German prosecutors say they will examine items found in search for Madeleine McCann in Portugal

German prosecutors said on Thursday they would examine items found during a search in Portugal last week for clues to Madeleine McCann’s disappearance, but could not yet say whether they were linked to the youngster. British girl who disappeared in 2007.

Investigators spent three days last week searching around a dam about 30 miles from the resort town of Praia da Luz in southern Portugal, where the 3-year-old was last seen there at 16 years old.

The search was launched by prosecutors in Braunschweig, Germany, who are investigating a German in connection with his disappearance.

In a brief statement Thursday, prosecutors said “some items have been secured,” without giving further details.

“These will be assessed in the days and weeks to come,” they added. “It cannot yet be said whether any individual items are actually linked to the Madeleine McCann case.”

They thanked the Portuguese and British police for their cooperation and added that they expect their investigation into the 46-year-old suspect in the case to continue for a long time.

In mid-2020, German officials said the German citizen, identified by media as Christian Brueckner, was a suspect in the case. Brueckner denied any involvement.

Brueckner is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence in Germany for raping a 72-year-old woman in Portugal in 2005.

He is being investigated on suspicion of murder in the McCann case, but has not been charged. He spent many years in Portugal, notably in Praia da Luz, at the time of Madeleine’s disappearance.

The case of Madeleine McCann has attracted worldwide interest for several years, with reports of sightings of her reaching as far as Australia, as well as a wealth of books and TV documentaries about the case.

British, Portuguese and German investigators are still trying to piece together what happened the night the little one disappeared from her bed in the southern Portuguese resort town on May 3, 2007.

She was in the same room as her brother and sister – 2-year-old twins – while her parents dined with friends at a nearby restaurant.