The prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case had a burglary tool kit that “can pick any lock”, a witness has claimed. Helge B’s allegations against Christian B cast fresh doubt over the official theory that the then-three-year-old was kidnapped by someone who climbed through the window of her family’s holiday apartment in Portugal 16 years ago. The 52-year-old, a petty criminal himself, told The Sun on Sunday he took the kit from the Algarve home of Christian B, who was in prison for theft at that time. He said: “I knew from Christian that he uses tools to break into holiday resorts, hotels and holiday homes to steal from tourists. “There were passports on the table. There was all sorts of stuff lying around — cameras, suitcases, everything that tourists have with them. I also found a lock pick set. “You can use it to pick any lock, including security locks.” Helge B, who is now in witness protection, said he informed German police about the kit, which includes 14 black stainless steal picks designed for different door types, according to The Sun on Sunday. A police source told the newspaper: “The German detectives were electrified by the discovery of the tool kit with the lock picks in it. This evidence is now very important to them. “It confirmed a suspicion that they’d had for a long time — that Christian B entered the apartment through the door.” When asked how Christian B could have entered the McCanns’ holiday apartment, Helge B suggested: “Through the door. Easily. He can open any door.” The development has led detectives to conclude the window theory could be a “red herring”, according to insiders close to the German police probe, reported The Sun on Sunday. It is understood police are also investigating the possibility Christian B used car paint to sedate Maddie after being told he had access to the solvent because he had been a mechanic. Reports the metal window shutters were rolled up and a curtain was blowing in the apartment after Maddie went missing could be explained by the theory her kidnapper did so to avoid inhaling toxic fumes. Helge B did recently allege to the German outlet Bild that Christian B let slip Maddie “didn’t scream” when she was kidnapped. The pair crossed paths at a music festival in Spain in 2008, Helge B said, when the topic of Maddie’s disappearance “came up and I said: ‘Anyway, I don’t understand how the little one could have disappeared without a trace.’ “Christian had drunk two or three beers, and he said: ‘She didn’t scream.’” In what has been described as the “most heavily reported missing person case in modern history”, Madeleine disappeared in May 2007 while staying with her parents at a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz. Her parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, had been dining with their friends at a restaurant 55 metres away when they discovered she was missing during a routine check at 10pm. The case has remained unsolved for 16 years with no body discovered, however German prosecutors have stated their belief that she was killed. Brueckner was identified as the primary suspect in 2020, with authorities conducting a major search of a remote Algarve reservoir in May as part of their investigation. It is believed that the jailed paedophile had regularly visited the mile-long peninsula and had described it as a “little slice of paradise” when living near the Praia da Luz resort. Brueckner has previous convictions for child sexual abuse, drug trafficking and is currently serving a prison sentence in Germany for raping a 72-year-old pensioner. Read More Madeleine McCann news – latest: Prime suspect’s friend claims Scotland Yard ‘ignored crucial information’ Madeleine McCann suspect ‘said she didn’t scream’ when kidnapped, friend claims in explosive interview Madeleine McCann case: Timeline of the missing child’s disappearance Madeleine McCann news: Suspect’s friend claims Scotland Yard ‘ignored information’ AP News Digest 2 p.m. Ukraine is ‘preparing for nuclear explosion at Zaporizhzhia’ MP warns - live

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Donald Trump kept classified documents from seven agencies after leaving the White House, the 49-page and 37-count unsealed indictment against the former president has revealed. The agencies include the Central Intelligence Agency, the Department of Defense, the National Security Agency, the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, the National Reconnaissance Office, the Department of Energy, and the Department of State and its Bureau of Intelligence and Research. The indictment outlined the responsibilities of each agency with the CIA being in charge of “providing intelligence on foreign countries and global issues to the president”, the DoD being responsible for “providing the military forces needed to deter war and ensure national security”, the NSA working on “foreign signals intelligence and cybersecurity”, the Geospatial Intelligence Agency leading “the exploitation and analysis of imagery, imagery intelligence, and geospatial information in support of the national security objectives”. A number of the agencies are under the umbrella of the Defense Department, including the Reconnaissance Office which is “responsible for developing, acquiring, launching, and operating space-based surveillance”, while the Department of Energy is in charge of “maintaining a safe, secure, and effective nuclear deterrent to protect national security”. “The Department of State was responsible for protecting and promoting United States security, prosperity, and democratic values. Within the Department of State, the Bureau of Intelligence and Research was a member of the USIC and responsible for providing intelligence to inform diplomacy and support United States diplomats,” the indictment states. The indictment, unsealed on Friday afternoon, stems from Mr Trump’s allegedly unlawful retention of hundreds of documents at his Florida residence Mar-a-Lago. Trump aide Walt Nauta has also been charged after he was apparently spotted on surveillance footage moving boxes at the property. The ex-president stands accused of having moved classified documents from the White House at the end of his presidency despite not having the right to do so. In a short statement on Friday, the man in charge of DoJ’s investigations into Mr Trump, Special Counsel Jack Smith, said: “Today, an indictment was unsealed, charging Donald J. Trump of felony violations of our national security laws, as well participating in a conspiracy to obstruct justice. This indictment was voted by a grand jury of citizens in the southern district of Florida.” “It is very important for me to note that the defendant in this case must be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. To that end, my office will seek a speedy trial in this matter,” he added. Fox News commentator Jonathan Turley said: “It is an extremely damning indictment ...This is not an indictment you can dismiss.” Mr Trump took to Truth Social to slam the Special Counsel, calling him a “Trump Hater” and a “deranged ‘psycho’”. The ex-president said Mr Smith “shouldn’t be involved in any case having to do with ‘Justice,’ other than to look at Biden as a criminal, which he is!” “Under the Presidential Records Act, I’m allowed to do all this,” Mr Trump claimed in a subsequent statement. “There was no crime, except for what the DOJ and FBI have been doing against me for years,” he added. “Nobody said I wasn’t allowed to look at the personal records that I brought with me from the White House,” Mr Trump said. Read More Read Donald Trump’s 37-count federal indictment in full Trump indictment: Ex-president kept nuclear and military papers and showed some to unauthorised people Trump indictment — latest: Trump ‘plotted to hide documents from FBI after showing military docs to visitors’

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