The Mystery of Ben Needham

Mark Williams-Thomas ‏@mwilliamsthomas · 3h3 hours ago

Ben Needham police team photographed on the lash. SY Police Senior officers & press really do need to wake up . http://dailym.ai/1T96r1Y




Mark Williams-Thomas ‏@mwilliamsthomas · 3h3 hours ago

@strachs81 That is not the issue-it's a massively high profile inq where every step is being scrutinised. Conference in morning was delayed

He might possibly find more interesting information back in the UK than he would in Kos....

I personally don't think they were doing anything wrong as they were off duty. Obviously they will need to be more careful as they will be scrutinised. I'm glad Kerry is backing them.

Had to smile at this tweet:

Orient Braces ‏@OrientBraces 4m4 minutes ago
At 26 years old , a bar is probably the best place to look for him , good work . @LBC

It's interesting to hear those early reports - thank you, Seahorse. Nice and accurate with names (apart from Benny) as Kerry is called Donna at first.

seahorse wrote:Here is some original news reporting when Ben (then referred to as Benny) went missing. It was aired 5 days after his disappearance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-VWLhqC6t8

2'45"

Not sure why you're pointing out that bit, Satsuma.

It's an interview with Ben's father.

No particular reason, Freedom. I just found it interesting

Andrew wrote:

South Yorkshire police are notorious....there have been a lot of scandals....

Of course they think it is hilarious that they have been awarded so much money to have a lovely little knees up in the sun at the public expense.

Kerry is being a little naive claiming that the police are working so hard to find Ben. Of course they aren't. They know he is dead.

More games...

chrissie wrote:I personally don't think they were doing anything wrong as they were off duty. Obviously they will need to be more careful as they will be scrutinised. I'm glad Kerry is backing them.

Had to smile at this tweet:

Orient Braces ‏@OrientBraces  4m4 minutes ago
At 26 years old , a bar is probably the best place to look for him , good work . @LBC

If Ben was really alive, then why does he not make contact with his parents? He was old enough when missing to know who his real family were...

If he has been living with another family since he was less than two years old, he will have no memory of his real one and, even if he has heard of Ben Needham, he is unlikely to have any reason to think that's who he is.

Andrew wrote:An article about it in the DM.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3585616/Return-Sunshine-Squad-Booze-ice-cream-British-cops-Kos-1m-hunt-missing-Ben-Needham.html

I think the media as usual are making this are exaggerating this non-story.

Surely these coppers are allowed to go out for a meal and a couple of beers in there free time... And surely they're allowed an ice-cream the next day too.

If they were sozzled, pictured staggering out of a club, or being sick or fighting then fair enough. Just looks like they're winding down in the eve.

Wasn't something similar said about the OG officers ages ago when they were also snapped having some down-time drinks...

They know he can't be found...they are having a little joke at public expense, imo. Nice little break in the sun. Days on the beach.

Just where, exactly, are they 'searching'?

Freedom wrote:If he has been living with another family since he was less than two years old, he will have no memory of his real one and, even if he has heard of Ben Needham, he is unlikely to have any reason to think that's who he is.

He was 21 months old when he disappeared I have now read. I don't know.... I think the chances of him being alive are pretty much zilch.

Someone pointed out earlier, from a tweet i beleive.. If Ben is a 26 yr old lad and stil in Kos, then he might be hanging about in the same bars as SY police...

A valid point.

Sadly I would agree that there is little chance of him being found alive, poster.

Duncan Wood ‏@duncanwooditv · 18m18 minutes ago

More on #SYP search for #BenNeedham @itvcalendar at 6. in #Athens to make new appeal as Supt brought home #kos stays in charge of inquiry

candyfloss wrote:Duncan Wood ‏@duncanwooditv  · 18m18 minutes ago  

More on #SYP search for #BenNeedham @itvcalendar at 6. in #Athens to make new appeal as Supt brought home #kos stays in charge of inquiry

Common sense prevails, but money wasted on a return ticket thanks to the press.

