A WOMAN who claims she was raped by the Madeleine McCann suspect is suing Portuguese cops for failing to investigate her case properly.
Holiday rep Hazel Behan immediately reported her brutal 2004 torture at the hands of a masked sicko in the Algarve to cops.
She is now taking Portuguese detectives toclaiming they failed to take steps toidentify her attackerwho she believes wasChristian B – prime suspect over the disappearance of Maddie in May 2007.
Hazel claims bungling cops failed to seize the blood-stained bed sheets and broken false from the struggle which could have contained her attacker’s DNA.
Her application claims the same force failed to provide Hazel with a translator so she could understand the process and make a more detailed witness statement.
The community worker’s claim even claims the cops put her under surveillance and asked her to return to because her attack was “damaging”; the tourism industry.
Hazel said: “Lodging my case with the European Court of is not just about seeking justice for myself—it's about standing up after being silenced and ignored for far too long.
“I carry the pain of how I was treated every single day, but I hope the Court will ensure that my human rights are protected in line with the very standards that is expected right across .
“And that maybe, through this, , and other countries, will treat victims of rape, both domestic and foreign, with the decency and respect we deserve.”;
Hazel went to cops claiming Christian B was the man who attacked her after seeing pictures of him when he was revealed as the prime Maddie suspect, in 2020.
She says Portuguese cops simply closed the case without asking her.
And she alleges their “systematic failings”; undermined her rape trial last year, which saw Christian B cleared and sensationally put on the path to freedom.
Prolific burglar and convicted child abuser Christian B raped an American pensioner just a year after Hazel’s ordeal – in the village Madeleine was snatched from, Praia da Luz.
Hazel’s lawyer, Darragh Mackin, said: “The European Court of Human Rights exists for a reason.
“It exists to ensure victims like Hazel Behan are guaranteed a minimum level of protections across the various member states.
“Through this action, Hazel has highlighted the systematic and inexcusable failings by the Portuguese authorities has denied her and many other victims, justice for nearly two decades.
“These failings have ultimately contributed to the acquittal of one of the most high profile perpetrators in modern .
“This case is about ensuring that victims of sexual violence are not ignored, dismissed, or silenced by the very systems that are meant to protect them.”;
German investigators are currently in a race against time to stop Christian B being released from – potentially in a matter of weeks.
They have appealed for a retrial of the sex offences he was cleared of last year – including Hazel’s rape case.
A conviction would allow them to keep him behind bars indefinitely and buy them crucial time to continue investigating the Maddie case.
