Greece BEN NEEDHAM: Missing from Kos, Greece - 24 July 1991 - Age 21 months

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Toddler, Ben Needham, went missing on the Greek island of Kos. His mother Kerry, from Sheffield, has always maintained he was abducted.


Media - http://crimewatchers.net/index.php?...s-greece-since-24-july-1991-age-21-months.91/
 
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Early Timeline

24TH JULY 1991
At around 2.30pm, Ben vanished from outside the farmhouse at Iraklis, a small mountain village on the Greek Island of Kos. A full search of the area was made but no trace of Ben was found.

Ben's details were given at the Police Station and a photo was provided. Police suggested that vehicles leaving the island by ferry to Athens should be checked. Arrangements were made to meet police at the docks at 3am. No police officer came to help.


25TH JULY 1991
Builders working on another property give statements to the police stating that they had witnessed a white car parked in the lane around 2.30pm the day Ben vanished. They believed the car to have been a Suzuki Alto or similar model. He further stated that the car contained 3 occupants - one woman in the rear of the car, and two men in the front.

Statements were also taken from all family members and Hotel staff using a local shop keeper named Xanthippi Aggreli.


26TH JULY 1991
Police finally inform the Airport of Ben's disappearance. A woman who worked in a kiosk within the airport reports remembering seeing a child fitting Ben's description in the airport on the same day he disappeared. This boy has never been traced.

The British Embassy was informed and was asked to help. However no support was offered due to us not being under arrest for any crime and the Embassy's feeling that the local police had better knowledge and so it should be best to leave it to them.

More statements were taken from family members. All statements were hand written in Greek with no official translator, only the local shopkeeper at the Kos police' request.

Days and weeks were spent looking around the island and visiting the police station for updates on the investigation, but there was never any news or further leads.


SEPTEMBER 1991
Due to illness, the family had to return to England and could no longer live or work on the island in Greece.


OCTOBER 1991
A family liason officer was appointed to us from South Yorkshire Police.


1992
Various sightings of children matching Ben's description were made to the police and to newspapers. However, these were mostly followed up by family members as lines of inquiry with the Kos Police were so slow, often taking months for a reply.


1993
A visit to Kos was made with a British T.V. Crew. We visited the Police station for an update in the investigation. Police had no information to give and the white car had still not been traced.


1996
Ben's grandparents, Christine and Eddie, met with a prisoner named Andonis Bedzios who was serving time in Larrisa Prison. He named people he said were involved in holding Ben. He had witnessed that Ben was in the "care" of the Kerimi family in Veria. He had escaped from prison in 1991 and returned to the Kerimi family as his son, Rambo had been living there at the time. The Kerimis are a very well known gyspy family. On his visit there, Bedzios questioned who the unknown boy was who was in the camp. He was told by the head of the family that they had got him from Kos.

The police were informed of this information.


1997
Christine returns to Larrissa with Melanie McFadyen, a reporter doing a piece on an update on the investigation for the "Big Story" in The Observer newspaper.

Bedzios and another witness had come forward in Veria stating they had seen Ben with the gypsies and playing with Bedzios' son. A taxi driver also came forward stating he had seen Ben in his cab with a member of the Kerimi family, who he was used to driving around. The taxi driver was asked to give a statement to police. He agreed to do so under the provision that he made the statement to the police in Athens, or another police force, but not Veria. Unfortunately, he was then taken to Veria, where he then changed his mind of making a statement and was unwilling to cooperate. However, despite his unwillingness to cooperate, when shown a photo of Ben by Christine and Melanie, he confirmed it was the child he had seen.

A video was released to the Greek Press of a boy who turned out to be Bedzios' son, Rambo. We believe a police officer from Veria had given this video to the press to try to disprove Bedzios and another witness.

On 4th September 1997, Gordon Bernard from the British Embassy in Athens was given telephone instructions from Bedzios (in prison) regarding the location of Ben. He was instructed to go to a certain street in Larissa where he would find a Mercedes with German number plates. This was mediated through Bedzios' lawyer. Numerous destinations were given to Mr Bernard by telephone, and each time he arrived at one location, more instructions were given. He had obviously been watched. Ben was never handed over. Mr Bernard did, however, find the car, fitting the description given in the place he was informed it would be. There was no-one in it.

Bedzios gave the police a sworn statement naming the man directing him and his telephone number. To our knowledge, this man was never questioned.

A letter was written and sent to Tony Blair by me (Kerry Needham) telling him about my fears regarding the investigation. He replied informing me that cooperation between the British Embassy in Athens and the Ministry for Public Order was good, and that the British Government had made the Greek police fully aware of the importance they placed on finding Ben.


JANUARY 1998
Bedzios offers to lead undercover armed police officers to Ben. However, the Kos public prosecutor would not agree to it.

I wrote again to the Prime Minister explaining the situation. His Private Secretary replied stating his sympathy, but no offer of help was forthcoming, or further information on what could be done. Certainly, not enough was being done by the British or Greek authorities.

In January 1998, After Bedzios had given new information to Christine (Ben's grandmother) Christine and Melanie visited Bedzios in jail, where he gave them postal order receipts in the names of people he had previously stated had kidnapped Ben. he stated that they were paying him "hush money" One of these names had been mentioned by him in a statement to police in 1996. This person had been questioned but had denied knowing Bedzios. This led us to question why then was his name on a receipt? To our knowledge, this has not been investigated.

Christine and Melanie spoke to a Greek Police Officer called Dimitris Deyermetzoglou who said that they had investigated Bedzios' allegations, but that he was not trustworthy.

During the summer of 1998, Gordon Bernard approached the police and requested full written accounts of their investigation. He eventually received a letter saying his memorandum had been sent to the public prosecutor on Kos.

