Missing British girl sparks unprecedented search

PRAIA DA LUZ (PORTUGAL): A British girl's disappearance in Portugal more than two weeks ago has sparked an unprecedented international campaign to find her, involving everyone from football stars to multinationals.

Former England football captain David Beckham and Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo have made televised appeals for information about the whereabouts of Madeleine McCann, who vanished from a hotel room at a resort at Praia da Luz on May 3 while her parents dined at a nearby restaurant,  

Harry Potter author JK Rowling and billionaire Richard Branson are among the celebrities and business leaders who have contributed to a reward fund for information leading to the girl's return that tops 2.5 million pounds (3.7 million euros, 4.9 million euros).

A video with images of the four-year-old girl set to the soundtrack of the Simple Minds hit 'Don't You Forget About Me' was broadcast during the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Manchester United on Saturday.

The match was attended by 90,000 people while an estimated 500 million watched on television in 160 countries. The video was shown at the UEFA Cup final between Sevilla and Espanyol in Glasgow earlier in the week.

British long-distance bus operator National Express said it would put up posters of Madeleine at bus stations in the 27 nations served by its Eurolines network.

British Airports Authority (BAA) has agreed to put up posters at all of its UK airports while several major oil companies have said they will do the same at their petrol stations. 

A website set up by the McCann family to help find the girl has received more than 80 million hits since its was launched on Wednesday while thousands of people have made donations to a fund set up to finance the search campaign.

"The figure I have heard likely to be contributed is very considerable,"   Madeleine's great-uncle, Brian Kennedy, told the BBC on Saturday.

Thousands of people have also downloaded appeal posters available at various Internet sites or have forwarded an email chain letter requesting information regarding the girl's whereabouts.

Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, have said they will keep their search up until their daughter is found. They have made several televised appeals for help. 

"We don't believe Madeleine is in Portugal any more and need to get her picture and the story across Europe as quickly as possible," the girl's aunt, Philomena McCann, said in an e-mail sent over the weekend to supporters of the search. 

Father Paul Seddon, who married the couple and baptised Madeleine, said people had been inspired by Kate and Gerry "and now there is a worldwide movement to find her that is fueled by people."   

Portuguese police have so far been unable to announce any major breaks in the case leading some members of the British press to accuse them of incompetence.

Chief Inspector Olegario Sousa, who is heading the police investigation in Portugal, told a packed news conference on Thursday that police had received information about a number of possible sightings. All were investigated but nothing came of them.

Police on Tuesday identified a 33-year-old British man, named by the media as Robert Murat, as a formal suspect. But they said they did not have enough evidence to charge him with any crime.

Officers have searched his house in Praia da Luz several times. Murat has protested his innocence in an interview with one television station.

They also searched the flat of a Russian computer expert who designed a website for Murat, questioning him for more than five hours before letting him go. Sousa said the man was questioned as a witness and not as a suspect.