Alex Batty pleads 'don't send my mother and grandfather to jail' in first TV interview since 'kidnapping'

Alex Batty has said he does not want to see his mother or grandfather “locked up” as the teenager who went missing for six years gave his first TV interview.

Alex, 17, returned to the UK last month after spending the last six years living in a “nomadic spiritual community” with his mother, who is not his official guardian, in mainland Europe.

A criminal investigation was launched into his alleged abduction after he was found in France last month, after he disappeared in 2017 while on holiday in Spain with his mother Melanie Batty and grandfather David Batty.

Speaking to ITV’s Good Morning Britain on Wednesday, Alex pleaded with the authorities not to send them to prison over the alleged abduction, saying: “That’s why I didn’t come home sooner. All I worried about was them getting locked up.”

Appearing alongside his grandmother, Susan Caruana, he told of the boredom of the nomadic lifestyle he lived, saying he seldom met people his own age.

He said he first made a decision to leave when he was 16, after working odd jobs to support the family’s lifestyle.

“I had thoughts of moving back to England when I was 14, and I talked to my mother and grandad about leaving for the first time when I was 16,” he said. 

Alex Batty has given his first TV interview since he went missing in 2017 (ITV / GMB)

“My mum, it was an absolute no go from her, but from my granddad, it was a case of, ‘I want to do what’s best for my life,’ and he was completely understanding of that.”

He added that he left a note in the kitchen on the day he left, telling his mother and grandfather that he understood they had made the decision they did out of love.

“[The note said] how much I loved them, how thankful for what they did, and I know it was out of love for me that they did it,” he said. 

“It’s just not the best for my future, it’s not a lifestyle you wanna be living at all. I told them not to worry about me because I know I can take care of myself.”

Alex Batty pictured before he went missing in 2017 (PA Media)

He said he “probably” would not see his mother and grandfather again.

It is thought Alex had been living with the pair across Spain, Morocco and France while he was missing. He was found in France by a driver after walking for two days.

Last month, French prosecutors said the teenager’s mother may be in Finland.

Ms Caruana, who was Alex’s guardian at the time, has previously said that his mother and grandfather “completely and utterly betrayed me and left me heartbroken”.

However, she too insisted that she did not want to see them jailed. She told GMB she could forgive her daughter, saying: “I don’t want them to go to prison, that’s the last thing that I want.”