Deyermetzoglou told Christine and Melanie that "It's up to the Public Prosecutor to examine the allegations, and what to do next. But it would be on the Public Prosecutor's head if he let Bedzios out and he got away which is why it would be unlikely that it would ever happen." Deyermetzoglou's superior, Constantinos Pallas said, "Bedzios is willing to make up any story to get out. His primary objective is to escape. If we took him to Kos, he would run away." To us, this did not make sense. If a prisoner is under guard by the police, surely he can't escape? Were they saying that they didn't know how to ensure a prisoner under their guard didn't escape? If indeed they followed up every lead, why has there been no proper report of this to the Sheffield Liason officer in charge of the case?

At around this time, Kostas Simitis, the then Greek Prime Minister, described his own police force as "Incompetent and ill educated." The head of the Greek Police Staff Federation at the time estimated that 10 percent of the forces' 43,000 were "crooked" - involved in drugs, protection rackets and prostitution.


2000
During a visit back to Kos, Greece, we visited the police to receive an update on the investigation. Chief Baffoonis told us that they had traced the owner of the white car seen in the area that day. They said it had belonged to Xanthippi, who was our translator. This conversation was witnessed by myself, my dad and Mariana Faithful who recorded the conversation. Chief Baffoonis was asked why Xanthippi was there, and he said that she had been visiting our family. This was not true! The police were therefore asked to investigate her claims again.

Upon leaving the police station, we then headed straight to visit Xanthippi, where she denied what the police had just told us and threatened legal action against them. (This was also recorded) She stated that, at the time of Ben’s disappearance she did not have the white car as she had given it up for subsidy (similar to the UK’s scrappage scheme)

Upon visiting the Transport Department, we proved her claim to be incorrect, they had recorded that she had not given the car until October of that year.

The Kos police were asked yet again to investigate her as we had proved her claims to have been false.



http://www.helpfindben.co.uk/history.html
 
Continued

2000
During a visit back to Kos, Greece, we visited the police to receive an update on the investigation. Chief Baffoonis told us that they had traced the owner of the white car seen in the area that day. They said it had belonged to Xanthippi, who was our translator. This conversation was witnessed by myself, my dad and Mariana Faithful who recorded the conversation. Chief Baffoonis was asked why Xanthippi was there, and he said that she had been visiting our family. This was not true! The police were therefore asked to investigate her claims again.

Upon leaving the police station, we then headed straight to visit Xanthippi, where she denied what the police had just told us and threatened legal action against them. (This was also recorded) She stated that, at the time of Ben’s disappearance she did not have the white car as she had given it up for subsidy (similar to the UK’s scrappage scheme)

Upon visiting the Transport Department, we proved her claim to be incorrect, they had recorded that she had not given the car until October of that year.

The Kos police were asked yet again to investigate her as we had proved her claims to have been false.


2001
A visit to Thessalonica was made to hear a court case between Mr Bakitzis (Private Detective) and the head of the Gypsy family, Mr Kerimi, for harassment regarding Ben’s case. Mr Kerimi lost the case and admitted in court that there were two children in his camp as the prisoner had first stated. MR KERIMI WAS NEVER FORCED TO STATE WHO THE SECOND CHILD WAS.

No further investigation was made into the Kerimi family by the police.


2003
The charity “Missing People” and the MET Police in the UK issued a computer age generated photo of what Ben would look like at age 12 – 14 years old. A press conference was made in England and Greece.


2004
An anonymous business man offers a reward of £500,000 for information leading to Ben’s safe return, bringing the total to £566,000.


2005
We asked South Yorkshire Police for an official memo to be sent to Kos Police regarding Xanthippi and the white car, as we had heard nothing since our last visit. We continued to follow as many reported sightings as possible. All the members of our family take turns in visiting Greece, Spain, Germany, Cyprus and Turkey, but no information leads to Ben. Another Age Progression photo is released of Ben as a 16 year old and posters are sent to Greece by the British media and UK Police. A press release is made to raise the profile in the lead up to what would be Ben’s 16th birthday.


2006
We ask South Yorkshire Police for an update on the investigation by the Kos Police regarding the white car. No information is sent to the UK by Kos Police.


2007
Madeleine McCann vanishes from Portugal, and this also brings Ben’s abduction back into the public eye. 27 press interviews were done with Kerry (Ben’s mum) in one day alone, and she continued to do interviews for another 2 days.

Another appeal was made via the UK Media as what would be Ben’s 18th birthday approached, and yet another Age Progression photo was released. Due to huge press interest, information is passed to South Yorkshire Police regarding a young man in Pathos, Cyprus. Kerry’s dad and a retired police officer managed to track this young man down. The resemblance to Ben’s age progression photo was remarkable, and he was asked to check for birthmarks. He was not Ben. The young man was Russian and aged 21. He told Kerry’s dad all his reasons for being there, and that he would have been proud to have been his grandson.


2008
After watching all the publicity surrounding Madeleine McCann’s disappearance and seeing all the support the McCann family were receiving from the British Government, I decided it was time that they also helped in our search for Ben. Over the years I had been told that British Police could not investigate crimes abroad and that the country of the crime would need to invite them.

British Police went to Portugal – so why not Greece? MP’s campaigned for the McCann family, so why not the Needhams’? Millions of pounds were raised in the McCann case – why not the Needhams? It seemed to the Needham family that Ben was unimportant in high places. The only people who seemed to care were his family, some members of the public and the South Yorkshire Police.

Kerry, Ben’s mum, wrote a letter to Prime Minister Gordon Brown begging for his help in having the investigation re-opened and the original Kos Police investigation rechecked. She stated quite clearly the information regarding the white car and it’s owner, and also the information the prisoner had given. Kerry received a reply three months later which told her what had already been done over the years (which she already knew) but nothing to tell her what could be done with the information she had given him.

