Criminal probe launched into child abduction following Alex's six-year disappearance

Alex Batty pictured before his disappearance. Image courtesy of GMP

Greater Manchester Police has launched a criminal investigation into child abduction as officers bid to understand the circumstances surrounding Alex Batty going missing from September 30, 2017 to Wednesday, December 13, 2023.

Alex, originally from Oldham, had been officially missing for those six years.

He left the UK for a holiday in Spain with his mother (Melanie) and grandfather (David).

He was due to return to the UK on Sunday October 8, 2017, but never did, before being discovered last Wednesday week.

Meanwhile, Alex has revealed in an interview with The Sun that he decided to return to the UK for a better future, having realised his mother was a 'great person but not a great mum’.

Interviewed for the first time, the teenager said he realised he could no longer live with his ‘anti-government, anti-vax’ mother after an argument.

He had become fed up of his nomadic lifestyle with ‘no friends’ and ‘no social life’.

Alex is now back under the legal guardianship of his grandmother Susan Caruana in Oldham.

Information can also be reported by calling 101 or via GMP’s website: www.gmp.police.uk

You can also make a report anonymously via the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Do you have a story for us? Want to tell us about something going on in and around Oldham? Let us know by emailing news@oldham-chronicle.co.uk , calling our Oldham-based newsroom on 0161 633 2121 , tweeting us @oldhamchronicle or messaging us through our Facebook page. All contact will be treated in confidence.