Police will be on hand this weekend to protect Kate and Gerry McCann at a prayer vigil marking 18 years since their daughter Madeleine vanished amid chilling stalking fears.
The extraordinary security measure comes after the couple were allegedly targeted by two women, one of whom bizarrely claimed to be Madeleine herself.
Last year, the parents were forced to pull out of the annual event in Rothley, Leicestershire, after Polish woman Julia Wandel, 23, reportedly turned up uninvited at their family home.
Now, in a dramatic escalation, police will attend Saturday’s informal gathering at the village war memorial, the first such presence since 2017, when crowds gathered to mark the 10th anniversary of the case that shocked the world.
Local vicar Reverend Simon Payne confirmed the move, saying: ‘Eighteen years is quite a milestone. People still want to come and remember Madeleine and pray for her family.
‘I hope it will be a peaceful occasion with no disturbance. I am told there will be a police presence, for Kate and Gerry who are hoping to be there. I am not sure how many officers will be in attendance.’
The quiet Leicestershire village of Rothley has rallied behind the McCanns since the night of May 3, 2007, when three-year-old Madeleine disappeared from her bed in a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal.
Kate’s uncle Brian Kennedy said the vigil, to be held at 7pm at the war memorial, is expected to draw support from locals, despite the passage of time.
Police will be on hand this weekend to protect Kate and Gerry McCann at a prayer vigil marking 18 years since their daughter Madeleine vanished amid chilling stalking fears
Last year, the parents were forced to pull out of the annual event in Rothley, Leicestershire, after Polish woman Julia Wandel, 23, pictured, reportedly turned up uninvited at their family home
Madeleine McCann’s (pictured) disappearance while on a family holiday in Portugal’s Algarve at the age of three in 2007 is one of the most widely reported missing child cases in history and remains unsolved
Madeleine McCann’s parents, Kate and Gerry, marked the 15th anniversary of their daughter’s disappearance from Portugal at a vigil in their home village of Rothley in May 2022
‘We are aware of how quickly May 3rd comes round again,’ he said. ‘But we keep on hoping, even after such a long time.’
The McCanns, now aged 57 and 56, are set to testify in person later this year at the trial of Wandel and her alleged accomplice, Karen Spragg, 60, from Cardiff.
Wandel is charged with four counts of stalking members of Madeleine’s family, including her twin siblings Sean and Amelie. Spragg faces one charge of stalking.
On April 22, Wandel and Spragg both pleaded not guilty to stalking the McCann family at a brief hearing at Leicester Crown Court.
The pair will now face trial at the same court in October, when Kate and Gerry McCann and their twins Sean and Amelie are due to give evidence.
The two women are accused of stalking the McCann family between June 22 and February 2025.
Wandel is alleged to have attended the family home in Leicestershire on May 2 and December 7 last year, a court previously heard.
She is also accused of sending a letter, calls, voicemails and WhatsApp messages to Kate and Gerry McCann, and sending Amelie and Sean McCann Instagram messages between January 3 and December 29 last year.
Spragg is alleged to have made calls, sent letters and attended the home address of Mr and Mrs McCann, a court heard previously.
Leicester Crown Court heard their conduct ‘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’.
Spragg was released on bail on the condition not to contact the McCanns or enter Leicestershire, apart from to attend court.
Wandel was remanded in custody until August.
Karen Spragg pictured arriving at Leicester Crown Court on April 22, is charged with one count of stalking involving serious alarm or distress
Accompanied by a friend Robert Zyla, Wendell listened on intently at the vigil clutching a letter she had desperately hoped to give to the McCanns last year. Pictured during a BBC interview
A service was held in the Baptist Church, Rothley, Leics, to mark the 17th anniversary of their daughter Madeleine’s disappearance on May 3, 2024
The man German investigators believe is the prime suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance, convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner, is nearing the end of a seven-year prison sentence for the rape of a pensioner in the same Portuguese resort
Meanwhile, the man German investigators believe is the prime suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance, convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner, is nearing the end of a seven-year prison sentence for the rape of a pensioner in the same Portuguese resort.
In a disturbing twist, police unearthed children’s clothing and photographs of young girls resembling Madeleine in a derelict factory linked to Brueckner.
They also discovered a sat-nav device showing he had visited a remote reservoir in the Algarve, which was later combed by divers.
Brueckner, who continues to deny any involvement in Madeleine’s case, is due to be released from prison in September.
At the time of Maddie’s disappearance her parents were dining with pals in a nearby tapas restaurant whilst carrying out regular half-hour checks on the children.
The McCanns have previously said: ‘We will never give up hope of finding Madeleine alive but whatever the outcome may be, we need to know as we need to find peace.’
Every year – bar two during the Covid lockdown when there was a ban on large groups – a vigil has been held in Maddie’s home village and her parents have attended almost every one.
The first gathering in May 2007 – while the McCanns were still in Portugal – was held in extensive shared gardens of their former apartment home in Queniborough, Leicestershire.
A few have been held in Rothley’s Anglican and Baptist churches but usually supporters gather outside in front of the village war memorial.
Kate and Gerry have attended whenever possible, usually accompanied by their twins, but one year they were away and missed the event because a family member in Kate’s native Liverpool was unwell.
Another year Gerry was busy on a work trip to Milan in Italy but Kate turned up, supported by her close ‘Tapas Seven’ holiday pal Fiona Payne, who had been on the fateful trip when Maddie was snatched.