We went to Kos with an ITN news team to try to follow up and investigate again the white car and it’s owner. We met with the police officer in charge, although he refused to be interviewed or filmed by ITN. We asked to see Ben’s police file and any updated information on the case. The file was in Greek, and we were left in a court yard of a Police Station to speak to the officer, not even invited to a private room.

We went to visit Chief Baffoonis (now retired) He too refused to be filmed or interviewed by ITN, but spoke to Kerry about the investigation. He said he truly believed Ben was still alive and was abducted. He also said that no support had been given to Kos Police in the investigation to assist them. But neither was it asked for… I enquired again about Xanthippi and her car. I asked why it had not been investigated properly. Chief Baffoonis shrugged his shoulders and said, “I’m retired now.”

We went to visit Xanthippi at her mini market which turns out to now be a big supermarket. She was not there. However, when her daughter realised why we were there she went into a rage and shouted all sorts of abuse at Kerry. She also tried to attack Kerry’s daughter. At that point we left. This young woman’s hatred for our family was unbelievable considering she must have only been around five years old at the time Ben went missing. What had she been told all these years?


2009
Kerry emailed Edward MacMillan Scott. He visited her home and Kerry went through and highlighted the very strong leads in Ben’s investigation (or lack of) He seemed very eager to help and Kerry felt like a weight had been lifted from her. Finally someone seemed willing to help.

Kerry compiled a dossier and sent it to him which would be passed to the Greek ministry. When he was interviewed, he stated that the evidence was compelling and felt confident the Greek authorities would have no choice but to re-open the case. Despite a further letter from David Blunkett explaining that they were trying to get Ben’s investigation re-opened, it still had not been done so, and the Kos Police have also not yet been investigated.

This year, Lorraine Kelly also presented a documentary about missing people and Ben is featured. Another age progression photo is made of Ben aged 20-21 years old. This leads to a member of the public sending in information about young men they think may be Ben. All information is sent to South Yorkshire Police who then send it to Kos for investigation.


2010
South Yorkshire Police have been very supportive of our family over the years that Ben has been missing. They do a great job and we, as a family, have a lot of respect for them. Maybe if they had been permitted to be the investigating officers, Ben would have been found by now. Another public appeal is made by Kerry in the approach to what would be Ben’s 21st birthday. The age progression photo is released again but having Ben’s hair slightly darker and slight stubble, in the hope that someone recognised him, or he may even recognise himself.

Kerry is contacted by a man in Peterhead, Scotland, Scott Morrison, who hears about Ben’s story for the first time who wants to help in any way he can. He designs some images for Kerry’s Facebook page. Within days, Scott has taken Ben’s story to heart and has designed a new official website as a campaign to find Ben, including campaign posters in 19 different languages and a new official facebook group. He then also makes a new official campaign video, and takes the liberty of taking various pro-active steps including writing to the British and Greek Prime Ministers, MP’s and the media about the campaign.

Kerry would like to thank members of the public who are showing amazing support and who have sent messages of love and support to her. Thank you! As we continue this campaign – we WILL find Ben!
 
Continued

JANUARY 2011
In the last few months, letters have been sent to the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron and the Greek Prime Minister, George Papandreou. A response was received from 10 Downing Street advising the letter had been forwarded to the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. We later received a response from the Foreign Office which was of the nature expected - another brick wall. They basically said they cannot intervene. A response has now been sent to them and also the Prime Minister asking him to take action as he is the one with the means and authority to do so. We have still never received a response from the Greek Prime Minister. Kerry was also interviewed at the end of this month on a special BBC Radio Programme about Ben's disappearance.


FEBRUARY 2011
We have now sent letters to Her Majesty the Queen, Prime Minister David Cameron, The Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the Prime Minister of Greece. We received a response from Buckingham Palace stating that the Queen gives responsibility for matters such as this to the Prime Minister. 10 Downing Street responded by saying that the Prime Minister gives responsibility for matters such as these to the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office have responded to state that they do not have the power to do anything. We are going around in circles with this government trying to get action. The reality is, however, that it is the Prime Minister who bears the responsibility to do something about this case. It is he who can take action or give the power to take action. We look forward to a response to our most recent letter (sent 9th February to all 3 above)

UPDATE: Prime Minister David Cameron finally responded personally to Kerry in what she described as the most sympathetic letter she had ever received from Government over the years, and it is a most promising and positive letter. Mr Cameron has promised the Government's support to South Yorkshire Police in the investigation, and to press the Greek authorities for whatever information is required. This is great progress!

We were also contact by a very talented Digital Artist, Tris Rossin from dot2.uk.com who offered to do a new painting of what Ben may look like at age 21. This has now been completed and we have received it. It truly is a great work and we are very thankful to Tris for his efforts!

We were contacted also by a journalist working on a story for the Sunday Express, and they will be the first newspaper to publish the new graphic of Ben at age 21. As a result of this, the new graphic would not be shown on our website until the same day as the newspaper comes out, Sunday 27th February 2011.

On 27th February, we made a lot of changes to our website, as we now have a full section of brand new posters in varied languages and also some images you can use as social network profile pics and for email footers. A press release was also sent out today with the latest developments, and details of the brand new Ben image. Later in the afternoon, the Daily Mail website also reported on the story. We had a small increase in numbers "Liking" our Facebook Page as well as increased visitors to our website. We hope that more newspapers and TV news will follow these newspapers' lead.


MAY 2011
On 11th May 2011, the BBC aired a programme called "Missing 2011" The show included a fantastic piece on Ben's story and the campaign to find him. Since the show aired, the amount of people "liking" our Facebook page, visiting our campaign website and tweeting about Ben has increased dramatically, and we are having lots more comments of support sent, as well as people emailing possible leads, which have been passed on to South Yorkshire Police. You can watch the piece about Ben from this show by clicking HERE.

