"It brought warmth to our hearts" family of Ben Needham who went missing as toddler "moved" by AI videos
The family of Ben Needham, who went missing as a toddler - triggering a 34 year mystery - say they have been moved by “beautiful and touching” AI videos created using pictures of the tot.
Ben Needham was just 21-months-old when he vanished on the Greek island of Kos in July 1991.
He and his mum, Kerry, were visiting the island to spend time with her parents, who had moved to the sunshine isle.
More than 34 years have passed since the last confirmed sighting of Ben, and now pictures of him as a toddler are being brought to life using artificial intelligence (AI).
Posting on the Help Find Ben Needham Facebook page, the family shared a picture of Ben previously not released to the public, showing him holding a milk bottle and sweetly offering it to a tiny kitten positioned next to him on the floor.
The family shared the picture, which, they said, showed the “gentleness and compassion that came so naturally” to Ben, with the hope that it could help in their continuing search for him.
A supporter of the Needham family used the picture to create a short, but moving, AI video showing Ben smiling down at the kitten, before the pair both attempt to drink from the milk bottle.
The family shared the video, expressing their “deepest gratitude” to the person responsible for making such a “beautiful and touching video.”
They said: “Your kindness moved us more than words can say. It brought warmth to our hearts at a time we truly needed it. Thank you...we are forever grateful.”
Seeing the comfort the video brought to the family, further AI videos of Ben have been created by well-wishers, with one of Kerry embracing Ben while he sits on her knee, and another showing Ben’s beaming smile turn into an adorable laugh as he sits for a portrait.
“We are deeply touched by the beautiful videos and messages still being sent to the page...Please keep them coming - they remind the family that they are not alone, and that so many people still care,” the Needham family said.
The family has also thanked their followers and supporters for recent donations, which helps to “strengthen the reward fund and gives the Needham family the hope and means to keep searching for Ben.”
On the day Ben vanished he was playing outside a farmhouse his grandfather was renovating, and the family initially feared the tot had been abducted.
The focus of the investigation shifted years later, however, when police received information suggesting Ben may have been hit by a digger, which was clearing land close to the area where Ben had been playing on the day he vanished.
In 2016, a team of officers from South Yorkshire Police spent three weeks excavating land where the digger had been operating, and recovered two items which were believed to have belonged to Ben - a piece of leather which may have been from Ben's sandal and a toy car that Ben had on the day he vanished.
Detective Inspector Jon Cousins, who led that part of the missing person probe, then issued a statement in which he said he believed Ben died “as a result of an accident”.
“It is my professional belief that Ben Needham died as a result of an accident near to the farmhouse in Iraklis where he was last seen playing,” he said.
In a statement issued on the Find Ben Needham page on Facebook earlier this year, the family posted: “It seems people are still posting about the digger driver theory.
“Just to clarify a few things. The digger driver theory came after an anonymous tip came in, saying Ben had been involved in an accident that day and the accident had been covered up.
“This resulted in South Yorkshire Police conducting the dig for Ben's remains. On the dig, two items of interest were found. A piece of leather that could be from Ben's sandal and also a toy car that Ben had in his possession the day he went missing.
“The toy car was found at site 2..This is where the digger driver used to dump his rubble on jobs.
“On one of the items recovered, decomposed blood was found. This was when we thought this was it, we are going to finally find out what happened. However, imagine the confusion and emotion when after DNA testing, the blood didn't belong to Ben or anyone in the Needham family!
“So, we carry on the search for Ben, we are not discounting anything found by South Yorkshire Police but there is still a chance Ben could be out there. No remains have ever been found. No trace of Ben has ever been found. We will never give up!
“There is NO PROOF to say Ben died that day. That means ANYTHING is still possible.”
Visit https://findbenneedham.com/ for more information on the Needham’s family continuing campaign, and search, to find Ben.