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An alleged stalker who insisted to be Madeleine McCann was ruled out after a secret DNA test definitively confirmed she was not the missing girl, authorities disclosed in court.

Harassment Campaign Against McCann Family

Julia Wandelt, 24, is alleged to have conducted a campaign of harassment against the parents of Madeleine, who vanished from a Portuguese resort in Portugal in 2007 when she was three.

The Polish citizen overwhelmed Kate and Gerry McCann and their grown-up kids, Sean and Amelie, with hundreds of calls, messages, voicemails and letters over a period spanning 2022 to this year, and appeared at their home requesting a DNA test, jurors learned during proceedings.

Police Testimony

Giving evidence on Tuesday, the lead detective on the missing person’s case, stated he had acted outside normal guidelines to test Wandelt “with the aim she may stop her actions towards the McCann family”.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Cramwell said over a dozen persons had earlier asserted to be Madeleine McCann but that: “We would not take DNA without strong belief that person was Madeleine because I did not want setting a precedent.

“If it was revealed in the media I had taken DNA from a person most likely not to be Madeleine, I was anxious 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 built up their expectations. It could have been quite emotionally damaging and hard for the family.”

Genetic Testing

He said the police had earlier determined Wandelt not to be Madeleine due to dissimilar appearance and that she was not the same age than Madeleine. But, he said, after learning Leicester police intended to detain Wandelt on criminal accusations, he “made the decision that the DNA would be taken when she was apprehended”.

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

Jury Hearings

Jurors learned that in April this year, the officer saw Wandelt in custody and informed her that her DNA had been matched against Madeleine’s and that the profiles did not match. Jurors were told he told Wandelt during the visit: “You are not Madeleine McCann.”

The court heard that during their conversation, Wandelt asked: “Do you sincerely wish to find Madeleine?”, and Cranwell told the jury he replied: “Yes.”

He said notwithstanding the evidence, he believed Wandelt “could allege we have interfered with the sample”, adding: “It was possible she would refuse to acknowledge she cannot be Madeleine notwithstanding scientific proof.”

Emotional Distress

In prior court sessions, testimony revealed how the family were left terrified and traumatized by their “creepy” and “profoundly unsettling” interactions with Wandelt and the other accused Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, as the pair attempted to insist on a DNA test.

Jurors heard how the defendants made “increasingly bizarre plans” to acquire Kate McCann’s DNA, which included searching the McCanns’ bins and stealing utensils from restaurants that they had eaten in.

The accused women both contest one count of stalking. The trial continues.