Missing Oldham schoolboy Alex Batty to return to UK 'as soon as possible', police say
Greater Manchester Police gave an update on Alex Batty, the schoolboy who was found in Spain, six years after he went missing, Tim Scott reports
A schoolboy who disappeared in Spain six years ago with his mother and grandfather is expected back in the UK "over the next few days", police have said.
Alex Batty from Oldham was 11-years-old when he failed to return home from a holiday in October in 2017 with his mother Melanie Batty, 37, and his grandfather David Batty, 58.
He flew with them to Malaga Airport for a week-long stay in the Benahavis area near Marbella, but they did not return to Oldham as expected on 8 October 2017.
Now, six years on, he has been found alive by chiropractic care student Fabien Accidini who was doing night deliveries for local pharmacies when he came across Alex in Revel, near Toulouse.
Toulouse Assistant Public Prosecutor Antoine Leroy told reporters Alex Batty got food from “whatever he found in the fields” as he walked for four days in the Pyrenees.
“He walked and he got food from whatever he found in the fields and the gardens and he was then found at about 3am on Wednesday by a young man,” Mr Leroy said.
Addressing what the teenager said to the student who found him, Mr Leroy added: “He explained that he was being searched for and that he wanted protection.”
After being taken to a police station nearby Alex, who is now 17, has since had a video call with his legal guardian, grandmother Susan Caruana, who says she was "content" it was her grandson.
In a press conference Assistant Chief Constable Chris Sykes, of Greater Manchester Police (GMP), told reporters: “The young man and Alex’s grandmother spoke on a video call last night and whilst she is content that this is indeed Alex, we obviously have further checks to do when he returns to the United Kingdom.”
He added that the force was "working hard" to bring the teenager back to Oldham and hoped it would happen "over the next few days".
He said: "We are working hard with French authorities to bring Alex back as soon as possible.
"He is getting well cared for by the french authorities at the moment in Toulouse.
"We're in close liaison with them and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and our priority is to get him back to the UK and his family in Oldham as soon as possible."
The force was now looking at how to bring him back "in a safe way, while making sure we look after his wellbeing", he added.
“The family here in Oldham… they are obviously massively relieved and a whole host of emotions are going through their minds at the moment as they come to terms with this good news.”
The lorry driver who found Alex in Revel, near Toulouse, said the teenager had been living with a “spiritual” community.
Mr Accidini told French newspaper La Depeche the teenager had been living in the community in Spain before arriving in France in 2021.
His mum, Melanie, and grandfather, David, have not been located but are wanted by police in connection with Alex’s disappearance.
French prosecutors have said Alex Batty knew the life he was having with his mother “had to stop” after she announced intentions to move to Finland.
Toulouse Assistant Public Prosecutor Antoine Leroy told reporters: “When his mother indicated that she was going to leave with him to Finland, this young man understood that this had to stop.
“So he then decided to leave the place where he was with his mother and he went walking for four days and four nights. He was exclusively walking at night and sleeping in the day.”
Assistant Chief Constable Sykes said the force had no firm detail of where Alex had been, and wanted to speak to him "when the time was right" to find out more information.
"Alex and his family remain our focus and we still have some work to do in establishing the full circumstances surrounding his disappearance and where he has been for all these years," he said.
He added the force was working with their counterparts in France into the investigation around is mum and grandfather.
In a statement, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said: “We are supporting a British national in France and are in contact with local authorities.”
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