Alex Batty explains why his mum and grandfather kidnapped him

Alex Batty was just 11 years old when he was taken by his mother and grandfather to live a nomadic, 'off the grid' life in 2017.

The three spent the next six years on the run, travelling between various locations in Spain, France and Morocco.

It was only when Alex was spotted wandering towards the city of Toulouse and picked up by a delivery driver, who dropped him off at a local police station, that he eventually returned home to his grandmother in the UK.

Nearly three years on from the ordeal, Alex has shared new details on his story in the new BBC documentary, Kidnapped by My Mum, and explainign exactly why he was abducted by his mum, Melanie, and grandad, David while on holiday in Spain.

As Alex retraced his steps through the Pyrenees, he shared new details about his mum's controversial worldview, revealing that Melanie believed that she was doing the best thing for his overall wellbeing.

"My mum's idea was that the government was in place to make us all slaves," Alex explains to a therapist at one point.

"When she's so against the government she's going to want me to be off-grid," he continues. "And that's why we went off-grid."

Alex's grandmother, Susan Caruana, also shared details about her daughter and former partner's worldview, revealing that the pair believed in the 'sovereign citizen movement'.

What is the sovereign citizen movement?

The sovereign citizen movement is an anti-government ideology which dates back to the US in the 1970s.

Followers of the movement believe that governments are illegitimate and unlawful, therefore considering themselves outside of the jurisdiction of modern nation-states.

Alex with his mum, Melanie, and grandad, David (Facebook)

"It's an anti-government conspiracy belief system," journalist Tim Hume explains in the documentary, adding: "It gives you a licence to ignore whatever laws you want and become a law unto yourself."

Because of these beliefs, sovereign citizens believe they are exempt from following local laws, as well as rejecting administrative procedures such as taxation and identity papers.

Susan revealed that Melanie didn't believe in paying a mortgage, calling them a 'fraudulent contract', a belief which caused David to have his house repossessed.

In another clip taken from an old YouTube account belonging to his grandad, Melanie can be seen telling viewers to 'turn off' their TVs and 'wake up from the bubble'.

"Melanie was looking for the truth... a community," Susan adds.

Upon his return to the UK, Alex lived with his grandma, who he maintains a close relationship with (BBC)

There was no maliciousness behind it

Despite Melanie and David's extreme views, Alex rejects the idea that they were in a cult, saying he didn't believe the group had malicious intentions.

"I imagine a cult as being a lot more malicious than what was going on," he says.

"Everyone believed the same thing, which is what a cult is, but there was no maliciousness behind it."

The investigation into his abduction concluded in January 2025, with neither Alex's mother nor grandfather being arrested.

Speaking in the doc, Alex revealed that he 'lied through his teeth' to the police about where the pair were hiding, fearing his grandma would refuse to take him back when he returned to the UK.

"Because I'd gone with my mum and my grandad, I thought that my grandma wouldn't love me anymore," he explains. "I had this fear that if I did go back to England, she wouldn't take me back.

"And because I was 11 I thought that I would get thrown on the streets and be homeless."

Kidnapped by My Mum will air on BBC Three at 9pm tonight (13 May).