The widow and daughter of Australian property tycoon Bill Wyllie say they are perplexed by claims their luxury yacht may have been involved in the disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann.
Private detectives searching for the youngster want to interview Perth socialite Rhonda Wyllie and her daughter, 31-year-old Melissa Karlson, after British newspapers reported on Sunday that their family's yacht could be linked to Madeleine's disappearance.
The multimillion-dollar yacht Willpower was moored at a marina in Barcelona, Spain, three days after Madeleine disappeared from a holiday resort in Portugal in May 2007.
About the same time, a woman aged in her 30s with an Australian or New Zealand accent asked a British businessman at the marina if he was there to "deliver my new daughter".
Private investigators hired by Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry McCann hope to speak with Mrs Wyllie and her daughter, who heads the Perth-based investment company the Wyllie Group, to find out why the vessel was in Barcelona.
But a spokesman for the women said while Willpower was in Spain at the time, neither Mrs Wyllie nor her daughter were in the country.
"Rhonda and Melissa are perplexed by the media coverage of the past 24 hours, especially given that neither of them was actually in Spain on the night in question," their spokesman told AAP.
Mrs Wyllie was reportedly "devastated" by British newspaper reports about the possible connection between her 32m yacht and the inquiry.
"I have spoken to my sister and she is absolutely devastated," her brother Wayne McGrath is quoted as telling The People newspaper.
"She doesn't know anything about this.
"She does go to Spain - she's been there for the last two or three years.
"She goes to entertain friends. She is happy to cooperate with and help any investigation."
The yacht, which is up for sale in the south of France, can sleep six guests and carry four crew.
A source close to the hunt for Madeleine told the Sunday Mirror investigators were keen to speak with Ms Karlson, the managing director of the Wyllie Group, and Mrs Wyllie about the yacht.
"We have been told about the daughter of the owner of this boat and are aware of who she is," the source said.
"We understand she's currently in Perth, Australia, and will be keen to speak to her to eliminate her from our inquiries."
Marina records have revealed the yacht was moored at the Port Olimpic (Olimpic) marina in Barcelona when a woman approached a British businessman and asked about the child.
Madeleine vanished from her family's rented holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007, while her parents dined with friends at a nearby restaurant.
Investigators working for Kate and Gerry McCann last week released a sketch of the woman - described as a Victoria Beckham look-alike - who spoke to the British tourist at the marina in Barcelona 72 hours after Madeleine disappeared.
They also said they believed it was possible Madeleine could have been taken by boat from Portugal to Spain.
Police in Australia and Britain have received hundreds of calls about the picture of the woman.
McCann family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said investigators have a "number of viable leads" on the woman.
"An awful lot of these tip-offs and bits of information are well meaning, but ultimately come to nothing," he told the Nine Network on Sunday morning.
"But out of all this we have had dozens of names for the woman we're looking for given to us ... and out of that, the detectives have a number of viable leads."
A Victorian woman suggested as a possible match to the image released by the McCann investigators has denied she has anything to do with Madeleine's disappearance.
Judith Aron, of Glen Iris, Victoria, told Fairfax newspapers: "I'm totally shocked anybody may have thought I have some connection to the case.
"I have been looking after my sick father and I haven't left the country since 2000."
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