Madeleine: Now Portuguese press claims scent of corpse was found on McCann's keys

The parents of Madeleine McCann faced further lurid claims from the Portuguese media with accusations that the scent of a corpse has been discovered on the key of a car they hired weeks after their daughter's disappearance.

A daily newspaper alleged a specialist sniffer dog brought in by British police to aid the Policia Judiciaria detected traces of a body on the key to the Renault Scenic hired by Kate and Gerry McCann five weeks after Madeleine, four, was abducted from their holiday apartment in the resort of Praia da Luz.

In a story on page seven, Jornal de Noticias carried the headline: "Dogs detected scent of a corpse on the car key of Madeleine's parents."

The following sub-headline read: "Policia Judiciaira suspects transportation of a corpse."

The article - which is not attributed to anyone, not even unnamed police sources - added: "English dogs helping the Policia Judiciaria in the investigation of the McCann case detected a strong scent of a corpse on the key of the McCann couple.

"The animals also detected a sample of blood in the boot of the Renault Scenic which was examined along with other cars belonging to the McCanns' friends."

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The paper went on to claim that the person who hired the car the McCanns is also being investigated before speculating that the corpse scent on the key could have come from contimination with another item which had been in contact with a dead body.

It also reported that another British police dog scented blood in the car's boot, which 'precisely indicates that a corpse could have been in that boot'.

In a further sign that the Portuguese media are not letting up in their attacks on the McCanns, Diario de Noticias carried an article by a former director of the Policia Judiciaria, Francisco Moita Flores, alleging that British police have been 'manipulating' the Portuguese investigation and that there had been political and diplomatic interference from the UK authorities to protect the McCanns.

The latest outragous claims in Portugal come after Mr McCann was forced to respond to claims that he and his wife accidentally killed Madeleine with an overdose of sedatives.

A spokeswoman for the couple said last night: "This is just another example of the wild, unfounded speculation in the media which Kate and Gerry find very unhelpful."

Police spokesman Olegario Sousa was unavailable to comment on the latest allegations.

Meanwhile, Mr and Mrs McCann are becoming increasingly frustrated at the way the Find Madeleine Fund is being administered.

During their 16-week stay in Portugal, the couple have been paying much of the cost of maintaining awareness of their missing daughter from their own pockets, with cash from the £1million fund being released to them on a piecemeal basis.

A friend of the family said: 'They're remarkably patient and know people are trying to protect their interests but it's very different when you're in Portugal from when you're in the UK.

"The people operating the fund clearly think they have to protect the fund because they don't know how long it's going to last but Gerry thinks now is the time to be spending money because this is the time when it's going to be most effective."

Although the fund is mostly run by friends and family of the couple, they are keeping a tight rein on how the money is spent and have released just £70,000 from the £1,005,000 donated.

This has gone towards setting up a Find Madeleine website, producing wristbands, posters and T-shirts bearing the 'Look for Madeleine' motto, the cost of a campaign manager as well as legal fees.

They are finding it increasingly difficult to cover the cost of staying in Portugal while paying the mortgage and bills on their home in Rothley, Leics, while effectively being out of work. This is thought to have prompted Mr McCann to declare last week that he will soon be returning to work.

The fund, which was set up with four specific objectives - one of which is to 'provide support, including financial assistance, to Madeleine's family' - has been established as a limited company rather than a registered charity because it does not have any public benefit. It is run by six directors.

Former GMTV presenter Esther McVey, who runs her own PR consultancy and is the Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate for Wirral West, is among the directors as is Mr McCann's brother, 48-year-old pharmaceutical sales rep John McCann, and Mrs McCann's uncle Brian Kennedy, 68, a retired headteacher.

Retired hospital consultant Peter Hubner, 64, hospital director Douglas Skehan, 54, and former Leicestershire coroner Philip Tomlinson, 76, are the other directors of the fund, set up within two weeks of Madeleine's disappearance on May 3.

Ms McVey said: "The McCanns very much know and are aware of how the money had come together. They know it's from pensioners and kids in schools and they want it spent as carefully as possible. Because we're a not-for-profit limited company they are very much aware that we abide by the best practice charity laws."