Police probing Maddie McCann’s disappearance could uncover a treasure trove of evidence on phones used by three suspects, according to a forensics expert.
Former police officer Neil Morgans, who runs A Star Forensics, said cops hunting Maddie’s abductors could use texts, photos and videos on suspects’ phones to place them at the scene of the crime.
He said the phones can still be tracked even if they’ve changed hands several times and data on the devices would still be there even if it had been deleted and subsequent owners had thrown away the SIM card.
His comments come after it was reported that officers at Scotland Yard have narrowed their prime suspects down to three burglars who were operating at the resort in Portugal where Maddie disappeared in 2007.
Reports state that mobile phone data suggests the three men were near to where the missing girl vanished.
British detectives are working on the theory that the burglars may have panicked after waking Madeleine and decided to take her away with them.
Neil Morgans said information on the three men’s phones could provide a breakthrough in the case.
He said: “Police need to get hold of these phones. If they had considered a ransom then they might have taken photos and videos of her.
“Images could still be obtained from the devices even if they were deleted.
“Some photos could have meta-data showing where pictures were taken. Again, that could help show if they were in the area of the abduction.
“There may also be information contained in text messages.
“The phones can be tracked using their unique serial numbers. Even if the phones have changed hands several times they could still be found.”
The three male suspects are said to have made an unusually large number of calls to each other in the hours after Madeleine was reported missing from her holiday flat in the Algarve.
Cops believe the crooks, including at least one Portuguese man, had already carried out one burglary in the resort of Praia da Luz, disturbing a child.
During their bungled investigation Portuguese police attached no significance to the raid, which came a few days before Madeleine disappeared.
Informal discussions are said to have taken place at Scotland Yard about arresting the three burglars and searching their homes and other sites.
It’s believed background checks have been carried out into their criminal history, their friends and relatives and the vehicles they’ve used.
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