Alex was found by a delivery driver in a mountainous region in southern France
Alex Batty, a British teenager who went missing on holiday six years ago, was found in France earlier this week. According to the Agence France-Presses (AFP) news agency, police said on Saturday that Alex had arrived safely back in the UK.
According to the report, Alex Batty was just 11 years old when he went missing while on vacation in 2017. Six years later, Alex was found this week by a delivery driver in a mountainous region of southern France. This happened after Alex had been running for four days.
Announcing Alex's arrival, Greater Manchester Police's Matt Boyle told reporters: “It is with great pleasure that I can say that after six years, Alex has now returned safely to the UK.”
The 17-year-old has since returned to his maternal grandmother, Susan Caruana, who was reportedly given custody of him by the British justice system before his mother, Melanie Batty, kidnapped him. According to Toulouse deputy prosecutor Antoine Leroy, Alex decided to flee when Melani announced that she was going to Finland, where she is believed to be currently located.
Alex told investigators in France that they had spent time in Morocco before moving to the French Pyrenees. The report added that Alex has been living a “nomadic” life in a “spiritual community” for six years. In an interview with investigators, the teenager revealed that he had never stayed in the same place for more than several months.
After escaping from his mother's care, Alex told investigators that he moved around at night to avoid detection and found food in “gardens and fields.”
Student Fabien Accidini, who found Alex, told AFP that Alex looked like he “clearly needed help” and couldn't speak French.
Accidini, who works as a delivery driver, added that he picked Alex up “between two villages in the early hours of Thursday morning in the pouring rain.” Accidini added that Alex “looked a little suspicious at first” and gave a fake name, and said he soon began helping with local deliveries and opened up. “When he told me he had been kidnapped, I made him say it again – it was crazy!” said Accidini.
Next, Accidini helped Alex contact his grandmother via Facebook and waited for officers to arrive. Meanwhile, Accidini also found Alex's missing person reports on the Internet. “I put in his first and last name and saw his photo, which was identical to his face today when he was 17,” he said.
Accidini added that Alex expressed his desire to go back to school and become an engineer.
Speaking about being reunited with her grandson, Ms Caruana said in a statement released by Greater Manchester Police: “I can't wait to see him when we are reunited.” The main thing is that he is safe, after one Experience that would be an overwhelming experience for anyone, not least a child.”