The extraordinary story behind the young Polish woman who became an internet sensation by claiming that she was Madeleine McCann can be revealed for the first time today.
Social media posts by Julia Wendell, 21, suggesting she was the missing British girl who disappeared in 2007 went viral – and were reported around the world.
She even appeared on a prime time US talk show to discuss her claims – before a DNA test this week conclusively demolished her claims and revealed her as a fantasist.
And we have discovered that this is not the first time that Wendell has claimed to be a missing person.
A MailOnline investigation has found that Wendell, who has returned from the US to Poland but is not with her parents, comes from an attractive provincial city and a conventional middle class family who have been deeply distressed by the attention the episode has brought them.
Julia Wendell, 21, appeared on the US show Dr Phil where she said she started suspecting she was the missing British girl in June last year, without providing any proof to back up her claims
Julia’s mother Dorota Wandelt-Cholewinski (pictured) and stepfather Piotr Cholewinski are particularly upset by the actions of US media personality Dr Fia Johnansson, a self-styled psychic and mystic, friends said
Her mother Dorota Wandelt-Cholewinski and stepfather Piotr Cholewinski are particularly upset by the actions of US media personality Dr Fia Johnansson, a self-styled psychic and mystic, who jumped on Julia’s claims and claimed to be ‘helping her’ uncover the truth – while pushing her into a number of high profile appearances.
A family friend told MailOnline: ‘Julia is a very disturbed young woman. Her mother Dorota is just beside herself, she can’t believe how this has snowballed, Julia is very sick and Dorata just wants her to get the help she needs.
‘It was clear from the beginning that Julia was not Madeleine and Dorota is furious that this so-called doctor exploited the illness of a very young woman.
Julia’s claims were debunked after DNA test results proved she is not missing Madeleine McCann
Wroclaw is rated as one of the top 100 cities in the world to live in and is famed for its picturesque Gothic squares and churches
Julia’s mother Dorota runs a chain of successful clothes shops in the city, where she lives with husband Piotr
‘Julia just needs to be home with her family so that she can get the treatment that she needs and which will make the family happy.
‘Dorota is mortified that all this publicity has caused fresh grief for the McCann family.’
Home for Julia and her family is the city of Wroclaw in south western Poland, 190 miles from the capital Warsaw, which is steeped in more than 1,000 years of history.
Wroclaw is rated as one of the top 100 cities in the world to live in and is famed for its picturesque Gothic squares and churches. It was here that the family moved from northern Poland in 2009.
Having split from Julia’s father, who moved to Germany, Dorota and her daughter moved into a smart house in a wealthy suburb of the city with Dorota’s new partner Piotr who works in finance.
Dorota is a successful businesswoman and runs a chain of clothes shops. Along with Piotr’s salary, they were able to provide Julia with a private school education.
Kate and Gerry, the parents of Madeleine McCann, spoke out after DNA results for a Polish woman claiming to be their missing daughter came back negative
Madeleine, then three, (pictured) vanished during a family holiday to Praia da Luz in Portugal in 2007, which would now make her around 19, two years younger than Julia
Madeleine went missing while on holiday with her family in Praia da Luz at the Ocean Club apartments (pictured)
A former school friend said: ‘Julia was around seven when she moved to Wroclaw with her mum and she started at the private school but she then switched to the local primary school as she couldn’t settle down.
‘She was very mixed up and as she went through school she decided she wanted to be a singer and then a model but none of this happened and she became very depressed and angry.
‘What is happening now isn’t exactly new. When she was in her mid-teens she started to say that Dorota wasn’t her mother and that she was really a child who had gone missing in Poland a few years earlier.
‘It was so sad to see as you could tell Dorota loved her and she just wanted the best for her – she rebelled and left home and started seeing a guy who was a drug addict and that didn’t help her.
MailOnline has also discovered Julia contacted a Polish charity to say she was a missing German schoolgirl Inga Gehricke, five, who disappeared from Stendal in Germany in 2015
Julia then contacted the charity again to say she was Acacia Bishop (pictured), who went missing as a 19-month-old in 2003 in Utah
‘I hadn’t seen her for a year or so and then a few months back I heard from friends that Julia was back at it again and saying that she was really Madeleine McCann which everyone knew was ridiculous because Maddie is younger.’
