Christian Brückner, the prime suspect in the enduring mystery of Madeleine McCann’s disappearance, walked out of a German prison on September 17, 2025, after serving a seven-year sentence for an unrelated crime. His release, which took place shortly after 9 a.m. local time from Sehnde prison near Hanover, was closely watched by the press and trailed by a police escort. The 48-year-old German national, who has never been charged in the McCann case, now faces strict surveillance, including an electronic ankle tag and monthly check-ins with a probation officer for the next five years, as reported by BBC and AFP.
Brückner’s exit from prison was shrouded in secrecy. He was driven away in a black Audi, hidden from view, with police confirming his departure but refusing to disclose his destination. His lawyer, Philipp Marquort, told the BBC, “I think Mr Brückner is just relieved that all of the release process is over and that he is now out.” Marquort added, “I know where he is – but I can’t say because he needs to now settle down... before his next court appearance.”
The shadow of suspicion over Brückner has loomed large since German prosecutors named him as their top suspect in 2020, citing evidence such as mobile phone data placing him near Praia da Luz, Portugal, at the time of Madeleine’s disappearance in May 2007. The case, which began when three-year-old Madeleine vanished from her family’s holiday apartment while her parents dined at a nearby restaurant, has become one of the world’s most haunting unsolved mysteries. Despite the international attention and exhaustive investigation, no trace of Madeleine has ever been found.
Brückner’s criminal history is both extensive and disturbing. Born Christian Fischer in Bavaria, he was adopted as a child, reportedly suffering abuse at the hands of his adoptive parents. His criminal record began at age 15 with a burglary conviction, and soon after, he was placed in a children’s home in Würzburg, Germany, where he was first caught inappropriately touching a child. According to a former resident, Thomas Hertel, Brückner “did a lot of nonsense. He thieved things, he burgled, he broke into places. And if you said something to him, he flipped out.” Hertel expressed fear about Brückner’s release, telling the Mirror, “I’m afraid that if he’s freed, he’ll come back to Wurzburg. He’s a ticking time bomb, a danger.”
By 2020, Brückner’s criminal record had ballooned to 17 entries, including convictions for sexually abusing children in 1994 and 2016, bodily injury, theft, and drink driving, as detailed by AFP and ITV’s documentary Madeleine McCann: Searching For The Prime Suspect. He was also convicted of raping a 72-year-old American woman, Diana Menkes, in Portugal’s Algarve region in 2005—the crime for which he just completed his prison sentence. Prosecutors and acquaintances alike have described Brückner as a “dangerous man,” with one psychiatric expert placing him in the “absolute top league of dangerousness” and highly likely to reoffend.
During his years in Portugal’s Algarve between 1995 and 2007, Brückner was known to have lived a drifter’s life, robbing hotel rooms and selling narcotics. Dieter Fehlinger, the father of Brückner’s ex-girlfriend, recounted in the ITV documentary how Brückner had modified his camper van to include a hidden compartment “so big that you could hide a small child inside.” Helge Busching, a former associate, claimed to be “100%” sure of Brückner’s involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance, recalling a chilling conversation: “I told him I don’t understand how somebody can rob little children from a hotel. She was not screaming,” Brückner allegedly replied.
The suspicion surrounding Brückner intensified after German police, in 2016, discovered a trove of disturbing items at an abandoned factory he owned: 75 children’s swimsuits, toys, small bikes, and a significant amount of footage indicating an obsession with young girls. In a recent ITV documentary, criminologist Dr. Graham Hill reviewed Skype messages in which Brückner spoke about his desire to abduct a child, writing that he wished he could “capture something small and use it for days.”
Despite this damning circumstantial evidence, German prosecutors, led by Hans Christian Wolters, have so far been unable to bring charges against Brückner in connection with Madeleine’s disappearance. Wolters told AFP, “He has no alibi. There is only evidence that incriminates him. He is the prime suspect and, above all, he’s the only suspect. But as to whether we can prove it, prove it in a court of law, that is the big task that lies ahead of us.”
Brückner’s legal troubles, however, are far from over. In October 2024, a German court acquitted him of several unrelated sexual offences alleged to have occurred in Portugal between 2000 and 2017, including the violent assault of Irish tour guide Hazel Behan in 2004. Hazel, who continues to live in fear, told The Sun, “His sentence may be ending but mine never did. I have lived with fear every day for 21 years.” Prosecutors have applied for a retrial in a different court, but a decision is not expected before next year, according to France 24.
For now, Brückner’s movements are tightly restricted. He must seek court permission to change his address or location, and failure to comply could result in a hefty fine or up to three years in prison. His passport has been confiscated, and his ID card is now valid only within Germany. These measures reflect the authorities’ deep unease about his release. As prosecutor Wolters warned just days before Brückner walked free, the repeat sexual offender remains “dangerous” and is considered likely to reoffend.
Meanwhile, the search for Madeleine McCann continues. Police in Germany and Portugal have conducted fresh searches this year near Praia da Luz and the Barragem do Arade reservoir, about 30 miles from where the McCanns were staying in 2007. So far, these efforts have yielded no breakthroughs. British police, for their part, continue to treat Madeleine’s disappearance as a missing persons case, with Operation Grange—the Metropolitan Police’s investigation—receiving over £13.2 million in funding since 2011 and an additional £108,000 this April.
As the world watches, the fate of Madeleine McCann remains unresolved. Brückner’s release has reignited old fears and renewed calls for justice, but until new evidence emerges, the case remains stubbornly open, its answers just out of reach.