Woman who claimed to be Madeleine McCann charged after being arrested at airport

A Polish 23-year-old who previously claimed she could be missing British toddler Madeleine McCann has been arrested.

Julia Wandelt - who once appeared on US talk-show Dr Phil to discuss her supposed similarities with Madeleine - was apprehended by police at Bristol airport on Wednesday (19 Feb).

She has been charged with four counts of stalking. Two of these counts relate to offences between the period of 2 May 2024 and 15 February 2025.

A third count relates to an offence that occurred between 3 January 2024 and 21 April 2024, and the fourth is for offences between 27 November 2024 and 29 December 2024.

A spokesperson for Leicester Police previously said in a statement to LADbible Group: "Last night two women were arrested at Bristol Airport as part of an ongoing investigation.

"A 23-year-old woman from Poland and a 60-year-old woman from Wales were arrested on suspicion of stalking involving serious alarm/distress. They both remain in custody and enquiries are continuing."

The other woman arrested at the airport has since been released on police bail.

Madeleine McCann disappeared whilst on a family holiday in Portugal in 2007.

Hundreds of online communities aimed at finding out the truth about the youngster's disappearance have since been formed, with many endeavouring to get to the bottom of her disappearance.

Madeleine McCann disappeared in Portugal in 2007 and remains missing (PA)

Several years ago, however, Wandelt claimed on national television that she might be Madeleine.

She'd previously set up several different online profiles, upon all of which she'd share regular posts comparing her appearance to that of the missing British toddler.

During an appearance on an episode of Dr Phil in 2023, Wandelt went one step further, claiming she was waiting for the results of a DNA test to confirm her true identity, seemingly convinced she's the real Madeleine.

The results later confirmed there was no match, and ruled that Wandelt was from Poland with some Lithuanian and Romanian heritage.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4 podcast Why Do You Hate Me? last year, Wandelt insisted said she 'regrets' the ordeal and insisted she 'never meant to hurt anyone – including the McCanns'.