Ben Needham - Missing

On July 24th 1991, a young boy, Ben Needham went missing on the Greek island of Kos. Today, he is still missing and would now be 26.

Police have revealed that Ben may have actually died 25 years ago. Their theory is that he was crushed by a digger driven by Konstantinos Barkas in an accident before his death was covered-up. Barkas died before the witness came forward.


Det. Insp. Jon Cousins, said: "My team and I know that machinery, including a large digger, was used to clear an area of land on 24 July 1991, behind the farmhouse that was being renovated by the Needhams.

"It is my professional belief that Ben Needham died as a result of an accident near to the farmhouse in Iraklis where he was last seen playing."

Before more theories emerged, Ben's family thought he had been abducted from his grandparents' farmhouse on the island. Many sightings had been reported but investigations have yet to find a firm trace of Ben or his whereabouts.

Many theories have emerged and here are a few below. If you know anything no matter how small or unhelpful you think it could be, check out the contact information below to help this investigation and to close this case...

1. An early lead police worked on was that he had been taken by a Roma gypsy family. This was following claims a Greek prisoner made in 1996.

In 1997, a taxi driver cam forward claiming that he had seen Ben in his cab with the family, several others made the same allegations.

2. Another theory that came from an unidentified source told Ben's gran, Christine, is that he was abducted and taken away on a black speed boat. Ben was then looked after by a man called Nikos who changed his [Ben] name to Andreas.

The first claim of Ben being abducted came in 1993 when a Greek man rang the missing persons helpline on four occasions between March 21st - 29th. He told them Nikos and Ben were in the Northern coast of a town called Katerini - 350 miles from Kos and added a description of the house in which they were staying.

Shockingly, the information was not passed onto Greek police until April 20th 2015, after Interpol filed a report.

In July 2017, human blood was reportedly found on a toy car and sandal thought to be Ben's. It was reportedly found at the site where Barkas was operating a digger.

Kerry Needham [Ben's mother] said:

"This confirms everything the police have suspected. It makes it all a little too real. We believe what they believe...It shows more of a conspiracy because they didn't find Ben's body.. That proves it to me without doubt they obviously moved him and buried him and for whatever reason dug him up."

The sandal and car will now be tested for Ben's DNA.

Prof. Lorna Dawson, of the James Hutton institute has been working with South Yorkshire Police. She said a specialist police dog used in the hunt for bodies had reacted to the sandal and biologists are now trying to extract DNA from these items to compare with Ben's.

--- Timeline ---

24 July 1991: Ben Needham vanishes after travelling to the Greek island of Kos with his mother and grandparents, who were renovating a farmhouse in the village of Iraklise.

September 1991: Ben's family returns to England due to illness, but Ben's mother Kerry Needham continues to campaign for her son to be found.

February 2011: Then-Prime Minister David Cameron responds to Mrs Needham, offering to support South Yorkshire Police and to press the Greek authorities.

May 2011: BBC airs a programme called "Missing 2011" which includes a segment on Ben.

September 2011: Greek police on Kos re-open Ben's case.

October 2012: A police operation focusing on a mound of earth and rubble close to where Ben was last seen finds no trace of him.

October 2013: Police say a DNA test carried out on a man in Cyprus proves he is not Ben Needham.

March/April 2015: Another DNA test on another man in Greece proves negative.

January 2015: South Yorkshire Police gets £700,000 from the Home Office to continue the investigation.

March 2016: The force secures a further £450,000 in funding.

May 2016: A team of 10 South Yorkshire Police officers visits Kos to carry out house-to-house visits.

September 2016: Police say two locations on the island will be excavated.

July 2017: Human blood reportedly found on a toy car and sandals thought to belong to Ben.

SOURCES:

Help Find Ben

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/ben-needham-prime-suspect-digger-8846635
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