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An alleged stalker who insisted to be the abducted child was excluded after a confidential DNA test established beyond doubt she was not Madeleine McCann, police have revealed in court.

Harassment Campaign Against McCann Family

Julia Wandelt, twenty-four, is alleged to have conducted a campaign of harassment against the family of Madeleine, who vanished from a Portuguese resort in Portugal in 2007 at the age of three.

The Polish citizen 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 appeared at their home demanding a DNA test, Leicester crown court previously heard.

Police Testimony

Testifying on Tuesday, the senior investigating officer on Madeleine's disappearance, said he had acted outside normal guidelines to test Wandelt “in the hope she may stop her actions towards the McCann family”.

DCI Mark Cramwell said 13 people had previously claimed to be the missing girl but that: “We would not take DNA unless we believed that person was Madeleine because I wished to avoid setting a precedent.

“If it became known in the media I had taken DNA from someone probably not to be Madeleine, I was concerned I would have had numerous individuals coming forward saying ‘I’m Madeleine’.

“I genuinely have major concerns about contacting 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 investigators had earlier determined Wandelt not to be Madeleine due to no physical similarity and that she was older by two years than the child. But, he said, after learning Leicester police intended to detain Wandelt on stalking charges, he “made the decision that the DNA would be taken upon arrest”.

He said: “Analysis occurred. It absolutely confirmed that Julia Wandelt is definitely not Madeleine McCann.”

Court Proceedings

Jurors learned that in April this year, the detective saw Wandelt in custody and informed her that her DNA had been compared to Madeleine’s and that the genetic markers did not match. The court learned he told Wandelt while speaking with her: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”

Testimony indicated that during their conversation, Wandelt inquired: “Do you sincerely wish to find Madeleine?”, and Cranwell told the jury he answered: “Yes.”

He said despite the test, he believed Wandelt “could allege we have tampered with the sample”, remarking: “It was possible she would refuse to acknowledge she is not Madeleine despite being given scientific proof.”

Emotional Distress

In prior court sessions, the court heard how the McCanns were left scared and distressed by their “disturbing” and “profoundly unsettling” interactions with Wandelt and her co-defendant Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as both defendants attempted to insist on a DNA test.

The court learned how both women made progressively odd plans” to obtain Kate McCann’s DNA, which included rummaging in the McCanns’ bins and stealing utensils from restaurants that the family visited.

Both defendants both refute one count of stalking. The trial continues.