Manchester boy, Alex Batty, who went missing six years ago is believed to have been found in France according to local authorities.
For those who don’t remember the story, Alex Batty went missing when he was just 11 years old whilst on holiday with grandparents in Spain on 30 September 2017 and, as per various reports, may now have been identified in France.
Having been escorted to a police station by a concerned motorist in the town of Revel, near Toulouse, the teenager originally from Oldham was flagged as a possible sighting and is said to be answering to the name Alex Batty.
The young boy told French police he had been in France for two years, with local authorities having noted that he bore a resemblance to the last known picture of Alex. He was also reported to be in good health and had ‘not been mistreated in any way’.
French police have claimed that missing Mancunian teen Alex Batty has been now been found. (Credit: Greater Manchester Police)
While full confirmation is still yet to be officially announced, the prosecutor’s office in Toulouse is currently verifying the identity to the BBC, stating: “It is the missing child. The family have confirmed it.”
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His grandmother and legal guardian, Susan Caruana, told the outlet in 2018 that she believed Alex’s mother Melanie and grandad David had taken him to live with a ‘spiritual community’ somewhere in Morocco after wanting him to live an ‘alternative lifestyle’.
French journalist Remi Buhagiar of La Depeche newspaper explained that the young boy was picked up by a passing delivery driver who found him wandering the foothills of the Pyrenees with a rucksack and a skateboard before picking him up and listening to his story for “three hours”.
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The now 17-year-old believed to be Alex was found walking in the rain at night and had reportedly been travelling for days. As per Sky News, he told the passerby that he’d been kidnapped by his mother and had been living in a luxury house in Spain with a group of around 10 people.
Buhagiar went on to add that Batty “asked the driver if he could borrow his phone and sent a message via Facebook to his grandmother, saying he was fine and wanted to see her”, although he was unsure if she got the message.
The boy is currently being looked after by social services and Greater Manchester Police have been contacted via the embassy in Paris to put “safeguarding measures in place”.
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A spokesperson for GMP 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.”
We sincerely hope it indeed proves to be Alex and that he will soon be reunited with his family members back here in the UK.
Popular pumpkin patch attraction describes ‘catastrophic’ impact of Storm Boelo
Daisy Jackson
Bates Farm, one of the most popular pumpkin patch attractions in the North West, has shared its heartbreak after Storm Boelo forced its closure on the busiest day of the season.
The Warrington-based family farm said the financial impact has been ‘honestly catastrophic’, after they had to cancel all tickets for Sunday.
Sisters Ali and Fiona Wilshaw, who run the farm, said it was simply not safe to allow members of the public onto the farm in the storm, with ‘crazy’ gusts of wind.
They later shared a video that showed their marquee was badly damaged and many footpaths turned to deep mud.
The sisters said they were ‘heartbroken’ to have to close at such a busy time, but stressed to followers that ‘your safety and our integrity will always come first’.
On Saturday, as Storm Austen and Storm Boelo chased each other across the UK, several people shared videos of themselves getting battered by the weather at Bates Farm.
And it’s pretty clear from that why Ali and Fi decided to cancel all tickets and close for the day on Sunday.
They wrote: “We have put in so much love, energy and investment putting on this event at this scale. The cost to cancel and refund everyone today on our busiest day of the season is honestly catastrophic, but business aside, your safety and our integrity will always come first.
“To think last night we were running round Tesco trying to stock up on milk and now we are in the depths of recovering the site to go again tomorrow. All emails and enquiries are being responded to as quickly as possible and we are doing our best to open up more available slots next week.
“We are being tested like never before, but pulling together in true force. Huge shout out to the whole team and Farmer Fi the absolute queen in any crisis.
“Thank you all for your patience and especially thank you to those who have sent such kind words and support, we are so grateful to have customers like you.
“We will be back tomorrow to enjoy the remaining of this tough season, we are putting in so many provisions with wood chip paths, undercover seating and an indoor barn to make your visit as enjoyable as possible. Ali & Fi.”
Anyone who had tickets to visit Bates Farm on Sunday will be refunded, and can book in for another date.
Bates Farm has safely reopened its autumnal experience and pumpkin patch today.
‘Violent’ Salford man jailed after raping two women he met on dating apps
Emily Sergeant
A man from Salford who police describe as ‘violent’ has been jailed after raping two women he met on dating apps.
Kenny Cox appeared at Manchester Crown Court for his sentencing last week (23 October) in relation to the rape of two women – one in November 2021 and one in September 2024.
The 46-year-old was arrested on 8 September 2024, charged and then remanded, before standing trial for both rapes in March 2025.
The trial, however, resulted in a hung jury, so a new trial commenced in August 2026, and Cox was then subsequently found guilty of two counts of rape and one of attempted rape.
It comes after, on 7 November 2021, one of the victims met up with Cox after connecting through a dating app. They went to a property in Salford, and after drinking alcohol together, the victim began to feel hazy and described herself as ‘feeling paralysed’ and ‘unable to move’.
It was during this time she was raped by the suspect.
After she was able to move, she left the property in a taxi and subsequently reported the incident to the police.
Cox was arrested on 14 November 2021 and bailed with stringent bail conditions not to contact the victim. But then, on 4 September 2024, he met up with a second victim, again after connecting through a dating app, and they went to a property in Salford where he raped her before she was able to leave and inform police.
Following the trial, Cox has been sentenced to 14 years in prison, with four years on licence.
He was also given an indefinite restraining order against the victims, and is subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
“I would firstly like to commend the strength of the victims in this case,” commented Detective Sergeant James Walsh, of GMP’s Salford Criminal Investigation Department. “They have gone through this trial process twice now and each time have has shown incredible courage to ensure Cox was put behind bars.
“He preyed on these women and is an violent, sexual offender.
“I hope this sentence and the subsequent sexual harm prevention order imposed gives the victims a sense of justice to help them try to move forward from this and put Kenny Cox firmly in their past where he belongs.”
Danny Jones -
14th December 2023 
