Portugal police "hasty" to make McCanns suspects

By Henrique Almeida

LISBON (Reuters) - The head of Portugal's police says authorities were hasty in naming the parents of Madeleine McCann suspects in her disappearance, increasing pressure for the British couple to be cleared as suspects in the investigation.

Alipio Ribeiro said in an interview published on Portuguese daily Publico on Sunday that there was "a certain hastiness" in making Kate and Gerry McCann suspects four months after Madeleine vanished from their holiday apartment in the Algarve.

"At the moment, at a distance, and with the experience I have as a magistrate in the public prosecutor's office, maybe a different evaluation should have been made," said Ribeiro. "I have no doubt about that."

Asked whether authorities were hasty in making the couple suspects in Madeleine's disappearance, Ribeiro replied: "There was a certain hastiness."

His comments prompted an immediate response from the McCanns' spokesman, who urged Portuguese authorities to drop their "arguido" suspect status immediately as it was hampering the search for Madeleine.

"In the light of Mr Ribeiro's remarks, we urge the Portuguese judicial authorities to act humanely by removing their arguido status as swiftly as possible," spokesman Clarence Mitchell said.

"Not only does it continue to damage their reputation in the eyes of the world, it is also directly hampering the search for Madeleine," he added in a statement on the official Web site to help find Madeleine www.findmadeleine.com.

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