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The Polish woman who claimed to be Madeleine McCann has issued an apology to the missing girl's parents Kate and Gerry McCann.
Julia Wendell, 21, shot to internet fame after she made a number of explosive claims suggesting she might be the Leicestershire girl who went missing while on holiday in Portugal in 2007.
Her old Instagram account, called @IAmMadeleineMcCann, amassed over one million followers as Julia shared her supposed evidence.
READ MORE: Fake Madeleine McCann launches fundraiser to 'get back on her feet' after Poland return
This included her claiming to have the same eye condition as Madeleine as well as moles in the same places, an identical dimple and similarities with her parents.
She enlisted the help of private detective and self-professed psychic Dr Fia Johansson who claimed to uncover a number of other clues, such as a lack of medical records for Julia in the city she said she grew up in.
However, the question was put to bed after a 23andMe genetics test showed that Julia was of nearly 100% Polish heritage.
Since those results were released, Julia has returned to Poland from the US where she supposedly travelled to for her own safety after the pair claimed she had received death threats.
Julia has now set up another Instagram account and late last night issued a lengthy statement on it.
Part of it saw her apologise for bringing "sadness" to the McCann family.
Julia also insisted she never outright claimed to be the missing tot. That is despite the name of her old Instagram account, @IAmMadeleineMcCann, and the comparisons with Madeleine and her family she repeatedly posted on there.
Julia said in her latest statement: "I don't remember most of my memories but I can remember some things and I never said that I am Madeleine McCann.
"I used this sentence to create a nick[name] for my old Instagram account, it was my mistake and I know it and I apologise for that because I should use [the] words 'Am I Madeleine McCann' not 'I Am'.
"So it was my fault and it wasn't my intention to bring sadness or any other negative emotion to anyone, especially to McCann's family.
"My main purpose was always to find out who I am and what exactly happened in my very hurtful past."
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