The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
New search begins for missing toddler on Kos
Police ‘optimistic’ that excavation work will provide answers over Ben
Police teams searching for missing toddler Ben Needham on the Greek island of Kos say they are “optimistic” a new excavation will provide answers, a quarter of a century after the British boy was last seen alive.
Digging began after a fresh line of inquiry suggested 21-month-old Ben may have been crushed to death by a digger near a farmhouse his grandparents were renovating in July 1991.
Senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Jon Cousins, from South Yorkshire Police, said the 19-strong team expected to find “hundreds” of bones, all of which will be analysed in laboratories once they are recovered.
But he also refused to rule out that Ben may still be alive.
He said: “I am continuously keeping an open mind – and still do – as to what happened to Ben in 1991.”
Asked if he expected to find answers, Mr Cousins said: “I am optimistic about the search taking place.”
Konstantinos Barkas, also known as Dino, was clearing land with an excavator close to where Ben was playing on the day he vanished and may be responsible for his death, a friend of the builder reportedly told following a TV appeal in May.
The driver reportedly died of stomach cancer last year, months before detectives from South Yorkshire Police arrived on the island for a renewed investigation.
Investigators have already told Ben’s mother Kerry Needham to “prepare for the worst” ahead of excavation work beginning on the island.
Senior investigating officer Mr Cousins said he had a “private” chat with Ms Needham, who is not in Kos.
It came as Ben’s mother said the police notion her son was dead never entered her “worst nightmares” until a mystery tip-off to police this year.
Ms Needham, from Sheffield, told the Daily Mirror: “Not even in my worst nightmares has Ben ever been dead ... until now.
“I’ve been waking up and finding my pillow wet with tears.
“This witness told police we deserve the truth – but we deserved the truth 25 years ago. I feel like he’s only come forward because Dino is now dead.
“How can you hold on to such a secret as serious as that and for all those years?”