Missing teenager reunited with family

Six years after being reported missing, British teenager Alex Batty, flew back to the United Kingdom on Saturday and has now been reunited with his family.

After embarking on a supposed two-week family vacation to Spain in 2017 with his mother Melanie Batty, 38, who does not have legal parental guardianship, and his grandfather David Batty, 59, then 11-year-old Alex never returned home to his grandmother and guardian in Oldham, near Manchester.

This prompted his grandmother to make unsuccessful appeals for information regarding his whereabouts that yielded no results, until he unexpectedly emerged last week, walking along a road in southern France late at night.

In a statement to reporters on Saturday, Assistant Chief Constable Matt Boyle of Greater Manchester Police said: "Earlier today Alex met with a family member alongside Greater Manchester Police officers at Toulouse airport, before heading back to the UK.

"This moment is undoubtedly huge for him and his loved ones, and we are glad that they have been able to see each other again after all this time."

According to Boyle, although the French authorities have shared "detailed information" about Alex's whereabouts over the past six years, Greater Manchester Police had not yet had the opportunity to speak with the teenager.

"We are yet to establish the full circumstances surrounding his disappearance, but no matter what, understand that this may be an overwhelming process," he said.

"He may now be six years older than when he went missing, but he is still a young person."

Boyle stated that the police will speak with Alex "at a pace that feels comfortable to him" to establish whether a criminal investigation regarding his disappearance will proceed. He added that officers are still seeking to locate his mother, Melanie Batty.

Alex, now 17, has been reunited with his maternal grandmother, Susan Caruana, who had been granted custody by a British court prior to his disappearance.

"I cannot begin to express my relief and happiness that Alex has been found safe and well," Caruana said in a statement issued through British police.

"The main thing is that he's safe, after what would be an overwhelming experience for anyone, not least a child."

Alex informed French officials that he had spent the previous six years engaged in a nomadic lifestyle alongside his mother and grandfather, residing in Spain, Morocco and France as members of a "spiritual community" where they cultivated their own food, practiced meditation, and delved into topics like reincarnation, reported Reuters news agency.

Alex was found by delivery driver Fabien Accidini, walking alone near Toulouse during the early hours of Wednesday. The teenager revealed to Accidini that he had been trekking in the nearby mountains for over four days, in an effort to make his way back to England.