Suspect in Madeleine McCann case charged with alleged sex crimes against children

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The prime suspect in the infamous disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann in 2007 was charged Tuesday with multiple sexual offenses he allegedly committed in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.

Christian Brueckner, 45, who is already serving a seven-year prison sentence for raping an elderly woman in 2005, was charged by German prosecutors with three counts of aggravated rape and two counts of sexual abuse of children, Braunschweig prosecutors announced.

Christian Brueckner, 45, was charged Tuesday by German prosecutors with three counts of aggravated rape and two counts of sexual abuse of children. (Carabinieri Milano)

"The accused is the same person who is under investigation in connection with the disappearance of the then 3-year-old British girl Madeleine Beth McCann on May 3, 2007, from an apartment complex in Praia da Luz in Portugal on suspicion of murder," the prosecutors said in a statement.

The sex crimes Brueckner is alleged to have committed allegedly happened between December 2000 and June 2017 in Portugal, officials said. He spent many years in Portugal, including in Praia da Luz around the time of Madeleine’s disappearance.

A March 2007 photo of 3-year-old British girl Madeleine McCann. (Handout via AP)

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The latest allegations against Brueckner include whipping and raping a 14-year-old girl while videotaping the act.

None of the new charges is related to the McCann case, according to officials, who said the investigation into the missing girl continues.

Kate and Gerry McCann hold an age-progressed police image of their daughter during a news conference to mark the fifth anniversary of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, on May 2, 2012, in London, England. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

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Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, along with their three children, Madeleine and twins Sean and Amelie, were on vacation in Praia da Luz, Portugal, when Madeline was taken from her bed on May 3, 2007, just days before her fourth birthday. The family was staying in a ground-floor apartment.

General view showing the ground-floor apartment in Praia Da Luz, Portugal, from which Madeleine McCann went missing on May 3. (Steve Parsons - PA Images)

When Madeleine's mother checked on her at approximately 10 p.m. after dining at a nearby restaurant, she discovered the bedroom door and window open and her young daughter gone.

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An undated photo of Madeleine McCann smiling. McCann went missing on vacation with her parents in 2007. (Handout/Getty Images)

German police first named Brueckner as a suspect in the case in 2020. A German citizen, Brueckner has denied involvement in the 3-year-old's disappearance and claimed to have an alibi.

Fox News' Audrey Conklin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.