A German man who’s still considered to be the main suspect in the 2007 disappearance of Madeleine McCann could be released Wednesday from the prison he’s been incarcerated at for an unrelated crime.

Christian Brückner — who was officially named a suspect in the British 3-year-old’s disappearance by Portuguese prosecutors in 2022 — has been serving a seven-year sentence for the 2005 rape of a 72-year-old woman in a separate case, according to CBS News.

As Brückner’s impending release nears, authorities confirmed that he remains a suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance, and say he’s refused to sit down with British police ahead of his anticipated release from a German prison.

“For a number of years we have worked closely with our policing colleagues in Germany and Portugal to investigate the disappearance of Madeleine McCann and support Madeleine’s family to understand what happened on the evening of 3 May, 2007 in Praia da Luz,” Detective Chief Inspector Mark Cranwell, who’s leading the UK’s Metropolitan Police Service’s investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance, said in a statement obtained by Oxygen.

Cranwell went on to add that police were “aware of the pending release” of Brückner and had made an unsuccessful attempt to talk with him before he leaves prison.

Christian Brückner remains a suspect in Madeleine McCann case

“We can confirm that this individual remains a suspect in the Metropolitan Police’s own investigation,” Cranwell said. “We have requested an interview with this German suspect but, for legal reasons, this can only be done via an International Letter of Request which has been submitted. It was subsequently refused by the suspect. In the absence of an interview, we will nevertheless continue to pursue any viable lines of enquiry.”

Cranwell declined to provide further information about the case, citing the ongoing investigation.

Brückner was first named a possible person of interest in the case by German investigators in 2020. 

At the time, prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters said he believed McCann was abused and then killed “relatively quickly” after she was abducted from her family’s Portugal rental apartment, although her body has never been found, according to the UK publication, The Times.

Two years later, Portuguese prosecutors officially named Brückner as an “arguido” or “named suspect” in the case.

Christian Brückner denies involvement in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance

Brückner has never been formally charged and continues to deny any involvement with the young girl’s disappearance. 

Authorities say that Brückner — who was convicted of past sexual offenses involving children — was living as a drifter and petty criminal at the time of Madeleine’s disappearance.

He was known to spend time in Portugal between 2000 and 2017 and is set to be released after serving a seven-year stint in prison for raping a 72-year-old American tourist in 2005 in Praia da Luz.

Wolters told the BBC last month that Brückner remains “the only suspect” in Madeleine’s case. 

“We have evidence which speaks against [Brückner], which indicates that he is responsible for the disappearance and the death of Madeleine McCann,” he said. 

According to Wolters, the challenge is having enough evidence to file charges against the suspect.

“We haven’t found anything in the last five years that exonerates [Brückner],” Wolters told the BBC. “We found evidence that strengthens our case. But in our view, it’s not strong enough to make a guilty verdict likely, and that’s why so far we couldn’t charge him or apply for an arrest warrant.”