Support truly
independent journalism
Our mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.
Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.
Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.
Louise Thomas
Editor
A TV detective investigating Jay Slater’s disappeance says the teenager was told by friends to head back to an AirBnB where he had stayed the night before he went missing.
Mark Williams-Thomas - who also investigated Nicola Bulley’s disappearance - has been assisting Mr Slater’s family in their search for the 19-year-old in Tenerife.
The 19-year-old had attended the NRG music festival on the Canary Island on Sunday June 16, before he went back to an AirBnb around an hour’s drive from the festival with two men he had met.
He left the property early on Monday morning and called his friend at 8.50am to say that he was lost in the Rural de Teno park with no water and only had one per cent battery on his phone.
Mr Williams-Thomas highlighted Jay’s strange decision to embark on the walk through challenging terrain rather than return to the AirBnb.
He said: “He was told to go back to the rental. He said he could not do that and that he had already been walking 30 minutes and that he was now off the road and walking on a track, where there were loose stones.”
Jay Slater’s dad wonders if son was making his way to sea
Jay Slater’s father Warren, 58, has been searching a trail at Jay’s last known location at Rural de Teno Park on Wednesday.
Asked if he thinks Jay may have been heading towards the sea, which was visible in the distance, Warren told the Manchester Evening News: “Maybe”.
“I’ve done this trail now twice. Every step I’ve took there’s been an opening. If you land on one of those cactus’ you’re not moving. Surely somebody’s gonna find you after two weeks.”
Speaking about the area below him, he said: “It’s hundreds of square feet of this little bushy stuff. You can’t explain this to somebody unless they see it. You can take a photograph or film it, but until you’re here...”.
Jay Slater could still be alive surviving off ‘rainwater and plants', private investigator suggests
A private investigator has urged Jay Slater’s family “not to give up hope” as he suggests he could still be alive drinking “rainwater” and eating “plants”.
Juan GarcĂa, an army reservist and private investigator, says he has been in touch with Jay Slater’s family and told The Times: ““two weeks is too premature to end the search.
“[Slater] could be alive somewhere — someone can drink from rainwater and eat plants. The family should not give up hope.”
Forensic officers spotted inside AirBnb rental property
Forensic officers were spotted at the AirBnb in Masca on Tuesday, the Manchester Evening News reports.
Two police officers were seen inside the holiday rental apartment where Jay stayed the night before his disappearance. The men, who were both wearing plain clothes, exited the property shortly after 11am wearing forensic style blue slip-ons over their shoes.
They were then seen taking the slip-ons off before speaking to a local, who had let them into the property with a key.
Jay knew men whose AirBnb he went back to ‘through friends'
The man who’s AirBnb Jay Slater visited before disappearing said they knew each other through friends.
Ayub Qassim is believed to be one of two men who invited Jay Slater back to their holiday accommodation in Masca in the early hours of Monday morning.
Jay left the Airbnb at around 8am but having missed the bus back down to his own accommodation in Playa de Las Americas, he attempted an 11 hour journey through the remote and challenging terrain of Rural de Teno park.
Mr Qassim said Jay left the house “alive” and said he knew Jay “through friends”.
“I know Jay, through friends, I’m not going to bring someone back to mine if I don’t know them,” he told the MailOnline. “I don’t know if he had beef elsewhere because I don’t know him that well, I only know him through friends.”
He added: “He’s a cool guy, Jay. He ain’t got a problem with me, I haven’t got a problem with him or his mates. We just all talk to each other and everything was sweet.”
Friends told Jay Slater ‘head back to AirBnb’ before disappearance
A TV detective investigating Jay Slater’s dissapearance has said the teenager was told by friends to head back to an AirBnB where he had stayed the night before he went missing.
Mark Williams-Thomas - who also investigated Nicola Bulley’s disappearance - has been assisting Jay’s family in their search for the 19-year-old in Tenerife.
Jay seemingly left the Veronica’s party strip in the south of the island in the early hours of Monday morning with two men he had met, before taking an hour-long drive to
They travelled an hours drive back to their holiday accommodation in Masca, which Jay left several hours later and having missed the bus, attempted to walk 11 hours back towards his own accommodation.
