ITV announces Madeleine McCann documentary as Christian Brueckner's release from prison looms
Madeleine McCann: The Search for a Suspect will air on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player in September.
An upcoming ITV documentary will delve into the life of Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner, as his potential release from prison approaches. The new doc is produced by MultiStory Media, a division of ITV Studios.
Brueckner was initially the sole suspect of German police before being formally named an 'arguido' (a formal suspect) by Portuguese authorities in 2022. Despite this, Brueckner has not been charged.
The 48-year-old convicted rapist and paedophile strongly denies any involvement in the disappearance of Madeleine, who was only three years old at the time, from the Praia da Luz resort back in 2007.
Brueckner is currently serving a sentence for an unrelated rape charge from 2005, with his term set to conclude in September 2025 just next month.
In the ITV documentary, former senior detective, criminologist and lead criminal profiler, Dr Graham Hill will discuss in detail for the first time his extensive work profiling Brueckner.
He will scrutinise the evidence and construct a comprehensive profile of the prime suspect in the unresolved case of missing Madeleine.
At the request of the Home Office, Hill was dispatched to advise Portuguese police in the initial days of the incident. During this period, he suggested broadening the scope of the investigation, arguing it was too narrowly focused.
However, he claims his advice was disregarded. His review in 2011 led to the creation of the Metropolitan Police's Operation Grange, the unit that continues to work on the case to this day.
The documentary, which spans Portugal, Germany, and the UK, intertwines Hill's analysis with accounts from forensic psychologists, journalists, and those who personally knew Brueckner.
It paints a chilling picture of the man at the heart of one of the world's most notorious unsolved cases. The film, Madeleine McCann: The Search for a Suspect, ultimately asks: 'What does justice look like when the threshold for criminal charges isn't met, but evidence against a suspect remains potentially damning?'.
Commissioned by ITV's Current Affairs Controller Tom Giles, the documentary is set to air on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player in September.
More true crime news
Dr Graham Hill stated: "I've been involved in this case in one way or another for 18 years since Madeleine went missing in May 2007, and the more that I've learned about the investigation, the more frustrated I've become. The longer it goes on without Christian B being charged, the more likely it looks like he's going to be released very soon.
"His backstory, his criminal offending, the picture of the man we're getting from his acquaintances and the German police... I want to pull all of that together and answer the question, 'Is Christian Bruckner the type of man that could have abducted and murdered Madeleine McCann and ultimately does the information that we now have about him suggest that he is the person who committed that crime?"
Mike Blair, Creative Director of Factual Programming at MultiStory Media, added: "To have Dr Graham Hill speak for the first time in depth about his work on this case is such a privilege. This is a man who has spent decades researching major crime and working with law enforcement agencies across the UK and America. His insights into this case, right from the very beginning, are invaluable."
Tom Giles, Controller of Current Affairs at ITV, stated: "Dr Hill is a foremost expert on this case, having been boots on the ground from the start and many years in the field profiling such suspects. This is a significant piece of work on a case that remains one of the most talked about in history."
Join the Daily Record's WhatsApp community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.