Psychiatrist's warning about 'dangerous' Madeleine McCann suspect

A forensic psychiatrist who assessed the prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case has warned that he is in the top one per cent of dangerous criminals and that he would likely claim a new victim 'soon' if he is freed from jail.

Convicted paedophile and rapist Christian Brueckner is the man who German investigators believe abducted Maddie, then aged three, from her parents' holiday apartment in the Algarve in 2007.

He has never been charged, despite German authorities saying they have evidence to support their claims, and is currently on trial for separate sex crimes allegedly carried out against multiple victims in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.

The 47-year-old is currently on trial for a range of non-related sex offences committed in Portugal, but there have been strong indications that he could be cleared.

As he nears the end of his seven-year sentence for the 2005 rape of a pensioner, the only way German authorities could  keep him in prison would be if court psychiatric expert, Dr Christian Riedemann, deems him too 'dangerous' for society.

Speaking today at Braunschweig Regional Court, Dr Riedemann, 47, head of the correctional facility in Bad Rehburg said he scored him as 99 per cent on a scale of dangerousness.

'He is one of the absolute top dangerous people,'Dr Riedemann said, adding in a stark warning that: 'A new victim is to be expected soon.'

It was also revealed that Brueckner scored nearly 100 per cent on a test where just over 60 per cent suggests the subject is a psychopath. 

'The application of various procedures leads to the conclusion that Christian Brueckner can be categorized in the absolute top league of dangerousness', the expert said.

It comes after a former cellmate of Brueckner, Laurentiu Codin, alleged that he had confessed to him about abducting a girl from an apartment in Portugal. 

In his latest testimony, Codin has reportedly claimed that a lover of Brueckner had been waiting outside the apartment at the time - with the pair arguing and fleeing separately when she saw he had snatched a child.

According to The Sun, Laurentiu told the court of the night of the alleged kidnapping: 'There was another person with him – his lover – they got into a fight and they separated there.' 

He added that he was convinced Brueckner had been been telling him the truth, saying: 'Christian was very proud of his doings and as if he was living through them again while telling about it. He told all so detailed.'

Laurentiu, who was behind bars with Brueckner in 2020, is also reported to have claimed that the paedophile was part of a bigger organisation, and that he feared for his safety after speaking out against him in court.

'I am afraid of Brueckner now because somebody said to me I will be stabbed in my back,' he reportedly said.

In court today, Dr Riedemann reiterated the danger he believes Brueckner would pose if he were freed, adding that the convict had refused to cooperate with him.

'According to established analysis procedures, almost 100 per cent of comparable sex offenders have more favorable prognoses than the defendant,' the expert said.

'And the probability that [Brueckner] will be imprisoned in the next two years is 30 to 50 per cent.'

He added that he 'rejected any attempts at exploration of his personality by experts.

'I would like to ask him a lot of questions, but I only have to speculate about a lot of things.

'He belongs in the absolute top league of dangerousness. The probability that the defendant could commit further offences in freedom within two years is high.'

Brueckner, who is currently serving a sentence for a 2005 rape of an American pensioner in Portugal, is currently accused of other horrific sex offences in the country.

These include three cases of rape, and two cases of exposing him to children while masturbating.

If he is acquitted of these crimes, the only way to keep him in prison will be by activating something called 'preventative detention', for which he has to say that he deems Brückner as dangerous for society.

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Full timeline of Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner's crimes and links to missing toddler

Today was the second time that Dr Riedemann gave an assessment of Christian Brueckner's personality.

On day 33 of the trial, he also did this, first discussing an introduction of scientific research on sadistic offenders, and arguing that their main motivation is not the sex, rather the power.

Here he said that sadists enjoy humiliating their victims, physically hurting them, tying them up and subjugating them.

Brueckner is serving a seven-year jail term for the 2005 rape of American pensioner Diana Menkes, 72, in the Algarve.

He is standing trial at Braunschweig district for offences which include the alleged rape of Irish tour rep Hazel Behan, now 40, in her Praia da Rocha apartment in 2004.

The former tour guide, who waived her anonymity and has spoken publicly about her experience, broke down in tears as she told the trial that Brueckner had raped her at knifepoint.

He has also been charged with the alleged rape of a teenage girl in his home in the same city and raping an elderly woman in her holiday apartment.

Brueckner is also accused of exposing himself to a German girl on a beach in Salema in April 2007 and to an 11-year-old girl in 2017.

His current sentence ends early next year, and if he is not found guilty in the ongoing trial, he could be freed from jail. The trial is due to end in December.

Brueckner was sensationally named by German police as the prime suspect in the Madeleine's abduction.

The revelation came in June 2020 - more than a decade after her disappearance.

But he has never been charged in the case, and has long denied any involvement.