By David Pilditch and Martin Evans
Daily Express UK

DETECTIVES are just ‘hours away’ from solving the mystery of Madeleine McCann’s disappearance.

Portugal’s top police officer Alipio Ribeiro made the announcement as sources revealed the net was closing on new suspects in the case. It is the first time such a high-ranking officer has spoken publicly since Madeleine vanished 106 days ago.

Mr Ribeiro, head of Portugal’s Policia Judiciaria, said senior officers were preparing for a major breakthrough. They are working on the theory that Madeleine died on the night she disappeared. The announcement follows reports that detectives know the identity of her killers.

It is believed the suspects have been tailed for days by undercover police in the hope that they would lead officers to Madeleine’s body. According to one Portuguese newspaper report, “investigators have in their hands a lot of information and even know who is behind the death”.

Another reported that “significant developments” had taken place which could lead to friends of Madeleine’s parents facing new questioning.
Mr Ribeiro said of the police operation: “It is a very dynamic investigation. I am optimistic because I believe we will end up understanding everything that happened.”

Hinting at a major breakthrough, he said: “In the next hours one of the keys of the case will become clear.”

Detectives have been pursuing a major new line of inquiry as they follow up clues uncovered by a team of British officers.

Mr Ribeiro, national director of Portugal’s equivalent of Bri­tain’s CID, said investigators were now working on “a strong hypothesis” that Madeleine, four, is dead.

Reports in Portugal say British sniffer dogs discovered the scent of human remains in the McCanns’ holiday apartment in Praia da Luz.

Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry, have not given up hope that their daughter is still alive and are convinced she was snatched by an abductor.

The couple’s hopes were briefly raised yesterday after it was reported that traces of blood found in the family’s Ocean Club flat were not Madeleine’s.

It was claimed that scientists in Britain had handed over an interim report to Portuguese detectives.

But yesterday Portuguese police denied they had received a report, and a source at the laboratory in Birmingham where the tests are being carried out insisted that no results had yet been returned.

A spokesman for the Forensic Science Service said: “The samples are here and the analysis is ongoing.”

Police sources in Portugal said the results from forensic tests were “the final piece in the jigsaw”. Officers are waiting for the findings before moving on to the next phase of the operation. But police insisted that the new line of inquiry did not hinge on the outcome of the tests.

Mr Ribeiro said the blood traces may still provide vital clues as they will be matched against a DNA database of criminals in Britain.

“The UK is the most advanced country with regard to databases,” he said.

He criticised his own officers over a series of leaks which have led to a smear campaign against Madel­eine’s parents.

Although police were said to be closing in on new suspects, Mr Ribeiro said officers still did not know what had happened to Madeleine or the motive for the crime.

He said: “We have no idea where Madeleine could be.

“We have to be clear that we are working to clear up a difficult situation, above all in relation to the motive.

“It could have been for money, for revenge, for hate. We don’t know.”

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