Woman Who Claimed to Be Madeleine McCann Guilty of Harassment

A Polish woman who claimed to be the missing British toddler Madeleine McCann was found guilty of harassing the child's parents on Friday following a five-week trial at Leicester Crown Court. Julia Wandelt, 24, from Lubin in southwest Poland, was cleared of stalking Kate and Gerry McCann but convicted on the harassment charge, which stemmed from repeated contacts between June 2022 and February 2024. Her co-defendant, Karen Spragg, 61, from Cardiff, was acquitted of both stalking and harassment.

The jury deliberated for more than seven hours before delivering unanimous verdicts. Wandelt gasped audibly as the decisions were read, while Spragg, who had supported Wandelt, burst into tears. The two women, who held hands in the dock before the verdicts, had denied the charges. Judge Mrs Justice Cutts noted that the maximum sentence for harassment is six months' imprisonment and that Wandelt had already been in custody since her arrest in February, exceeding that period. Sentencing for Wandelt is scheduled for a later date.

Prosecutors described Wandelt's actions as a prolonged campaign that caused significant distress to the McCanns, who have spent nearly two decades searching for...