Mr Williams-Thomas highlighted Jay’s strange decision to embark on the walk through challenging terrain rather than return to the AirBnb.
He said: “He was told to go back to the rental. He said he could not do that and that he had already been walking 30 minutes and that he was now off the road and walking on a track, where there were loose stones.”
Family of missing teenager criticise ‘vile’ conspiracy theories
The family of Jay Slater said they were aware of the “vile” conspiracy theories being spread online about his disappearance, and said they were “extremely distressing”.
In a statement, they said: “We would like to say to the press/news/reporters, that although we do not want to lose the momentum of Jay’s disappearance, we really would like to maintain our privacy and crucially let the Spanish police get on with their investigations without hindrance from press.
“We are aware of the conspiracy theories and speculation on social media and some websites, and can only describe this as vile, the negative comments are extremely distressing to our family.
Man who’s AirBnb Jay Slater went back to breaks silence
The man who invited Jay Slater back to his AirBnb before he disappeared has broken his silence.
The 19-year-old went missing after he left the holiday accommodation early on Monday morning to catch a bus back towards his own accommodation on the other side of the island.
Ayub Qassim invited Jay back to the remote holiday cottage near the village of Masca after a night out in Playa de las Americas.
“He came to my Airbnb alive and he left my Airbnb alive,” he told the MailOnline.
He added: “I let the geezer stay at mine because he had nowhere else to go, his friends had all left him. I know Jay, through friends, I’m not going to bring someone back to mine if I don’t know them.
“I’m doing the geezer a favour and now my face is all over the news. It’s a bit mental. I haven’t even done anything.”
He insisted they had no argument and he had even given Jay a blanket to sleep in. He and his friend - who was also staying at the AirBnb - extended their trip for a day to speak with police before travelling back to the UK.
Spanish police have described the pair as “irrelevant” to the investigation.
Jay Slater is a ‘normal guy’ with a large group of friends, say family
In an emotional statement, his family described him as a “beautiful” boy who had been studying for an apprenticeship at the time he disappeared.
They said: “My son, Jay Dean Slater, came to the holiday island of Tenerife on 13 June with his friend to attend a music festival.
“On 17 June after not returning to his apartment he was reported as a missing person.
“Jay is a normal guy who is in his third year of an apprenticeship, and he is a very popular young man with a large circle of friends.
“We are a very close family and are absolutely devastated about his disappearance.
“Words cannot describe the pain and agony we are experiencing. He is our beautiful boy with his whole life ahead of him and we just want to find him.”
Jay Slater’s dad blasts ‘being left in the dark’ by Spanish police
Warren Slater, 58, was asked about the investigation today as he searched for the 19-year-old in the ravine where Jay’s phone last ‘pinged’ 16 days ago.
Commenting on the investigation, Warren said: “The police here are doing their own investigations. They’re not really telling us anything, they’re not telling you lot anything, we’re in the dark. They know best. Do you think they should be still searching?
“If it was in England I’d be making a stink, but we’re in a foreign country and we’ve just got to leave it to people who know best.”
‘Sunglasses could be vital clue in hunt for Jay Slater'
The Daily Mail’s Nick Pisa said he had spoken to a man who had “found a pair of sunglasses” on the gorge, and had handed them in to the police.
Pisa explained to GB News: “I’ve now spoken to an ex-British Army officer who found some sunglasses up there. He was asked not to put them in a plastic bag because of humidity, but to wrap them up in tissue paper, which he did.
“He handed them in and he had to give DNA and his fingerprints. The question is, are they connected to Jay?”
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiaWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3MvdWsvaG9tZS1uZXdzL2pheS1zbGF0ZXItdGVuZXJpZmUtbWlzc2luZy1mYW1pbHktZ29mdW5kbWUtYjI1NzMwNjkuaHRtbNIBAA?oc=5
2024-07-04 11:44:11Z
CBMiaWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3MvdWsvaG9tZS1uZXdzL2pheS1zbGF0ZXItdGVuZXJpZmUtbWlzc2luZy1mYW1pbHktZ29mdW5kbWUtYjI1NzMwNjkuaHRtbNIBAA