On 16th May 2011, Kerry wrote to the Prime Minister again after the media reported that the Prime Minister, having previously told Kerry that he could not step in to help, had informed the McCann family that he had asked the MET to step in to investigate Madeleine McCann's case, including 30 specialist officers. Understandably, whilst Kerry was happy for the McCanns in getting this assistance, it was heartbreaking for her since she had been begging for this type of assistance for 20 years. We hope the Prime Minister will respond as he should and provide the SAME assistance to the Needham family!


JUNE - DECEMBER 2011
For the rest of the year, campaigning continued on our Facebook and Twitter pages, and we also held 2 "Balloon for Ben" days where people worldwide released balloons with Ben's poster attached. This also received some media attention for Ben's campaign. Ben was also featured in Missing People Charity's "Big Tweet" day which gained more support for the campaign to find him. New leads also came up and investigated, and the biggest breakthrough came in December when Ben's DNA which was taken from him as a baby using the "Guthrie" test was released to South Yorkshire Police for the first time. This great breakthrough means that Ben's DNA can be added to a database and then cross referenced with DNA held on databases throughout the world.

In the week of the 20th anniversary of Ben’s disappearance in July , ITV Yorkshire’s news programme Calendar unearthed the first potential credible witness in the case after producer Mark Witty appeared on Greek TV. A retired doctor came forward with information that he had come across a blonde “tourist boy” at a hospital in Larissa in 1992, who spoke to him in English and said “ my name is Ben.” The day after the broadcast Kerry’s MP Angela Smith raised Ben’s disappearance in the Commons and a request for the Foreign Office to meet Kerry was granted by Foreign Office Minister David Lidington MP. In September Greek Police on Kos officially re-opened the case and Kerry was granted a face to face meeting with the island’s prosecutor. In October Ben’s case was also featured on the ITV network documentary show “Tonight” presented by Julie Etchingham


2012
In January 2012, A "Tweet 4 Ben" (T4B) Day was held on Twitter for 24 hours to raise more awareness for the campaign to find Ben. The day was a HUGE success with people on our Facebook also taking part. With so many wonderful supporters helping out on the day, many celebrities retweeted the tweets they were receiving. The biggest of these was American Actor Tom Cruise. Others included singer Boy George and actress Jennifer Saunders. As a result of the celebrity involvement, the following day Scottish Television (STV) and ITV Calendar both did a story on their 6pm news bulletin. Then, the following day 5 UK Tabloid Newspapers also ran the story. The result of the day was Ben's story gaining a lot more publicity worldwide once again, and both the Facebook page and Twitter account exceeded 10,000 followers.

Other events held this year included a Facebook for Ben Day and another Balloon for Ben day.

Various emails were received throughout the year with possible leads, but none led to Ben.

This year also saw Ben's story gain more prominence in Greece thanks to the story being taken up by popular Greek missing people show "Light in the Tunnel" and this gained some more leads which were investigated but again did not lead to Ben.

Later in the year saw the difficult news that a team from South Yorkshire Police were to travel to Kos to work with the Greek Police in digging up mounds around the property where Ben went missing to look for his remains. Kerry stood firm in her belief that no remains would be found as she still fully believed Ben was alive somewhere. However, she understood it was work that needed to be done to once and for all rule out the possibility that he had an accident on the site. No remains were found as expected. Due to this action, Ben's story once again was prominent in the media, with daily updates from Greece on the news channels.

The Greek TV Show "Light in the Tunnel" also did a follow up on Ben's story, and this led to another lead with the release of the photo a boy in a red shirt that was taken in Greece in 1995, and we are now looking to find out who the boy is. This lead investigation is still ongoing.




JANUARY 2013
The start of this year saw the announcement that one of our supporters, Ellie Martin, was organising a fundraising concert for the campaign. This is going to be a great evening, held in Sheffield with various artists, raffles and an auction. Full details can be found by clicking HERE.


FEBRUARY 2013
Kerry visited Greece again this month to participate in the investigation of 3 potential leads. 2 proved to be fruitless, and the third is still being further investigated at this time. This month also saw the release of Help Find Ben wristbands, sponsored by a 7 year old girl who paid for the production of these, Immy Gildersleeve. The wristbands can be bought from HERE

At the end of February, the Evening for Ben Event was held in Sheffield, organised by the amazing Ellie Martin, with great acts, an auction and raffle. The event was attended by ITV Calendar and BBC Look North and raised a total of £4800

http://www.helpfindben.co.uk/history.html
 
Continued

JULY 2014
Unfortunately we didn't reach the 100,000 signatures on the Epetition to The Government for more funding & resources into Ben's disappearance. But with thanks to you all who did sign ( nearly 20,000!!) we did get a response from the Government saying that Ben's disappearance is open to leads 'forthcoming'. We have now set up a new petition asking David Cameron WHY there is NO ACTIVE investigation into Ben's disapearance and WHY there is noone ACTIVELY working to find Ben. We have moved to change. org as this site allows signatures WORLD WIDE by anyone over the age of 13.
A link to this new petition can be found on the home page.

24TH JULY 2014
24th July sadly marks the 23rd anniversary of Ben Needham going missing from the Greek island of Kos aged just 21 months old at the time.
Let this year be the last anniversary, hopefully with your support and sharing we can find Ben ...now aged 24 years old.
Together we can find the missing piece and complete the family once again.
Please join with us in sending love to his Mother Kerry and the Needham family and share this picture, together we will find you Ben.

13TH OCTOBER 2014
Bens Official Facebook page reached 50'000 supporters!
Brilliant! Thank you all so much for your support.

