Alleged Harasser Questioned: 'Yet Imagine I Could Be Madeleine?'

Courtroom sketch
Karen Spragg - who a court has heard asserts she is missing Madeleine McCann - contest the allegations

A female accused with harassing Kate McCann allegedly left her a phone message which asked: "what if I am Madeleine?"

Julia Wandelt, 24, who a jury heard has persistently asserted she was the disappeared Madeleine McCann, and Karen Spragg are on trial indicted with pursuing Kate and Gerry McCann between June 2022 and February 2025.

Madeleine McCann photo
Madeleine McCann's case has not yet been solved

On Monday, Leicester Crown Court learned call records and information retrieved from phones logged Ms Wandelt consistently asking Madeleine's mother for a biological test during that period.

Madeleine's disappearance in 2007 - as a three-year-old during a family holiday in Portugal - is considered the most covered child disappearance cases and continues to be unresolved.

'I Am Not Seeking Money'

A separate voicemail, played in court, recorded Ms Wandelt declaring: "I realize I'm heavy and not pretty like Madeleine used to be, but I know what I believe."

While another instance of Ms Wandelt's monologues with Mrs McCann's answerphone stated: "What if there is a small chance that I'm her? What then? Isn't that important for you?"

"I don't want money, I possess a life here in Poland, I just want to understand," she added.

The panel was told that by means of electronic messages, mobile messages and communications, Ms Wandelt asked for a biological test, transmitted youth pictures to her phone in a attempt to show a similarity to Mrs McCann's vanished daughter, and asserted to have "flashbacks" from a early life with the McCanns.

Robert Jones, a data specialist with Leicestershire Police who collated the data, advised the court there "didn't appear to be any answers" from Mrs McCann.

Ms Wandelt also contacted close associates of the McCanns, based on the call data.

On 9 October 2024, Gerry McCann picked up a phone call from Ms Wandelt to his wife's phone, saying she had "incorrect contact information."

During that incident Ms Wandelt recorded a message on Mrs McCann's voicemail saying "I will persist and I intend to demonstrate my position."

Court proceedings
Kate and Gerry McCann gave evidence to the court from protected by a security measure on Wednesday

The court heard Mrs Spragg developed a connection via internet with Ms Wandelt before accompanying her on a visit to the McCanns' residence in that area in December 2024.

Communication data showed Mrs Spragg had reached out through WhatsApp to Mrs McCann to express the press had depicted Ms Wandelt as "a crazy person" but that she ought to be taken seriously in the period before the trip to that location, that area, in that winter.

The court learned message exchanges between the two individuals, in November 2024, planning endeavoring to obtain Mrs McCann's DNA samples from her garbage or from silverware at a dining venue.

"We need to assert ourselves," Mrs Spragg advised Ms Wandelt.

On the evening of the trip to their home, the defendant transmitted a message which expressed: "We're currently positioned outside the McCanns' residence with our headlights off like detectives. I wanted to do this with someone else I never thought I would be engaged in this with the McCanns."

The trial ongoing.

Eric Winters
Eric Winters

A seasoned gaming analyst with over a decade of experience in online casinos, focusing on strategy and fair play.