He disappeared in 2017, aged eleven. A young British man aged seventeen, named Alex Batty, has just been found in France, near Toulouse in Haute-Garonne, and should return to his country soon, Agence France-Presse learned from the prosecution.
“We confirm the identity [of Alex Batty]. Now he will return to Great Britain,” declared the Toulouse public prosecutor’s office, confirming information from the BBC and the regional daily La Dépêche du Midi.
For its part, police in Greater Manchester, in the northwest of England, where the boy is from, said in a statement that they were in contact with French authorities to obtain details. “It’s a complex and lengthy search. Further investigations are necessary,” a spokesperson said.
According to the BBC, which cites a police source, the young man, who is in good health, claimed not to have suffered ill-treatment. He had disappeared abroad during vacation with his mother and grandfather, recalls the British media.
His grandmother, who had custody of him, told the BBC in 2018 that she believed Alex’s mother and grandfather had taken him to live in a “spiritual community” in Morocco. According to her, they did not want the teenager to go to school and were looking for an alternative lifestyle.