Widow of digger driver suspected of crushing Ben Needham to death says her husband is innocent
THE widow of the Greek digger driver suspected of crushing Ben Needham to death said her husband was a 'good man' and hit back at claims he may have killed the toddler.
Konstantinos Barkas' window Varvara insists her husband had nothing to do with 21-month-old Ben's disappearance in July 1991 and claimed he never even mentioned the missing boy.
The Sheffield youngster disappeared on the Greek island of Kos in the summer of 1991 while on holiday with his family.
In her first interview his widow told the : “My husband was a good man and I know he had nothing to do with Ben’s disappearance."
However, Varvara admitted her husband had not opened up to her about what happened on July 24 – the day Ben went missing.
Varvara added: "He never once spoke to me about Ben. The only thing he ever said was that he saw a car that day. Even when he was dying he never mentioned Ben.”
Varvara insisted her husband had always co-operated with the authorities, even when he was very ill.
She said: “Even when he was really ill with his intestinal problems – and he had blood transfusions – he was still going to see the police whenever they asked to see him.
“I can’t believe after so many years this is happening again and our family name is being dragged into the gutter."
Sunday's interview comes after Ben's devastated mum Kerry has spoken of the 'living nightmare' she has faced every day since his disappearance 25 years ago.
Detectives working on the case now believe the youngster may have died shortly after he vanished from Greek island Kos in 1991.
Kerry told Good Morning Britain: "He could have ended this 25 years ago. I could have grieved, had my daughter. You never forget your child but at least I would have known where he was. I could have done something with my life.
"Instead I've had a life on hold without being able to do anything or focus on anything. I'm living this nightmare - but it could have been ended 25 years ago. I could have probably forgiven that person back then. But now, no."
The witness - a friend of Barkas known only as Dino - said his pal could have killed the 21-month-old tot by accident.
He led them to two areas of land where building waste had been dumped by Barkas and never searched, the reports.
South Yorkshire Police officers working on the Team Ben case are now preparing to look for remains in the spots.
Specialist units from the UK will head to the Greek island to carry out the grim search.
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Ben disappeared while his grandparents Eddie and Christine Needham were looking after him.
Police first dug on Kos in 2012 - but Kerry's hope of finding her son alive was reignited when officers came back empty-handed.
The new lead came earlier this year after an appeal on Greek TV for witnesses.
Cops were told Barkas, who died of stomach cancer last year, may have been responsible for the tot's death.
He is thought to have claimed the death was accidental - but officers have not ruled out a more sinister chain of events.
Barkas did not inform officers he had been working on the two land spaces they are now searching.
It has now emerged the worker was clearing entrances for a new property nearby at the time Ben vanished.
The witness said he saw Barkas "sweating and shaking" the day after the toddler disappeared.
He had apparently just returned from a police station where officers had informed him the youngster was missing and asked if there could have been an accident.
Experts have tested soil in the area and drone images have been taken ahead of the dig.
If any remains are found, cops will probe whether Barkas knew for sure he had killed Ben and denied the truth - as detectives fear his pals could have conspired to protect him from police.
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