Story highlights
- A UK woman is found dead days after being accused of being a "troll" by Sky News
- Sky confronted her over claims of online attacks against the family of Madeleine McCann
- Madeleine disappeared from her family's holiday apartment in Portugal in 2007, aged 3
- British police reopened their investigation into her disappearance in July 2013
A British woman has been found dead in a hotel room, days after being confronted by a television reporter who accused her of online attacks on the family of missing girl Madeleine McCann.
Madeleine was a few weeks shy of her fourth birthday when she disappeared from her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, on Portugal's Algarve coast, in 2007.
Her parents, Gerry and Kate McCann, launched a massive publicity campaign to find their daughter and say they continue to believe she is still alive.
On Thursday, Britain's Sky News reported that London's Metropolitan Police Service -- also known as Scotland Yard -- had launched an investigation into alleged online abuse of the McCanns.
It showed video of Sky reporter Martin Brunt approaching Brenda Leyland, who it said went by the Twitter handle of "Sweepyface."
The footage shows Brunt asking Leyland why she "was attacking (the McCanns) so regularly."
Leyland excuses herself and walks away before turning and saying "I'm entitled to do that."
Police to dig for Madeleine McCann 03:51
Disappearance may be tied to burglaries 02:03
Madeleine McCann investigation reopens 01:19
Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – Madeleine McCann was a few weeks shy of her fourth birthday when she went missing May 3, 2007, at her family's holiday apartment in Praia de Luz, Portugal. London's Metropolitan Police continues to investigate leads in her disappearance.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – Madeleine's parents, Gerald and Kate McCann, speak to the press in Portugal in May 2007. They launched a massive publicity campaign after their daughter went missing.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – In this photo from 2007, a Portuguese police officer searches for evidence on the window that leads to the room where Madeleine was sleeping.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – Portuguese police search for Madeleine in May 2007.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – Gerry and Kate McCann speak with Pope Benedict XVI in Saint Peter's Square in May 2007.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – Portuguese rangers search for Madeleine in Praia de Luz in May 2007.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – Philomena McCann, Madeleine's aunt, hands out posters inside Celtic Park in Glasgow, Scotland, in May 2007.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – The resort and surrounding area where Madeleine went missing is seen in August 2007.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – Reporters and television crews are reflected in the playroom window of the McCann family home in Rothley, England, in September 2007.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – The McCanns hold an age-progressed police image of Madeleine during a May 2012 news conference to mark the fifth anniversary of her disappearance.
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Photos: The search for Madeleine McCann
The search for Madeleine McCann – A Portuguese Republican Guard policeman stands guard as police begin digging in an area of wasteland near Praia da Luz on June 2, 2014.
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When Brunt asks if Leyland is concerned that Britain's Crown Prosecution Service is considering investigating the alleged "campaign of abuse," she replies, "No."
Leicestershire Police said in a statement on Monday that police had been called on Saturday after Leyland's body was found in a hotel room in Grove Park, on the southwestern edges of the English city of Leicester.
"Ms Leyland's death is not being treated as suspicious and a file is being prepared for the Coroner. Officers acting on behalf of the Coroner will look into the circumstances surrounding and prior to her unexpected death," it said.
A spokeswoman for Sky News said Monday: "We were saddened to hear of the death of Brenda Leyland. It would be inappropriate to speculate or comment further at this time."
Scotland Yard confirmed that its officers were looking into allegations of malicious communications with the McCann family, having received a letter and other documentation on September 9.
"They are assessing its contents and consulting with the CPS and the McCann family," it said. "Nobody has been interviewed by MPS officers in relation to this matter."
Kate and Gerry McCann left Madeleine and her younger twin siblings asleep in the apartment on May 3, 2007, while they went for dinner with friends at a tapas restaurant nearby. Her mother checked on the children about 10 p.m. and discovered her daughter missing.
Scotland Yard reopened its investigation into Madeleine's disappearance in July 2013 after a two-year review of the original probe. Portuguese police reopened their investigation last October.
An eight-day search of the resort town in June this year uncovered no new evidence, Scotland Yard said.