Andrew wrote:Someone pointed out earlier, from a tweet i beleive.. If Ben is a 26 yr old lad and stil in Kos, then he might be hanging about in the same bars as SY police...

A valid point.

He would stand out as being non-Greek though.

But of course he's not alive.

I wonder, though, if he had any identifying characteristics like birthmarks? I wonder what was his identifying characteristic on his passport for instance? Surely the family would want to give as much detail as possible about any birthmarks/moles etc?

Madeleine McCanns is supposed to have had a coloboma. Only she didn't.

Seahorse posted this link yesterday about birthmarks.

http://www.helpfindben.co.uk/birthmarks.html

If he has been living all these years in Greece, his complexion is likely to have darkened so his origins wouldn't be obvious.

Why should he be in Greece, anyway? Just because he disappeared there it doesn't mean he remained there.

Freedom wrote:Seahorse posted this link yesterday about birthmarks.

http://www.helpfindben.co.uk/birthmarks.html

If he has been living all these years in Greece, his complexion is likely to have darkened so his origins wouldn't be obvious.

Those are two very distinctive birthmarks. He would still have them.

I agree his complexion would have darkened but the Greeks tend to have quite a distinctive look which is quite different to how the British look. They are so much darker and swarthier. Of all of the Mediterranean races, I would say they look the most different to the Brits. But of course there will be many mixed race Greeks who could look more British of course.

But I agree with others who say why would he still be in Greece?

It's all nonsense, of course, because he is certainly dead, imo. And died the day of his disappearance. The circumstances of his disappearance are highly suspicious. Kerry's account of searching everywhere and then just making an assumption is completely illogical.

I'm afraid the passage about searching then assuming he had gone off with his Uncle is really desperately incriminating. It pretty much tells the reader everything they need to know. Statistically speaking, being killed or injured on roads is one of the biggest accident risk factors for children. Far more likely than abduction. It would be completely illogical to 'assume' everything was fine just because Ben went off on his young Uncle's moped. On the contrary, there is quite a high risk of everything not being fine.

I suspect they (or at least the men) did search everywhere when Ben didn't come back with his Uncle from a moped ride. They probably feared something had happened. They probably left Kerry behind and assured her that everything would be fine so she would not worry.

They then discovered the worst had happened and I presume thought it the lesser of two evils to pretend that Ben had wandered off or been abducted.

It would be incredibly dangerous to let such a young child on the back of a moped ridden by a 17 year old. Children of that age could not possibly be expected to hold on reliably. At 21 months he was considerably younger than the McCann twins and look how wobbly and unsteady they still are on their feet in video footage. A toddler of 21 months would not have the motor-skills to be able to hold on to his Uncle reliably. And would have no idea of the concept of the danger he would be in, in the event of falling off. A teenager would have little concept of the danger that Ben was in either.

And of course Ben would not have been wearing a helmet.

I'm afraid that the adults here were reckless in the extreme in putting Ben in a situation that was potentially very dangerous and indeed lethal. I would say he almost definitely died from head injuries possibly with other injuries. That is by far the most likely scenario.

That does sound a feasible possibility but I find it hard to believe that the family could have managed to keep the dreadful secret from Kerry for all these years. 

Her younger brother was only 11 - could he have been persuaded to say nothing?

Without wanting to be gruesome - in this hypothetical scenario, what could have happened to Ben's body to ensure it would never be found?

Freedom wrote:That does sound a feasible possibility but I find it hard to believe that the family could have managed to keep the dreadful secret from Kerry for all these years. 

Only takes one,look at the chap who confessed to a murder committed some years ago in Bath who then went on to live it seems a perfectly normal married life.

I think I have a memory of a road being constructed,at that time ,now does anyone else recall that ? Did the child fall and have accident that day ?joyce1938