11 February 2024 , 23:06
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Alex Batty has shared his heartbreaking five-word message he would say to his on-the-run mother.
The teenager has admitted mum Melanie and grandad David will not risk contacting him for fear of giving away where they are while facing an international child abduction probe.
But Alex, who turns 18 on Tuesday, said he is desperate to tell Melanie, 43, he hopes she's alright, and to assure her he is fine too. He said he doesn't want police to find either Melanie or 64-year-old David.
Speaking exclusively to the Mirror from his new home with grandma Susan Caruana in Oldham, Greater Manchester, Alex said: "If I could speak to them both now, I would just say, ‘I hope you’re all right’ and tell them I’m all right."
Melanie and David are still on the run following Alex's shock reappearance last year after he went missing with them at the age of 11. Days after he was found in France and positively identified, Alex spoke to Ms Caruana on an emotional video call - their first contact in six years.
Missing British boy who vanished in Spain 6 years ago found alive in France
Melanie Batty adopted the alias Rose shortly after taking Alex on the run (PA)But his thoughts are now with his mum and maternal grandfather. The teenager added: "Mum did what she did out of love. It’s what she thought was best and that’s all you can really do, isn’t it? She and my grandad did it with the best intentions. I know they’re not going to get in contact. They’re definitely not going to risk it. If they get in contact, it’ll be when they’re 100% sure they’re all right. They won’t rush it for my birthday.
"I hope the police don’t find them. I love them both but if I don’t see them again it’s not a big deal. You can love someone and not talk to them... Mum probably wants to see me but she can’t, can she? She will probably be angry that I left. I think she’ll be angry that I didn’t listen to her."
Alex went missing in 2017 after Melanie and David failed to return him from a holiday abroad. They embarked on an “alternative” nomadic lifestyle, regularly moving around Spain and France.
Alex finally escaped life on the road on December 13, after having an argument with his mum and leaving the isolated farmhouse in the French Pyrenees where they were living.
He handed himself in at a police station near Toulouse, 70 miles north, having been picked up by a delivery driver while wandering a country road near Chalabre at 3am. He had also been spotted at a French diner.