KATE McCann’s disturbing dream about where daughter Madeleine’s body was buried led to her wrongly becoming the police’s prime suspect.
The distraught mum rang Portuguese police inspector Ricardo Paiva in floods of tears telling him of a nightmare that Madeleine was “lost” on a hill overlooking Praia da Luz.
Paiva was at the time acting as family liaison officer to Kate and husband Gerry and befriended them so much he even invited the couple to dinner at his own home with his family.
The McCanns told friends they found him “supportive and caring” but Kate was later horrified to learn that her hysterical phone call to Paiva led cops to switch their focus on her.
Paiva described it as a “turning point” in the investigation into Madeleine’s abduction, claiming Kate had given the “impression” during the call that she believed her daughter was dead.
The call was made in late July 2007 – less than three months after Madeleine had gone missing from her family’s holiday apartment.
Kate told Paiva she feared Madeleine was on the hill and begged him to get officers to search the area immediately.
Years later, she found out Paiva had instead called his superiors to report her “strange” behaviour.
He made the admission while giving evidence for his former boss Goncarlo Amaral – the detective who led the bungled investigation.
After leaving the force he wrote a bestselling book The Truth of the Lie in which he accused the McCanns of killing Madeleine by accident and faking her abduction to cover it up.
They sued Amaral for libel and it was during a Lisbon court hearing in January 2010 that Paiva, giving evidence for Amaral, talked about Kate’s phone call to him.
He said: “Kate called me, she was alone as Gerry was away and she was crying.
“She said she had dreamt that Madeleine was on a hill and that we should search for her there.
“She gave the impression that she thought she was dead – it was a turning point for us.”
The hill was searched but nothing was found.
Paiva said it was then that the decision was taken to bring sniffer dogs in from the UK to search the apartment and vehicles used by the McCanns.
Cops claimed the dogs found the “stench of death” and sent DNA samples to be analysed but tests were inconclusive.
During the libel case, Pavia also admitted he had suspected the McCanns from the start of the investigation.
He said: “They disobeyed our request to keep quiet about the details of their daughter’s disappearance while we conducted our investigation.
“Instead they turned it into a media circus and that gave rise to some suspicions.”
He also claimed that Madeleine’s parents should have been charged with a crime for leaving her and toddlers Sean and Amelie alone in the apartment while they had dinner nearby.
He told the court: “They should have been pursued for neglect. People have been arrested for far less – even in the UK.”
Pavia’s testimony “completely devastated” Kate, a close friend later revealed.
The pal said: “They were warmly welcomed to his home by all his family.
“The twins would play in the garden while they had barbecues and other meals together. They trusted him totally and he helped them through a very emotional time.
“Kate phoned him that night because she had had a nightmare where she could see the hill and car lights coming down the roads on it. She became convinced that the hill had something to do with Madeleine.
“Paiva had always encouraged Kate and Gerry to ring him at any time, so she did.
“She never imagined he would later use what she said against her.”
Kate and Gerry were made official suspects – arguidos – but were later cleared.
They won damages from Amaral but the verdict was later overturned.
On Saturday we revealed Kate and Gerry have been hit with a £29,500 legal bill as they seek a final appeal in the European Court of Human Rights.
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