Madeleine McCann went missing from Praia da Luz in Portugal's Algarve in May 2007
Madeleine McCann went missing from Praia da Luz in Portugal's Algarve in May 2007

A convicted British paedophile is due to be extradited to the UK after being linked to a child abuse ring connected to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

Roderick Macdonald, 76, was found guilty of sexually assaulting two girls in Brighton but fled to the Mediterranean island of Gozo.

Macdonald, a former oil rig worker, is believed to have been in the Algarve when Madeleine went missing from her parent's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in 2007.

Macdonald appeared before a court in Malta to hear he will be extradited back to the UK. He is reportedly considered a suspect in the girl's disappearance after a series of burglaries which occurred in the Algarve apartments where Madeleine went missing stopped after he was deported to Australia on suspicion of raping an eight-year-old girl.

He agreed to a plea bargain and was sentence to six months in jail for indecent assault. Upon his release, he moved to Thailand but was deported back to Britain after his conviction was discovered.

Macdonald was then convicted of sexually abusing two girls in 2012 and handed a 12-month suspended sentence. From there he changed his surname to Robinson and fled to the Far East. He was traced to Malta after a European search warrant for him was released.

Metropolitan Police refused to comment on the latest aspect of the investigation, which so far has cost nearly £10m.

Related