British teenager Alex Batty, who is 17 years old and has been partially insecure since he was 11, after emerging in perfect health in the south of France last Wednesday, is now back with his family, Sky News reported this Sunday. It is another chapter in a story whose contours are still unclear and which has touched people all over the world.
Following the warning from French national Fabien Accidini, who found the teenager alone in Revel, near Toulouse, French authorities took charge of the incident and arranged family reunification. Alex met relatives at Toulouse airport, in the south of France, on Saturday who were accompanied by Manchester police officers, before flying back to the UK.
The moment was described by a police source to Sky News as “extremely important” for the teenager and his family. Susan Caruana, Alex Batty’s grandmother and legal guardian, was not in Toulouse awaiting her grandson’s arrival in Britain. The plane landed at Manchester Airport early on Saturday evening, after a stopover in Amsterdam.
The birth mother’s whereabouts are unknown, but it is believed she lived in Finland. Melanie Batty, named after her, traveled to Spain with Alex Batty and his grandfather for a two-week holiday in 2017. He never returned to the UK or provided any information as to his whereabouts or that of the child, who at that time was no longer under his legal custody.
The mother has been living an “alternative lifestyle” with her father in Spain, Morocco and France for the past six years, according to Sky News. The decision to settle in Finland may have determined the boy’s desire to return to his grandmother’s company in England. So he decided to set out on foot and wander around alone for days until he was found.
Source: DN
