Julia Wandel, a 23-year-old woman from Poland, also known as Julia Wandelt, has been charged with four counts of stalking after making a controversial claim that she was the missing British girl Madeleine McCann. Wandel was arrested at Bristol Airport on Wednesday, and she is now facing charges related to several incidents of stalking that took place over multiple months.
Leicestershire Police confirmed the arrest, with Wandel being remanded in custody ahead of her court appearance on Friday at Leicestershire Magistrates' Court. The charges stem from several offences between May 2, 2024, and February 15, 2025, as well as an additional count of stalking from January 3 to April 21 of the previous year. A further charge relates to incidents between November 27 and January 29 of the year prior.
In addition to Wandel’s arrest, a 60-year-old woman from Wales, who was also arrested on suspicion of stalking, has been released on bail, as stated by the police.
Julia Wandel made headlines earlier this year by claiming that she might be Madeleine McCann, who vanished from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, back in 2007. Wandel, who had previously been active on social media, started to gather attention when she posted videos and images claiming to have found similarities in her appearance and that of McCann, including facial features and an alleged memory of the abduction. She stated that she had been abducted as a child, leading some to speculate about the possibility of her identity.
However, her claims were quickly met with skepticism. The McCann family did not respond publicly to the allegations, and a DNA test was conducted by the authorities to confirm her identity. The results have yet to confirm Wandel as Madeleine McCann, and it remains unclear why Wandel felt compelled to make such claims.
Madeleine McCann’s disappearance is one of the world’s most high-profile and mysterious child abduction cases. In 2007, Madeleine was three years old when she disappeared from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal. Her parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, had left their daughter and her twin siblings sleeping while they went to dinner with friends nearby. Upon returning, they discovered that Madeleine was missing, leading to an extensive and ongoing investigation.
The case was initially handled by Portuguese authorities, though Gerry and Kate McCann have publicly criticized the investigation, citing a lack of progress and perceived errors in the handling of the case. In the years following Madeleine's disappearance, various suspects have been named, but no one has been charged with the kidnapping. In 2023, a prosecutor confirmed that no charges would be brought against a suspect in the foreseeable future, frustrating those who continue to follow the case.
