It's almost a year since British child Madeline McCann disappeared from a
Porguguese holiday apartment on May 3, 2007. Police have found no trace of
her.

PRAIA DA LUZ, PORTUGAL (FILE - MAY, 2007) REUTERS -

Four-year-old Briton Madeleine McCann disappeared on May 3, 2007
during a holiday with her parents in the Algarve region of southern Portugal.
No trace of her has been found and her parents, Gerry and Kate McCann are
still official suspects, or arguidos, in the case.
    The little girl went missing from her bedroom between 9:30 and 10 p.m.
while her parents dined just 100 yards away at the Mark Warner Ocean Club
holiday resort in Praia da Luz. A window and shutter were open and she is
presumed to have been abducted.
    The McCann family and British press criticise local police for what
they call a slow initial response, failure to notify ports and borders in
time, and failure to secure the crime scene, which may have led to vital clues
being lost.
    Portuguese police do not reveal any details of the investigation, due
to strict secrecy laws.  They reveal later in May that  they have investigated
350 suspicious incidents but still have no idea where Madeline might be.
    A Portuguese newspaper speculates Madeleine may have been kidnapped by
a paedophile ring and criminal experts are flown in from Britain.
    On May 12, Madeline turns four years old, as the search around the
resort winds down, but Gerry and Kate vow not to return home until their
daughter is found. The visit the Vatican and the Pope blesses a photo of
Madeline.
    Police search a villa just up the road from where Madeleine was
snatched and take a British man, Robert Murat, to a police station for
questioning. He is later released.
    In mid-May the Web site, www.findmadeleine.com, is launched and gets 55
million hits. Several newspapers start talking of media overkill.
    Over the summer months there are numerous reported sightings of a small
blonde girl in Malta and in other countries.
    In September Kate McCann was grilled by Portguese police for more than
10 hours. Later she is formally declared an arguido. The next day Gerry McCann
is also given arguido status after further police questioning.
    On September 9 the McCanns return to their home in Rothley,
Leicestershire, with their twins, Sean and Amelie.
    Their hopes were raised, then dashed when a photograph of a woman
carrying a girl bearing a resemblance to their daughter in Morocco turned out
not to be Madeline.
    In February this year, Portuguese police say they have no evidence
against the couple, but they remain arguidos. They say the search for
Madeleine is winding down, more than nine months after she vanished.