23RD OCTOBER 2014
Kerry, Leighanna and Leighanna's daughter appeared in ITV's Lorraine programme to mark Bens 25th birthday

They also appeared on ITV Calender News 6pm
Still pictures from both programmes can be found here..
www.weebly.com/weebly/main.php

29TH OCTOBER 2014
Today marks Ben's 25th birthday.
THOUSANDS of people changed their facebook/twitter profile pictures to help raise awareness for Ben.
The notifications from Twitter were non-stop!
Team Ben couldn't charge appliances quick enough!
And the support from celebrities was amazing.
A very thoughtful but hectic day for the ladies of TeamBen on Ben's 1/4Century birthday.


2ND NOVEMBER 2014
A very special little girl Calleigh did a sponsored bicycle ride to raise awareness and funding for the Ben Needham campaign, she raised an amazing £600!
Believe it or not, Calleigh is just 5 years old and did a TEN MILE bicycle ride!
From Howdon to Whitley Bay (U.K.)
Photographs from her adventures can be found here....
www.weebly.com/weebly/main.php

1ST DECEMBER 2014
Barrister Ian Browning to start legal proceedings against the Home Office over the length of time waiting for reply of funding request from South Yorkshire Police.
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW was shown on ITV's Calendar news programme 1st December.

1ST DECEMBER 2014
Press Release :
PRESS ASSOCIATION :LEGAL BID' OVER BEN NEEDHAM

By Dave Higgens, Press Association
 
Continued

Lawyers representing the family of missing toddler Ben Needham have said they may take legal action to try to force the Government to make a decision about
funding a new police investigation.

Ben, from Sheffield, vanished on July 24 1991 after travelling to the Greek
island of Kos with his mother ...and grandparents.

Over the years there have been a number of possible sightings and a range of
Theories about what happened to the youngster, who would now be 25.

Earlier this year, South Yorkshire Police asked the Home Office for financial
help to follow up information the family believe has never been properly
Investigated.

Now the family has engaged a human rights barrister Ian Brownhill, who spotted
their plight on their campaigning Twitter feed and offered his services for free.

Mr Brownhill told ITV Calendar News one option is to go the High Court to obtain an order to force the Home Office to make a decision.

He said: "It's effectively a power whereby the court can review the legality of something the Government or a public authority is doing, and we would
effectively go along to the High Court and say it's not fair, it's not legal that the Needham family, and indeed Ben Needham himself are waiting for an
answer on this funding."

Mr Brownhill said he is writing to Home Secretary Theresa May to ask her to
make a decision.

Some commentators have contrasted Ben's family's position with the extensive
Metropolitan Police resources devoted to investigating the disappearance of
Madeleine McCann in Portugal in 2007.
Ben's mother Kerry, 42, told the programme: "We have seen what is available for one family of a missing child, and we have had nothing like that, nothing at all, even though there is all these comparisons between the two cases. And we're still getting nowhere and I ask why?

"At the time of Ben's disappearance we were abandoned. No British Ambassador
turned up on Kos, not even anyone from the British Consulate. No-one was sent
From the British authorities to assist us, advise us, to help us to support us -nothing."

Ben sister Leighanna, 20, said: "It seems like a never-ending game - they (the
Home Office) just like to keep playing us along, dragging their heels.

"We've not had any help in 23 years. Ten months is a ridiculous period of time
and it's very very frustrating, not just for myself but all of my family"

The family have said they want South Yorkshire Police to investigate leads including a file they have handed in that lists eight separate sightings from
unconnected people of a boy who could potentially be Ben with the same Greek
Family.

The Home Office backed a South Yorkshire Police operation in 2012 when land was excavated on Kos, near the farmhouse from where Ben went missing. No trace of the little boy was found.

Last year, a DNA test on a young man featured in video footage shot in Cyprus
proved negative.

Policing minister Mike Penning said: "In autumn 2012 the Home Office agreed to
give South Yorkshire Police a Special Grant to assist their investigation into
the disappearance of Ben Needham.

"We have been in contact with South Yorkshire Police over recent months
regarding a further Special Grant request and this was received last month. It
is currently under consideration."






11TH DECEMBER 2014

A good friend of the Needham Family held an Evening for Ben in Nottinghamshire
Renowned Medium Paul Johnson had confirmed for the evening alongside raffles and tombola. A wonderful amount of £400 was raised


MARCH/APRIL 2015

Three generations of Ben Needham's family have travelled to Greece to follow up one of the strongest leads they've had since the toddler's disappearance in 1991.
Ben's mum Kerry, his grandmother Christine and sister Leighanna all went to Greece to have blood tested against his, to see if there was a familial link with the family.

The women travelled out there after receiving information that the man had no photographs of himself under the age of two, and he didn't even know where he was born. Not only was he the same age he also had links with a Greek family whose name had been historically linked to Ben's disappearance.


The family believed this could be the closest they had ever come to meeting the toddler, who vanished from a farmhouse being renovated by his grandparents in Irakles, Kos, on July 24 1991.

I'm struggling to come to terms with the fact that he isn't Ben. We know it isn't him but it's really difficult to accept.

– Kerry Needham Kerry, Christine and Leighanna met the man, who they believed has a strong physical resemblance. They decided to have a blood test despite a previous DNA test on a toothbrush which came back negative. After a wait of over a week in a hotel on the Greek mainland, the blood test result also came back negative.

A swab was also taken, which was brought back to the UK by ITV Calendar producer Mark Witty and handed to South Yorkshire Police. This too confirmed the man was not Ben.

Mark Witty reports from Greece and Kerry Wood tells Duncan Wood about the family's heartbreak after the DNA results.

