LISBON, Portugal - Portuguese police were due to hand a file with evidence against the parents of missing 4-year-old Madeleine McCann on Tuesday to the public prosecutor, who will decide whether to charge them.
Gerry and Kate McCann returned to Britain on Sunday after police named them as suspects in their daughter's disappearance on May 3 in the Algarve but no restrictions were imposed upon them.
Police spokesman Olegario de Sousa said it was "agreed with the prosecutor" that the file would be handed over early on Tuesday, he was quoted as saying by the Lusa news agency. He had earlier said the report would be ready on Monday.
A spokeswoman for the prosecutor in Lisbon said a statement would be issued on Tuesday regarding the investigation.
The report is expected to include interviews with the McCanns and details of forensic evidence from various sites in the Praia da Luz resort where Madeleine vanished while on holiday.
"The prosecutor will then have to decide whether he has enough evidence to charge the McCanns or whether the police need to carry out more inquiries or gather more evidence," De Sousa told Reuters earlier.
He would not discuss details of the evidence, in accordance with Portugal's secrecy laws in criminal investigations.
If the prosecutor decides there is sufficient evidence to impose conditions on the McCanns or even charge them with involvement in Madeleine's disappearance, he could ask that the couple return to Portugal and possibly then order their arrest.
But it could also decide there is insufficient evidence to do anything and may ask police investigators to find more evidence. The Madeleine case can remain open for about eight months, according to Portuguese law.
