British boy Alex Batty WON’T reveal whereabouts of his mom

A British boy who has been discovered after he was allegedly ‘kidnapped’ by his mom and brought to dwell in a ‘non secular commune’ within the mountains of southern France is refusing to inform prosecutors the place she is.

Alex Batty, from Oldham, Lancashire, was simply 11 when he didn’t return from a vacation to Spain together with his mom Melanie, then 37, and grandfather David, then 58, in 2017.

His grandmother and authorized guardian, Susan Caruana, mentioned she believed her daughter and ex-husband David had taken him overseas to dwell an ‘various life-style’. Reports have advised he was dwelling in ‘a type of itinerant commune’.

On Wednesday, he was discovered by a French pupil after a four-day hike after fleeing the ‘group’ positioned within the foothills of the French Pyrenees, in an effort to succeed in his grandmother in England. 

Alex, now 17, is reportedly refusing to disclose the place he has been dwelling for the final six years, or the place his mum, who he described as ‘a bit of loopy’, is hiding out. 

At the time of Alex’s disappearance six years in the past, Greater Manchester Police mentioned ‘intensive enquiries’ led them to consider that Alex, his mom and grandfather left Benahavis and will have tried to go to Melilla in Morocco from the Port of Malaga.

Officers mentioned they believed Alex was staying with Melanie and David who’re ‘each at giant’ and needed in connection together with his abduction. But it has now been revealed that the household had been dwelling in France. 

Recalling the day the trio had been alleged to return residence, Alex’s heartbroken grandmother Susan revealed that the trio had despatched her a video of themselves saying why they’d left the UK to dwell an ‘various life-style’. 

After years of heartache for his grandmother, Alex ought to in the end be returning to residence to England ‘quickly’, French prosecutors mentioned tonight.

An emotional Susan mentioned she is ‘thrilled’ and in ‘shock’ that her beloved grandson has been discovered alive and nicely. 

The relieved grandmother instructed The Times at the moment: ‘I spoke to him this afternoon and it’s undoubtedly him. I used to be talking to a boy when he was with us and now I’m talking to a person. I’m hoping he’ll return subsequent week. I want we did not have the weekend upon us. It’s fairly unbelievable when you do not know if any person’s lifeless or alive.’ 

Alex was discovered when, by some stroke of luck, Fabien Accidini, a chiropractic pupil from Toulouse, was driving alongside a street whereas delivering medicines within the mountainous area of Aude at round 2am on Wednesday.

A freezing and exhausted Alex, who was carrying a skateboard, gratefully accepted Fabien’s provide of a carry and ultimately instructed him of his extraordinary bid to go away southern France and get residence to his household in England.

Prosecutors say that Alex’s household have now confirmed his identification. ‘We affirm the identification [of Alex Batty]. Now he’ll return to Great Britain,’ Toulouse public prosecutor’s workplace instructed La Depeche. 

Alex mentioned he had been trekking throughout the French Pyrenees for 4 days earlier than Fabien noticed him – and one of many first issues Alex did was message his grandmother from the scholar’s cellphone to say ‘I really like you, I need to come residence’. 

Fabien instructed the regional each day of the second he found {the teenager}: ‘He was strolling whereas the rain fell in heavy drops. The second time I handed him, I made a decision to supply to drop him off someplace.

‘He was fairly tall and blond, and wearing black denims, a white sweater and a backpack. ‘He additionally carried a skateboard beneath his arm and a flashlight for lighting. His angle gave me confidence. He ended up entering into my van.’

He added: ‘During the primary jiffy, he appeared a bit of shy. We tried to talk in French however I seen that he had not mastered the language. I made a decision to speak in English. When I requested him his title, he pretended his title was Zach, after which we continued chatting.

Fabien continued: ‘We talked for over three hours! Very shortly, he gave me his actual identification – Alex Batty –earlier than telling me his story.

‘He mentioned his mom kidnapped him when he was 12 years outdated. Since then he had lived in Spain in a luxurious home with round ten folks for 3 years,’ Fabien mentioned. 

‘He arrived in France round 2021. In the center of the weekend, he determined to go away his mom to affix his household in England. He had been strolling for greater than 4 days.’

Alex instructed Fabien that he had been dwelling together with his mom and grandfather in a ‘non secular group’ after they’d kidnapped him. 

