Ben Needham police chief ordered home after binge
THE mother of missing Ben Needham fought yesterday to shield detectives who went on an eighthour drinking binge after arriving on the Greek holiday isle of Kos to try to locate her son.
Lead officer Det Supt Matt Fenwick was ordered to fly home to explain the team’s conduct.
But Ben’s mother Kerry begged police bosses to rescind the instruction, saying she fears his recall could place the £1million mission to try to solve the 25-year mystery “in jeopardy”.
Sheffield-born Ben was 21 months old when he went missing on Kos in 1991.
Det Supt Fenwick, accompanied by nine other detectives, three support staff and two force press officers, arrived on the island on Tuesday on a two-week trip to try to determine Ben’s fate once and for all. But photographs emerged of the squad already drinking that afternoon at 5pm and some of the team stayed out until 1.24am.
Legal representative Ian Brownhill wrote on the Needham family’s behalf to South Yorkshire Police to “strongly encourage you not to recall DS Fenwick”.
Ms Needham said: “Matt Fenwick is an amazing detective – he has been by our side for years now and we have never had any problem with his work. These police officers, they are human beings at the end of the day.”
Det Supt Fenwick said yesterday as the row broke that his team was “desperately” trying to find Ben, who would now be 26.