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Police have dropped an investigation into the disappearance of a boy from Oldham who turned up in France six years after going missing.
Alex Batty was taken to Spain by his mother, Melanie, in 2017 and they did not return home in defiance of a court order that had granted custody to his grandmother.
In the aftermath of Alex’s disappearance, Susan Caruana, his grandmother, launched a campaign to find the then 11-year-old.
In the intervening years, the international search died down and Alex eventually turned up safe and well in France in December 2023.
Greater Manchester police (GMP) have now closed a child abduction investigation launched a year ago citing “insufficient grounds to move forward with any criminal prosecution”. The force said Alex and his family did not support officers in their efforts to bring charges against his mother.
The then 17-year-old was discovered by the side of a road in western France in December 2023 having left the commune where he lived with his mother and grandfather in the Pyrenees and been picked up while hitchhiking, carrying only a skateboard and €100 in cash.
Alex told French police that he had walked for four days through the mountains after leaving because he wanted “a better life”, including doing exams and going to university. But he later said he had fled the commune after arguing with his “anti-government, anti-vax” mother and that he had told the story about walking for four days to make it harder for police to find her and his grandfather.
“I’ve been lying to try and protect my mum and grandad but I realise that they’re probably going to get caught anyway,” he said. “I pretended I had been on such a long journey for that reason.”
After being returned to the UK, he was placed back into the custody of his grandmother until he turned 18 last year. Speaking to the Sun about his mother shortly after he arrived back in Oldham, he said: “She’s a great person and I love her but she’s just not a great mum. I had an argument with my mum and I just thought: I’m going to leave because I can’t live with her.”
He said Melanie Batty had planned to move them to a different community in Finland. He added: “I realised it wasn’t a great way to live for my future. Moving around. No friends, no social life. Working, working, work and not studying. That’s the life I imagined I would be leading if I were to stay with my mum.”
Det supt Matt Walker, who led the investigation, said: “Alex and his safety has been at the forefront of our minds and actions since he was found in Toulouse, France, in 2023. In our commitment to protecting children, we felt it was important that the circumstances of Alex’s disappearance be properly and thoroughly investigated. I led a dedicated team to do exactly that when Alex was first found, and this has continued since.
“We have consulted with various partners, such as a complex case CPS [Crown Prosecution Service] lawyer and the National Crime Agency throughout, and concluded there would be no realistic chance of criminal prosecution.
“Given this, the right thing to do is bring closure to this chapter of Alex and his family’s lives, particularly as this is the outcome they wished for. Alex is now an adult, safe, and reintegrated with life back in Greater Manchester surrounded by those who love him, which ultimately is the priority.”
