🔗 Share this article

Madeleine McCann's brother and sister, Amelie and Sean, have testified in court that their encounters with an accused stalker were extremely upsetting and unsettling. They described feeling anxious and scared by a woman who claimed she was their long-lost sister.

Relentless Communication Detailed as Scary

Testifying via video link, Amelie described how the defendant, Julia Wandelt, contacted her multiple times through social media and letters. She said the persistence was quite scary since you don’t know what she’ll do next.

Messages from Wandelt were presented in court, in which she recounted memories of living in the family home that she claimed were recalled during hypnotherapy. Amelie testified, It’s quite disturbing that she's inventing these supposed memories, even though she isn't Maddie.

Altered Images Increased Distress

The court heard that the accused had created images of herself and Amelie as young girls, which the prosecution said were made with AI tools. Some of these photos were transmitted through social media, while others were produced physically and included in a letter to Amelie.

Amelie said, It was unpleasant, it caused me to feel very uneasy. It was evident she edited the pictures to make me appear similar to her, which was quite distressing. I knew I didn’t look like that, I knew it had been manipulated.

Psychological Toll on the Household

Amelie also discussed the effect of the supposed harassment on her parent, Kate, who gave evidence about being approached at her residence by the defendant and her alleged accomplice, Karen Spragg.

In my opinion my mum found it the hardest. She was targeted by Julia more than the others in the family and I believe it certainly took its toll on her and her mental health, Amelie testified. It's distressing when a person is begging you to believe them and playing with your emotions, to the extent you are doubting your own judgment.

Brother's Statement on Anxiety and Digital Attention

In a witness statement presented to the court, Sean McCann said that personally, he had not been severely impacted by Wandelt's accused stalking. But he had been upset that she was drawing social media scrutiny, with people posting hurtful and unjust things about his mother and father.

In the event that Wandelt was not mentally ill and was completely conscious she is not Madeleine, yet makes these claims, that will be very upsetting for me, he said. I am convinced she is my sibling. The fact that Julia is engaging in this behavior has resulted in a significant amount of anxiety and I consider it profoundly disturbing.

Wandelt and Spragg have pleaded not guilty to harassing the family household. Proceedings are ongoing.