Det Con Mark Draycott, 49, has been called by the defence team to give evidence in the trial of convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner

Christian Brueckner appeared in Braunschweig court today, accused of five offences between 2000 and 2017 in Portugal

A Met Police detective told today how the Madeleine McCann case was blown open by a voicemail left on a Scotland Yard answer machine.

Det Con Mark Draycott is the first police officer to answer questions in court about the youngster’s 2007 disappearance. He has worked on Operation Grange, the £13 million probe into the Madeleine case, since it was launched in 2011. DC Draycott, 49, was called by the defence team to give evidence in the trial of convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner.

The German was dramatically named by prosecutors as the prime suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance in 2020. Brueckner’s former friend Helge Busching, who knew him in the Algarve in the mid-2000s, tipped off Scotland Yard in 2017.

He claimed the German told him during a conversation that “she did not scream” when the pair discussed her disappearance. DC Draycott told the court in Braunschweig that the original tip was left on a Scotland Yard answer machine in May 2017.

“Back then we still had a public phone number which was publicised around the world,” he said. Members of the public could ring in information in relation to Operation Grange, the Madeleine McCann investigation. One of my jobs was to check the answer phone messages. On May 18th I checked the answer phone and there was a message.

Madeleine McCann. disappeared in 2007(Image: PA)

Madeleine McCann went missing while on a family holiday in the Algarve(Image: PA)

“It was from a male by the sound of his voice, he spoke good English and he asked to speak to David Edgar (private investigator). He said he had information and he left a Greek mobile number. I then rang this Greek mobile number and spoke to a male I now know to be Helge Lars Busching. He referred to himself as Lars and he gave information in relation to the Madeleine McCann investigation.”

DC Draycott shared the information with German and Portuguese authorities, sparking the probe into Brueckner. He was part of a Scotland Yard team which flew to Athens days later to question Busching in top secrecy. The interview took place in a hotel – after bugging equipment was brought in to check for listening devices.

Brueckner was jailed for the rape of a pensioner in 2019 and is serving a seven-year prison term

Brueckner’s former friend Helge Busching, who knew him in the Algarve in the mid-2000s, tipped off Scotland Yard in 2017, the court heard

Busching had been released from a Greek jail weeks earlier and was on parole at the time. “We spoke to him over two days and he gave us information in relation to the Madeleine McCann case,” DC Draycott revealed. “At that stage he did not want to give a statement to us.

“However as the line of inquiry continued he was happy to give a statement to British police. He said he had a conversation with Christian at the Orgiva Festival in 2008. That conversation was in relation to Operation Grange. I can’t talk about that.”

Asked by the judge if Busching was given any “promises” by detectives, DC Draycott replied: “We don’t make promises to witnesses. We never pay witnesses for information. We may be able to pay for some expenses and we did pay some expenses. We paid €35 euros for him to get to the coach to Athens to meet us and we gave him expenses to get back to where he lived in Greece We also booked a cheap hotel for him to stay in Athens.”

The convicted paedophile is charged with raping an Irish tour rep, a teenage girl and an elderly woman in her holiday apartment

DC Draycott said Busching flew to London in February 2018 to give a formal statement at Scotland Yard. “That statement had already been prepared to a certain degree due to the info he had provided,” he said. “The statement was taken in English. Busching had the opportunity to go over the statement and he signed a declaration to that effect He had a German interpreter present throughout. That statement was translated into German and also Portuguese and shared with our colleagues in those respective countries.”

He said Busching was unwell when the statement was taken – but was determined to help police probing Madeleine’s disappearance. “He complained of not feeling well. He said he had eaten something dodgy,” said DC Draycott. “But he was happy for the statement to be taken. He was only with us for a matter of a couple of hours. He had travelled a long way and still wanted to help police.”

In 2011, under the then-Home Secretary Theresa May, Scotland Yard was asked to take over the investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance. Since then they have been given more than £13 million in funding for Operation Grange from the government. Last month Scotland Yard applied for a further grant of £100,000, which is expected to be given the green light.

Brueckner, 48, is on trial accused of carrying out a string of sex attacks in Portugal between 2000 and 2017. He is charged with raping an Irish tour rep, a teenage girl and an elderly woman in her holiday apartment. The German also allegedly exposed himself to a German girl on a beach and a group of children in a playground.

Madeleine was on a family holiday in Praia da Luz where she vanished in May 2007. Brueckner denies any involvement in her disappearance.

He was jailed for the rape of a pensioner in 2019 and is serving a seven-year prison term. The trial continues.