‘Stalker’ who claimed she was Madeleine McCann contacted lacking woman’s mom 60 occasions in a day, jury advised | EUROtoday

A girl who falsely claimed to be lacking toddler Madeleine McCann bombarded her mom with 60 calls and messages in someday, a court docket heard.

Jurors had been advised that there was “unequivocal scientific evidence” that Julia Wandelt, 24, from Lubin in south-west Poland, has no familial hyperlink to the McCanns.

However, she repeatedly contacted the lacking woman’s mother and father in a string of messages and telephone calls and turned up at their handle, the court docket heard, on one event begging “please don’t give up on your daughter”.

Ms Wandelt and Karen Spragg, 61, of Caerau Court Road in Caerau, Cardiff, each deny stalking Kate and Gerry McCann inflicting severe alarm or misery between June 2022 and February this yr.

Opening their trial at Leicester Crown Court on Monday, prosecutor Michael Duck KC advised a jury of 5 males and 7 ladies that from June 2022, Wandelt started trying to steer “anybody prepared to listen” that she was Madeleine.

“Her contention over the two and a half years that followed was therefore that she must have been abducted and taken to Poland where she lived with people who she was erroneously told were her parents,” Mr Duck advised the court docket.

“She pursued claims that she was Madeleine McCann and she pursued Madeleine McCann’s parents over a period of time and pursued that myth.”

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Ms Wandelt broke down in tears and went to the again of the dock when the prosecutor advised the jury: “Can we at this very early stage in the trial make this position clear – that Julia Wandelt is not Madeleine McCann.”

She returned to the dock beside Ms Spragg after a 10-minute break to take heed to the remainder of listening to.

The jury had been advised Madeleine’s unsolved disappeared from the household’s vacation condominium in Praia da Luz in Portugal’s Algarve in May 2007 has generated worldwide consideration.

One of many tragic penalties for her mother and father was the “constant inability to escape the glare of publicity that came with that tragedy”, Mr Duck stated.

“The attention they have received has not always been compassionate, sometimes far from it,” he added.

“There remains a group of individuals who continue to fail to acknowledge their plight and perpetuate conspiracy theories. Unfortunately, these two defendants belong to that latter group.”

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The trial heard Ms Wandelt had additionally claimed to be two different lacking women throughout the identical interval.

In January or Feburary 2023, she contacted a charity known as Missing Years Ago, which helps with historic lacking individual instances.

“The initial contact with the charity was not to contend that she was Madeleine McCann but rather to suggest that she was another missing girl, Inga Gehricke,” Mr Duck stated.

“Inga was a young girl who had disappeared in Germany, but as with Madeleine McCann, Julia Wandelt was precluded from being a realistic candidate by virtue of her age and obvious differences.”

On a separate event, the jury heard, Ms Wandelt claimed to be one other lacking woman known as Acacia Bishop.

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On someday in April final yr, Ms Wandelt known as and messaged Madeleine’s mom Kate’s telephone on greater than 60 events, the court docket.

In a voicemail left on Mrs McCann’s telephone, which was performed to the jury, Ms Wandelt continued: “I know my accent is Polish because I live here, I know I look fat and I know I’m not pretty like Madeleine was in the past, but I know what I know, I know what I remember.

“Please just give me a chance, I’m not a liar, I’m not crazy – I just want to know the truth. Call me or message me or whatever please.”

Mr Duck advised the jury: “The refusal to respond by Ms McCann did not deter Julia Wandelt.”

Ms Wandelt additionally claimed to have “flashbacks” from hypnosis classes, together with one reminiscence of spoon-feeding Madeleine’s youthful brother.

The court docket heard Wandelt emailed Mr McCann in June 2023 and messaged Madeleine’s youthful sister on different events saying there have been “many things” she may keep in mind, and that she would “never lie”.

The trial continues.