Brad Hargreaves, who was visiting Tenerife with Jay Slater, said during the inquest today that during their final conversation, his friend promised to call him back – but never did
A friend who had travelled to Tenerife with Jay Slater has shared the heartbreaking last four words he told him in their final call before he went missing.
The Lancashire teen was visiting the Spanish island with his friends Lucy Law and Brad Hargreaves and attended the NRG music festival on June 16 last year. He disappeared on the morning of June 17 after travelling to a remote Airbnb following a night out – and his body was found in Juan Lopez Ravine on July 15 after a major search.
Brad, who is also known as Bradley Geoghegan, gave evidence during an inquest into Jay’s death at Preston Coroner’s Court this morning. Appearing in court in person, Brad told coroner Dr James Adeley that he, Jay and Lucy had met Ayub Qassim and Steven ‘Rocky’ Roccas through another contact – Brandon Hodgson – who had known the pair for some time.
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On the night before Jay disappeared, Brad said the pals had been out for drinks until 6pm before heading to the festival, where they “split up”. He recalled Jay being “kicked out” of a club, describing him as being “so drunk he couldn’t stand up”, but when the group reconvened later on he was “in a better state”, the Manchester Evening News reports.
Describing his friend as “giddy”, Brad told the court Jay had taken ecstasy and cocaine on that night. He then recalled the final conversation he had face-to-face with Jay at Magic Mike’s take-away, where Jay said he was “gonna stay” with Ayub and Rocky.
Brad said Jay told him he was going to their accommodation, and that Ayub and Rocky would “bring him back” to the apartment he had been staying at at 12pm the next day. The inquest heard Jay video called Brad from the Airbnb in Masca, where he “showed the bed they had made for him.”
He later made another call on Snapchat while he was “walking down a road” – during the conversation, Jay told his friend he would call him back, but that was the final time they spoke, Brad said. He told the inquest: “At that point I might have been feeling a bit worried. He said ‘I’m gonna come back down’ and he was asking if we had any drinks left at the apartment.”
Brad asked Jay how far he was from the apartment, and having checked his phone Jay replied “14 hours’ walk”. Brad told the court: “I said wow, why are you so far away, get a taxi back. He then said ‘I’ll ring you back’ and that was the last time I spoke to Jay.”
Later in the day, Ayub also gave evidence to the inquest and the coroner asked him about the watch Jay had allegedly stolen – which he denied. He told the court: “Jay did not steal no watch. I can say one hundred per cent.”
It comes after former detective Mark Williams-Thomas said Jay sent a cryptic text to a friend at 2.35am, before he went missing, in which he wrote: “They’ve got a marker on me.” His friend replied to the text at 3am, saying: “You need to go home lad you’re off your barnet.”
Jay then replied by writing: “You think I’m going home you must be disabled.” At this stage, the investigator said, Jay “was very heavily under the influence of drink and drugs.” According to Mr Williams-Thomas, it is possible that “some paranoia” was present “because his friends were saying he was not making much sense and being argumentative which was very unlike Jay.” He added: “Jay had no official marker on him, and yes he was around people selling drugs and he could have upset people that morning because of his state.”
The inquest will continue on Friday.
