Maddie McCann Wasn't 'Screaming' During Kidnapping, Ex-associate of Prime Suspect Christian Brueckner Claims — as He Declares Evil Sicko Was '100% Involved'
Christian Brueckner is suspected of being behind the little girl's disappearance.
Sept. 16 2025, Published 1:30 p.m. ET
Christian Brueckner, the prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, was "100 percent involved," according to a former associate, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
In a new TV interview, Helge Busching claimed Brueckner revealed details of his involvement in the toddler's disappearance from a Portuguese hotel in 2007.
Did The Prime Suspect Confess?
Prime suspect Brueckner was involved in McCann's disappearance, according to an associate.
"I want Christian go behind bars for this, for the case of Madeleine McCann," Busching told British ITV News. "This was him, I am 100% sure."
"He can say I am innocent. I know what he was doing, I saw it with my proper eyes. I know he's a dangerous man," he said, and added he was an associate of Brueckner, but made clear they were not friends.
According to Busching, he had a disturbing conversation with Brueckner at a festival in Spain, just a year after the 3-year-old's disappearance.
"I told him I don't understand how somebody can rob little children from a hotel," Busching recalled.
Disturbing Details Ecposed
The toddler went missing in 2007 while on vacation with her parents.
In response, Brueckner allegedly told Busching: "She was not screaming. I was thinking, yeah, how you know this... yeah, he has to do something with this. He took Maddie out from this hotel. He is involved, sure."
Following the alleged conversation, Busching admitted that fear had kept him from prying any further, and claimed Brueckner had quickly left the festival that night.
Years later, in 2017, Busching shared his exchange on a hotline for tips on McCann, and within days, police were interviewing him extensively. His testimony became part of the case against Brueckner, as he would later be identified as the prime suspect.
McCann disappeared in 2007 while on a family vacation in Portugal. At the time, the little girl's parents, Gerry and Kate, were looked at as suspects before being cleared, but dozens of theories on what could have happened to McCann have been suggested.
Set To Be Released From Prison
Brueckner is set to be released from prison after serving seven years for rape in a separate case.
One theory, offered by Busching, is that Brueckner may have attempted to rob the McCanns' apartment when he encountered Madeleine.
"Christian knows the Ocean Club very well," he claimed in the interview. "He was working there in the Ocean Club as a pool boy. And I think Christian, I think, was thinking, okay, go to one apartment and take some stuff from this apartment... this time, he doesn't take baggage, luggage, he takes her."
Brueckner, who is currently serving a seven-year sentence for rape in a separate case, is set to be released from prison on Wednesday, September 17, and has reportedly already refused to be interviewed by U.K. police.
In response, Busching hit out at the German legal system.
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Several theories have been offered to explain the 3-year-old's disappearance.
"... To let him go as a free man. I don't understand this... Now I know there will come out a really dangerous man," he said.
While Brueckner has denied having any involvement in McCann's disappearance, during a search of his old home in 2016, investigators revealed they discovered disturbing content on his hard drive.
The hard drive included his fantasies about drugging a young girl and her mother outside of a preschool before abusing the child, and a Skype chat in which Brueckner allegedly wrote he wanted to “capture something small and use it for days."
Recently, Marc Verwilghen, who served as Belgium's justice minister for three years and led the inquiry into the murderer and child molester Marc Dutroux, claimed a gang of traffickers could be connected to her disappearance.
