In a revelation that has sent shockwaves through both Portugal and the UK, forensic investigators have confirmed that a doll recovered from a private storage unit in Lagos, Portugal, contains DNA traces matching those of Madeleine McCann, the British child who vanished in 2007.
The discovery was made after Portuguese authorities reopened a routine inventory check at a facility previously owned by a now-deceased foreign national. The small cloth doll, reportedly stained and partially damaged, was found sealed inside a plastic container alongside several children’s belongings of unclear origin.
Forensic analysts at a Lisbon laboratory confirmed late Tuesday that genetic material on the doll’s surface matched Madeleine’s DNA profile obtained from historical UK samples.
However, investigators were stunned to learn that the item had only been logged into the storage unit in 2020, more than five years ago — suggesting it had been moved or handled long after the initial investigation ended.
“The timing is critical,” said a senior Portuguese investigator. “We are now focused on identifying who brought the box into the unit and why this specific item was preserved for so long.”
Authorities have already traced the rental records of the storage facility to a Portuguese woman in her 40s, who is believed to have been connected to a maintenance contractor previously employed near the Ocean Club resort. She is currently being questioned by police.
Sources close to the inquiry describe the finding as “potentially the most tangible physical link to Madeleine’s disappearance in nearly two decades.”
The McCann family has been notified, with a spokesperson calling the news “overwhelming and heartbreaking, but perhaps a step closer to truth.”
Police forensic units are now re-examining every object found in the storage room, including a fragment of fabric and a partially burned photograph, both of which are undergoing DNA analysis.
“We may finally be looking at evidence that was moved intentionally,” a UK investigator said. “The doll might not just be a toy — it could be a message, or a trace of where she once was.”
