Kate McCann became emotional and threatened to involve the authorities when a woman accused of stalking Madeleine McCann’s family showed up at their residence, the court was told.
Julia Wandelt, hailing from Lubin, Poland, testified at Leicester Crown Court that she approached Mrs. McCann at their Leicester home last December with the intention of speaking to her, believing she could be her missing daughter.
Mrs. McCann started crying immediately upon seeing the 24-year-old, according to Wandelt, who, along with Karen Spragg, 61, from Caerau, Cardiff, had been waiting at the property.
Following Mrs. McCann’s threat to call the police, Wandelt left but later sent a letter signed “Lots of love, Madeleine.”
Wandelt recounted the encounter, stating, “I said Kate. She turned around, she started crying, I started crying. She started crying straight away, I got too upset. I planned to say other things, I did not say any of them. I said I would like to speak with you and can we speak for like two minutes? She said no. She said she will call the police. I said the police don’t care. I think I said if she wants to call the police she can – maybe I said it.”
During the interaction, Spragg asked Mrs. McCann, “Do you want to find your daughter?” Mrs. McCann responded, “I do, but I don’t need this.” Spragg then insisted, “She is your daughter,” to which Mrs. McCann replied firmly, “She’s not my daughter.”
Wandelt mentioned that she also tried to hand her documents to Mrs. McCann but was unsuccessful.
After Mrs. McCann went inside the house, Wandelt knocked on the door but did not cause a disturbance. Gerry McCann, upon returning home, suggested to Wandelt, “Julia, I think you need help.”
Wandelt followed up the face-to-face meeting with a letter on December 7, 2024, addressing Mrs. McCann as “dear mum” and signing off as “lots of love, Madeleine.”
In court, Wandelt’s barrister, Tom Price KC, read the letter aloud, expressing her desire to uncover the truth and urging Mrs. McCann to contact her.
The court also heard additional messages sent by Wandelt to Mrs. McCann, including one describing a memory related to Madeleine’s disappearance. Wandelt clarified that she did not intend to cause distress with these messages.
One of the messages read in court stated, “I will never give up, I need you to know I’m telling the truth. I cry when I hear your voice.”
Wandelt and Spragg have denied the charges of stalking Kate and Gerry McCann, causing serious alarm and distress between June 2022 and February 2025.
The trial is ongoing.
