The search for missing Lancashire teen Jay Slater is continuing after he went missing in Tenerife – but there remains a number of unanswered questions over his disappearance
The search for Jay Slater continues following his baffling disappearance in Tenerife.
Police are continuing to work on the case, but have so far been unable to discover what happened to Jay, from Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire. Jay, 19, went missing on a long walk back to where he was staying on the Spanish island while he was on holiday with two friends. Jay attended the NRG rave in the Playa de las Americas resort. Reports suggest that Jay returned to an Airbnb rental in the remote village of Masca with two men he’d met at the event.
He went missing on June 17 after telling his friend Luxy Law he had missed the bus, cut his leg and was now “lost in the mountains.” He told his friend he was about to run out of battery and needed water. Jay ‘walked off alone’ and uphill, the Manchester Evening News reported, talking to the Airbnb owner Ophelia Hernandez. But Jay’s family continue to be baffled by a number of things. Here are six unanswered questions:
How did nobody see Jay Slater?
Ms Hernandez said she told Jay there was a bus out of the village but it would be two hours. Despite this, Masca is a well-known tourist and is a hotspot for travellers.
Jay’s dad told the M.E.N: “There are people up there… you don’t go along that road for more than 20 minutes without somebody stopping you or passing you.”
The teen’s phone also pinged at around 8.50am on the morning he disappeared at a place close to a known viewpoint. Here, parking spaces are often full up by 10am and there are bars and cafes nearby.
Was Jay Slater seen on CCTV?
A man was spotted walking through Santiago de Teide on June 17, the day Jay went missing. They were seen walking through a church square in the village.
Jay’s family reportely told the Civil Guard about the footage and were told it was being investigated, but this has not be confirmed by police.
The village is around 7km from where Jay is believed to have stayed in Masca. Jay’s father said the man in the CCTV has a similar height and build to his son. New photos of the apprentice bricklayer have also emerged, showing him partying at the New Rave Generation festival in the south-west of Tenerife.
Why did Jay Slater stay in Masca?
Even though Masca is a popular spot for tourists, it is a rural village of around 90 residents. Though used to tourists, it is not usually the palace people stay if they are there on the island to party. Generally, it is used by hikers who enjoy the trails nearby and its landscape that experienced walkers relish, but may be difficult for beginners to navigate.
Masca is also over 100 euros taxi ride, around an hour and a half away, from where Jay was originally staying with his friends in Los Cristianos.
Why did Jay stay with strangers?
One of the key mysteries are the identities of the men Jay was staying with in Masca. The men are believed to be British, according to reports, and also booked the Airbnb rental in the remote village, in the Rural de Teno Park.
A woman in the property adjoining where Jay was staying, named only as Araceli, said she did not see Jay but saw two Brits staying there.
She said: “I never saw the missing boy, but I know people saw him walking on his own. I saw the two British men who stayed here. They came in for cafe con leche a couple of times. One was aged about 40. The other one was slightly younger. The police have spoken to them both. They arrived on Saturday and we’re due to stay until Monday, but they left on Tuesday.”
Is anyone else involved?
Conspiracy theories have swirled online after Jay went missing, most of it speculative. What is clear is that a mystery remain as police have extensively searched the island using helicopters, drones, sniffer dogs and mountain rescue units, to no avail.
There is no evidence of a conspiracy yet and if there is, Spanish police have not said so publicly but are reportedly keeping an open mind. Jay’s worried mum Debbie told the Daily Mail: “If he’s got himself mixed up with any trouble, just let him go, just let him go.”
Debbie says she is “beside herself with worry” and convinced he has been kidnapped, while Jay’s dad, Warren Slater said the teenager’s disappearance “doesn’t make sense.” Investigators are now focusing on an area where Jay’s mobile phone last pinged as they return to the ravine to look for him.
After arriving in Tenerife, Jay’s mum Debbie provided extra concerning details about her son and his potential inability to look after himself on the night he disappeared. Debbie shared fears her son “didn’t have his wits about him”, adding that Jay is “not really a drinker”, but that on the last night of the three-day rave event in Tenerife, he had been drinking spirits.
She said she warned Jay to be careful before he headed off on his first holiday with friends abroad, but fears he may not have been able to look after himself properly.
Why didn’t Jay Slater take the bus?
Jay told his friend Lucy he had missed the bus, but the hike back to where he was staying with friends was around 11 hours, or 30 kilometres, away.
Ms Hernandez also said she saw Jay waiting for a bus just outside of Masca after 10am.
