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The trio hold top positions in the
Portuguese judiciary and police and all
have privately vowed to do everything in
their powers to discover the fate of
Madeleine and bring those responsible to
justice.
For the first time in years all the
vital departments are working in tandem,
which is a major relief to Detective
Chief Inspector Andy Redwood, who heads
the Yard's Operation Grange team trying
to solve the seven-year riddle.
Ines Sequeira, the chief state
prosecutor covering Praia da Luz where
Madeleine vanished in May 2007, and the
one with the most power, has given the
case priority status.
The 49-year-old mother of four high
flier is a breath of fresh air in the
department.
She has instructed her team to let
nothing stand in the way of bring a
successful conclusion to the
investigations.
She is based in a huge office in the
grand marble-clad court house in
Portimao, a large coastal town some 12
miles from Luz on the Algarve.
It will be she who decides on whether to
prosecute or not.
Slim and stylishly dressed Ms Sequeira
trained in Lisbon, where she is believed
to have met her husband, now a judge.
She was the main prosecutor in the town
of Silves, 10 miles from Portimao for
years, working on robberies, murders,
sex offences and assaults.
A colleague said: "She quickly built up
a very good reputation in Silves,
particularly with her work on homicides.
"She is very precise and demands high
standards.
"She can see mistakes before others
realise their significance and weeds
them out.
"No one was surprised she won promotion.
"She likes to work away from the
spotlight, quietly and methodically in
her office."
She works with Ana Paulo Rito, the
criminal co-ordinator of the Policia
Judiciaria in Portimao, the role once
taken by Goncalo Amaral, who is now
locked in a libel action with Kate and
Gerry McCann over his claims that
Madeleine died in apartment 5a of the
Ocean Club. |
