A woman who has claimed to be Madeleine McCann has been charged with stalking the parents and siblings of the missing girl, court documents show.
Julia Wandel was arrested at Bristol airport on Wednesday, Leicestershire Police said.
The 23-year-old, who is originally from Poland, is accused of stalking Kate, Gerry, Sean and Amelie McCann between 3 January 2024 and 15 February 2025.
Wandel is alleged to have attended the family home on 2 May and 7 December last year. She is also accused of sending a letter, calls, voicemails and WhatsApp messages to Kate and Gerry McCann.
She is also alleged to have sent Amelie and Sean McCann, Madeleine’s siblings, Instagram messages between 3 January and 29 December last year.
The charges state the alleged context “had a substantial adverse effect” on the family’s day-to-day activities “when you knew or ought to have known that your course of conduct would cause alarm or distress”.
All four stalking offences carry a maximum penalty of 12 months in custody and/or an unlimited fine.
Wandel was remanded into custody after appearing at Leicester Magistrates’ Court on Friday.
It is understood Wandel was due to meet a friend, who lives in Cardiff, before officers swooped in and arrested her.
The friend, aged 60, was also arrested at the airport on suspicion of stalking. She was released on bail, police said.
Wandel has maintained that she is Madeleine and claims a DNA test examined by a specialist in America has linked her to the McCann family.
She gained a wide following on social media in February 2023 when she posted under the account name @IAmMadeleineMcCann. Wendel also appeared on US talk show Dr Phil to discuss her claims.
Wandel’s representative, Surjit Singh Clair, confirmed her arrest on Thursday evening: “I’m trying to find out what’s happened but it appears Julia has been arrested at Bristol airport this evening just after she got off the plane.
“The police have reportedly arrested her on an allegation of stalking and harassing the McCanns.”
Madeleine disappeared in 2007 during a family holiday with her siblings and parents Gerry and Kate McCann to the Algarve, Portugal.
Her parents had left her in bed with her twin sibling before heading out for dinner with friends at a nearby restaurant in Paraia da Luz.
Madeleine’s disappearance has become one of the world’s most mysterious missing child cases and still remains unsolved.
Christian Brueckner is the main suspect in her disappearance but is yet to be formally charged.
Brueckner, 47, is already serving a seven-year prison term in Germany for raping a woman in 2005 in the Algarve region where three-year-old Madeleine went missing.
He spent many years in Portugal, including in the resort of Praia da Luz around the time of Madeleine’s disappearance in May 2007. He has denied any involvement in her disappearance.
Brueckner is due to remain in prison for another year to complete his seven-year sentence for the previous rape case.
Comments
Leave a Comment