Heartbreaking lacking individuals circumstances which have baffled cops for years and tortured households

Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner sparked fury last week when he announced he was planning to publish a tell-all book. The convicted rapist and paedo admitted for the first time he was in the area the night Madeleine vanished.

He said he was 150 yards from her holiday apartment on the night of her disappearance, but insisted he was “selling drugs” on a beach near where Madeleine was staying with her family in Praia da Luz.

It is the latest saga in the most high profile missing person’s case in the world that has baffled cops and captured the public’s imagination since the tot vanished almost 20 years ago. Here, we take a look at some other disappearances that remain unsolved.

Andrew Gosden

On September, 14, 2007, Andrew, 14, left his house in Doncaster, withdrew £200 and bought a one-way ticket to London. He was last seen on CCTV at King’s Cross Station, but his reason to go to the capital or his whereabouts after that are still a mystery.

The possibility that Andrew had gone to London to meet somebody he met online was investigated. It was also thought he may have travelled for a heavy metal gig and fears he may have been sold into a sex gang.

In 2021, cops thought they had a breakthrough and arrested two men on suspicion of kidnap and human trafficking in connection with the disappearance of the straight A* student, but they were released in 2023.

Ben Needham

Devoted mum Kerry has spent the last 37 years searching the truth behind what happened to her son, who was just 21-months-old when he vanished in July 1991 on the Greek island of Kos while being looked after by his grandparents.

The Needham family thought Ben may have been kidnapped by child traffickers or to sell on for adoption. In September 2016, a man from Kos said that a now dead digger operator told him Ben had died in an accident and his body was hidden in building waste.

While no trace of Ben has ever been found, an item dated to 1991 that was in Ben’s possession at the time was discovered. Police believe it was possible he died on the day he went missing as a result of an accident near the farmhouse where he was last seen.

Charlene Downes

The disappearance of schoolgirl Charlene in November 2003 shocked the nation. The 14-year-old had last been seen in an area of Blackpool that contained several takeaway and fast-food shops. She is presumed murdered but police have never found a body.

A police report found that Charlene had been the victim of child sexual abuse at the hands of a local grooming gang, who were employed by some of the food outlets and gave out free meals and cigarettes for sex with young girls.

In May 2007, two men stood trial for her murder but the jury failed to reach a verdict. During the trial, the court heard claims she was “chopped up” and put in kebabs. In 2017, a man was arrested on suspicion of her murder and was released two days later.

Claudia Lawrence

York chef Claudia disappeared in March 2009 and was last seen on CCTV heading home after working a shift. Although the police have treated her disappearance as a case of murder, her fate is unclear and despite several arrests, nobody has ever been charged.

Cops found the only things missing from her home were her mobile phone, chef’s whites and rucksack, suggested she left for work before she vanished. As Claudia, who was 35 at the time, knew several people in Cyprus, one line of inquiry was that she’d gone there.

But it proved to be a dead end. North Yorkshire Police are still investigating the case, and say they will never give up on Claudia until it is known who is responsible for her disappearance and suspected murder.

Richey Edwards

Richey was the talented, yet troubled, lyricist for the Welsh indie band Manic Street Preachers. On February 1, 1995, the 27-year-old musician left a London hotel room on the eve of his band’s US tour, driving to Wales and leaving his car on the Severn Bridge.

While many people believe he may have killed himself – he suffered from anorexia and was known to self-harm – one book released last year suggested that Richey had staged his own disappearance to escape his former troubled life.

There have been reported sightings in places such as Goa and the Canary Islands. However, in November 2008, he was declared “dead in absentia” – a declaration of presumed death if a person has been missing for at least seven years.