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Maddie McCann's twin siblings, Amelie and Sean, have told the court that their encounters with an accused harasser were deeply disturbing and unsettling. They described feeling stressed and frightened by a woman who claimed she was their long-lost sister.

Relentless Contact Described as Frightening

Appearing remotely, Amelie described how the accused, the 24-year-old, contacted her repeatedly through social media and letters. Amelie explained the persistence was quite scary since it's impossible to predict what her next move might be.

Communications from the defendant were read in court, in which she described memories of being in the McCann household that she said were recalled under hypnosis. Amelie told the court, It’s quite disturbing that she's inventing these alleged memories, despite the fact she isn't Madeleine.

Fabricated Pictures Heightened Unease

Jurors learned that the accused had created pictures of herself and Amelie as children, which the prosecution said were made with ChatGPT. Some of these photos were transmitted through social media, while additional ones were printed and enclosed in a mail to her.

She stated, It was unpleasant, it caused me to feel very uncomfortable. It was evident she altered the pictures to make me appear similar to her, which was very distressing. I was aware I didn’t look like that, I understood it had been changed.

Emotional Toll on the Family

Amelie also discussed the effect of the supposed harassment on her parent, their mother, who gave evidence about being approached at her residence by the defendant and her co-defendant, Karen Spragg.

In my opinion my mother found it the hardest. My mother was targeted by the defendant to a greater extent than the rest of us and I believe it definitely had a negative effect on her and her mental health, she testified. It’s upsetting when someone’s begging you to accept their claims and playing with your emotions, to the extent you are doubting your own judgment.

Sibling's Statement on Anxiety and Digital Scrutiny

In a testimony presented to the court, Sean McCann said that for him, he had not been severely impacted by the defendant's accused stalking. But he had been upset that she was attracting online attention, with people posting nasty and unfair comments about his parents.

In the event that Wandelt was not mentally ill and was fully aware she is not Maddie, yet makes these claims, that would be very upsetting for me, he testified. I do not believe she is my sibling. The reality that Julia is doing this has caused me a significant amount of stress and I consider it deeply troubling.

Wandelt and her co-defendant deny stalking the McCann family. The trial are ongoing.