A boy from Oldham who went missing in Spain in 2017 has been found in France, French authorities say.
The 17-year-old, answering to the name of Alex Batty, was found in the town of Revel east of Toulouse early on Wednesday morning, the BBC reports.
When he was 11-years-old, Alex went missing whilst on holiday with his mother and grandfather in Spain.
Police launched an investigation when the family didn’t return home.
According to reports, Alex handed himself into police in Revel, near Toulouse, after ‘escaping a spiritual rural community’ in the Pyrenees.
A police source told the BBC that the boy said he had been in France for two years, and bore a resemblance to the last known picture of Alex.
He was in good health and did not say he had been mistreated in any way.
LBC reports that he is now with social services in France.
Greater Manchester confirmed they had been contacted by French authorities “regarding a possible sighting” and are in contact with them.
A spokesperson said: “This is a complex and long-running investigation, and we need to make further enquiries as well as putting appropriate safeguarding measures in place.”
Alex reportedly escaped the rural community in the Pyrenees and was picked up by a lorry driver after days hiking through mountains and villages in the upper Aude Valley.
Following his disappearance in 2017, Alex’s grandmother and official guardian Susan Caruana said his mum and grandad had opted for an “alternative lifestyle” with him.
She said: “They didn’t want [Alex] to go to school, they don’t believe in mainstream school.”
