On behalf of the family the Bulletin today received this statement: “Felix Robinson, mother of missing British man Benjamin Ross (26, from Golbourne) is appealing for information from residents and tourists in Mallorca about the whereabouts of her son after not hearing from him since July 10.
Benjamin has had a history of mental health issues after suffering during his studies to become a Barrister and the pressures of the pandemic. After treatment and seemingly feeling much better, Ben went to Palma to take a break and work in a better climate. He secured a job with a local energy company in Palma and was seemingly doing well until a series of unfortunate events led to him going missing.
On July 6, Ben set out to get his European tax code, according to the people he is sharing an apartment with. On the way back, he went to the beach for a swim where his bag was stolen.
His phone, passport iPad Wallet and keys to where he was staying were all in the bag. Ben went straight to the police to report what had happened and by the time he left the police station, it was late in the evening. When trying to find where he was staying, he became lost and when he eventually found the apartment, his flatmates refused him entry due to not knowing who was knocking on the door so late.
Ben broke into the apartment out of desperation, to be met with aggrieved flatmates who since the incident threatened to evict him. On July 10, police were called about this incident to be told they wouldn’t intervene as Ben had offered to pay for any damages and explained the extenuating circumstances. One of the flatmates, is then alleged to have threatened Ben with two men who will ‘sort him out’ and ‘remove him’ before the weekend, information that has further increased Felix’s worries for the wellbeing of her son.
During this time, Felix and Ben were trying to work with the online banking company Revolut to secure funds for Ben to enable him to access other accommodation, food and water. Unfortunately, the instructions they sent were not working which only further added to Ben’s mental state leading him to send a peculiar email to Felix, which confirmed his mental state was not in a good place, before he cut off communications with her completely.
Ben’s whereabouts since then remain unclear. The flatmate’s story has changed on a few occasions leading Felix to be concerned about the credibility of his information about her son and she now has no choice but to appeal to the local residents and tourists in the Palma area, for information and any sightings of her son.
Felix has been working with UK police and authorities to access Spanish police to begin missing persons investigations. In light of recent events with Jay Slater, Felix has thought long and hard about appealing to the media for help due to the unprecedented amount of online abuse his mother received and the enormous amount of interference in the investigation from online super sleuths.
Felix said “Like any mother, no matter what age your children are, they are still your children. I just need to know my son is safe and well. The last few days have been torture. Please, if anyone has seen Ben, even if it’s just for a second, let the authorities know. We need to find him”.
Anyone with sightings of Ben, or information about his whereabouts, should get in touch with the British Consulate and local police.
There is now a fundraiser set up to enable Felix to fund a trip to Palma to work with local authorities to find her son Ben. All funds raised will be used to cover the costs of travel, accommodation and food whilst Felix and Ben’s sister try to locate Ben. Anything not used will be donated to the Andy’s Man Club charity in support of the good work they do supporting men’s mental health. Donations can be made to the GoFundMe page - https://gofund.me/48051070”