Kate and Gerry hope returns from the schemes will boost the dwindling Find Madeleine Fund as the 10th anniversary of her disappearance approaches
BYPATRICK HILL 21:29, 11 MAR 2017UPDATED22:32, 11 MAR 2017
Madeleine McCann’s parents have put nearly £500,000 into a string of investments in a desperate bid to keep their search for her going.
Kate and Gerry hope returns from the schemes will boost the dwindling Find Madeleine Fund as the 10th anniversary of her disappearance approaches. They have declined to reveal what they have invested in.
A source said: “They are making best use of the fund’s remaining cash. It makes sense to make sure the money earns as much as possible.”
Companies House accounts show the Find Madeleine Fund – controlled by Kate, Gerry and four other directors had total assets at £714,000, taking into account the invested £490,839.
That’s down from the £763,722 held in cash in 2015.
Madeleine has been missing for almost 10 years (Photo: PA)
It is understood the McCanns have raised a total of £3.7million in the past 10 years in the hunt for Madeleine, who would now be aged 13.
Most of the money has gone on private investigators and campaigns.
But the fund could now be wiped out as the couple, both doctors, face a reported £400,000 legal bill.
It comes after they lost a libel battle with ex-Portuguese police chief Goncalo Amaral over claims they faked their daughter’s abduction.
There are also fears he could counter-sue them. The McCanns’ lawyers have confirmed they will use money from the fund as they appeal the case.
Goncalo Amaral, former Policia Judiciaria inspector (Photo: Getty)
Our source added: “Kate and Gerry’s lawyers in Portugal have lodged papers with the appeal court, so the prospect of paying anything out to Amaral is a long way off.
“But the 10th anniversary of Maddie’s disappearance is now just weeks away and things are already hard enough for them, without the extra hardship of having to worry about how they are going to carry on funding the search. It’s a really emotional time for them.”
The McCanns could also be forced to use money from the fund to pay private detectives if a Home Office grant for the Met Police investigation, is not renewed in August.
Operation Grange, which has cost more than £12million over six years, has already been massively scaled back.
Madeleine vanished from a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007 as her parents dined at a tapas restaurant nearby.
It is believed she was abducted. Thousands of people donated money as a worldwide search got under way.
The source said: “Most of the public donations that came in came in the first year and Kate and Gerry remain incredibly grateful for every penny.
“But that was all spent on private investigators and campaigning in the first couple of years.
“All extraneous costs have been cut back to make sure they keep money available in the bank ready for the day should the police investigation stop completely.”
The McCanns, who live with their two other children Sean and Amelie in Rothley, Leicestershire, are convinced Maddie is still alive.
Mirror
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