The McCann 'Stalkers' - “Why?”

The Trial

The Crime Desk

True Crime

4.2 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 7 November 2025

⏱️ 43 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Guilty of harassment but Not Guilty of stalking. That’s the jury’s verdict today on Julia Wandelt’s “relentless” pursuit of the parents of Madeleine McCann. It means she could soon be released from prison and likely deported back to Poland. In this episode Caroline and Claire have all the reactions from the court, including how the McCanns said they hoped she can now get the care and support she needs. Plus we have an interview with Julia Wandelt’s father who told us how damaged she was after she was abused by her step-grandfather and he feels - like the McCanns - that he has also lost his daughter.

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Presenters: Caroline Cheetham and Claire Duffin

Editor: Chelsea Moore

Creative Director: Caroline Cheetham

Producer: Chelsea Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Voice Actors: Lucy Ryan and Rhys Hanson

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular.

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The Trial series uses actors and some voices generated by AI. Their words are taken as verbatim from the official court transcript.

Click here to sign up to The Crime Desk's weekly newsletter.

It's free and packed with exclusive interviews, expert insight, and gripping deep dive investigations from across the world.

A Daily Mail production.

Seriously Popular.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Trial UK, the McCann Stalkers.
0:09.8	I'm Caroline Cheatham.
0:11.1	And I'm Claire Duffin.
0:12.6	Today we have the verdicts in this case.
0:15.7	Julia Vandelle is not guilty of stalking but guilty of harassment and Karen Sprague is not guilty of both
0:21.9	stalking and harassment of the parents of Madeline McCann.
0:25.7	Today we have the background to this case, including an exclusive and just very sad interview
0:32.0	with Julia Vandelt's father.
0:34.7	Yeah, in the conversation that you were here today, he says that his daughter was
0:38.6	carefree and happy until she was abused by her step-grandfather. After that, he said she started
0:44.4	to question her true identity and her conviction that she was Madeline McCann began. She also started to
0:51.3	self-harm and over a decade she was in and out of hospital.
0:56.0	Today her dad pleaded with the court saying she needs help.
1:00.3	And just like the McCannes, he says he's also lost his daughter.
1:04.3	Welcome to Episode 11. Why?
1:33.0	Yeah. So in the last few minutes, Julia Vandelle was convicted of harassing the family of Madeline McCann, but she was cleared of the more serious charge of stalking them, causing them alarm
1:39.1	or distress. Karen Sprague was cleared of both charges. The jury at Leicester Crown Court took just over seven hours to decide that although
1:47.9	Julia Vandelle never denied pursuing the family with calls, emails, messages and letters,
1:53.9	and turning up at their home, her behaviour did not amount to stalking.
1:59.1	Claire, you're there, you're sitting outside the court at the
2:01.7	moment. I think in a car, we can hear the rain all around you because it's just started raining
2:06.8	there. But we should just say that throughout this case, Yuli Vandelt has been emotional.
	...

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