Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner ‘bragged to ex he broke into Algarve apartments wearing tights & goggles’
MADELEINE McCann suspect Christian Brueckner allegedly used to brag to an ex about breaking into Portugal apartments in a creepy disguise.
The monster, 47, boasted about disguising himself with tights over his head and goggles over the top so he could steal from tourists, a court heard today.
Brueckner – who is accused of raping an old woman who he blindfolded with painted goggles – claimed the bizarre mask meant he could sneak into properties in Portugal‘s Algarve resort around the time Maddie vanished.
The German paedophile would then rummage through dirty laundry looking for money in pockets, Brueckner’s ex claimed today his ongoing trial for rape and sex offences.
The revelations were made during a string of dates between the unnamed witness and Brueckner from 2013 after he moved from Portugal back to Germany.
Giving evidence at Braunschweig Regional Court, his ex said: “He was always drunk whenever we met, he was always drinking beer.
“He started telling me about Portugal, saying he would break-in to properties – he told me he found money in the pocket of some laundry.”
The witness added: “He told me he would wear tights during his break-ins. He said he would put them over his face like a mask – then put the goggles on top.”
The ex told the court the pair met on a website called Chat24, which she later became aware was used by paedophiles.
She revealed: “He told me about a break-in to a property where he stole a lot of money. I don’t know if it was €100,000 but it was a lot.”
“I don’t remember if he told me about breaking into properties naked. But I do remember him telling me he would escape via the roofs,” she added.
It follows last week’s revelations from a dad who told how he grabbed Brueckner after he allegedly exposed himself to children under a park slide at a family festival.
The court heard how the parent put the creep into a headlock after witnessing him flash an 11-year-old child at a playground in Portugal and held onto him until cops arrived.
The witness said: “A girl came to me and said there is a man under the slide and he has shown me his intimate areas.
“She told me he got his private parts out and there were children there.”
The father continued: “I then grabbed hold of him and we called the police.
“He sat there and I held him so he couldn’t get away but we didn’t exchange any words.”
His statements came after Brueckner cruelly laughed just minutes after one of his alleged sex crime victims was reduced to tears as she relived the moment he apparently exposed himself in 2017.
The shameless felon sniggered after sharing a joke with a lawyer on his defence team before he was handcuffed and returned to solitary confinement.
A former Praia da Luz resident, Nadia P, also told the court last week that Brueckner’s friends in Portugal were terrified he was part of a paedophile ring.
She was told about the vile rape videos uncovered by Brueckner’s ex-pals at his house – and warned to stay away from the creep.
It comes as Brueckner’s defence team have applied for the McCann’s private investigator Dave Edgar and Met Police officers to give evidence in court in support of the paedophile.
Since the trial started in February they have only succeeded with one motion, despite applications running into double figures.
Meanwhile, the trial could face a setback after the key witness, Helge Büsching, 53, was diagnosed with cancer – dealing a potentially huge blow to the Madeleine case.
The Sun revealed earlier this month how an ex of Brueckner’s had been in a paedo ring with him – providing the monster with young girls.
In sensational evidence, a witness said the woman supplied teenage girls to Brueckner – including the 13-year-old featured in one of his sick videos.
He told judges: “I was told Christian Brueckner brought a woman washing machines and instead of paying him for it, she provided him with young girls.”
Madeleine, three, disappeared from an apartment in Praia da Luz on Portugal’s Algarve coast while on holiday with parents Kate and Gerry, now both 55, in 2007.
German investigators believe Brueckner abducted and murdered her – although no charges have been filed against him.
Brueckner is on trial for a string of rapes and indecent exposure charges uncovered during the investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance.
He denies the claims.
The trial continues.
Key dates in Madeleine McCann's disappearance
MADELEINE McCann vanished on May 3, 2007 - and cops believe Brueckner could have been behind her disappearance.
Almost 17 years on, no one has been charged in connection. These are the key dates:
May 3, 2007 – Kate McCann finds Madeleine missing at 10pm
May 14, 2007 – Property developer Robert Murat is named an “arguido” or formal suspect
August 31, 2007 – The McCanns launch libel action against Tal e Qual – a newspaper that claimed the couple killed Madeleine
September 7, 2007 – Kate and Gerry McCann are made “arguidos”
September 9, 2007– Madeleine’s parents return to England with their two-year-old twins
October 2, 2007– Lead detective Goncalo Amaral is taken off the case after criticising British police in a newspaper interview
July 21, 2009 – Portuguese police lift the “arguido” status of both Robert Murat and the McCanns
May 12, 2011 – On Madeleine’s eighth birthday, Scotland Yard launches a review into the case
April 25, 2012 – Scotland Yard officers say they believe Madeleine McCann is still alive
July 4, 2013 – Two years into a review of the case, Scotland Yard launched its own investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance
October 24, 2013– Portuguese police reopen their case after new lines of inquiry are found
November 27, 2013 – Met Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe called for British and Portuguese police to work together
October 28, 2015 – Scotland Yard reduces the number of officers working on Madeleine’s disappearance
March 11, 2017 – The Home Office grants Operation Grange an extra £85,000 to continue from April until September
September 28, 2017 – British police are granted £154,000 to keep the probe going until March 2018
November 2017 – Cops moved the search to Bulgaria
May 2018 – Another round of funding, thought to be in the region of £150,000 is granted
September 2018 – An extra six months of funding is requested from the Home Office
November 2018 – More funding, thought to be in the region of £150,000 is granted
November 2018 – UK police re-examine a theory Madeleine left the apartment to look for her parents
June 2019 – Another round of funding, believed to be £300,000 of government cash is granted
June 2019 – Portuguese police are probing a “new clue and suspect” after talks with British officers
June 2020 – New prime suspect revealed as a German paedo Christian Brueckner
April 2022 – Brueckner formally made an “arguido”
May 2023 – Police search remote Algarve reservoir Brueckner called his “little paradise”