MADELEINE MCCANN MYSTERY: INVESTIGATOR WHO HAS NEVER GIVEN UP ISSUES NEW PLEA NEARLY 20 YEARS AFTER HER DISAPPEARANCE
Nearly two decades after three-year-old Madeleine McCann vanished during a family holiday in Portugal, one man who has spent years searching for answers says he is still not ready to give up.
Spanish private investigator Julián Peribáñez, who was hired by Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, in 2008, has made a fresh appeal for information, insisting that even one name could help move the investigation forward.
Madeleine disappeared on May 3, 2007, from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal. Despite years of investigations, international searches and countless reported leads, her whereabouts remain unknown.
Now, as the case approaches its 20th anniversary, Peribáñez has revealed a new theory about what may have happened to the little girl.
A DETECTIVE WHO REFUSES TO CLOSE THE CASE
Peribáñez first became involved in the search after the McCann family hired the Spanish investigation agency Método 3 in 2008.
What began as a professional assignment eventually became a defining part of his life.
In a recent interview with The Olive Press, he reflected on nearly 20 years of searching and explained why he continues to pursue his own lines of inquiry.
He believes Madeleine may have been abducted by an organised Eastern European trafficking network that was operating in Portugal’s Algarve region around the time she disappeared.
However, this remains his personal theory and has not been established by investigators.
He is now appealing directly to people who may have encountered individuals connected to the alleged network before May 2007.
His message was direct:
“All I need is a name. Give me a name, and I’ll chase it wherever I have to.”
HIS THEORY RAISES NEW QUESTIONS
Peribáñez believes the possibility of an organised trafficking operation deserves further attention.
He has continued conducting independent research and fieldwork in Portugal, hoping to identify people who may have information about Madeleine’s disappearance.
He has also questioned whether certain investigative leads have received sufficient attention.
But there is an important distinction between his private investigation and the official inquiry.
German prosecutors have previously identified convicted German 𝘴єx offender Christian Brückner as their main suspect in the case. He has not been charged over Madeleine’s disappearance and denies involvement.
Peribáñez has expressed doubts about that investigative direction and continues to pursue alternative explanations.
No publicly established evidence has confirmed his trafficking theory.
‘AS LONG AS I HAVE HOPE, I WON’T STOP LOOKING’
Perhaps the most emotional part of Peribáñez’s latest message is his refusal to abandon hope.
When asked whether he believes Madeleine could still be alive, he acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding the case.
“I don’t know if she’s alive or not, because hardly anyone on Earth does.”
He then added:
“But as long as I have hope, I won’t stop looking.”
Those words reflect the determination that has kept him connected to the case for so many years.
For him, Madeleine’s disappearance is not simply an unsolved investigation. It is the beginning of a much wider commitment to protecting vulnerable children.
HOW MADELEINE’S DISAPPEARANCE CHANGED HIS LIFE
His involvement in the McCann investigation eventually inspired him to establish Guardianes de la Inocencia (Guardians of Innocence), an organisation dedicated to fighting child exploitation and supporting efforts to protect vulnerable children.
He has also written a book, Stolen Innocence: The Price of Power, exploring major cases involving child exploitation and institutional failures.
In his interview, he explained that his book’s origins were connected to the search for Madeleine.
“This book came from Maddie,” he said.
Although his work has expanded beyond one missing-person investigation, he has never forgotten the little girl whose disappearance changed the direction of his career.
NEARLY 20 YEARS LATER, THE QUESTIONS REMAIN
Madeleine was just three years old when she disappeared from apartment 5A at the Ocean Club resort in Praia da Luz.
Her parents had been dining with friends at a nearby restaurant while Madeleine and her younger twin siblings slept in the apartment.
When Kate McCann discovered that Madeleine was missing, an international search began.
Over the years, Portuguese, British and German authorities have followed numerous investigative leads. Searches have taken place in different parts of Portugal, including a major operation in the Algarve in June 2025.
Yet no confirmed breakthrough has revealed what happened to Madeleine.
For Kate and Gerry McCann, the search for their daughter has continued for almost two decades.
And for Julian Peribáñez, the hope of finding answers remains alive.
His latest appeal is a reminder that, despite the passage of time, the questions surrounding Madeleine’s disappearance have not gone away.
Somewhere, he believes, there may still be someone who knows something.
And he is asking them to come forward.
