Prime suspect in Madeleine McCann case gives first interview amid new search being launched

The prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case has given his first interview amid a new search being launched.

German native Christian Brueckner, a suspect in the case concerning Madeleine McCann, has spoken out as cops launch a fresh search for the missing child.

The British three-old vanished from her bed while on vacation in Portugal in 2007 with her family, and it has remained a mystery what happened to the youngster ever since.

Brueckner is currently behind bars for the rape of a 72-year-old woman in Praia da Luz in 2005, which he denies, and is set to be released this September if no further charges are brought forward.

Now that investigators are searching for signs of the missing toddler in a new area of Portugal, the incarcerated 48-year-old has spoken out from his cell in Sehnde Prison for the first time.

Christian Brueckner is considered the prime suspect in Madeleine McCann's disappearance (MICHAEL MATTHEY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Ulrich Oppold, a journalist from German broadcaster RTL, visited Brueckner in Germany where they talked about his possible pending release with the prisoner saying he is most looking forward to a steak and beer.

He also reportedly revealed he would leave Germany for a country with no extradition treaty and go into hiding if he does get out of prison, saying that he is 'as well-known as a colorful dog.'

The convicted sex offender added: "The fact that I have been in prison for many years for something that I cannot have committed and that therefore, through the participation of the media, half the world considers me a cruel rapist."

His attorney, Philipp Marquort, stated earlier this year that his client would consider relocating abroad and even plastic surgery.

Brueckner further claimed to the reporter that he was 'assaulted' by an inmate where 'at least one rib was broken.'

Cops have descended on the area in Portugal as part of a fresh search (PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA/AFP via Getty Images)

"I now stay in my cell 24 hours a day. I don't go out. Not even for food," he added.

Oppold also commented after the interview how the prisoner seemed 'intelligent', if not 'a little distant.'

"I think he had prepared himself very well for our conversation. He knew exactly what he wanted to say and, above all, what he didn't want to say," he added.

If investigators manage to link Brueckner to Maddie's disappearance in any way, they could press further charges and keep him behind bars.

German cops have requested a four-day search near to the property Brueckner used to reside in, near the holiday resort of Praia da Luz where Maddie vanished 18 years ago.

Despite being named in 2020 as the prime suspect in the case, Brueckner has still not been charged.

He has denied any involvement to do with the girl's disappearance (JULIAN STRATENSCHULTE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

When visited by the journalist, Brueckner also refused to answer any questions relating to Maddie following discussions with his lawyers.

He has denied any involvement in her disappearance.

Around 30 cops from Germany's FBI, the BKA, arrived in the Algarve resort this week as Portuguese officers closed off dirt roads to launch the fresh search.

It's the first major search for more than two years in the region, with a renewed focus on wells, water storage tanks and ruins across 21 plots of private land spanning around 120 acres, reports The Daily Mail.

Investigators are also reportedly planning on using radar equipment to scan under the ground.