A PORTUGUESE judge will decide if the parents of missing Madeleine McCann should face charges over their daughter's disappearance.
Detectives handed papers outlining their case against Gerry and Kate McCann to the Algarve-based prosecutor, Jose Cunha de Magalhaes e Meneses, for him to decide whether to bring charges.
He decided they should go before an instructional judge.
A Portuguese lawyer said this might mean that the prosecutor wanted to impose stricter bail conditions or to carry out fresh searches or more interviews.
It is also possible that he is recommending charges, although this would be unusual, Artur Rego said.
“It wouldn’t be normal unless he had already prepared the case,” Mr Rego said.
The judge has 10 days to decide whether to agree to the prosecutor’s request.
The McCanns, both 39, deny any involvement in the disappearance of their four-year-old daughter from a holiday resort in May.
The move came after it was revealed that bodily fluids found in the car hired by Gerry and Kate is a perfect DNA match to Madeleine.
The Forensic Science Service in Birmingham matched 20 out of 20 genetic markers to a sample from the boot.
