'Maddie would still be here if I could have named my attacker'

Rape accuser on McCann suspect Brueckner

- MARTIN FRICKER

THE holiday rep allegedly raped by Christian Brueckner told police she believes Madeleine McCann would still be alive if she had been able to identify him sooner.

Hazel Behan told a court earlier this month that she was attacked by the convicted sex offender in her flat in the Algarve in 2004.

German prosecutors believe Brueckner snatched Madeleine from her parents' holiday apartment in nearby Praia da Luz, Portugal, three years later.

Hazel, 40, came forward to police in 2020 saying that she recognised Brueckner's eyes while reading about the case.

She had previously spoken to Portuguese police in 2004 but was unable to identify her masked attacker.