Madeleine's parents furious at media

Praia da Luz: The parents of Madeleine McCann rebuked the media yesterday for publishing details of an anonymous tip about what might have happened to their missing 4-year-old daughter.

Police investigating Madeleine's disappearance more than a month ago said they were checking the tip which appeared in a Dutch newspaper on Wednesday and was widely reported.

The paper said it had given police an anonymous letter it received with a map showing a remote location in southern Portugal where Madeleine, who disappeared more than a month ago, might be buried.

Gerry McCann, Madeleine's father, said in a blog on his website the family were "extremely disappointed" by the revelation.

Upset

"Although all information will be taken seriously, we were very upset that the credibility of this letter had not been examined and, more importantly, published before the Portuguese police had an opportunity to investigate the claim, and search the area if appropriate without massive media attention," he wrote.

"We feel strongly that this was an irresponsible piece of journalism and even if it were true is insensitive and cruel. One can imagine how upsetting it is for Kate and I to hear of such claims through the media and if every piece of information was published like this there would be nothing else in the newspapers."

Police had said they may use sniffer dogs to search the area marked on the map but no police could be seen in the general area, local media reported.

The letter claimed the four-year-old girl was buried in scrubland, under branches and rocks, seven metres from a road. The map pinpointed a dirt track in an area near Odiaxere, north-east of Praia da Luz, where Madeleine was kidnapped from her bedroom 41 days ago.

A source close to the family said they were with Portuguese detectives when news of the letter came through. "They found the whole thing very upsetting," the source said.

- With inputs from The Telegraph Group Limited, London 2007