A renewed search for Madeleine McCann, an English toddler who disappeared from a family vacation to Portugal May 3, 2007, likely came from a trusted inside tip, according to Grey Bull Rescue founder Bryan Stern.

Madeleine was abducted from the family’s ground-floor apartment in Praia da Luz, a coastal, southern Portuguese city, when she was 3 years old.

Portuguese and German police began a new search this week in Praia da Luz that concluded Thursday, and officials have not yet said whether they discovered any evidence that may be significant to the missing persons case, according to Reuters.

Authorities look for evidence in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance. (James Manning/PA Images)

Stern works “all the time” with parents who have lost children, and he said talking to them is the hardest part of his job. 

“I don’t care about the bad guys. I don’t care about the Russians or Hezbollah or any of that stuff. What I care about is the mommy who’s depending on me to bring her kid back. That’s what really, really drives me and scares me. … My biggest thing that I’m afraid of is having to go to a mother saying I failed. Seven hundred and twenty-nine missions later, we’ve never failed; 7,128 people later, we’ve never failed.”

The search June 5, 2025, was conducted at the request of the German federal police as they look for evidence that could implicate Christian Brueckner, who German prosecutors say is the prime suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance. (James Manning/PA Images)

In the McCann case, however, Stern said not knowing absolutely that she is dead, because her remains have never been found, is “painful.”

Madeleine was born in May 2003 and would be turning 22 years old this year.

The Official Find Madeleine Campaign, run by Madeleine’s parents — Kate and Gerry McCann — did not respond to an inquiry from Fox News Digital regarding the search.