Madeleine McCann suspect Christian B 'was a loner but never acted suspiciously'
Christian B's trial gets under way today in the German city of Braunschweig, a place he called home between 2012 and 2016. Sky's Siobhan Robbins has spoken to some people who knew him during that period.
Friday 16 February 2024 09:01, UK
The prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann will appear in court in Germany today accused of unrelated sex offences.
Christian B, whose last name is withheld due to privacy laws, will stand trial over two counts of rape and three counts of sexual abuse.
The prosecution claims the offences took place in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.
A pensioner and a 10-year-old were among the alleged victims. None of the charges relate to Madeleine McCann.
The 47-year-old is currently in prison after being convicted of raping a 72-year-old in an apartment in Praia da Luz in 2005.
Two years later, Madeleine McCann went missing while on holiday in the same town on 3 May 2007.
It was in June 2020 when German police said a German citizen and convicted sex offender was being investigated on suspicion of murder in connection with Madeleine's disappearance.
That suspect was later named by the media as Christian B.
He has never been formally charged and denies any involvement.
In May last year, German and Portuguese police conducted a search of a reservoir, 45 minutes from Praia da Luz that he used to call his "paradise".
The current trial will take place in the city of Braunschweig, a place Christian B called home between 2012 and 2016.
At his local pub, we met several people who knew him, describing him as a "normal guy".
They said he'd often pop in after finishing work at the kiosk that he ran around the corner.
Six years after Madeleine disappeared, Christian B rented a plot at Jurgen Krumstroh's allotment.
Jurgen said he contacted the police after Christian B was named a suspect, but had no idea about his neighbour's criminal past.
He said: "He was always friendly. I can't say anything bad about him. He always greeted me but he didn't take part in common activities. He was a loner but he never acted suspiciously."
Jurgen shows me the garden house where Christian B stayed.
It's a simple property with a distinctive blue roof. Inside it's made up of one main room and a bathroom.
A drifter, Christian B split his time between Germany and Portugal often staying in places like this.
Outside, we meet Matthias who is collecting wood. He remembers him vividly, telling us he had a "bad aura".
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Today, Christian B is expected to return to Braunschweig to face charges which include the following allegations:
- Raping and beating a 70 to 80-year-old woman at her holiday flat in Portugal at an unspecified time between December 2000 and April 2006
- Beating and sexually assaulting a girl aged at least 14 sometime between December 2000 and April 2006 at his house in Praia da Luz, Portugal
- Raping a 20-year-old woman from Ireland and performing a sex act on her at a flat in Praia da Rocha in Portugal on 16 June 2004
- Exposing himself to a 10-year-old German girl at a beach in Salema in the district of Faro in Portugal on 7 April 2007
- Exposing himself to an 11-year-old Portuguese girl at a playground in Bartolomeu de Messines in Portugal on 11 June 2017
The trial is likely to last at least four months.