London - (Praia Da Illuzion): Officially, Portuguese detectives never found the pay-as-you-go mobile which Maddie may have accidentally smuggled on holiday inside her cuddle cat.
This weekend it suddenly popped up in Beijing after Interpol telecom scanners picked up an ID signal somewhere near the Irish embassy.
The Gnocchia-999 had once belonged to a McCann family nanny who left it for Madeleine as a goodbye present
Maddie was notorious for taking it to playgroup and trying to call the pre-set numbers to order pizza or download new ringtones.
Portuguese investigators said today records showed the device had been used just once, probably accidentally, during the McCanns' holiday in 2007.
This weekend's Chinese signal is the first time in two and a half years that handset has been activated.
Gerry McCann is on direct debit.
