The grandmother of Alex Batty, the British teen who was missing for six years in Europe before returning last week, has recalled her final phone call before his disappearance
Susan Caruana, the legal guardian of Alex, was emotionally reunited with him last week in Oldham after he fled his mother and grandad to return to the UK.
Melanie Batty had taken her son, then aged 11, on holiday in 2017 with her father David but they led him into an “alternative lifestyle” in France, Spain and Morocco.
Ms Caruana, 68, said she had feared she had heard the last of her grandson on a phone call six years ago.
"They completely and utterly betrayed me and left me heartbroken," she told The Sun on Friday. “[I overheard Melanie] say 'we're getting rid of the phones now'. I thought 'I'll never see him again'."
Ms Batty was described by her son as being “anti vaccination” and “anti government” in deterring him from coming back to the UK.
Alex had described the period as “hard work” although he was not attending school. He said in his interview with The Sun that he felt isolated and that returning to the UK and resuming education would be the best solution for his future.
"Every time there was some sort of disaster I feared that he could be a victim," Ms Caruana said. “[I didn’t know] if they were dead or alive.”
They were reunited on Saturday at Ms Caruana’s Oldham home with Alex saying he gave his grandma a “massive hug”.
Greater Manchester Police confirmed on Friday that a criminal investigation has been launched into his alleged abduction.
Alex had walked alone after leaving his grandad and mother on December 11 and was picked up by student Fabien Accidini, who dropped him off at a police station in Toulouse.
It was revealed later last week that Alex had invented elements of his story - including that his grandad had died - to try and deter police from the scent. He described loving Melanie but said she was “not a good mum”.
It has been reported that police believe Ms Batty has flown to Finland.