Here is the link to see the exclusive filming from Calendar News...
ITV CALENDAR NEWS LINK
Statement released on behalf of Kerry Needham:

“Despite the recent heart breaking disappointment in Greece last month, where a DNA test proved a man we thought could be Ben was in fact someone else, my family and I remain hopeful for the future.

“I had the pleasure of visiting South Yorkshire Police on Monday this week (13 April) and spent the day with the Operation Ben investigation team in Sheffield.

... “I met each member of the team and listened to them speak passionately about what their roles are and witnessed first hand their commitment and dedication to finding the answers we so desperately want. I can’t describe how, as Ben’s mum, this made me feel. The investigation became real to me on Monday and I was completely overwhelmed by the time and effort the team is putting in.

“They have now laid the foundations for the investigation to move forward and will work closely with the Greek authorities to explore a number of lines of enquiry which still exist to find my son.

“I know that no-one can guarantee they will uncover what happened to Ben, but knowing that the police are trying to find answers has lifted my strength and hope immensely. It means everything to me and I know that South Yorkshire Police are working with the Greek police and to do their best for us.

“Messages of hope and support continue to flood in from members of the public more than 23 years since my son disappeared, which is a constant source of comfort and I am so thankful for their kind words.

“And the British media has also been a huge source of support over the years – without their help I don’t believe South Yorkshire Police would have received the Home Office funding to progress the inquiry.

“My family and I will not rest until we uncover what happened to Ben and I believe that someone out there knows what happened to him - I would urge them to get in touch with police.”
Anyone who has information relevant to the investigation can contact the inquiry team on 01142963025 or email them at opben.needham@southyorks.pnn.police.uk.
 
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/be ... ps-5001627

Ben Needham: Mum begs cops to visit Greek town where 8 witnesses say they saw him


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Ben Needham: Mum begs cops to visit Greek town where 8 witnesses say they saw him
22:31, 18 JAN 2015 UPDATED 00:03, 19 JAN 2015
BY LUCY THORNTON
Ben's heartbroken mum is pleading with police to use £700k new funding to investigate a lead which has haunted her for 20 years


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Ben Needham: Mum begs cops to visit Greek town where 8 witnesses say they saw him
22:31, 18 JAN 2015 UPDATED 00:03, 19 JAN 2015
BY LUCY THORNTON
Ben's heartbroken mum is pleading with police to use £700k new funding to investigate a lead which has haunted her for 20 years


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New funds: In the hunt for missing Ben Needham and, bottom right, the town of Veria
The mother of missing tot Ben Needham is pleading with police to use new funding to investigate a lead which has haunted her for 20 years.

This month, the Home Office gave the South Yorkshire force £700,000 to probe the disappearance of Ben on the Greek island of Kos in 1991, aged 21 months.

Now Kerry Needham wants detectives to visit the “strange little town” of Veria on the Greek mainland where eight witnesses claimed they spotted “little blond Ben”.

At her home in Sheffield, Kerry said: “I’m praying they will listen to me and follow up these sightings.”

Kerry, who became a grandmother last year when daughter Leighanna gave birth, is convinced a notorious family holds the key to Ben’s disappearance.


Almost a quarter of a century on, she says police finally have the means to plough through a dossier of evidence she handed them a year ago.

Kerry, 43, believes Ben was with the family on the mainland. She is backed by former British Consul Gordon Bernard, who is also convinced Ben was abducted.

The retired diplomat said the Greek police failed to take their fears seriously.

Kerry said: “We have searched all over the world but it always comes back to this strange little village. I am sure the key to finding my son lies with this family. I believe 99% Ben was there 1994 to 1998.”

The family have given officers the names of eight people who claim Ben may have been spotted in a gypsy village in Veria in the mid to late 90s.

Most recently the family’s hopes were lifted once more, when another witness came forward after learning that two years ago British police had excavated near where Ben vanished.

“We were contacted by a man who said his mother had seen the news and the picture of Ben and told him it reminded her she had seen the child in Veria years ago,” Kerry said.

“He apologised for it taking so long but his mother had no idea how to contact us and did not speak English.

“She remembers a blond haired, blue-eyed boy with the same family.

“Something needs to be done now. Somebody must finally listen.”

But the testimony of a prisoner was the most chilling. “I have little Ben in my hands,” was his staggering claim.


Five years after Ben vanished his grandparents Christine and Eddie were on Greece’s version of Surprise, Surprise which reunites families.

The couple sat stunned as the voice of Andonis Bedzios thundered across the studio before producers pulled the plug.

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Ben Needham: Mum begs cops to visit Greek town where 8 witnesses say they saw him
22:31, 18 JAN 2015 UPDATED 00:03, 19 JAN 2015
BY LUCY THORNTON
Ben's heartbroken mum is pleading with police to use £700k new funding to investigate a lead which has haunted her for 20 years


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New funds: In the hunt for missing Ben Needham and, bottom right, the town of Veria
The mother of missing tot Ben Needham is pleading with police to use new funding to investigate a lead which has haunted her for 20 years.

This month, the Home Office gave the South Yorkshire force £700,000 to probe the disappearance of Ben on the Greek island of Kos in 1991, aged 21 months.

Now Kerry Needham wants detectives to visit the “strange little town” of Veria on the Greek mainland where eight witnesses claimed they spotted “little blond Ben”.

At her home in Sheffield, Kerry said: “I’m praying they will listen to me and follow up these sightings.”

Kerry, who became a grandmother last year when daughter Leighanna gave birth, is convinced a notorious family holds the key to Ben’s disappearance.

PABen Needham missingMissing: Ben Needham
Almost a quarter of a century on, she says police finally have the means to plough through a dossier of evidence she handed them a year ago.

Kerry, 43, believes Ben was with the family on the mainland. She is backed by former British Consul Gordon Bernard, who is also convinced Ben was abducted.

