Man fears Madeleine McCann was hidden inside van shown to him by prime suspect

The suspect allegedly said he could hide drugs or ‘even a small child’ in a part of the campervan

A VW T3 Westfalia campervan that has been linked to German suspect Christian Brueckner (Metropolitan Police/PA) (PA Archive)

The father of Madeleine McCann prime suspect Christian Brueckner’s ex fears the girl may have been hidden inside the paedophile’s van as he was shown it.

Dieter Fehlinger, 67, was shown the Volkswagen in 2007 while visiting his daughter Nicole in Portugal.

He previously said Brueckner – who was made the prime suspect of Maddie’s murder in April – had said he could hide drugs or “even a small child” in an adapted hiding place.

Mr Fehlinger initially brushed off concerns around Brueckner’s comments but is now haunted by the possibility that the British toddler who went missing in May 2007 could have been hidden right under his nose.

Jailed Christian Brueckner was named as the prime suspect last month (Italian Carabinieri)

The former ambulance driver told Australian TV: “I have been thinking about it the whole time.”

Brueckner, a convicted paedophile, was made prime suspect in Maddie’s disappearance in April, with German police claiming to have found new evidence inside his van.

Lead investigator Hans-Christian Wolters said: “We have found new facts and new evidence. It’s not forensic evidence but evidence.”

Brueckner is yet to be charged for Maddie’s disappearance (AP2007)

He had reportedly been using the yellow and white VW T3 Westfalia campervan in and around Praia da Luz - the Algarve resort where the McCanns were holidaying - at the time Madeleine vanished days before her fourth birthday.

Brueckner had been dating Nicole, 45, since 2006 after meeting her at a Christmas party. German authorities questioned her on their relationship, but she is not a suspect.

Madeleine was three years old when she disappeared during a family holiday in Portugal (PA) (PA Media)

He is currently behind bars for raping a 72-year-old American tourist in the same area of Portugal where Madeleine went missing and is also days away from being charged with fresh sex crimes linked to the rape of an Irish tour rep and indecent exposure to children in Portugal.

Brueckner denies any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance more than 20 years ago.

Prosecutors have handed their files to Brueckner’s lawyer, the final step under German law before charges are brought.

The paperwork includes evidence allegedly linking him to the rape of an Irish tour rep and indecent exposures but not evidence relating to Madeleine’s disappearance from her parents’ holiday flat in Praia da Luz, The Daily Mirror reported.