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Maddie McCann twin siblings, Amelie and Sean, have told the court that their interactions with an accused stalker were deeply disturbing and creepy. The siblings described feeling anxious and frightened by a woman who claimed she was their missing sister.

Persistent Contact Described as Frightening

Testifying via video link, Amelie described how the accused, the 24-year-old, reached out to her multiple times through online platforms and written correspondence. She said the relentlessness was quite frightening because you don’t know what she’ll do next.

Messages from Wandelt were read in court, in which she recounted recollections of living in the McCann household that she claimed were recalled under hypnosis. She told the court, It's very upsetting that she’s coming up with these supposed memories, even though she isn't Madeleine.

Fabricated Pictures Increased Distress

The court learned that Wandelt had produced pictures of herself and Amelie as children, which the prosecution alleged were generated with AI tools. A number of these images were transmitted through social media, while additional ones were produced physically and included in a letter to Amelie.

Amelie said, It was unpleasant, it made me feel very uneasy. It was evident she altered the images to make me appear similar to her, which was quite disturbing. I was aware I didn't resemble that, I knew it had been manipulated.

Psychological Toll on the Family

Amelie also spoke about the impact of the alleged stalking on her mother, Kate, who gave evidence about being approached at her residence by Wandelt and her co-defendant, a 61-year-old woman.

In my opinion my mum found it the hardest. She 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 wellbeing, she testified. It’s upsetting when someone’s pleading with you to believe them and playing with your emotions, to the point you are doubting your own judgment.

Sibling's Statement on Stress and Digital Attention

In a witness statement read to the trial, her brother said that personally, he had not been severely impacted by Wandelt's alleged harassment. However he had been upset that she was drawing social media scrutiny, with people saying nasty and unfair comments about his mother and father.

If she was not mentally ill and was completely conscious she is not Madeleine, yet makes these claims, that would be very upsetting for me, he said. I do not believe she is my sister. The fact that Julia is doing this has resulted in a significant amount of stress and I consider it profoundly troubling.

The defendant and Spragg deny harassing the family family. Proceedings are ongoing.