This information belongs to the Ministério Público in Portimão, Portugal.
It was released to the public on 4 August 2008 in accordance with Portuguese Law

Rachael Oldfield's statement 11/05/07

TRANSLATION BY ALBYM

Processos Volume IV Pages 943 to 947 

Witness Statement

Date: 2007-05-11

Time: 11.30

Place: Portimão DIC

Interviewing Officers: Inspectors João Carlos and Rui Gonçalves

Name: Rachael Mampilly

She comes to the process as a witness. Being of British nationality, she does not speak or write Portuguese and the interpreter Nuno José Cruz de Magalhaes Mexia Bulhoes is present.

She confirms the integrity of the statements made to this Police Department on 04/05/2007 and is ready to provide any additional clarifications.

She stayed in apartment "5B", which is located immediately next to the apartment of the McCann family. That on 03/05/2007, Thursday, she got up between 06H30 and 07:00, together with her husband Mathew and their daughter G***e aged 19 months.

At 07H50, they went to the "MILLENNIUM" restauarant, on foot, arriving at about 08.00 to have breakfast. She stated that they had been the first members of the group to arrive, and, later David and Fiona arrived with their two children, then Russel with his children. Jane did not come because that morning she was not feeling well. They took the usual route, alone, having left the apartment by the main door, which they locked with the key, turned right, then left, reaching the main road that led to the restaurant in question. They all had breakfast together at the same table, including the children.

When breakfast was over, at about 09H00, the witness took her daughter to the "crèche" next to the "Tapas", while her husband Mathew went with Russel to take his daughter E**a to the "crèche" at the main reception. The witness says she returned to her apartment, did some cleaning and changed clothes as she had scheduled a tennis lesson for 11H00. At 09H45 she left the apartment and went to the swimming pool area where she read a book and talked with Kate until about 11H10, the time that she left for the tennis courts as the lesson was slightly delayed. At that time her husband Mathew arrived also to play tennis until about 12.10 pm.

When the lesson finished, they collected their daughter and went to David and Fiona Payne’s apartment, where they all lunched together. At 13h45, the three returned to their apartment, where they put their daughter to bed who slept for about two hours. The witness went to play tennis with Jane until 15.00, while her husband Mathew went to Russel’s balcony to talk, or vice versa, she doesn't know exactly, their apartment being located to the side of theirs and there is only one other apartment between the two.

After the game of tennis, the witness returned home to rest, her husband and Russel having gone to the beach of Luz to sail. At about 15:45, her daughter having woken up, she took her to the beach of Luz in the company of Diane, Jane, Fiona and their respective children, where they found Mathew, Russel and David. At 17H30 the children dined in one of restaurants by the beach, not having detected any abnormal or strange situation.

At about 18:30, the women and children returned from the beach in the direction of the "OCEAN CLUB" with a view to seeing their husbands play tennis, who had returned from the beach about five minutes before. Until going to the apartment she was with the children in the playground area, next to the "Tapas", until about 19.00.

Then she went to the apartment where she gave her daughter a bath, Mathew returning at 19.15. They washed and put their daughter to bed by 19:45. The witness and her husband took a bath, dressed and went to the restaurant "TAPAS" at about 20H40. They left by the main door, which they locked, arriving at the "TAPAS" about two minutes later. She emphasised that the back door was closed and properly locked.

When she arrived at the restaurant, Kate, Gerald and Jane were already there and were talking to another couple who was not part of the group. Russel had not yet arrived because he was getting his daughter to sleep, according to what Jane told her.

The witness states that she sat more or less facing the back of the apartment and Mathew, on the side of the table, on her left. She does not know if, from that position, he could the back door of the apartment where Madeleine was, but if this had been the case then he would only have been able to see the very top.

Then Russel arrived and after another 10 minutes, when it would be around 20H55, the Payne family - David, Fiona and Diane - arrived. About a minute before the Payness arrived, her husband Mathew got up from the table and said he was going to go and look for them, taking the opportunity to “listen” to the children. She say that, according to what they told her, they passed Mathew on their way. After about 4 minutes, Mathew returned to the table when they ordered the food, and said he had "listened" to his daughter and to the Russel and McCann children, outside the front by putting his head against the shutters of the windows of their respective bedrooms and that everything was calm with the children. Both ate fish and salad, the witness drank white wine and Mathew red wine, she thought that, at that moment, one glass each.

