I will never forgive Alex Batty’s ‘off the rails’ mum – she tricked me into letting him go before he vanished, says gran
THE heartbroken nan of Alex Batty says she will never forgive her “off the rails” daughter for tricking her and abducting the schoolboy.
Susan Caruana, 68 – Alex’s legal guardian at the time – feared she would never again see the lad after six years of fretful silence.
Now 17, Alex left Britain in 2017 with his mum and grandad for what he believed was a week in Spain.
Instead, the youngster, then aged 11, spent six years on the run with mum Melanie, 43, and grandad David, 64 – being dragged across Europe.
One phone call from Spain and “I didn’t hear anything from them again until Alex was found in France,” Susan told The Sun.
“During the whole six years I never knew if they were alive or dead.
“Every time there was some sort of disaster I feared that he could be a victim. And during Covid I had no idea where he was so I didn’t know if he was in a built-up area or not.”
Susan said she will never be able to forgive Melanie and David for tricking her into letting him go abroad – and it is not her fault if they go to prison.
The retired mental health support worker had been Alex’s legal guardian for 18 months – to the anger of “chaotic” single mother Melanie.
Susan said Melanie had gone “off the rails”, and regarded her son as her “property”, demanding a £500,000 payment.
Susan recalled: “Melanie asked to take Alex on holiday and David said he would be going too. Alex wanted to go, like any child would.
“I was nervous about saying ‘Yes’ but I felt I had no choice but to give them a chance and trust them. How wrong could I have been?”
Asked if she hated her daughter and her ex for the pain they had put her through, Susan said they should take responsibility.
She added: “I don’t want to be the one to help them go to prison but if they do, then it’s not my fault. Alex has come back home of his own free will.
“He told his mother that ‘you chose this life but I don’t want it’.”
It comes as…
- Alex told The Sun of his extraordinary escape for the first time
- He also revealed the heartbreaking note he left his mum in the middle of the night before he made his escape
- He disclosed where his mum really is and that his grandad is alive
- And he delivered an emotional message to his mum and grandad following his return to the UK
- His gran, Susan, told The Sun she felt ‘utterly betrayed” by her daughter and ex-husband
- Brit cops have launched a criminal probe into the youngster’s disappearance
Susan endured a difficult relationship with her daughter after she and David split up when Melanie was 13.
She believes Melanie became spiritual after her dad attended Alcoholics Anonymous.
Susan said: “Mel has always been a daddy’s girl. She went off the rails not long after Alex was born.
“David is a good person but he’s a recovering alcoholic. She met people through him and liked the idea of it all and off she went.”
She is thrilled to be back with her beloved grandson, who came home a staggering 2,269 days after he flew out of the UK.
Susan said she first learned Alex had been found in France when she got a phone call from her Gtr Manchester Police family liaison officer.
She said: “I haven’t heard from her for a long, long time. When I saw the call I thought, ‘That name rings a bell’.
“She said, ‘We’ve just had a call from French police and we think they’ve found Alex’.
“I just cried. I couldn’t believe it.”
In a tell-all interview with The Sun, Alex Batty revealed he also feels complicated emotions towards his mother.
“She’s a great person and I love her but she’s just not a great mum,” he said.
A final clash was the last straw that led the youngster to trek 22 miles over two dates last week before a delivery driver spotted him carrying a skateboard at 3am and stopped.
He also revealed how Harry Potter was his only friend during his years on the run.
Never having the chance to go to school, he had so few friends that he read each of JK Rowling’s seven magic novels at least 20 times.
“I carried it everywhere even though it was massive and took up so much space,” Alex said.
“They’re amazing books. My main pastime was reading because most of the places we were we couldn’t get wifi. I tried to get as many as I could but it was bloody difficult.”
Alex, who left Britain with his mum and grandad in 2017 for what he believed was a week in Spain, also tried to teach himself maths and computer science whenever he could.
However he spent most of his teenage years working “five hours a day, five days a week” in return for food and lodging.
Getting educated was one of the major reasons why he walked out on his mum nearly two weeks ago from a rented house near Chalabre in France.
He told The Sun: “During all my time away I never attended school for a single day.
“The only qualifications I have are my SATs test results from primary school when I lived back in Oldham.
“That’s one of the worst things that’s happened to me throughout all this – not having a proper education.”
Now back in the UK with his beloved gran Susan, Alex plans to gain as many qualifications as he can so he can study computer science at university.
Police said on Friday they have launched a criminal investigation into the alleged abduction of Alex.
Greater Manchester cops have interviewed the British teen and are now pursuing a kidnap probe.
Child abduction carries a minimum seven-year jail term.