Madeleine McCann: Police end garden search

German police ended their search of a garden allotment in the outskirts of Hanover on Wednesday in relation to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. The allotment was used by the main suspect in the murder investigation.

Several investigators were present on the scene with privacy screens erected around the plot. A drone, a mini-excavator and a number of shovels and rakes were used to comb through the area.

Read more: Madeleine McCann case: the key events since her 2007 disappearance

The process of digging the plot began early Tuesday, after the sky above the area was declared a no-fly zone. Sniffer dogs were also brought in.

The Hannoversche Allgemeine newspaper reported that on Tuesday the foundations of an old building were found on the site. However, authorities provided no details regarding how the search was connected to the case.

A yearslong case

Three-year-old Madeleine McCann vanished in 2007 from her family's holiday apartment in Portugal's Algarve region. Despite an international manhunt, no trace of her has been found and the case remains unsolved.

In June, German authorities announced they had launched a murder investigation after identifying a German citizen as a suspect in the case. He has not been named officially, but German media have identified him as Christian B. The 43-year-old is currently in prison in Kiel, northern Germany.

see/rt (dpa, AFP)