At about 21.05, Gerald went see his children, and about 10 minutes later Jane left before GM had returned. A few minutes after Jane left Gerald arrived and said he had been talking to "Jez" about tennis, she does not remember if he said anything about the children. During this time she states that no one else left the table. Two or three minutes after Gerald’s arrival, Jane arrived, the witness does not remember whether Jane made any comment about her children either.

At 21H20 they began to dine, and, at 21.30, her husband Mathew said that he would go to see his daughter, G***e. The witness offered to go in his place, but he did not accept. Russel also stood up saying that he would also go to see his children. When they had both got up from the table, Kate said the same, namely, that she would also go to see her children. At that point, she presumes, she cannot be sure, if her husband Mathew or Russel volunteered to go to see Kate's children, and she them that they would have to enter by the back door, which was unlocked. Russel and Mathew left at the same time. About five minutes later, Mathew returned saying that the children were all well, and that Russel had stayed in the bedroom as one of his daughters was crying.

At about 21H40/21H45, when they were at dinner, Jane said that she was going to replace Russel so that he could dine, since she had already eaten. About five minutes later Russel returned to the table saying that his daughter E**e was sick and had vomited, and he started to dine afterwards.

At about 21H55/22H00 Kate got up from the table and went alone to her apartment in order to see her children. Five to ten minutes later, she returned the table, crying, visibly shaken, saying that Madeleine had disappeared. Immediately, all the members of the group, except Diane, stood up heading for the apartments, and the witness went to see if her daughter was well. Soon after, the men of the group started to do a search around the apartments in an attempt to find the child, at which time the Kate said that the window and the shutters of Madeleine's bedroom were open and, as such, she had been taken by someone.

The witness states that she did not enter Madeleine’s bedroom, thinking that Mathew her husband, had not done so either. Then, they extended the search to more distant areas, and her husband headed to the main reception to see if Madeleine was there, since her "crèche" was there, that also being the place from where he contacted the local police authorities.

They continued the search with the help of more people, which resulted in nothing. Further that, about 10 minutes after Kate raised the alarm about the disappearance, the witness went to see Jane in her apartment. While talking, Jane told her that when she came to see their children and passed Gerald talking to "Jez", she saw a man carrying a child, supported in the arms, which would not be a baby and could have been more or less Madeleine’s age. Also she said that when she saw the man, it seemed strange because he was walking very fast and the child was wearing pyjamas, without any other piece of clothing. That when the witness questioned her, Jane told her that at the time she had said nothing because she knew nothing of the disappearance of Madeleine and she had not seen the child’s face. When asked, says that, initially Jane focused more on the description of the man and, only a few days later, did she make reference to the clothes that the child was wearing, which were pyjamas, not recalling if she made a comprehensive description of clothing, especially regarding the colour or design.

When questioned, she said that on Thursday, 03/05/2007, there was nobody sitting at the table, who was unknown to the group, and she does not know anyone with the name "IRWIN."

She added that it was David Payne who organised this trip, and the apartment where she was staying had already been allocated to her at the time she checked in, not having been given any possibility for choice.

She does not have any suspicion in relation to the facts under investigation, stressing that in the holiday period prior to the day of the disappearance she did not find anything abnormal or strange.

Concerning the monitoring of the children every half hour, it was inspired by the system that "Mark Warner" has and which is known as "baby listening" and she had used this service in 2006 when they stayed at a holiday resort in Greece.

When questioned, said that no member of the group rented, or was transported in a vehicle, movements were always made on foot, they only travelled by bus on the day of arrival, on the route between the Faro airport and the "Ocean Club."

She got to know the McCann family at the marriage of David and Fiona, in Italy in 2003, at which time Madeleine was already 4 months old. She does not know them to have any enemies.

She has no knowledge, in addition to their group, of other friends of Madeleine’s family, who may have been in Portugal during the period when the facts occurred.

That, in the photographs she took during this holiday, only the various members of the group are recorded. When questioned, she states that during the holiday period she went to lunch at the apartment of David and Fiona, and that Madeleine had at no moment entered the witness’s apartment.

When questioned, she said that on the day they arrived, her husband Mathew felt sick with diarrhoea and vomiting, a situation that lasted until Sunday morning. She adds, on Wednesday, in the early morning, she also felt sick with the same symptoms.

No more is said. She reads the statement, agrees, ratifies and signs