Woman claiming to Madeleine McCann ‘turned up at household dwelling and left voicemails’

A woman who has claimed to be Madeleine McCann is accused of ‘turned up at the family home, leaving voicemails and sending messages’ for her parents and siblings, it has emerged.

Julia Wandel, also known as Julia Wandelt, 23, is said to have harassed Madeleine’s mum and dad Kate and Gerry McCann on four separate occasions between January 2024 and February 15 this year.

According to the court list, she is also accused of stalking Madeleine’s brother and sister Sean and Amelie McCann between January 3 2024 and February 15 2025.

Wandel is alleged to have attended the family home on May 2 and December 7 last year.

She is also accused of sending a letter, calls, voicemails and WhatsApp messages to Kate and Gerry McCann and is alleged to have sent Amelie and Sean McCann Instagram messages between January 3 and December 29 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, who is originally from Poland, has been remanded in custody after appearing at Leicester Magistrates’ Court on today. She will appear for a plea hearing at Leicester Crown Court on April 7.

A second woman, aged 60 and from Wales, who was also arrested at the airport on suspicion of stalking, has been released on bail, they added.

Wandel claimed to be Madeleine in a 2023 Instagram post but DNA test later revealed she is from Poland and has Lithuanian and Romanian heritage, making it impossible to be the missing Brit.

She was arrested on Wednesday evening at Bristol airport by officers from Leicestershire Police. The force said a woman, in her 60s, was also arrested at the scene and released on bail.

Madeleine vanished without trace while on holiday in Praia da Luz, Portugal, with her parents Gerry and Kate in 2007.

Her disappearance has baffled detectives for 18 years and despite a worldwide hunt for clues, no-one has ever been charged with her disappearance.

For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.