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Witness Statement of Alan Robert
PIKE
Occupation: Crisis Counsellor
2008.05.07
This testimony (constituted by two
pages and signed by me) is the truth
and in accordance with my
understanding. I give this testimony
with the knowledge that, knowingly
making false statements may subject
me to legal action.
Date: 07 of May 2008
Signature:
__________________________________________
I am the above reference person and
live at the physical address already
provided the police. I work as a
crisis counsellor. DC Holliday and DC
Ferguson of the Leicestershire
police questioned me on behalf of
the Portuguese police relative
To my involvement with Gerald and
Kate McCann whose daughter
disappeared from Praia da Luz in
Portugal in May of 2007.
I have been a crisis counsellor for
about 3 and a half years, and work
for a private agency titled 'The
Centre for Crisis Psychology' (or CCP). Before this job, I worked as a
social worker for about 11 years.
CCP has agreements with other
agencies who can request our
services, like for example, the
placement to a holiday to offer
assistance to someone who has
suffered a traumatic event. There
are many different aspects in my
profession, but this one seems to me
the most relevant to my testimony.
I would say that my experience with
CCP was required in order to help
people abroad who find themselves
confronted with tragic situations,
for a total of between 30 and 60
times. I got to know Gerald McCann
and Kate Healy on Saturday, May 5,
2007. I would describe my
relationship with them in totally
clinical terms. I provided them
counselling help with regards to
their emotional state provoked by
the fact that they were separated
from their daughter Madeleine. I
spoke with Gerry and Kate very early
in the morning on the 5th of May,
2007. Our services were requested by
the Mark Warner agency. I travelled
specifically to speak to them in
person, and with the family and
agency functionaries. Kate and Gerry
had been awake for two nights when I
got to know them.
I do not remember specifically what
they said about Madeleine's
disappearance and I did not ask them
about the circumstances in which the
disappearance occurred. My purpose
at the time was their emotional
state. My role was not to question
them regarding the disappearance or
to investigate. Upon reflection
however, they always referred to
their daughter's disappearance as an
'abduction.'
I would say that Kate e o Gerry were
exhausted, anguished, confused, and
angry for a few reasons, but namely
with the lack of information. They
were insecure as to how to help and
with the lack of help and
assistance. Their comportment did
not surprise me. It was a
comportment which I have witnessed a
lot at times when a trauma is
suffered. In my opinion, their
reaction relative to the
disappearance of Madeleine, as
already stated above, was completely
within the bounds of what one would
expect of parents whose daughter was
taken from them against their will.
I was not there to judge the
reaction of Kate or Gerry, but I
would say that their behaviour was
consistent, according to my
knowledge of that which they were
experiencing. I helped them deal
with the situation and offered them
face to face counselling on many
occasions, since the day I met with
them in Portugal and in Leicester.
They and the rest of the family have
access to a 24-hour telephone help
line. At CCP we use a psychological
method in each of clinical
interventions that allows the
patient to relive their traumatic
experience, discuss his or her
physical and emotional reactions and
after provide counselling and support
that helps them deal with these
emotions in the short and long-term.
Since the return of Kate and Gerry
to the U.K., I have worked for them
privately but my relationship here
has been exclusively clinical in
nature.
This testimony was made by me and is
the truth according to my
understanding.
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