There is no clear evidence that Madeleine McCann is dead, Scotland Yard said today as it launched a full-blown criminal inquiry into her disappearance.
Detectives revealed they had uncovered a wealth of new witnesses and leads involving 38 suspects.
Twelve of the potential culprits are British nationals who are thought to have been in Portugal when Madeleine went missing from her family’s holiday apartment on the Algarve in 2007.
The girl’s parents, Gerry and Kate, are not on the list of suspects.
The decision to launch a full criminal investigation on foreign soil is very rare. British police made the announcement after reviewing the case for two years.
Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood, who is spearheading the inquiry, said: “The review has given us new thinking, new theories, new evidence and new witnesses.”
His team – the 37-strong Operation Grange – has re-interviewed witnesses, believed to be British holidaymakers, and obtained new information about the night Madeleine went missing.
A small team of officers is expected to head to Portugal within weeks and will be based there for several months.
Mr Redwood said: “We and the Portuguese authorities remain completely committed to finding out what happened to Madeleine.
“Everything we do is utterly focused on her best interests.
“Over the last two years what the review has told me is there is no clear, definitive proof that Madeleine is dead.
"We continue to believe there is a possibility she is alive.
"It is a positive step in our hunt for Madeleine that our understanding of the evidence has enabled us to shift from review to investigation.
“Our working relationship with the Portuguese police is positive and now that we have moved to investigation we are requesting further specific assistance through normal judicial routes.
“We remain in close contact with Kate and Gerry McCann.”
Madeleine’s parents hailed the police announcement today.
Their spokesman said: “Kate and Gerry warmly welcome the shift in the Met’s emphasis from review to investigation.
"It is clearly a big step forward in establishing what happened and, hopefully, towards bringing whoever is responsible for Madeleine’s abduction to justice.”
Operation Grange officers said the “unique” review process, which is only two-thirds complete, had already resulted in 3,800 leads.
They are sifting through 30,500 documents at their offices in Belgravia police station in Central London.
The suspects are from five countries in total – the UK, Portugal and three places that have not yet been revealed.
Madeleine was nearly four when she went missing from Praia da Luz as her parents dined with seven pals nearby.
The Portuguese inquiry was shelved in 2008 but Scotland Yard began the Home Office funded review in 2011 after David Cameron’s intervention.
Portuguese authorities said they can only reopen their probe if there is significant new evidence.
Under the unusual legal arrangement announced today, Scotland Yard has requested that the Crown Prosecution Service submits a “letter of request” to their Portuguese counterparts.
The letter will ask for help in carrying out the probe.
It is understood that local police would arrest suspects in stings using British information and with Scotland Yard detectives present.
If the Met gathers enough evidence to prosecute a foreign national who lives overseas, they will ask Portugal to put the suspect on trial.
The new investigation also raises the possibility of a trial in the UK if a British national was charged.
Operation Grange officers have travelled to Portugal 16 times to share their findings with senior police there.
Yard detectives have also flown to Switzerland to probe the movements of one of the country’s most notorious child snatchers, Urs Hans von Aesch.
The 67-year-old killed himself after he kidnapped and murdered a five-year-old girl, Ylenia Lenhard, less than three months after Madeleine was abducted.
Gerry, 44, and Kate, 45, of Rothley, Leicestershire, said Operation Grange, which has so far cost taxpayers around £4.5million, had given them new hope.
The suspect list does not include any of the friends they were with in Praia da Luz.
