A psychic who has found the bodies of several missing people claims Madeleine McCann is buried just 9km from where she disappeared, the UK’s Mirror reports.

Police are now set to investigate the claims that her body was buried in a forest close to the Portuguese holiday resort she went missing from.

Michael Schneider, who has successfully located the remains of several missing people, told police Maddie "is unfortunately dead and buried in Portugal, northeast of Lagos".

The 50-year-old has given police the exact co-ordinates where he believes Maddie's body is located.

German prosecutor Hans Wolters confirmed his officers have previously used clairvoyants and in some cases received specific information.

Schneider, a former TV reporter, said: "I do not give out such information lightly and without constantly questioning myself because I am very well aware of the responsibility of what I do.

"I am happy that the BKA (German FBI) seem to be taking me seriously.

"Often you have a reputation as a freak or someone just trying to squeeze money out of someone, and this is quite hurtful. I never take money."

The investigation has attracted a number of psychics since Madeleine's disappearance - with the McCanns considering "credible" tips from seers as early as 2007.

A £2 million police review, launched in 2012, also examined calls from mediums who were previously ignored in the hunt for Maddie.

Nine years ago, detectives studied 100 logs from psychics that were previously ignored and deemed "a waste of resources".

In 2017, the family were hit by a cruel hoax after Susan Kelly demanded payment from the family as she claimed to know "the truth" about Madeleine's whereabouts.

In response to Schneider's claims, prosecutor Wolters said they will investigate but will remain cautious.

"Several psychics have responded to our call for help in the past year and offered assistance. In some cases, we also received ­concrete tips. We do not ignore them, but we are cautious."

Previously solved cases

Michael Schneider is a clairvoyant who has helped police locate missing people in a number of cases.

Last month he helped solve a case of a woman who went missing in Germany. She was found dead 36 hours after Schneider gave police the correct location.

He also successfully pinpointed the bodies of ­murdered couple Peter Neumair, 63, and Laura Perselli, 68, who went missing from their home in Bolzano in Italy in January.

German prosecutors have said they have evidence Maddie is dead, but her parents Kate and Gerry McCann remain hopeful she is alive.

Meanwhile, the main suspect, paedophile Christian Brueckner, will be charged with raping an Irish woman within the next three months, prosecutors say.

Hazel Behan was 20 years old when she was raped in her flat in Praia da Rocha, around 30 minutes away from the holiday village from which Maddie went missing.