Police start digging on Kos in search for Ben Needham
Police teams searching for missing Sheffield toddler Ben Needham on the Greek island of Kos say they're "optimistic'' a new excavation will provide answers - 25 years after he disappeared.
Police teams searching for missing Sheffield toddler Ben Needham on the Greek island of Kos say they're "optimistic'' a new excavation will provide answers - 25 years after he disappeared.
They're due to start digging at two sites 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.
There are still some other live lines of inquiry of what might have happened to Ben.
All of this has resulted in a lot of myth and legend that has gathered over 25 years as to what has happened to Ben. It has allowed us to pare back and find out the truth and fact. That is why we're here today.
"There are many lines of inquiry. I am keeping an open mind, but what I know at the moment with all the information we have, I've made the decision that it is necessary to do the work that we are going to be doing over the next week or so.''
Ellie Martin helps run the Find Ben Needham campaign, and told Hallam the family are preparing for the worst:
"They believe it could be true and they are preparing themselves that they may actually find Ben on this dig. Kerry's terrified. It's her worst nightmare. For 25 years she felt she'd find Ben alive and now she's faced with the fact they're digging to find Ben's remains.
"It's going to be an emotional, frightening and anxious time and I hope they can all just draw strength from each other and get through this next part of the investigation like they have done since the day Ben disappeared.
"As Kerry says, if Ben is found on this dig, at least she'll know he's not suffered and had a bad life for 25 years. Because it's the uncertainty of everything that just keeps going round in your head."