Fabien mentioned Alex had instructed him that his mom was ‘a bit of loopy’ and ‘in some weird delirium when he was speaking about spirituality’ however insisted that she had by no means imprisoned him and he may ‘go away when he needed’. 

‘He had no animosity in direction of his mom however he actually needed to search out his grandmother. He actually missed his family members,’ Fabien mentioned.

Fabien continued: ‘He was thirsty since he had been strolling for a number of days, so I gave him some water.

‘When he defined his scenario to me, I gave him my cellphone as a result of he by no means had a way of communication.

‘He despatched a message to his grandmother from my Facebook. Unfortunately she did not reply. Initially, Alex needed to go to an enormous metropolis to search out assist and go to an embassy. But lastly, I defined to him that the gendarmes may decide him up.’

Fabien drove Alex to the commune of Revel, close to Toulouse in southern France earlier than the 17-year-old instructed police who he was. 

‘When he arrived, Alex appeared very drained,’ mentioned Fabien. ‘He lay down on the bottom.

‘After that, the gendarmes questioned us. They had been looking for out if it was actually him. When they’d affirmation, he was taken into care to spend the evening in a house.

‘It’s Alex Batty, 100 per cent. When I noticed the pictures revealed by the English media, I completely didn’t doubt his phrases.

‘I believe he is a bit of confused about all this. I hope he’ll be capable of reconnect together with his earlier life and possibly at some point we’ll see one another once more.’ 

His grandmother, who was 62 on the time of his disappearance, mentioned she was ‘thrilled’ that Alex had been discovered. 

Speaking from her residence, she instructed The Sun: ‘I’m so joyful. I’ve spoken to him and he’s nicely. He is at present with the authorities in France. It is such a shock.

‘I do not know the place his mum is. It is nice information. I’m simply ready for him to come back residence. I’m thrilled.’  

Alex flew into Malaga airport in Spain on a pre-agreed journey with Melanie – who doesn’t have authorized parental guardianship – and David for a week-long keep within the Benahavis space, close to Marbella on 30 September 2017.

But Alex, his mom and grandfather didn’t come again residence as anticipated on October 8 2017, sparking a large police enquiry into the boy’s obvious abduction. 

Alex’s heartbroken grandmother, who was 62 on the time of disappearance, mentioned in 2018 that Melanie and David had beforehand lived on a commune in Morocco with Alex in 2014 as a part of an ‘various life-style’.

Susan, who has by no means given up hope she can be reunited together with her grandson, mentioned she believed her daughter and ex-husband had kidnapped Alex in order that he may dwell an ‘various life-style’. 

She mentioned on the time: ‘They did not need [Alex] to go to highschool, they do not consider in mainstream faculty.’

Now prosecutors in south west France are sure that Alex, who’s now 17, has turned up alone at a police station within the commune of Revel, close to Toulouse, after a mammoth journey.

A French Gendarmerie spokesman mentioned: ‘We can affirm that the younger man who has been discovered is Alex Batty. He is nicely and offering info’.

The spokesman mentioned the French authorities had been in contact with Greater Manchester Police who had been ‘talking to his household in England’.

Alex, his mom and grandfather had been dwelling between the departments of Ariege and Aude simply east of Perpignan in southern France in tents and caravans pitched within the wilderness in latest weeks, experiences La Depeche newspaper.

And final week, Alex determined flee the ‘non secular group’ and his mom and grandfather within the rural foothills of the French Pyrenees.

Over a number of days, he hiked throughout mountains within the Pyrenees and crossed by a number of villages together with Quillan, within the higher Aude Valley in southern France. 

After a gruelling few days mountaineering by the mountainous area, an exhausted Alex stumbled onto a street and by some stroke of luck was picked up by medical pupil Fabien on Tuesday night.

Fabien, who mentioned the boy may solely converse English, mentioned he known as the police after shortly realising Alex’s scenario was ‘irregular’. The driver dropped Alex off in Revel, Toulouse, earlier than the 17-year-old went to the native police station. 

Alex calmly instructed the shocked gendarmes how he had been dwelling in a ‘non secular group’ for the previous six years and the way he is from the UK. 

And at the moment, the Toulouse public prosecutor confirmed that it’s certainly Alex Batty.