A CONVICTED paedophile has been urged to "see sense" and co-operate with private investigators by the spokesman for the family of Madeleine McCann.
The McCanns' investigation team wants to quiz Raymond Hewlett, below, in the hope of making a breakthrough in the search for the missing girl.
The British-born sex offender is alleged to have been staying near the McCanns' holiday flat in Praia da
Luz, Portugal, when the youngster went missing in May 2007. It is understood that he was interviewed during the early stages of the hunt but was given an alibi by a 15-year-old girl. That alibi is currently being challenged.
The 64-year-old offender is reportedly being treated for throat cancer in hospital in the German city of Aachen.
He was jailed several times for sexually assaulting young girls and is now wanted for questioning by British detectives in connection with a separate indecent assault.
The McCanns hope that once officers from West Yorkshire Police have questioned the former soldier, their investigators will speak to him, despite reports he is in intensive care.
Clarence Mitchell, Kate and Gerry McCann's spokesman, said: "Mr Hewlett has denied any involvement in Madeleine's abduction. Our investigators hope he will see sense and co-operate by giving them whatever information is needed so they can eliminate him from the investigation.
"It's clear the man is ill and it is clear he has information that our investigators need. It is also clear that our investigators will be speaking to him in the near future."
It is understood that before the McCanns' team can speak to Hewlett, British officers will interview him in connection with an indecent assault in 1975. Sources close to the investigation say they think both interviews will take place in "a matter of days, not weeks".
The McCanns have hired two retired detectives to help with the search for their daughter.
But a source with knowledge of the investigation admitted Hewlett was a "private individual" who could "in theory say no" to the McCanns' request.
Last night, a spokeswoman for West Yorkshire Police would not reveal any details about why British officers wanted to speak to the convicted paedophile. The spokeswoman added: "We have made contact with the German authorities. We are just waiting for clearance so we can actually go and speak to him."
Earlier, the Daily Mirror reported that questions were raised about Hewlett's time in Portugal by a couple who met him on holiday.
Alan and Cindy Thompson said the sex offender was living with his wife and six children in a converted Dodge truck travelling from campsite to campsite in the Algarve and southern Spain.
Hewlett allegedly told the Thompsons he was approached by some "Gipsy tourists" offering to buy his daughter just before Madeleine went missing.
They also recalled him mentioning a "business" trip to Morocco, where there were several alleged sightings of the little girl after her disappearance.
Hewlett told the Thompsons he was at a market in the Portuguese town of Fuseta, 30 miles from Praia da Luz, when Madeleine vanished, according to the Mirror.
He reportedly told the couple he had done nothing wrong and they were judging him based on what they knew of his past.
He said: "If you've chosen to believe anything, I can't do anything about it anyway, so there you go. Catch 22. You're basing it on someone's past, rather. That means the person's past is important. Doesn't make him guilty. You shouldn't be talking to me about it. I've done nothing wrong, nothing, nothing."
It is believed the Thompsons attempted to contact British police with their concerns about Hewlett some time ago but were not successful.
Leicestershire Police, which handled the British end of the inquiry into what happened to Madeleine, refused to comment.
A spokeswoman said: "The disappearance of Madeleine McCann remains a Portuguese investigation. We would pass any relevant information we receive to the Portuguese police."
However, the Mirror reported that Leicestershire Police had arranged to speak to the couple today to discuss their dealings with Hewlett, who is also reportedly under investigation in Germany over the death of his son David.
The boy was killed after he fell from the back of a van that Hewlett was driving from Portugal to Germany, the paper said.
Another son of Hewlett's, Wayne, said he had severed all ties with his father, whom he branded "a despicable monster".
The McCanns' private investigators yesterday flew back to the UK from Portugal, where they have been chasing up information received from the public since a blaze of publicity around the second anniversary of Madeleine's disappearance.
Mitchell added: "Our investigators have been following up a number of leads. Since the publicity surrounding the second anniversary, the Oprah appearance, the age progression picture, and the Channel 4 documentary, there have been hundreds of calls."
