British mum faces 'painful' wait to find out if man is actually her son who vanished from Greece 33 years ago
Thirty three years to the day that missing British toddler Ben Needham disappeared whilst on holiday in Greece in 1991, a man claiming his identity has came forward.
The 21-month-old was staying with his family in a hotel on the Greek island of Kos prior to his disappearance on 24 July, 33 years ago.
The group had been staying with Ben's grandparents, Eddie and Christine Needham, at their farmhouse in the village of Iraklis near Kos town, at the time.
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The day he went missing, the toddler had been left in the care of the duo whilst his mother, Kerry, went to work at a nearby hotel.
According to his grandparents' claims, the tot had been wandering in and out of the farmhouse repeatedly.
It wasn't until 2.30pm that Eddie and Christie realised he was missing.
Despite an extensive search and countless police interviews, however, investigating authorities had no leads on the fate that befell the child - until this week.
Nikolaos Dakouras, the island's chief of police, told press at the time: "We now believe we have searched every possible part of that area, and the boy is not there.
"It leaves us with a great mystery. We have no theories. We have no solutions."
This week, however, a man living in Denmark has come forward claiming to be the missing toddler, who hailed from Lincolnshire.
According to South Yorkshire police, the unnamed man's DNA has now been tested, and is being compared to a sample of Ben's DNA, maintained by the force 'to provide Ben's family with a definitive answer'.
A representative of the authorities told press today: "Whist South Yorkshire Police has no jurisdiction in Greece, we are keen to support Greek authorities and Ben’s family in any way we can and a senior investigating officer remains in contact with Greek counterparts.
"Our thoughts are with Ben’s family who have never given up hope of discovering the truth of what happened on 24 July 1991 and we will continue to support them in that endeavour."
Following the development, Ben's mother Kerry is now imploring with police to reinterview any suspects they believed could have had a part to play in his disappearance.
Speaking to The Mirror since the Danish man came forward, she explained: "I’m going to be spending the day [the anniversary] trying not to relive the horror of it all. Every day is hard but this is always a devastating day to face.
"I really want them to reinterview a number of witnesses who lied and those who refused to talk to us properly.
"There are people who know where Ben is on that island. I cannot understand how they can live with themselves knowing they could end our torture. They can't go to prison because the statute of limitations is 20 years, so they have nothing to lose."
In the years that followed his disappearance, both British and Greek police have returned to the case in the hope of discovering a new development.
A deathbed confession from a digger driver in 2012 alleged that he'd accidentally killed the toddler and had buried his remains.
Police were sadly unable to confirm truth in the man's statement, however, and any remains that have since been found on the island do not match those of Ben.
Detective Inspector Jon Cousins, who was previously in charge of the inquiry, also previously stated he believed the toddler had died in an accident near the farmhouse.
Now, Yorkshire Police are hoping that the news will assist in tracking down witnesses that prompted the accidentally death theory.
A spokesperson for the British authorities also declared a wish today to rekindle with the Greek police once again in the hope of getting to the bottom of the matter.
"Whilst South Yorkshire Police has no jurisdiction in Greece, we are keen to support Greek authorities and Ben’s family in any way we can and a senior investigating officer remains in contact with Greek counterparts," the representative said.
"Our thoughts are with Ben’s family who have never given up hope of discovering the truth of what happened on 24 July 1991 and we will continue to support them in that endeavour."
Topics: Crime, Parenting, Travel, True Crime, UK News, Ben Needham
Rhianna Benson