French authorities on Thursday said an adolescent from Britain, who disappeared six years ago in Spain, was found in a mountain region close to Toulouse, southern France.
The identity of the boy – referred to as Alex Batty, originally from Manchester – has been confirmed by the family, the local prosecution office told Reuters.
Batty went missing in 2017 with his mother and grandfather, while they were on holiday in Spain. At the time of his disappearance, he was 11 years old.
A French journalist told the BBC a delivery driver had spotted the boy walking along a road in the foothills of the Pyrenees, carrying a backpack and skateboard and, feeling sorry for him, picked him up.
“They spent three hours together in the car, and the boy told his story,” Remi Buhagiar of La Depeche newspaper said.
His grandmother – and legal guardian – Susan Caruana told the BBC in 2018 that she believed Alex’s mother Melanie Batty and grandfather David Batty had taken him to live with a spiritual community in Morocco.
She said they were seeking an alternative lifestyle and did not want Alex to go to school.
(With information from the BBC and Reuters/Photo by Greater Manchester Police)