Holland:Dutch police have arrested a man on suspicion of trying to extort money from the parents of missing four-year-old Madeleine McCann by saying he knew her whereabouts.
The 39-year-old unemployed man sent six e-mails to the McCanns from an internet cafe and a local job centre demanding a payment of €2 million in exchange for the information, the crime squad said yesterday.
Dutch authorities said there was no indication that the man, arrested on Wednesday, was involved in the disappearance of Madeleine or that he was actually aware of her whereabouts.
Madeleine was snatched from her bed while her parents dined at a nearby restaurant in the Praia da Luz resort in Portugal's Algarve region on May 3rd.
It is the second time a claim about Madeleine's whereabouts is known to have come from the Netherlands. Last month Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf received an anonymous letter insisting the four-year-old's body was hidden under rocks in scrubland close to Praia Da Luz. The message also included a map with crosses purporting to pinpoint the spot.
But it was dismissed after a search of the area failed to turn up any clues. Police said they saw no connection between the accused, who was arrested in the town of Eindhoven, and the letter.
Madeleine's father, Gerry McCann, said yesterday: "This extortion attempt has caused Kate and I considerable distress. We are particularly pleased that the Portuguese, British and Dutch police worked so closely together to secure an arrest."
The McCanns have been in Portugal since May, spearheading an international public awareness campaign to raise Madeleine's profile, and believe she could still be found safe and well.
- (Reuters, PA)