Current:Home > StocksAlex Batty, teen missing for 6 years, returns to Britain after turning up in France-LoTradeCoin
Alex Batty, teen missing for 6 years, returns to Britain after turning up in France
View Date:2025-01-11 07:33:58
British teenager Alex Batty flew back to the U.K. on Saturday, six years after he left home on what was meant to be a two-week family vacation in Spain.
Batty never returned from that holiday to his grandmother and guardian in Oldham, near Manchester. Her frantic appeals found no trace of him – until he turned up this week, walking along a road in southern France in the middle of the night.
Assistant Chief Constable Matt Boyle of Greater Manchester Police said Batty had arrived in England on a flight from Toulouse.
He said police "are yet to fully establish the circumstances surrounding his disappearance" and whether there should be a criminal investigation.
"This moment was undoubtedly huge for him and his loved ones and we're glad that they have been able to see each other again after all this time," Boyle said, according to BBC News.
Now, 17, Alex told French officials he had been living a nomadic lifestyle in Spain, Morocco and France with his mother and grandfather as part of a "spiritual community." He said the family moved from place to place, grew their own food, meditated and contemplated reincarnation and other esoteric subjects.
When his mother said she wanted to move the family to Finland, Alex decided to leave, French prosecutor Antoine Leroy told reporters on Friday.
He was spotted by a delivery driver walking alone in the rain and dark with a flashlight, a rucksack and his skateboard. The driver, Fabien Accidini, offered him a lift, and Alex told him about his life and how he had walked for four days, traveling by night, through the remote and rugged Pyrenees.
Accidini said the boy told him "that he had been kidnapped by his mother" years ago. He added "that he'd been in France for the past two years in a spiritual community that was a bit strange with his mother who is also a bit strange."
"He'd had enough. He said, 'I am 17. I need a future.' He didn't see a future for him there."
Alex's mother Melanie Batty is wanted by British police in connection with the boy's disappearance. French officials say she may be in Finland, and Alex's grandfather, David Batty, is believed to have died about six months ago.
The tale has generated intense interest in Britain, with a photo of a blond, 11-year-old Alex splashed across newspapers and news websites. The teenager's grandmother, Susan Caruana, appealed for the family to be given time and space.
"I cannot begin to express my relief and happiness that Alex has been found safe and well," she said in a statement issued through British police.
"The main thing is that he's safe, after what would be an overwhelming experience for anyone, not least a child. I would ask that our family are given privacy as we welcome Alex back, so we can make this process as comforting as possible."
Boyle, the British police officer, said detectives would be speaking to Alex "at a pace that feels comfortable to him."
"No matter what, we understand that this may be an overwhelming process," he said. "He may now be six years older than when he went missing, but he is still a young person."
- In:
- Britain
veryGood! (3)
Related
- Wildfires burn on both coasts. Is climate change to blame?
- Americans love shrimp. But U.S. shrimpers are barely making ends meet
- Orange County judge arrested in murder of his wife: Police
- Hyundai, Kia recall 91,000 vehicles for fire risk: ‘Park outside and away from structures’
- Avril Lavigne’s Ex Mod Sun Is Dating Love Is Blind Star Brittany Wisniewski, Debuts Romance With a Kiss
- Father drowns while saving his 3 children in New Jersey river
- Ricky Martin Breaks Silence on Jwan Josef Divorce
- Ford teases F-150 reveal, plans to capture buyers not yet sold on electric vehicles
- Katharine Hayhoe’s Post-Election Advice: Fight Fear, Embrace Hope and Work Together
- Father drowns while saving his 3 children in New Jersey river
Ranking
- 'The Penguin' spoilers! Colin Farrell spills on that 'dark' finale episode
- Albuquerque teens accused of using drug deal to rob and kill woman
- Play it again, Joe. Biden bets that repeating himself is smart politics
- The one glaring (but simple) fix the USWNT needs to make before knockout round
- ‘COP Fatigue’: Experts Warn That Size and Spectacle of Global Climate Summit Is Hindering Progress
- It's an 8-second video. But it speaks volumes about Lamar Jackson, Black QBs and dreams.
- This week on Sunday Morning (August 6)
- FBI gives lie-detector tests to family of missing Wisconsin boy James Yoblonski
Recommendation
-
Bitcoin has topped $87,000 for a new record high. What to know about crypto’s post-election rally
-
A baby was found in the rubble of a US raid in Afghanistan. But who exactly was killed and why?
-
X Blue subscribers can now hide the blue checkmarks they pay to have
-
Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, expelled Tennessee House members, win back seats
-
Kansas basketball vs Michigan State live score updates, highlights, how to watch Champions Classic
-
Chase Chrisley's Ex Emmy Medders Shares Hopeful Message After Calling Off Engagement
-
Parkland mass shooting to be reenacted for lawsuit
-
Amazon uses mules to deliver products to employees at the bottom of the Grand Canyon