Madeleine McCann prime suspect planning book to tell his side of the story

If you have followed the Madeleine McCann case for years, there is one question that has never gone away: what happened to the little girl who disappeared from her family’s holiday apartment in Portugal in 2007? Now, almost two decades later, the man German authorities identify as the main suspect is preparing to put his own version of events into print.

Christian Brückner is reportedly planning a book in which he will defend his innocence and set out his account of what happened. The development comes at a particularly striking moment, after he has also broken years of silence about where he says he was on the night Madeleine disappeared.

Brückner wants to tell his side

Brückner, 49, has begun working on a draft and has approached at least one professional writer to help with the project. According to reports, he wants the book published in both German and English and is looking for a publisher or financial backing. Sources cited by The Mirror claim Brückner is keen to tell his side of the story and believes a book could give him the opportunity to explain his version of events and defend himself against the allegations surrounding Madeleine’s disappearance. The reported plans come after years in which Brückner has largely refused to discuss the case publicly.

He has never been charged with Madeleine’s disappearance and has repeatedly denied having anything to do with what happened to her. Being identified as a suspect by German authorities does not mean he has been convicted of any offence connected to the case. Madeleine was three years old when she disappeared from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, in Portugal’s Algarve, on May 3, 2007. Her disappearance prompted an international investigation and generated worldwide attention, with searches continuing over the years in Portugal, Spain and Germany.

He says he was close to the apartment

The reported book plans follow a recent interview in which Brückner gave a new account of his whereabouts on the night Madeleine vanished. Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, he claimed he was around 150 yards from the McCann family’s apartment. Brückner said he was on a beach near the resort, where he claims he was selling drugs.

He also said he had travelled from Spain to Portugal carrying marijuana and claimed Portuguese police stopped his van three times that night while officers were searching for Madeleine. Brückner has maintained that he was not involved in her disappearance and reportedly said he had previously kept quiet because he believed authorities were attempting to frame him. His account places him close to the holiday apartment that night, but it remains his own version of events and does not establish what happened to Madeleine.

What happened to Madeleine?

German prosecutors identified Brückner as a suspect in 2020. He has not been charged in connection with Madeleine’s disappearance. The case against him has therefore remained an investigation rather than a criminal conviction. Brückner was released from prison in Germany in September 2025 after serving a sentence for the rape of a 72-year-old woman in Portugal, an offence unrelated to the Madeleine investigation. He has also faced other allegations, which he has denied. His reported plans to publish a book could now bring his version of the case into the public eye in considerably greater detail.

There is also a financial motive being reported. Sources say Brückner sees the project as a possible way of making money, as well as an opportunity to present his account directly to readers. Whether the book is actually published remains to be seen. There is currently no confirmed publication date or publisher. For the McCann family, however, the central issue remains unchanged.

Madeleine disappeared almost 20 years ago and has never been found. A book from the man German authorities regard as their main suspect could contain new claims, explanations and his account of the night she vanished. But it would still be one person’s version of events, rather than an established account of what happened to the missing three-year-old. Until there is evidence establishing what happened to Madeleine, the biggest question in one of Britain’s most closely followed missing-person cases remains unanswered.