Posting online that she was Madeleine – who vanished aged three from the Algarve holiday apartment she was staying in at Praia da Luz in May 2007 – Julia claimed she couldn’t remember early parts of her childhood and had no birth certificate.
She wrote: ‘I don’t remember most of my childhood but my earliest memory is very strong and it’s about holidays in a hot place where there is a beach and white or very light coloured buildings with apartments. I don’t see my family in this memory.’
Eyebrows were raised at her claims and it was quickly pointed out that she was two years older than Madeleine would have been but she continued to insist, much to the frustration of her family, that she was the missing toddler.
MailOnline has also discovered Julia, who also uses the surnames Faustyna and Wandelt, contacted a Polish charity to say she was a missing German schoolgirl and a missing American toddler.
She sent officials at Zaginieni przed Laty photos of herself initially claiming to be Inga Gehricke, five, who went missing from Stendal in Germany in 2015 and has not been seen since.
Her claims were dismissed as the age gap was eight years and it later emerged she had concocted the story with a friend.
She then contacted the charity again to say she was Acacia Bishop, who went missing as a 19-month-old in 2003 in Utah but her claims were again dismissed.
A spokesperson for Zaginieni przed Laty said: ‘Julia has messaged us twice to say she is a missing person, once to say she was German and once to say she was American.
‘Neither were correct and we have been helping Julia’s family as best we can because it’s quite clear she is not very well and is constantly claiming to be people she isn’t.
‘Her family just want the best for her and for this to be resolved with her returning to therapy. For Julia’s family she is a much loved daughter, sister, niece, cousin and granddaughter.
‘They don’t understand why she is claiming to be someone else.’
A friend of Dorota said: ‘The family couldn’t believe what she was saying as they had given her so much love and support when she was younger – even though she had pushed them away and rejected them.
‘Her mother was telling everyone her daughter had mental health issues and she asked her to stop lying and spreading these claims but Julia just said she didn’t believe Dorota was her mother.
‘Julia says she doesn’t have a birth certificate or photos but she took them with her from the family home in Wroclaw – she has all the documents that prove who she is and she most certainly is not Madeleine McCann.
The main square in Wroclaw, the home of Julia Wendell, a 21-year-old Polish woman who claimed to be missing child Madeleine McCann
Wroclaw is rated as one of the top 100 cities in the world to live in and is famed for its picturesque Gothic squares and churches
Having split from Julia’s father, who moved to Germany, Dorota and her daughter moved into a smart house in a wealthy suburb of the city with Dorota’s new partner Piotr in 2009
‘She has had mental health issues for many years and there have been several cases of self-harm, she needs serious help.
‘It’s clear to the family that Julia is motivated by all this attention she is getting and in my opinion been Dr Johannson has been unprofessional and exploited the illness of a young woman.
‘They don’t see why the DNA tests were needed when it is obvious to everyone that Julia is not Madeleine McCann.’
There was no answer at the home in Wroclaw where the family live and staff at the shops Dorota owns would only say that she had ‘gone away for a few days’ because of the attention surrounding Julia.
The friend added: ‘Dorota carried Julia for nine months and she loves her with all her heart even after all this and she knows who Julia’s father is, she just wants her daughter to get treatment as quickly as possible.
Julia (right) was assisted by Dr Fia Johansson (left), a private investigator and psychic medium, in submitting DNA samples
‘But it seems that Julia just doesn’t want to stop and is carrying on her claims bringing more agony to the family, that’s why they are so angry with Dr Johannson.
‘They say if she had any sense of professionalism she would have seen that Julia was ill and not exploited her for her own gain. She just wanted to make a name for herself and was happy to use Julia for it.’
Dorota also denied claims that Julia had suffered a fractured skull when she was eight years old.
Julia claims this is why she has no memory of her childhood and Dr Johansson used it as fuel to fan claims she was Madeleine.
But her mother told MailOnline: ‘That is not true.’
Earlier this week Dr Johansson released DNA results that showed Julia was from Poland and not missing Madeleine.
Dr Johansson said: ‘At first she didn’t want to believe the DNA results, she was saying “What if someone changed the results?” but I told her, “Stop this now”.
‘I can understand as a psychologist why she didn’t want to believe her mother is her real mother.
‘But I told her – she must stop this fixation now that she is Madeleine McCann and accept the result of the DNA test and start to move on with her life.’
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