Madeleine McCann's parents face agonising wait » Communities » 24dash.com

A judge in Portugal is sifting through a 1,000-page dossier as Madeleine McCann's parents face an agonising wait to learn if they will be charged over her disappearance.

The judge has 10 days to consider the contents of the dossier, which was handed over by police on Tuesday.

It was passed on at the instruction of Jose Cunha de Magalhaes e Meneses, a public prosecutor based in Portimao in the Algarve.

This could mean that the prosecutor is recommending charging Kate and Gerry McCann over their daughter's disappearance, although a Portuguese lawyer said this would be unusual.

In theory, the parents could be charged within days.

However, it is more likely that Mr Cunha de Magalhaes e Meneses wants to carry out fresh searches, conduct more interviews, or impose stricter bail conditions.

Whatever the prosecutor's request, the criminal instructional judge has 10 days to decide whether to agree to it.

There is widespread speculation about the contents of the 1,000-page dossier compiled by the Policia Judiciaria - Portugal's CID.

Intense attention has focused on what exactly police found in the hire car rented by Madeleine's parents 25 days after she went missing.

Detectives denied reports that forensic tests on a sample taken from the vehicle, a silver Renault Scenic, had revealed a "100% match" with the missing girl's DNA.

But senior sources linked to the investigation told Portuguese journalists they discovered "bodily fluids" - not blood - with an 88% match to Madeleine's genetic profile in the car's boot.

Copyright Press Association 2007

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