The retired diplomat said the Greek police failed to take their fears seriously.

Kerry said: “We have searched all over the world but it always comes back to this strange little village. I am sure the key to finding my son lies with this family. I believe 99% Ben was there 1994 to 1998.”

The family have given officers the names of eight people who claim Ben may have been spotted in a gypsy village in Veria in the mid to late 90s.

Most recently the family’s hopes were lifted once more, when another witness came forward after learning that two years ago British police had excavated near where Ben vanished.

VIEW GALLERY

“We were contacted by a man who said his mother had seen the news and the picture of Ben and told him it reminded her she had seen the child in Veria years ago,” Kerry said.

“He apologised for it taking so long but his mother had no idea how to contact us and did not speak English.

“She remembers a blond haired, blue-eyed boy with the same family.

“Something needs to be done now. Somebody must finally listen.”

But the testimony of a prisoner was the most chilling. “I have little Ben in my hands,” was his staggering claim.

Kery fears Ben was snatched on Kos and taken to the town of Veria
Five years after Ben vanished his grandparents Christine and Eddie were on Greece’s version of Surprise, Surprise which reunites families.

The couple sat stunned as the voice of Andonis Bedzios thundered across the studio before producers pulled the plug.

Andy Stenning / Daily MirrorKerry NeedhamDesperate: Kerry Needham
He told them he was phoning from Larissa Prison and that he had once broken out of jail and had seen Ben with a gypsy family who were also looking after his son.

After the show Ben’s grandparents got a visitor order to speak to Bedzios, who was in jail for fraud. “I remember it like it was yesterday,” said Christine.

“He was adamant. He was not a clever bloke, but he never changed his story. He said he had seen the boy when he escaped from prison.

“He’d gone to see his son who was with the gypsy family and spotted the blond English boy. The prison confirmed he had escaped at this time, a few months after Ben disappeared. He said the family told him the boy had been taken from Kos.”

The inmate later went on to arrange a failed handover of Ben, getting the British Consulate involved.

Former British Consul in Athens, Gordon Bernard, 72, has spoken to the Daily Mirror about his dramatic attempt to get Ben back.

He said: “We were contacted by an official of Larissa’s town council who said they’d been told by the prisoner Ben was going to be handed over shortly.


"I dropped everything and drove to Larissa where I waited as the prisoner and this official exchanged calls and was directed to several locations.He was never at any spot they said.

“Whether they got spooked or thought the police were there I just don’t know – but it didn’t happen.”

Phone records showed the prisoner had been calling one of the gypsy family on the day in question.

“I handed this information to police in Athens but never heard a thing,” Mr Bernard said.

In frustration, Ben’s gran Christine confronted the gypsy family herself as they loaded scrap on a lorry.

She said: “I was with a translator and I was told to leave or they’d shoot me. A man said ‘I’m King of the gypsies. I do what I like.’”

A few years ago Christine and Kerry returned to Larissa to speak again to the prisoner.

But he had escaped – just a few months before his 20-year sentence was due to end. He is now on the run.

Kerry said: “Everything points to Veria. Nobody has ever believed that Ben was abducted by the gypsies.”

In October 2013, a little blonde girl known as Maria, quite unlike a couple claiming to be her parents, was seized by authorities from a Roma camp in Greece.

For years, the Needhams had been told there was no hope of finding Ben. But Kerry said: “When Maria was found everyone could see it was possible.”

South Yorkshire said it would use the cash to “commit further resources to the investigation”.
 
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/be ... ng-8481369


Ben was 21 months old when he vanished from outside his grandparents' house on the Greek island of Kos on July 24, 1991

22:30, 23 Jul 2016


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Kerry says her life has been a nightmare since Ben disappeared
Kerry Needham has a recurring dream in which she finds her son Ben, who has been missing for a quarter of a century. In her dream he is alive and well.

“He’s a happy young man, living with another family,” Kerry told the Sunday People. “But then he rejects me. I wake up and realise it’s just a dream, so there’s still a chance of a fairytale ending.”

Ben was 21 months old and will have been missing for exactly 25 years on July 24. The police hunt for him is one of Britain’s longest missing person inquiries.

“It has been 25 years of torment,” she said. “That’s when the life we dreamed of turned into a nightmare.

“We didn’t think we would get through 25 days, let alone a quarter of a century.”

Her local South Yorkshire Police launched a new investigation into Ben’s disappearance in April last year, backed by £1million of funding from the Home Office.

They have eliminated 30 people who were suspected to be Ben from their inquiries but have said the investigation is still ongoing.

5D2oO9B.jpg


The police are still investigating Ben's disappearance
He vanished into thin air on July 24, 1991, a few months after his mum Kerry took him to start a new life on the Greek island of Kos. He would turn 27 this October.

Read More

Police in Ben Needham search rule 30 lookalikes out of inquiry 25 years after disappearance
After his disappearance, Greek police failed to put checks on ferries leaving the island for the mainland and it was not until two days later that officials at the airport were notified.

Despite more than 300 reported sightings since, Ben has never been found.

The decision to leave Britain was a huge one for Kerry.

Tragically, it ended with her world falling apart.

“It could have been a fantastic life,” Kerry, 44, reflected sadly.

Her parents and her two brothers had gone to live in Greece the year before after going abroad for the first time and falling in love with picturesque Kos.

aEE4Ong.jpg


Police hold a press conference outside the farmhouse from where Ben vanished
Shop worker Christine Needham, 37, and builder Eddie, 39, sold their home and bought a caravan for the 2,340-mile journey with their sons Stephen, 17, and Danny, 11.

Read More

Ben Needham detectives say they have spoken to 'significant' people in hunt for missing boy
They set off at the end of December 1990, sending regular updates home to young mother Kerry.

