21 March 2023 , 13:53
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A woman claiming to be missing Madeleine McCann has had her claims debunked by facial analysis.
A Swiss company used their facial recognition software for Julia Wendell, who made claims about her background earlier this year.
Julia is awaiting results from three DNA samples and a genetic test after she drew similarities between her face and Madeleine's.
She has used facial and bodily similarities and questions over her past to suggest she could be Kate and Gerry McCann's missing daughter.
Kate and Gerry have not commented on Julia's claims.
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Company Ava-X, however, disputes the claims using technology that helps police officers identify missing people and unite them with their families.
Madeleine went missing in 2007 (METROPOLITAN POLICE/AFP via Gett)
Kate and Gerry have not commented on Julia's claims (PA)Ava-X boss Christian Fehrlin told Blick: "It's practically impossible for the young Pole to be Maddie."
The technology compared a picture of a young Julia with one of her today and found a match.
It did not find a match when it compared the contemporary Julia with a photograph of Madeleine.
Fehrlin said he was 90 per cent that Madeleine and Julia are different people.
'It's practically impossible' for Julia to be Maddie, Fehrlin said (Instagram/@iammadeleinemccan)
Both Julia and Madeleine have the same eye condition (METROPOLITAN POLICE/AFP via Gett)She has a coloboma in her right eye, the same rare eye condition as missing Madeleine.
Julia, believed to be 21, also pointed to freckles on her cheek and leg that look to be in similar places to Madeleine's.
Madeleine went missing in 2007 at the age of just three from a resort in Praia da Luz in the Algarve area of Portugal.
Julia's '@iammadeleinemccan' Instagram account has over 1million followers (persianmedium/Instagram)Private investigator Dr Fia Johansson travelled to Poland to take a closer look at Julia's case. Dr Johansson travelled to Wroclaw, where Julia is supposed to have grown up, and says she found no hospital records for the first five years of her life.
Madeleine would be 19 today, rather than Julia's age of 21, leading her to believe her age could be wrong.
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Dr Johansson said she is convinced Julia was trafficked into Poland as a child, regardless of whether she turns out to be Madeleine or not.
Kate and Gerry McCann still hope to find out what happened to their daughter (Getty Images)Earlier this year, the McCann parents vowed to “never forget” their daughter as they marked the start of another year without her.
In a Facebook post, the pair said they face the new year with “continued determination and positivity”.
The couple, both 54, wrote: “Christmas and other celebratory events will never be the same with our family incomplete.
“But we continue to make the best of our situation whilst never forgetting or giving up.
“We head into the new year with continued determination and positivity.
“May 2023 be a good one for us all. With our best wishes and eternal thanks. Kate, Gerry and family.”