Major twist in investigation over teenager Alex Batty who vanished for six years
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A criminal investigation into the disappearance of Alex Batty has been discontinued. Now 18, Alex was just 11 when he vanished after going on what was supposed to be a two-week holiday to Spain with his mum and grandad in 2017. It would be six years before his grandmother, and legal guardian, Susan Caruana, would see Alex again.
![[Alex with his mum and grandad in a Facebook video sent back home Alex Batty Melanie and grandfather David]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_184150857-5e4f.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
That was in 2023 when he popped up in near Toulouse, France, having crossed the Pyrenees mountains on foot as he fled the ‘alternative’ nomadic lifestyle’ his ‘anti-vax, anti-government’ mother had raised him in. Police in Oldham, where he is from, had launched an investigation into his disappearance.
![[NEWS: Map shows where Alex Batty went missing and was found six years later]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_184100398-5c11.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
But that has not been dropped because Alex and his family do not support a prosecution. Detective Superintendent Matt Walker said: ‘Alex and his safety has been at the forefront of our minds and actions since he was found in Toulouse, France in 2023.
![[Alex Batty, from Oldham, Lancashire, was just 11 when he went missing while travelling with family members in Spain in October 2017 A boy from Oldham who went missing in 2017 may have been found in the south of France, according to media reports. Alex Batty went missing at the age of 11 after going on holiday to Spain with his mum and grandad. They were due to fly home on October 8, 2017, but never returned. His grandmother was his legal guardian. Now, more than six years after he was last seen in the UK, reports from France have said that Alex may have been found yesterday (Wednesday, December 13) and that his identity has been confirmed by the public prosecutor of Toulouse.]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_184061921-9377.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=322)
‘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.
![[Alex Batty was last seen when he went on holiday to Spain with his mum and grandfather in 2017. A BOY believed to have been abducted on holiday six years ago has been found in France after fleeing a spiritual community. Alex Batty, who was 11 when he vanished, handed himself in at a police station after days hiking to freedom in the foothills of the Pyrenees, it is believed. Now 17, he had no documents. (Picture: PA)]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_184062672-8c3c.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
‘We have consulted with various partners, such as a complex case CPS 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.
