It is understood former Marton soldier Raymond Hewlett has refused to speak to private detectives working for the McCann family, unless he is paid thousands of pounds.

He had earlier agreed to be questioned by investigators in a bid to clear his name, but according to some sources his German wife Marianna Schmuker had now enlisted a local lawyer to "negotiate" a fee for access.

But the McCann's spokesman said they were still expecting to interview him and hoped "he and his legal representative will see the sense in clearing his name".

Hewlett, 62, who has a history of sexually abusing young girls, was in the Algarve when the three-year-old was snatched from her bed in a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, on May 3, 2007.

The McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "We still need to speak to Mr Hewlett, who remains a person of interest to the inquiry.

"We are confident that we will be able to speak to him in the near future, and we hope that he and his legal representative will see the sense in clearing his name."

Hewlett, is currently in hospital in Germany recovering from throat cancer surgery, but had previously agreed to speak to the family's private detectives.

The McCann family launched the Madeleine Fund in the wake of their daughter's disappearance and well-wishers donated thousands of pounds to help find the youngster.

Former soldier Hewlett, who grew up on Hawes Side Lane in Marton, now appears to be demanding a slice of that sum.

He is also wanted for questioning by West Yorkshire Police over an unsolved indecent assault on an eight-year-old in 1975.

If officers are given permission by German authorities, he will have little choice over speaking to the police, but the McCanns'
investigators cannot force him to answer their questions.

He has always strenuously denied having anything to do with Madeleine's disappearance.

Hewlett is one of 38 known paedophiles in the Algarve at the time when Madeleine vanished, and detectives are building profiles on each of them.

It is believed they regard four or five of them as being particularly significant.

Hewlett was an hour's drive up the coast in May 2007, living on a campsite with his wife and six children, in a blue Dodge truck, which detectives would still like to trace. He later moved the family to a camp ground in Morocco.