Ben Needham cops give update on whether body found in German river is boy who vanished 32 years ago
COPS have confirmed that a body found in the River Danube in Germany is not that of Ben Needham.
South Yorkshire Police, supported by Europol, revealed that a DNA sample of the body does not match that of missing toddler Ben.
Ben was playing at his grandparents’ farmhouse on the Greek island of Kos when he disappeared on July 24, 1991.
He was just 21 months old when he vanished over three decades ago.
Ben’s mum Kerry had been waiting anxiously for news after she was alerted to an appeal for information after German police found remains in the River Danube.
But cops have now confirmed that the young boy was initially discovered in the Bavarian river in May 2022 was not Ben.
South Yorkshire Police said: “Ben’s family has been informed and are being supported.
“Our thoughts remain with the young boy who is yet to be identified and, of course, the Needham family who continue in their search for answers.”
Interpol previously said that the child found had been weighed down with a flagstone slab and was wrapped in foil.
The international police agency published details of the case in hopes of finding the boy’s name and determining “the suspicious circumstances surrounding his death”.
He was around 3ft 6ins tall and weighed around two stone four lbs with brown hair and type O blood.
Interpol DNA Database Manager Francois-Xavier Laurent earlier said: “We can now assume that this boy was probably not German.”
Missing Ben’s mother Kerry had previously urged South Yorkshire Police to contact Interpol over her son’s disappearance.