The investigation into the disappearance of British girl Madeleine McCann, who vanished nearly a decade ago, has cost $15.7 million and is expected to rise, the UK said Friday.
An additional $3.1 million is budgeted to use in the search next year, according to the Home Office.
Minister Lord Bates disclosed the figure in response to a written parliamentary question. The nearly $16 million price tag accounts for the cost up to June of this year.
Madeleine was a few weeks shy of her fourth birthday when she vanished from her family’s holiday apartment on May 3, 2007, in the Portuguese resort town of Praia da Luz
Her parents had left Madeleine and her younger twin siblings asleep while they went for dinner with friends at a nearby tapas restaurant.
Her mother raised the alarm when she checked on the children about 10 p.m. and discovered her daughter missing. A series of suspects have been questioned, but there have been no solid clues.
Last year, British police dug a wasteland close to where Madeleine went missing in Portugal, but found no clues. Portuguese and British authorities continue to investigate her disappearance.
Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, launched a massive campaign after she went missing. They say they believe she is still alive.