British detectives will travel to Greece to reinvestigate the Ben Needham case, the two-year old toddler who disappeared on the Greek island of Kos in 1991.
The Home Office has agreed extra funding for the South Yorkshire police.
The announcement has come just several weeks after Ben’s mother, Kerry Grist, threatened to sue the Home Secretary. She was well aware of the nearly £10 million of Home Office money devoted to the Madeleine McCann investigation.
The case is one of the UK’s longest running missing person’s inquiry. No trace of Ben has ever been uncovered although there had been a lengthy investigation.
Now South Yorkshire police officers will assist Greek police on Kos in pursuing a number of leads, including possible sightings of Ben in Greece and interviewing several potential people of interest.
South Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Dr Alan Billings, made the application for extra funding. He said that Ben’s mother has spent 23 years searching for her son and that the South Yorkshire force has worked hard on the case, but more can be done with the additional funding.
The inquiry is likely to begin in April.
