby.

Leaving a 3 year old child alone while going out to dine? We`ve been abroad a number of times, but we`d NEVER do that!

Rewards of up to £2.5 million have been offered for information about Madeleine McCann who has been missing since May 3.

Sir Richard Branson, Sir Philip Green, Wayne Rooney and author JK Rowling are among those who have contributed.

This comes as Madeleine's father spoke publicly of the devastation wreaked by her abduction on the day of her fourth birthday.

Gerry McCann told villagers at a special Mass that he and his wife Kate had drawn "strength, hope and courage" from friends, family, the community in the village Praia da Luz and well-wishers from across the world.

Following the special vigil for Madeleine at the village church he said: "We walked out of this church believing that we will see Madeleine soon and she will be safe and well and we will continue to hope."

Mr McCann also spoke at length for the first time about the "tidal wave" of devastation he and his wife have suffered over the last 9 days as they wait for news.

He told the congregation: "Today we should be celebrating the fourth birthday of our daughter Madeleine.

"Instead we have had to remember what a normal, beautiful, vivacious, funny, courageous and loving little girl that we are missing today."

He added: "I like to think about the effects of Madeleine's abduction from us nine days ago like a tidal wave.

"The devastation - which was tremendous - was greatest for Kate and I."

The couple were showered with kisses, hugs and flowers as members of the congregation queued to greet them at the end of the service.

They also reaffirmed their hope for Madeleine's safe return even as the search continues for their missing daughter in Portugal.

The couple said in a statement: "Today is our daughter Madeleine's fourth birthday. We would like to mark today by asking people to redouble their efforts to help find Madeleine.

"We know that there is already a huge amount of effort and resources being put into the search for our daughter.

"We also know that offers of support are being made daily. It is this that keeps us strong and gives us hope. On Madeleine's birthday, please keep looking, please keep praying, please help bring Madeleine home."

Gordon Brown also expressed his sympathy for Madeleine.

He added: "My thoughts, like the thoughts of all parents, are with Maddy's parents."

In Britain balloons were released at Queniborough Hall, in Leicestershire, for Madeleine and well-wishers left birthday cards at the village's war memorial which has become a focal point for people to pray for her safe return.

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