The mother of missing British toddler Ben Needham has reported a 'sick' online post that used a fake AI-generated image to claim she had been reunited with her son. Kerry Needham, 51, was left 'distraught' and 'horrified' after seeing the post on the Facebook page 'Midnight Wire', which showed an age-progressed image of Ben as a grown man sitting next to her with a child on his knee.
The post, which read 'Ben Needham, finally we are together', was followed by another claiming it was an 'emotional face to face' chat after 35 years. Kerry told The Mirror she immediately asked the page to remove the post, but her request was ignored and a second post was shared, leaving her 'distressed and shocked'. She has now reported the matter to South Yorkshire Police.
Ben's sister Leighanna Needham warned that such false claims could harm the investigation, saying: 'Stories like this can cause serious harm to the investigation. We rely on the public to come forward with any genuine information about Ben's whereabouts.' She described the use of AI in this way as 'deeply irresponsible' and a 'dangerous tool'.
Ben vanished aged 21 months from the Greek island of Kos on July 24, 1991. Kerry, who now lives in Turkey, believes he may have been abducted and sold into the illegal adoption market in the US, possibly in the New York area. She had previously released a professional age-progression image in 2021, created by forensic artist Tim Widden, to aid the search.
Kerry expressed concern that the fake posts could damage the search for her son, who would now be 35. She urged anyone who sees such posts to report them and stop the page from posting further content. South Yorkshire Police are investigating the matter.
