Madeleine McCann prime suspect could be ‘released in days’

Christian Brueckner is the prime suspect in Madeleine's disappearance (Image: Getty)

The German sex offender suspected of abducting Madeleine McCann could become a free man "up to 10 days" before his sentence ends on September 17. Christian Brueckner was jailed in Germany for the rape of an American pensioner seven years ago. His sentence is due to end next month, but a source close to the case has suggested he will be freed early to "avoid any big media attention".

Brueckner's current sentence was for the rape of a 72-year-old in 2005, after one of his hairs was found on the bed of the US citizen who had been tied up, beaten and brutally raped. The attack happened in Praia de Luz, on the Algarve, just metres away from where seven-year-old Madeleine was kidnapped in 2007. German authorities have named him a "prime suspect" in the abduction investigation, but no official charges have yet been brought against him.

Brueckner will be released from prison after a seven year sentence within weeks (Image: Getty)

"I've been told from very good sources that they will let him go quietly to avoid any big media attention," a source told the Olive Press.

"They also don't want the chance of any vigilante attacking him, in case they need him back to face other charges soon. 

"Meanwhile, the police are working around the clock to try and find the final bit of the jigsaw to charge him over the death of Maddie. They know he did it, but they need to prove it."

Brueckner's lawyers have reportedly inferred that he could change his appearance and leave Europe, although officials believe he will remain on the continent.

He lived in Portugal on and off for around a decade and was thought to have been staying in a camper van near Praia de Luz when Madeleine vanished on a family holiday in May 2007.

His imminent release comes as prosecutors also await the verdict of an appeal against the decision to find him not guilty for five other sex offences allegedly committed during his time in Portugal.

The allegations included that of an Irish rape victim, who told the court she was convinced she had recognised his "piercing blue eyes" when she was tied up and beaten in the Algarve in 2004.

Judicial sources said that while Brueckner could be eligible for an early release, police in Germany would do their best to prevent him from disappearing.

"[He] would be issued with an ankle tag," a source said. "It will be their responsibility and obviously very important that they don't let him vanish. You're just going to have to wait and see until next month what happens."