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Madeleine McCann brother and sister, Amelie and Sean, have testified in court that their interactions with an alleged stalker were deeply upsetting and creepy. They explained feeling stressed and frightened by a woman who insisted she was their missing sister.

Persistent Contact Described as Frightening

Testifying remotely, Amelie stated how the defendant, the 24-year-old, reached out to her repeatedly through social media and letters. Amelie explained the relentlessness was quite scary since you don’t know what she’ll do next.

Communications from the defendant were presented in the trial, in which she described memories of living in the family home that she claimed were recovered during hypnotherapy. She testified, It's very upsetting that she’s coming up with these supposed recollections, even though she’s not Madeleine.

Fabricated Pictures Heightened Distress

Jurors heard that Wandelt had created images of Amelie and herself as young girls, which the state alleged were generated with AI tools. A number of these photos were transmitted through online channels, while additional ones were produced physically and included in a letter to Amelie.

She stated, It was unpleasant, it made me feel very uneasy. She had clearly altered the images to make me appear similar to her, which was very disturbing. I was aware I didn’t look like that, I understood it had been manipulated.

Psychological Impact on the Household

Amelie also discussed the impact of the supposed stalking on her mother, their mother, who testified about being confronted at her residence by Wandelt and her co-defendant, a 61-year-old woman.

In my opinion my mother experienced it as the hardest. My mother was targeted by Julia to a greater extent than the others in the family and I think it certainly took its toll on her and her mental health, Amelie testified. It's distressing when a person is pleading with you to accept their claims and playing with your emotions, to the extent you are questioning yourself.

Sibling's Statement on Anxiety and Online Attention

In a testimony presented to the trial, Sean McCann stated that personally, he had not been too badly affected by the defendant's alleged harassment. However he had been distressed that she was drawing social media scrutiny, with people saying hurtful and unjust comments about his mother and father.

If she was not suffering from a psychological condition and was fully aware she is not Madeleine, yet continues to assert she is, that will be very distressing for me, he testified. I am convinced she is my sibling. The fact that Julia is engaging in this behavior has resulted in a significant amount of stress and I find it deeply disturbing.

The defendant and her co-defendant have pleaded not guilty to stalking the family household. The trial continue.