Dutch arrest man for trying to extort McCanns

AMSTERDAM, July 6 (Reuters) The Dutch National Crime Squad has arrested a man on suspicion of trying to extort money from the parents of missing 4-year-old Madeleine McCann by saying he knew her whereabouts.

The 39-year-old unemployed man sent six emails to the McCanns from an Internet Cafe and a local job centre demanding a payment of 2 million euros (2.72 million dollars) in exchange for the information, the Crime Squad said in a statement today.

Dutch authorities said there was no indication that the man, arrested on Wednesday, was involved in the disappearance of Madeleine or that he was actually aware of her whereabouts.

Madeleine was snatched from her bed while her parents dined at a nearby restaurant in the Praia da Luz resort in Portugal's Algarve region on May 3.

Last month a Dutch newspaper published an anonymous letter describing a spot close to the resort where it said Madeleine's body could be found, prompting a search of the scrubland area.

The Crime Squad said they saw no connection between the man, who was arrested in the town of Eindhoven, and the letter.

Reuters GT VV1820