She loved receiving those letters from her mum, telling her about their beautiful new life.

She would sit in her Sheffield council flat and read about their dreams and an exotic lifestyle.

“Tell Ben I’m going to show him the fishes in the sea when he comes,” gran Christine said in one letter.

One of the first letters to land on Kerry’s doormat in snow-covered Britain, said: “Steve and Dan have been swimming in the sea today.

“It was really warm on the beach, so, you know Steve, he just stripped off and, splash, he took the shampoo with him and had a bath. Great hey!” Christine also wrote saying how many friends they were making and how Kerry’s dad and her brother Steve had found jobs in the building trade.

The family described the gorgeous views across the sea to Turkey from their caravan, which they had parked on a beach.

QQLjzB0.jpg


Kerry moved to Kos after hearing how much her family loved it
Christine wrote: “We went out yesterday to a Greek picnic. It was brilliant, nearly all of Kos went. Everyone took food, barbecues, balls, skipping ropes.

“Our Ben baby would have loved it – but never mind, he can go next year. Give Ben a massive X.”

A few weeks later Kerry’s brother Danny was enrolled in the local school and Christine wrote telling her daughter: “He’ll be able to speak Greek in about six months.

“We won’t be able to understand him, although he’s teaching me a few things. Yesterday Danny caught an octopus with the fishing rod and him and your dad cooked it and ate it for tea. Sigh!”

Read More

Madeleine McCann and Ben Needham feature in video for International Missing Children's Day song
The family eventually moved from the beach to a plot of land and Christine wrote saying how they had “fixed it up great”.

She went on: “We’ve got a big garden and patio and lots of other land for Danny to play on. He’s built a tree house for him and Ben when he comes. The man who owns it says we can have some chickens and grow things like flowers, plants and veg. It will be great.

“We miss Ben very much and show his photograph to all our friends here and they think he’s lovely.”

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The search for Ben continues
She described the land as “beautiful” with “loads of wild flowers and olive trees everywhere”. She added: “You’ll love it.”

In return, Kerry regularly sent her parents photos of their beloved grandson.

Christine wrote back: “They are gorgeous. He looks so much like Simon (Ben’s father).”

While Kerry was toying with the idea of moving to Kos, her mum warned: “Like your dad says in his letter, think things over very carefully because its a big decision.”

Eventually she could bear the separation from her family no longer and wrote saying she was joining them.

Her mum wrote back, full of joy: “Can’t wait for you to get here. I’m sure you’re going to love it once you get over the big culture difference.

“We’ve got a flat for you if you want it and the English girl who lives here says she will get you a job in a bar. You only work nights, so all day you can go on the beach with me and Ben.”

Kerry said of her decision: “I missed them too much. We are a close family and it was difficult to be without them.

“It seemed they were having a nice life and I was living in a council estate in Sheffield.

“I wanted Ben to have a nice life as well and to have his family around him. My mum missed Ben dreadfully, he was like her own son.

“So in March I packed everything up and joined them. I thought, if they could do it, I could do it. The letters clinched it for me.”

0swcV19.jpg


Kerry and Ben set off on a five-hour trip by National Express coach to the airport.

She recalled: “I told Ben, ‘We’re going on an adventure. We’re going to see nanny and we're going on an aeroplane. It won’t be long now’.

“I was petrified but excited, I’d never been to an airport in my life before – and there I was, 20 years old, flying on my own.”

Her mum had explained: “Are you scared of flying, Kerry? It’s a really funny feeling when you take off and land. We can’t wait to get you here, you’ll love it. Bring only your summer clothes and best winter ones.

“Don’t bring too many as you will be struggling to carry them but at the airport they have trolleys for your luggage. We will meet you at Kos Airport so you don’t have to struggle for long.”

It all went well to begin with and within weeks Kerry had a job share with her mum at the local hotel.

Ben was a big hit with the hotel guests, who made a fuss of him as he as he sat drawing pictures. “He’d gone from a council flat in Sheffield and only seeing people when we went to the park to being always surrounded by people,” Kerry said. “He loved all the attention he was getting.”

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On the day Ben went missing, Kerry had dropped him off at her parents’ caravan and arrived at work at 11.30am.

When her shift finished about 10pm she was standing at the bar when the night porter started shouting at her to come outside. There she saw her mother with police officers.

She remembered: “My first thought was there had been a car accident involving my dad. But my mum said, ‘Ben’s gone, Ben’s gone. I can’t find him. I can’t find him’.

“I said, ‘What do you mean, he’s gone? From where? He can’t be far away?’

“But I couldn’t get any sense out of her - she was hysterical and her words weren’t coming out.

“It was pitch black and we went straight up to the farmhouse that my dad was renovating. My mum was just mumbling. She was trying to explain what had happened but couldn’t. It was my dad who explained that Mum had walked up and Ben was playing outside the doorway, pouring water on his head and running in and out.

“They said that one minute he was there and the next minute he was gone. That was at 2.30pm. My first thought was, ‘Where can he have gone? He’s 21 months old, he can’t be that far away’.

“We thought we’d find him in a cow shed, we’d open a barn door and he’d be there, asleep on a bale of hay’.”

The Needhams were convinced somebody would spot Ben and hand him in.

But nobody ever has. And 25 years later, Kerry is still praying that her nightmare will end.
 
Paradisi

Psalidi

Michaelis Kypreos

Palm Beach Hotel

Xanthippe (Sissy) Agrelli She was used by the police as a translator. Her car had been spotted parked in the lane with two male occupants.

His wife’s family had a rundown farmhouse up in the hills in a village called Iraklis.

Needham, Kerry (2013-05-09). Ben (Kindle Locations 1012-1013). Ebury Publishing. Kindle Edition.
 
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